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We can assign a cost to each arc so the optimal path is represented with the lowest sum of cost. This problem can be modeled as a weighted Graph where nodes represent a state and cost associated arcs represent the transition from one state to another.
A* search is one of the most popular search algorithm and it has the following characteristics
- If there is a path existing between S to G, it can always find one
- It will always find the one that is optimal (least cost)
- Define a function: f(X) = g(X) + h(X) where ...
- g(X) = minimal cost path from A to X
- h(X) = a heuristic estimation cost from X to S. It is important that the estimated cost h(X) is less than the actual cost
- The algorithm keep track of a list of partially explored path, with an associated f(X) within a priority queue as well as a list of explored nodes. Initially the priority queue contain just one path [S] with cost C and the visited node list contains just S.
- Repeat the following ...
- Pick the lowest cost path ... based on f(X) from the priority queue to explore
- Set current_node to be the last node of the lowest cost path
- If current_node is explored already, skip this node and go back to step 3
- If current_node is the goal, then done. This is the optimal path
- Otherwise, find out all the neighbours of the current_node. For each of them, insert a path that leads to them into the priority queue.
def A_Search(S, G)
visited_nodes = [S]
priorityQ.add( << S)
lowest_cost_path = priorityQ.first # according to f(X)
node_to_explore = lowest_cost_path.last_node
continue if visited_nodes contains node_to_explore
if node_to_explore == G
add node_to_explore to visited_nodes
for each v in node_to_explore.neighbors
new_path = lowest_cost_path << v
insert new_path to priorityQ
return nil # No solution
Proof: A* Search can always find a path if it exist
This should be obvious because the while loop will only terminate if the Goal is reached or all connected node has been explored
Proof: A* Search will find the path with least cost
Lets say the algorithm find a path S -> A -> K -> ... -> G which is not the optimal path
S -> A -> B -> ... -> G
That means, in the last extraction from the priorityQ, f(G) is smaller than f(B)
This is not possible because ...
f(G) == cost(S->A->K...G) > cost (S->A->B...G) > g(B) + h(B) == f(B)
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Throughout history, we can observe that many movements within the music world often go hand in hand with what innovative techniques and ideas are simultaneously being explored within the visual arts. This month, let’s take a look at several of these movements found in both music and art, discussing how both composers and artists attempted to express these new ideas within their work. If you are interested in impressionism, expressionism, cubism, or minimalism, you may want to check out my Music and Art blogs from September 2014.
Today, let’s kick things off by looking at the term “Baroque” and what it means to the art world. Baroque is a French word that comes from the Portuguese “barroco” meaning a misshapen pearl. It applies to the abnormal or exaggerated and originally referred to ornate architecture in the mid-eighteenth century. Critics of the time preferred simpler styles thus, Baroque had a negative connotation. It wasn’t until the following century that people began to look upon this “Baroque” art in a positive light.
Though it is difficult to pin point exact stylistic features of Baroque art and music since it spans such a long period, it is best to loosely mention common traits of the time. Art tended to focus on the dramatic, containing deep color and focusing on light and shadow. The Renaissance period reflected things before an action takes place while the Baroque period showed the action itself. A great example is Rembrandt’s Portrait of a Man Rising from His Chair. This is on display at Cincinnati’s Taft Museum of Art. Have you seen it?
|Rembrandt's Portrait of a Man Rising from His Chair|
Courtesy of wikimedia.org
Next time we’ll look at how some of the dramatic and ornate features found in Baroque art map themselves onto Baroque music!
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Children in Year 6 were the first to spend an hour of their day learning how to write computer code. Using the specially designed resources on Code.Org, they were able to write their own games in a matter of minutes using Java script. If you can spare an hour of your time this week, why not have a go yourself. You’ll be surprised how easy it is!
Posted in: Computing
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Dean Stockwell was helping Joannie Ferland identify individual species from photographs of phytoplankton she’d shot with her submergible version of the microscopic imaging machine I mentioned the other day, while I looked over their shoulders. “Dinoflagellates,” Dean said to me; Joannie already knew that. The dinoflagellate we were looking at, a kind of microalgae, was a single-celled creature with a round, semi-translucent “body” and tripod-like appendages, which serve to slow down its sinking rate, and two “flagella.” We’ve been talking about phytoplankton in straightforward botanical terms, as plants that, like an apple tree, need nutrients and light to photosynthesize. True enough, but as with so many ocean things, it’s not that simple. What I find amazing is that these plants have animal characteristics. Though they lack the power to swim against the current, dinoflagellates use their flagella to move—apparently with something akin to intentionality. At sunset, they migrate vertically, actually swimming or sinking by altering their buoyancy to slightly deeper, more nutrient-richer water, then move back to the surface at sunrise. This occurs more commonly in tropical and subtropical waters than here in the Arctic where daylight lasts 24 hours. Nitzschia frigida Some dinoflagellates’ bioluminesce, that is, they emit light. Dean said that when being grazed upon by herbivorous zooplankton, the dinoflagellates use light flashes as a sort of alarm signal attracting other predators that might then attack the zooplankton, thus sparing the dinoflagellates. Come on, plants with survival ploys? “No, no kidding,” said Dean. When first sailing offshore in heavy weather, after a bout of seasickness, I flushed the seawater head and, fascinated, watched globules of green light spun around the bowl. Forgetting seasickness for a moment, I thought it the saltiest sight I’d ever seen; they might have been dinoflagellates, but other microalgae also bioluminesce. Asteroplanus kariana I spent the last hour trying to describe diatoms, that most prevalent form of phytoplankton, over 10,000 species worldwide, 3,000 in the Arctic, as Joannie brought up a few of them on her computer screen, before giving up amid a mass of un-illustrative similes. That colony of diatoms looked like discarded ribbons from Christmas-morning gifts, those individuals like delicate watch springs, others like dust-devil spirals, there a semi-folded fan, a canoe, then something like the zigzag doodles on a telephone notepad. Though I don’t like admitting it, some of nature’s physical forms—Greenland’s outflow glaciers, the curtains of Aurora borealis light, and perhaps the individual members of this oceanic world in microscopic miniature—are most evocatively revealed by visual imagery. So best to let photography and art do the talking, while I retreat to facts, but in those there is much that amazes. Individual diatom cells are encased in a silicate shell, a “frustule,” containing a drop of oil called a “lipid” that helps them maintain neutral buoyancy. When nutrients become depleted in the upper layer, the diatoms consume their fats, rather like the human body when deprived of food long enough begins to its fat. This increases the diatom’s sinking rate by decreasing its buoyancy, thus removing themselves from the unfavorable growth conditions. They sink to the bottom where some decompose and others form nascent “resting” spores until conditions improve. Most of us understand that terrestrial green plants and trees absorb carbon dioxide and do us the life-giving favor of exuding Nitzschia frigida oxygen into our atmosphere, while ameliorating the greenhouse effect of CO2. But it came as a surprise to me to learn that fully half of that atmospheric oxygen is generated by phytoplankton. Further, phytoplankton form the base of the oceanic food chain on which just about everything else in the ocean depends for its existence, hence the term “primary producers.” In the absence of diatoms, evolved during the Jurassic, and other phytoplankton, the ocean would have remained barren, no fish, none of the marine mammals that prey on fish such as seals or the polar bears that eat the seals, no baleen whales, and significantly less oxygen. And looking at it from an economic and human-lifestyle perspective, there would be far fewer oil and gas deposits, since sub-seabed fossil fuels are formed from sedimentary layers of long-dead phyto- and zooplankton. Atmospheric carbon dioxide enters the ocean because air and ocean, kindred fluids, are in physical contact; someone, speaking from a planetary perspective, likened them to two coats of paint on the same billiard ball. CO2 dissolves, entering the chemical make-up of seawater, more readily in cold, polar water than warmer low-latitude waters. And because cold water is denser than warm, it tends to sink in certain locations in the Arctic (particularly when the cold water is also salty), taking the carbon with it. When the winds and currents are favorable, this carbon- and nutrient-rich water upwells, sometimes a half a world away from the sinking site. Then primary producers consume the carbon and nutrients, and when they die and sink, they return both to the deep ocean. Some of these remain forever locked in the bottom sediment, some returned to the water column by natural mixing forces. But of course the CO2 returns to the atmosphere when we extract and burn it in our machines. Scientific consensus holds that, absent the role of the primary producers in this the so-called carbon cycle, which admittedly I’ve simplified, CO2 concentration worldwide would nearly double. Among the reasons why our scientists want to measure primary production in open water, at the ice edge, and under it is to establish a baseline in the now if they are to understand how things might change in the near and long term. For instance, the capacity of the ocean as a “carbon sink” is not infinite. If sea surface temperatures continue to rise, the oceans’ capacity to absorb carbon will decrease. Maybe the oceans have already reached maximum capacity. Also, there’s the matter of ocean acidification. When CO2 dissolves in seawater, carbonic acid forms, which acts to dissolve the carbonate shells of any ocean creatures, including bivalves, coral polyps, and others that depend on shells. How much carbonic acid can the hard-shelled ocean creatures endure? We don’t know. That’s among the reasons why scientists continue to measure. Ecologist and leading diatom researcher Eugene Stoermer casually dropped the term Anthropocene in the 1990s. He meant it to specify the epochal extent to which humans have already altered the world. Nobel laureate Paul Crutzen helped validate the term through usage, and now official geological organizations in the U.S. and UK are seriously considering adopting Anthropocene as a formal unit of geological time. We are well aware of our historical capacity to uproot individual ecosystems, replace them for material gain with our works unless forestalled by ethical decision or legal statute. But now, it is clear, we’ve gained the capacity to alter world climate. We have become a geophysical force, like volcanoes, like ice sheets. That wasn’t our original intention, and perhaps we’ll find the political will to act in response to anthropogenic climate change, perhaps not. But in any case, we can’t claim we didn’t know. Thalassiorira spChaetoceros sp Hungry for more? Why not head over to the art section and take a look at some of Chelsea’s phytoplankton drawings. Leave a Reply Cancel Reply Your email address will not be published. Name* Email* Website Comment Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Notify me of new posts by email.
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posted by Anonymous .
The tour de France is a bicycle race that begins in Ireland but is primarily a race through France. On each day, racers cover a certain distance depending on the steepness of the terrain. Suppose that one particulAr day the racers must comp,tee 210 mi. One cyclist traveling 10 mph faster than the second cyclist, covers this distance in 2.4 h less time than the second cyclist. Find the rate of the first cyclist.
Rate of 2nd cyclist = X mi/h.
Rate of 1st cyclist = (x+10) mi/h.
Eq1: d2 = Xt = 210mi.
X = 210 / t.
Eq2: d1 = (X+10)(t-2.4) = 210mi.
In Eq2, substitute 210/t for X:
(210/t+10)(t-2.4) = 210,
210-504/t+10t-24 = 210,
-504/t+10t-24 = 210-210,
-504/t+10t-24 = 0,
Multiply both sides by t:
10t^2-24t-504 = 0,
Divide both sides by 2:
5t^2-12t-252 = 0.
Solve using Quadratic Formula and get:
t = 8.4, and -6. Select positive t.
t = 8.4h.
X = 210/t = 210 / 8.4 = 25mi/h.
X+10 = 25+10 = 35mi/h = Rate of 1st cyclist.
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http://www.jiskha.com/display.cgi?id=1303153366
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In 1884, Hans Christian Gram, a Danish bacteriologist, developed a method for distinguishing between two major classes of bacteria. This technique, the Gram Stain, continues to be a standard procedure in medical microbiology. Gram was a modest man, and in his initial publication he remarked "I have therefore published the method, although I am aware that as yet it is very defective and imperfect; but it is hoped that also in the hands of other investigators it will turn out to be useful."
Gram staining is an empirical method of differentiating bacterial species into two large groups (gram-positive and gram-negative) based on the chemical and physical properties of their cell walls.
Gram staining is probably the single most useful staining procedure in a bacteriological laboratory. The technique is widely used as a tool for the differentiation of gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, as a first step to determine the identity of a particular bacterial sample.
Gram stains are performed on body fluid or biopsy when infection is suspected. It yields results much more quickly than culture, and is especially important when infection would make an important difference in the patient's treatment and prognosis; examples are cerebrospinal fluid for meningitis and synovial fluid for septic arthritis.
Gram Staining Procedure:
1. Make a slide of tissue or body fluid that is to be stained. Heat the slide for few seconds until it becomes hot to the touch so that bacteria are firmly mounted to the slide.
2. Add the primary stain crystal violet and incubate 1 minute, then wash with water for a maximum of 5 seconds to remove the unbound crystal violet.
3. Add Gram's iodine for 1 min. It is not a stain it is a mordant. It doesn't give color directly to the bacteria but it fixes the crystal violet to the bacterial cell wall.
4. Wash with Acid Alcohol. If the bacteria is gram positive it will retain the primary stain. If it is gram negative it will loose the primary stain.
5. Add the secondary stain, safranin, and incubate 1 min, then wash with water for a maximum of 5 seconds. If the bacteria is gram positive then it will retain the primary stain and will not take the secondary stain. It will look black-violet in a pink background. If it is gram negative then it will loose the primary stain and take secondary stain making it pink-red.
Gram Stain is 2 g of 90% crystal violet dissolved in 20 ml of 95% ethyl alcohol.
Gram's iodine is 1 g of iodine, 2 g of potassium iodide, dissolved in 300 ml of distilled water.
Acid alcohol is 70% ethyl alcohol containing either 0.5% or 1.0% HCl. Quite often acetone or an acetone-alcohol mixture is substituted.
In addition it now common to use basic fuchsin inistead of safranin.
The decolorizing mixture causes dehydration of the multilayered peptidoglycan in the gram-positive cell wall, thus decreasing the space between the molecules and causing the cell wall to trap the crystal violet-iodine complex within the cell. But in gram-negative bacteria, the decolorizing mixture acts as a lipid solvent and dissolves the outer membrane of the gram-negative cell wall. The thin layer of peptidoglycan is unable to retain the crystal violet-iodine complex and the gram-negative cell is decolorized. The decolorisation step is the crucial one, and requires some degree of skill, as being gram positive is not an all-or-none phenomenon.
Gram-positive bacteria (thick peptidoglycan layer): Black-violet
Gram-negative bacteria (thin peptidoglycan layer, and an outer membrane): Pink-Red
As a general rule of thumb (which has exceptions), gram-negative bacteria are more dangerous as disease organisms because:
- Outer membrane hidden by capsule or slime layer (which hides its antigens, or "foreign markers")
- Gram-negative bacteria have lipopolysaccharide in their outer membrane, an endotoxin which increases the severity of inflammation (so severe it may lead to septic shock).
Gram-positive bacteria infections are less severe because of human body's production of lysozyme, an enzyme that attacks the open peptidoglycan layer of gram-positive bacteria. Gram-positive bacteria are also much more susceptible to beta-lactam antibiotics, such as penicillin.
After the staining distinction, the bacteria are further distinguished via their shape - as rods or cocci.
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How do refugees come to America?
Less than 80,000 refugees participated in the U.S. Resettlement Program (USRP) last year. It is a lengthy, difficult process. Below are the steps a refugee must take to resettle in the United States:
- Becoming a Refugee
Refugees flee their homes, businesses, farms, and communities in order to escape war and persecution. Often refugees flees to save their or their families’ lives. They rarely know how long it will be before it is safe to return home and they often have no time to plan the departure or pack appropriately. Family records, professional documents, diplomas, photographs, and other precious items are often left behind.
Seeking Legal Refugee Status
In order to receive official refugee status in a country of asylum, an individual has to have left his or her home country due to a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, social group affiliation, or political opinion. The office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is usually responsible for awarding legal refugee status. In addition, UNHCR often offers refugees protection, assistance, and alternative legal and travel documents.
UNHCR refers only about 1 percent of all refugees for resettlement in a third country. Only when all efforts to either help refugees return home or settle permanently in the country of asylum have failed does third country resettlement become the option of last resort. The following countries have resettlement programs: Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States. Other countries accept individual refugees on an ad hoc basis. Family ties, trade skills, professional abilities, language facility, and various other factors are considered by UNHCR when matching a refugee with a resettlement country.
- Seeking Admission to the U.S. Resettlement Program(USRP)
Referral to the USRP
Only refugees who have been referred by UNHCR or by the U.S. embassy in the country of asylum are eligible for the USRP. Usually, a family is referred together as a single group. The Department of State’s Bureau for Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) oversees this program. The State Department develops application criteria, refugee admission ceilings, and presents eligible cases to a division of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), for adjudication. The State Department’s Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) describes the process of application for admission to the United States as a refugee in 9 FAM Part IV Appendix O.
Refugees who meet the criteria for application to the USRP are interviewed by a USCIS officer who travels to the country of asylum. The U.S. Department of State contracts resettlement and/or nongovernmental organizations to assist refugees who may need help preparing their resettlement application forms. The application typically consists of USCIS Form I-590, family tree, and biographical information. The USCIS officer decides whether the applicant is a refugee as defined under U.S. law. An individual’s designation as a refugee by UNHCR does not guarantee admission to the USRP.
Refugees whose applications for U.S. resettlement receive USCIS approval are matched with an American resettlement organization that will facilitate their resettlement to the United States. Most of these nonprofit organizations rely on professional and volunteer staff to assist refugees in the resettlement process. If rejected, the applicant has thirty days to file a motion to reconsider the denial with the nearest USCIS district office. Generally, a motion is considered only if it contains new information not available at the original interview.
- Refugee Resettlement in the United States
Being Matched with an American Resettlement Organization
Detailed information on all refugees approved for resettlement in the United States is sent to the Refugee Data Center (RDC) in New York. RDC matches refugees with one of eleven voluntary agencies that provide reception and placement services for refugees coming to the United States.
In order to ensure that a refugee understands that everyone living in America is expected to be self-sufficient and that no refugee should be an undue burden to American society, he or she must complete several additional steps before traveling to the United States. These activities are undertaken concurrently and can take from 2 months to 2 years to complete:
- Assurance process: The American resettlement organization must “assure” the Department of State that it is prepared to receive each matched refugee. This “assurance” is a written guarantee that various basic services will be provided to the refugee and any accompanying family members in the initial resettlement phase. At this time, the resettlement organization determines where in the United States the refugee will be resettled based on the availability of housing, employment, needed services, readiness of host community, and a variety of other factors. However, if a refugee has a relative in the United States, every effort is made to resettle the refugee near that relative. Refugees do not have to have U.S. sponsors to be resettled in the United States.
- Medical clearance: Prior to coming to the United States, all refugees are medically screened by a health care professional working for the U.S. government. The screening identifies medical conditions that require follow-up or constitute a public health concern. A few serious conditions may render a refugee ineligible for entry into the United States; however, a waiver may be available. After being “medically cleared,” a refugee must enter the United States within one year.
- Security clearance: All refugees must undergo a security clearance procedure prior to coming to the United States. The level of clearance needed depends on the refugee’s country of origin. In most cases, the refugee’s name is checked against the FBI’s database of known terrorists and undesirables, as well as the State Department’s database of people who have been denied visas to enter the United States in the past.
- Cultural orientation: All refugees receive some form of cultural orientation prior to coming to the United States. Most programs emphasize the importance of self-sufficiency in American society, as well as what to expect in the initial resettlement phase. Classes range in length from three hours to several days.
Travel to the United States
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) arranges air travel for most U.S.-bound refugees. Before a refugee leaves the country of asylum, he or she signs a promissory note and agrees to repay the U.S. government for travel costs. Upon receiving necessary travel details from IOM, the American resettlement organization makes arrangements for the refugee’s arrival.
United States Arrival and Reception
After meeting, welcoming, and assisting the refugee at the airport, the resettlement organization begins the process of helping the refugee become settled in his or her new community.
First Steps in U.S. Resettlement
Most newly arrived refugees desperately want a permanent home. Resettlement organizations work hard to find housing for each refugee that is safe, sanitary, of a sufficient size, affordable, and accessible to public transportation. The American resettlement organization that assured a refugee’s case is responsible for assisting the refugee in the initial resettlement phase. Each resettlement organization provides a variety of services to promote early self-sufficiency and cultural adjustment. The following activities take place within the first thirty days of arrival:
- Application for a Social Security number: Refugees need social security numbers in order to seek employment or enroll their children in school. All refugees register with the Social Security Administration as soon as possible.
- School registration: All refugee children are enrolled in school upon arrival in the United States.
- Medical evaluation: Even though refugees are medically screened prior to entering the United States, each is examined again by medical professionals in their new communities. At this time, refugees are familiarized with their local health care system. They also receive needed inoculations and other necessary treatments.
- English language training: Refugees often do not speak any English when they arrive. Learning English is an essential step to becoming self-sufficient. Voluntary agencies often provide English Language Training (ELT) courses or help refugees find available classes in their new community.
- Becoming a Contributing Member of the Community
Refugees enter the United States with authorization to work. The U.S. government expects a working-age refugee to find a job within six months of arrival. Resettlement organizations often have employment specialists who help refugees with their job search. Many states have a designated agency that receives state funds to help refugees find work. This function is usually coordinated by the State Refugee Coordinator.
Gaining Permanent Residency
Refugees can apply for Permanent Resident Alien (PRA) status (commonly known as a “green card”) after they have been in the United States for one year.
Becoming a Citizen
Refugees can apply for U.S. citizenship after residing in the United States for five years. Many resettlement organizations have citizenship programs that assist, guide, and encourage refugees through the naturalization process.
Building a New Life
Refugees spend many years overcoming past trauma, locating family members, adjusting to American culture, building careers, raising families, finding their first dream home, and creating a new life for themselves in the United States.
More details on particular aspects of this process can be obtained from these agencies:
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Why Water Aerobics Works
Water aerobics is a form of exercise that involves performing movements in the pool, such as jogging, twisting, lunging and performing jumping jacks. The warm water provides a supportive, cushioning medium, but may feel quite different than pounding the pavement in your favorite running shoes. Water aerobics proves you do not have to be on dry land to work up a sweat, tone your body or burn calories that help you lose weight. Always speak with your physician before beginning any exercise program to ensure you are in good enough health.
Characteristics of Exercise
Aerobic exercise refers to that which challenges your cardiovascular and respiratory systems to work above their normal capacity. At its most basic level, water aerobics works because the movements in the water increase your body’s need for oxygen. Your heart starts beating faster, pumping blood to needed organs. Because your heart is a muscle, challenging it through water aerobics helps your heart grow stronger and makes it better prepared to beat faster during your next water aerobics session.
Water aerobics may be your exercise of choice because it burns calories, which can help you lose weight. A 160-pound person will burn an average of 402 calories during a one-hour water aerobics session, according to MayoClinic.com. A person the same weight engaging in low-impact exercise burns about 365 calories for the same session length. A 200-pound person will burn even more calories during water aerobics -- an estimated 501 calories per one-hour session. Over time, these calorie-burning sessions can add up to weight loss. MayoClinic.com recommends engaging in at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity per week or 75 minutes of vigorous, heart-pounding physical activity. If you choose water aerobics as your exercise of choice, meeting these recommendations may help you to lose weight.
Impact on Body
If you have injuries or conditions that affect your joints, such as osteoarthritis, or you are a beginning exerciser, water aerobics may provide a gentle workout that takes pressure off your joints. Water aerobics is especially beneficial to those with chronic diseases, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. If you have tried other workouts in the past, such as high-impact jogging or step aerobics, and found them to be too hard on your body, water aerobics may work for you as an exercise option. You can increase the intensity of water aerobics by using special equipment, such as water-floating devices or tools that create extra drag for added resistance, according to a December 2011 study published in the "International Journal of Sports Medicine."
Bone Health Considerations
Because water aerobics does not have the impact a sprinting session does, a common misconception is that water aerobics is easy, according to Bonnie Sanders Polin, Ph.D., writing on “Diabetic Lifestyle.” But the exercise is truly what you make of it. If you push yourself to a high level in the pool, you may achieve a similar intensity and fat loss rate as land-based exercises, according to a study published in the December 2006 issue of the "Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness." You may wish to incorporate some strength-training sessions into your weekly workouts. This is because water aerobics is a low-impact exercise and does not help to strengthen bones as its higher-impact counterparts can. Twice weekly strength-training sessions can help to strengthen your body and your bones, according to MayoClinic.com.
- Fitness: Slim Down in a Splash: Pool Workout
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Health Benefits of Water-Based Exercise
- Diabetic Lifestyle: Exercise Option: Water Aerobics
- MayoClinic.com: Exercise for Weight Loss: Calories Burned in 1 Hour
- International Journal of Sports Medicine: Cardiorespiratory and Neuromuscular Responses During Water Aerobics Exercise Performed With and Without Equipment
- Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness: Aerobic Exercise in Water Versus Walking on Land
- Photodisc/Valueline/Getty Images
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The UNM Department of Anthropology Colloquium Series presents "History Written in Bones: Life and death at La Isabela, Columbus' first permanent town in the New World (AD 1494-1498)" on Thursday, Nov. 29 at 4 p.m. in Hibben Hall, room 105.
Speaker Andrea Cucina, Faculty of Anthropological Sciences at the University Autónoma de Yucatan, lectures on La Isabela was the first permanent European settlement in the New World. Founded by Christopher Columbus in 1494, it was characterized by famine, disease and death until abandonment in 1498. The analysis of the skeletal remains unearthed in the town's small cemetery, in conjunction with historical and archaeological information, reveals the population's demic and ethnic structure, pathological conditions and possible reasons behind the settlers' swift deaths.
First Permanent European Settlement in the New World Topic of Lecture
November 19, 2012
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New foreign language aptitude tests invented by researchers at the University of Maryland can predict how advanced someone can become in gaining proficiency at a foreign language after the age of 12.
The invention, one of nine nominees for the Invention of the Year Award, is a battery of tests created by Area Director-Second Language Acquisition Catherine Doughty of UMD’s Center for Advanced Study of Language (CASL), along with research team members Anita Bowles, Michael Bunting, Susan Campbell, Meredith Hughes, Scott Jackson, Joel Koeth, Jared Linck, Meredith Mislevy, Noah Silbert, Benjamin Smith, and Medha Tare.
Doughty describes the new battery of tests as a gold-standard that can predict which individuals will be able to attain advanced proficiency. The battery of tests, known as Hi-LAB, or High-Level Language Aptitude Battery, makes use of the recent models on second language acquisition and the working memory system.
“Only the Hi-LAB directly engages the cognitive processes comprising language aptitude,” said Doughty. “Other solutions use multiple-choice proxies rather than direct testing.”
The device also presents the results in a structured manner as an aptitude profile, with the scores and recommendations for how teaching methods could be modified to leverage the candidate’s cognitive strengths.
“Other solutions simply report one overall score,” Doughty explained.
The Hi-LAB actually ensures that each individual receives personalized instructions matched to their cognitive strengths. Hi-LAB was funded by the Research Directorate at the National Security Agency (NSA).
Hi-LAB’S government and military users include Human Resources and the Associate Directorate of Education and Training at the NSA.
Describing the Hi-LAB’s wide variety of uses, Doughty said that if a company has already hired personnel, the test results can help select individuals from the existing workforce who will have the best potential to benefit from language training, which can be costly for companies in terms of training expenses and the time employees spend away from the job.
“Hi-LAB aptitude profiles inform the matching of the most effective instructional materials and techniques to each and every individual so that they all have the best chance of succeeding,” Doughty said.
Results from Hi-LAB could also have secondary uses as part of the Language Management Systems (LMS) that are already being used to boost the adaptability levels of individuals, extending beyond mastery.
Doughty said that if Hi-LAB is inserted into the LMS, it can identify the activities and materials that will be most effective for students, “…and they will not waste any time in modes of learning that are mismatched to their aptitude,” she said.
April 20, 2015
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Hubble’s Journey to the Center of our Galaxy
Peering deep into the heart of our Milky Way galaxy, NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope reveals a rich tapestry of more than half a million stars. Except for a few blue foreground stars, the stars are part of the Milky Way’s nuclear star cluster, the most massive and densest star cluster in our galaxy. So packed with stars, it is equivalent to having a million suns crammed between us and our closest stellar neighbor, Alpha Centauri. At the very hub of our galaxy, this star cluster surrounds the Milky Way’s central super-massive black hole, which is about 4 million times the mass of our sun.
Astronomers used Hubble’s infrared vision to pierce through the dust in the disk of our galaxy that obscures the star cluster. In this image, scientists translated the infrared light, which is invisible to human eyes, into colors our eyes can see. The red stars are either embedded or shrouded by intervening dust. Extremely dense clouds of gas and dust are seen in silhouette, appearing dark against the bright background stars. These clouds are so thick that even Hubble’s infrared capability could not penetrate them.
Hubble’s sharp vision allowed astronomers to measure the movements of the stars over four years. Using this information, scientists were able to infer important properties such as the mass and structure of the nuclear star cluster. The motion of the stars may also offer a glimpse into how the star cluster was formed — whether it was built up over time by globular star clusters that happen to fall into the galaxy’s center, or from gas spiraling in from the Milky Way’s disk to form stars at the core.
This picture, spanning 50 light-years across, is a mosaic stitched from nine separate images from Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3. The center of the Milky Way is located 27,000 light-years away. The “snowstorm” of stars in the image is just the tip of the iceberg: Astronomers estimate that about 10 million stars in this cluster are too faint to be captured in this image.
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Sara has been a vegetarian from her early teens till her early thirties, which is for the last 15 years. She started having eyesight problems when she was 18 and things kept on becoming worse for her by the time she was in her thirties. At this time she was suffering from extreme depression, her periods kept on becoming more and more painful and tinnitus and chronic fatigue began.
And earlier this month Sara was admitted to hospital after flu put her in bed for over 10 days. Specialist doctors found that she was extremely underweight and suffering from a high vitamin B12 deficiency and low hemoglobin levels. The doctor gave her high injection doses of vitamin b12 which improved her condition. Now she self-injects her with vitamin B12 every other day.
Vitamin B12 is also referred as the energy vitamin for us. Our body requires vitamin b12 for a number of different purposes such as blood cell development, energy production, DNA synthesis, and myelin formation. Myelin is insulation which protects the nerves and helps them to effectively communicate with each other.
Vitamin B12 Problems for Vegetarians
Vitamin B12 is not widely available in plants so this problem is very common among vegans. If you aren’t a meat eater, you might be suffering from Vitamin B12 deficiency as well. In case you are wondering if meat eaters ever suffer from Vitamin B12 deficiency, I would like to tell you that it’s possible and there are few reasons to this such as old age, usage of antacids and anti-ulcer drugs, usage of metformin and other medications. All of these can hamper absorption of B12.
Common symptoms of Vitamin B12 deficiency
These are the common symptoms that are experienced by Vitamin B12 deficiency patients:
- Depression: Depression occurs due to the shortage of compounds known as monoamines. Vitamin B12 helps in the production of monoamines which then eliminates depression.
- Sleep Problems: If you are finding it difficult to sleep, you must get a medical checkup for Vitamin B12 deficiency. The possible reason could be the lack of melatonin in your body.
- Cancer: As we have already discussed above, Vitamin B12 has an important role in DNA synthesis. Vitamin B12 deficiency can result in damaging your DNA which can cause cancer.
- Anemia: It is a disease which is caused due to the shortage of red blood cells in your body. Vitamin B12 helps in the production of red blood cells and prevents this disease from affecting other organs and functions in the body.
- Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Disease: Lack of folic acid and vitamin B12 can raise your homocysteine levels which could result in increased risk of heart disease and strokes.
It is always recommended that you keep your diet balanced by eating vegetables and meat. This would keep you healthy and eliminate a lot of possible diseases. But still, if you find it difficult to eat meat, there are other options for you such as oral and injection doses of vitamin B12.
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American Psychological Association is a style of writing which is prescribed for citing sources within research paper writing. APA citation maker is an online database offering tools that assist in formatting your academic paper in APA style of writing. It will guide you to structure your citations and the reference page in appropriate paper format. APA citation is designed to make sure you cite your references and sources in a proper way. The APA citation creator has been featured as it automatically formats any data provided in APA style to suit the reference page. It will only require you to provide the elements to be cited via filling the fields, so the APA citation maker will save you time doing the rest of the work.
Coolessay not only writes your essay, but also provides free APA or free MLA citation
The APA automatically generates the citation of your paper according to the set standards. The purpose of the APA citation is to assist you in proper providing of information, sources, ideas, and any quoted information used in your research paper. You can get free MLA citation format guidelines to adjust your research paper in English online. You will find out that MLA style is a system for writers to reference their sources through in-text citations within essays and to specify them at the works cited page. The free MLA citation guides you receive will clearly show how to build your credibility and demonstrate accountability to your source material. Use of MLA style will protects you from accusation of plagiarism, which is an accidental or purposeful use of unaccredited sources written by other people. To get MLA citation guidelines, you can access the MLA handbook available in libraries, bookstores, writing centers and MLA website. Make sure to consult the MLA guideline to write a research paper in MLA format without any mistakes.
Basic Requirements by APA Citation Style
To understand whether your paper has been properly cited according to the APA standards, you should know the following features of APA paper format:
- Remember about the title page. Your paper of an APA format need to have a title page with the running head with your paper`s title up to 50 signs with spaces included. Each following page needs to have a running head as well.
- Add an abstract. Your paper text should start from an abstract: a brif information on what is your paper about. A good abstract should be written based on the certain structural rules as well.
- Make sure that your works cited page is organized in an alphabetical order. The references should be organized according to the first names of the authors. If there are a few writers for the certain sources, take into account the first one only
To learn more about the APA citation rules, you can also place an order and get assited by the experts with CoolEssay.Net
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Otto Hugo Wilhelm Steinert, born in Saarbrücken on July 12, 1915, was the father of "subjective photography". Steinert studied among other things medicine in Munich from 1934-1939. In 1937, he was a cornet in the medical corps of the armed forces, and during the world war he was primarily deployed as a physician.
After the war, he first continued to work as a doctor in Kiel, but he returned after two years to Saarbrücken and worked as a portrait photographer. In 1948 he took over leadership of a photography class at the State School for Art and Handcrafts there.
From 1949-50, together with Reisewitz, Keetman, Lauterwasser, Schneiders and Windstoßer, he was a charter member of the group "fotoform", which advocated for a new artistic conception of photography.
In the following year, the first exhibit of "subjective photography" in Saarbrücken took place under Steinert’s leadership. The exhibit included over 700 works by international photographers and had the goal of reforming art photography. According to Steinert, subjective photography should form a framework "that includes all areas of personal photographic creation, from non-representational photograms to psychologically in-depth reportage in picture form".
Steinert’s own work is very multifaceted. The autodidact experimented with different photographic techniques (movement blurriness, montage, solarization, etc.). Among his best known works are "Ein-Fuß-Gänger" [A Pedestrian/One-Footed Walker] (1950) and "Maske einer Tänzerin" [Dancer’s Mask] (1952). Steinert varied not only his technique, but also worked on a broad range of subjects and worked with portrait and landscape photography, advertising photography and reportage.
In 1952 he became a principal in Saarbrücken, and two years later he was appointed professor. In the same year, the exhibit "subjective photography 2" took place, while in 1958 a third and final one followed. In 1959, Steinert took a position in Essen at the Folkwang School, where he organized numerous exhibits, was responsible for the "Photographic Collection of the Folkwang Museum", and taught as well. Steinert’s teaching career shaped an entire generation of photographers.
Otto Steinert died on March 3, 1978, in Essen.
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By changing how they use water, rice growers in Arkansas, Mississippi and California cut their methane emissions and opened a door for agriculture in carbon markets.
Source: Environmental Health...Read More
Discovering the function of a gene requires cloning a DNA sequence and expressing it. Until now, this was performed on a one-gene-at-a-time basis, causing a bottleneck. Scientists have invented a tech...Read More
Over two million years ago, a third of the largest marine animals like sharks, whales, sea birds and sea turtles disappeared. This previously unknown extinction event not only had a considerable impac...Read More
Billions of pieces of plastic are floating in the oceans. Their effects are also sufficiently well-known: marine animals swallow them or get tangled up in them, which can cause them to die in agony. O...Read More
Much the way every person has a unique microbial cloud around them, ships might also carry distinct microbial signatures. The key is testing the right waters — the bilge water from the bottoms o...Read More
As other countries look to China to take the lead in fighting global warming after President Trump’s rejection of the Paris climate agreement, President Xi Jinping is pushing ahead with an ambit...Read More
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What is Kahoot?
- Kahoot is a game-based classroom response system
- Create and play quizzes, discussions and surveys using any device with a web browser
- Motivate participation through game-based learning and rewards in a social setting
Students Love Kahoot
- I know students love this game from the feedback I receive from other teachers and from my own experience with using Kahoot.
- Students ask me “Can we please play Kahoot?” For every game there is always lots of laughter and students are very engaged.
- At the end of the 2014/15 school year, I gave students a day to complete missing assignments. There were several students who were finished all of their work. These students got together and set-up their own game of Kahoot. I did not suggest it, they just really wanted to play. This was more evidence for me that students love this interactive tool.
Why use Kahoot?
- You can create your own quizzes in Kahoot to assess student understanding and/or review material before a test.
- There are many public Kahoots, created by teachers
- You may be able to find one with questions on a topic you teach by using the search option within Kahoot
- I also like to use Kahoot just for fun
- Use a games to get to know your students at the beginning of the semester or for having fun for a few minutes at the end of the day
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Catholic Encyclopedia (1913)/Simon Starowolski
Born at Stara Wola, near Cracow, 1585; died at Cracow, 1656; studied at Louvain, but took his degrees in the University of Cracow, after which he travelled in various countries of Western Europe. Returning, he taught philosophy in the University of Cracow, and then became secretary to Chodkiewicz, whom he accompanied on his expedition to Chocim. For years he was a tutor to young noblemen, and again went over Europe in this capacity with the Hetman Koniecpolski's son. In 1639 he was ordained priest, and subsequently became a canon in Cracow. During the Swedish siege (1655) he administered the diocese for Bishop Gebicki, and it became his duty to show the cathedral to the Swedish king. When he pointed to the tomb of Lokietek who, he said, thrice an exile, had returned thrice, Charles Gustavus remarked that "John Casimir would never return". "Serenissime Rex", he replied, "fortuna variabilis, Deus immutabilis." He died some months later, before John Casimir's triumphant return.
Starowolski wrote most abundantly and on every possible subject - history, geography, law, strategy, theology, and politics. His province also embraced literature, for his "Scriptorum Polonicorum Hecatontas" is a short biography of Polish authors, with the titles of their works. This he wrote during his travels abroad, where he published it in Latin, to instruct foreigners in Polish matters. At the same time he wrote books in Polish, chiefly of a moral character, and many theological treatises; also two collections of sermons entitled: "The Lord's Sanctuary" and "The Ark of the Testament". His chief political works are: an exhortation to put down the Tatars; "The True Knight"; and three works intended to reform Polish morals, with different titles, and in different degrees of elaboration. Last, and shortly before his death, appeared his famous though short "Lament of the dying Mother, Poland, over her undutiful sons"; from Skarga's days to those of Mickiewicz, no equally lofty expression of patriotism appeared. Starowolski wrote more than sixty books; but those mentioned suffice to give an idea of the extent of his learning, intelligence, assiduity, and zeal for his country's welfare. In the commonwealth, tottering to its fall, he was one of the most public-spirited men; possibly there was not a single evil in Poland which he did not denounce. And thus, though no genius, he is most worthy of respect, and is the principal literary figure of those times. As a writer, perhaps on account of his numerous works, he is neither very correct nor very brilliant; yet at times (as in the Lament), under the influence of his indignation, he rises to heights of thrilling eloquence. As a political writer, he possesses the quality of sound common sense, and not unfrequently succeeds in pointing out the right means of saving the State. On the whole, he is somewhat more of a moralist than of a politician; at all events, in his writings, the reform of morals takes up a larger place than the regeneration of the commonwealth.
TYSZNSKI, Symon Starowolski (Warsaw, 1874); WIERSBOWSKI, Simonis Starowolskii Elenchus operum (Warsaw, 1854); BRÜCKNER, Gesch. der polnischen Literatur (Leipzig, 1901).
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What is a radian?
Radians are just another way to measure angles. Here's how:
Start with a circle. The radius of the circle is a line from the center of the circle to a point on the edge. In Diagram A, that's the line CA. Start point A moving counterclockwise around the circle. It will trace out an arc as it travels. When the arc is as long as the radius of the circle, stop. Call that point B. You now have an arc AB, and an angle ACB. That angle at C is equivalent to one radian. So, the length of arc AB is the same as the length of the radius of the circle, which is line CA. Here's the rule:
- The lengths of the arc and the radius are equal.
Since C = 2πr, and since we already said the radius of the circle equals one radian, setting r = 1 means that C = 2π radians. In other words, there are 2π radians in the circumference of the circle, which is 360 degrees. So, 360 degrees = 2π radians. Knowing that, we can now convert between radians and degrees.
Since there are 2π radians in 360 degrees, we get: 2π rad = 360 deg. Diving both sides by 2π, rad = 360/2π = 180/π. And, because 360 deg = 2π rad: dividing both sides by 360, deg = 2π/360 = π/180. To summarize:
- Given degrees, you get radians with rad = deg × 180/π.
- Given radians, you get degrees = rad × π/180.
You'll see charts that tell you 90 degrees equals π/2 radians, or 315 degrees equals 7π/4 radians. How did they get that?
Remember that C = 2π, meaning that there are 2π radians in 360 degrees. To find out how many radians are in, for example, 90 degrees, we just multiply 2π by the ratio 90/360, like this:
radians = 90/360 × 2π.
Reducing the fraction, we get ¼ × 2π, which simplifies to 2π/4, or π/2. So 90 degrees = π/2 radians.
Let's do a few more:
180 degrees = 180/360 × 2π = ½ × 2π = 2π/2 = π radians.
270 degrees = 270/360 × 2π = ¾ × 2π = 6π/4 = 3π/2 radians.
360 degrees = 360/360 × 2π = 2π radians.
Try the calculations for yourself! 45, 135, 225, and 315 degrees are all common angles.
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A team of Chinese researchers has developed a material that mimics the way corals suck industrial pollutants out of the water. It's hoped the discovery could help combat health issues in fishing communities around the world.
Heavy metals like mercury, lead and arsenic are released into the oceans through manufacturing and industrial processes. Plants absorb them, but when animals eat those plants, and when those animals are themselves eaten, the pollutants build up in the food chain. Top predators - including humans - then end up with very high levels in their bodies.
Corals are particularly good at adsorbing pollutants, due partially to their structure. So a team lead by Xianbiao Wang created plates of aluminium oxide (which has previously proved useful in cleaning up heavy metals) curled up into a coral-like formation.
During testing, the coral-like plates removed 2.5 times as much mercury from water than traditional aluminium oxide nanoparticles. The details of the tests were published in the Journal of Colloid and Interface Science.
"We are very excited about the results, which provide a good example for the production of coral-like adsorbents," said Wang. "We hope our work provides inspiration for more research into the development of materials that mimic biological organisms."
Image credit: Matt Kieffer // CC BY-SA 2.0
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Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Any discussion of the people who lived in the Fingerlakes before the American settlers took possesion of the land must include Bare Hill and Vine Valley. Bare Hill and near by Vine Valley were very early and important centers of occupation. For as much as a thousand years a culture that preceded the Seneca lived in this unique spot that offers a sheltered shallow bay, a stream that fish migrated in and out of, and a hill top with a majestic view of the surrounding area. This culture is known by many names, Arthur C. Parker, of the Rochester Museum, renown archeologist of Seneca decent named them the Middlesex culture. This ancient culture was closely tied too the mound building cultures. Specifically the Adena and Hopewell cultures. Another name given is the Algonquin people.
Unlike the Seneca these earlier people created sophisticated art and had extensive trade with other tribes. These people had copper artifact which indicate trade with the people that live around lake Michigan where native copper is found. The Seneca did not use copper, in fact they resented it as a material of their defeated enemies.
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How to Combat Lactic Acid
When you push your body with vigorous exercise such as endurance running or lifting weights, your body begins to generate energy anaerobically via the metabolization of glucose. As a side effect, this process creates high lactate levels and in turn creates high acidity in muscles' cells, which indirectly leads to – quite literally – feeling the burn. While this process serves as a natural defense mechanism against overworking your muscles, a couple quick and easy additions to your regimen can help you take your workout a little further by staving off lactic acid buildup.
Cool down after vigorous exercise. For the last five or 10 minutes of your workout, do a low-intensity version of your exercise. For instance, cap off a run with a jog or follow loaded squats with body-weight squats. This process helps the body transition from the “warmed up” post-workout state back to its normal operating temperature. A proper cooldown encourages blood flow and muscle elasticity, preventing lactic acid buildup along the way.
Take an ice bath after intense exercise such as sprinting or distance running. Fill up a tub with two or three bags of ice and cold water, throw on some warm waterproof clothes and soak for about 15 to 20 minutes. Ideally, your ice bath should be between 50 and 59 degrees Fahrenheit. The chilly temperature causes your blood vessels to contract, bringing oxygen to your muscle tissues and allowing the body to flush out the byproducts of exercise, such as lactic acid.
Try interval training, or adding short bursts of high-intensity exercise to your regular workout regimen. For instance, sprint for 30 seconds during your run, return to your normal pace, sprint for a minute and run normally once again. In addition to regulating the production of lactic acid, interval training increases your endurance, burns more calories than regular exercise and adds a little variety to your routine.
- Just like cooling down, warming up also prevents muscle strain and soreness. Begin your workout routine with five to 10 minutes of a low-impact version of the day's exercise and dynamic, in-motion stretches that target the muscle groups you plan on working, such as lunges and shoulder circles before weighted squats.
- The Scientific American: Why Does Lactic Acid Build Up in the Muscles? And Why Does it Cause Soreness?
- Australian Sports Commission: The Warm Up and Cool Down
- Mayo Clinic: Aerobic Exercise: How to Warm Up and Cool Down
- Runner's World: Ice Baths: Cold Therapy
- BBC Sport Health and Fitness: Why Sports Stars Love Ice Baths
- Delano Public Schools: 10 Things You Should Know About Lactic Acid
- Polka Dot Images/Polka Dot/Getty Images
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At TheBestSchools.org, we provide students with useful resources for their education.
Here are some of our most popular current resources:
The Savvy Student’s Guide to Study Skills is designed for any student who realizes that there’s always room for improvement. Learning more about the essential academic and life skills discussed in our Savvy Student’s Guide to Study Skills can be your ticket to success.
Savvy Student’s Guide to Online Education is for the students interested in distance learning classes, but ask whether it’s right for them. We’ve covered the most relevant points to consider as you decide if this is a learning tool that will meet your needs.
Savvy Student’s Guide to College If you are thinking about college and feel like you have so many question that you don’t know where to start, we have you covered. Most likely, we’ve answered all the questions you have, plus some you don’t. For students, parents, and teachers, our guides will help the college bound student.
Resources for Art introduces you to an unusual database of high-quality paintings, some by famous and many by little-known painters, that seem to be united by a theme of spirituality or inwardness.
Resources for Detecting and Deterring Academic Fraud links to an article by notorious ghostwriter David Tomar, a.k.a. Ed Dante. Tomar wrote everything from undergraduate term papers to dissertations. He knows the industry and has something for all teachers and profs to consider.
Resources for Early American History The AMERICAN COLONISTS LIBRARY is a comprehensive collection of the literature and documents that most directly impacted the thought and lives of America’s colonists in the 17th and 18th centuries.
Resources for Introductory Ethics links to an article outlining 12 current controversial ethical issues in America. Students and professors alike will find paper topic ideas, summaries, and links to major sources.
Resources for Introductory Logic links to an extensive note packet to supplement 100-level Introductory Logic courses. The material is mostly based off of Copi and Cohen Introduction to Logic, Hurley’s Concise Introduction to Logic, or Geisler and Brooks, Come Let Us Reason.
Resources for Shakespeare links to a database maintained by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which allows you to access any scene from any play of the Bard’s almost instantly, with just a couple of clicks of the mouse.
Resources for U.S. History leads you to a database maintained by the Library of Congress, which contains copies of all the most famous (and many lesser-known) documents from the history of our country, such as The Declaration of Independence, The Emancipation Proclamation, and many, many others.
Resources for Understanding the Ghostwriting Business links to our article discussing the ins and outs of academic ghostwriting. Learn the players involved, their sales pitches, and the sheer size of the industry. Academic fraud via ghostwriting is a serious problem going, in too many cases, undetected.
Resource for Helping You Stay Organized, with a Smartphone links to our article providing tips to help you maximize the utility of your smartphone. Take control of your semester with the power of your smartphone!
Resources for ADD/ADHD Students links to our article laying out 10 tips to help ADD/ADHD students, or any restless, easily distracted students, succeed. These tips have proven helpful for most students, ADD or not. Most likely, you will find a tip to help you!
Resources for Online Student Scholarships Online students have many of the same scholarship opportunities as traditional students, and in some cases more. As online programs proliferate, more funding opportunities will appear. See what scholarship might await you today!
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Early stages of child development include the toddler stage. This human development stage is where we begin to form a separate sense of self and also influences our initial attitudes and abilities regarding boundary-setting, independence, curiosity, imagination, and willingness to explore.
In this stage the child experiences the initial development of a "mind of it's own" often referred to as the will.
It's the child's first real attempt to pull away and separate from mother -- The reward is a sense of autonomy.
Just as infancy involves a healthy co-dependence, entrance into the toddler and pre-schooler stages of child development marks the beginning of a healthy counter-dependence.
Well-known as the "terrible two's", this is the time when the child discovers the abilities to say no and to use anger as a means getting what it wants.
Allowing and even encouraging this bid for independence while maintaining a good balance with parental authority will be the major factor in the outcome of this stage.
Knowing when to let them win and choosing your battles wisely are two skills that will come in handy. There is a strong feeling of ambivalence in this stage -- the toddler does not tolerate mother being out of sight for long, yet they desire more independence. As they move further away they will often turn around to make sure mom is still there.
If a parent does not allow any exploration of the limits in an accepting and non-judgmental way the child begins to develop a sense of shame due to their frustrated need to separate. They then begin to experience excessive self-doubt, which is present to some degree anyway.
Eventually they can give up trying to gain autonomy and remain needy. This can provide reassurance to the parent that needs to be needed and she can foster more of the same.
On the other hand, if they are given blanket approval for everything they do the child can develop what's often referred to as "spoiled child syndrome". Later on these kids really have trouble hearing and accepting the word 'No'.
In all stages of child development children are natural-born limit-testers. They will push... and push... and push the limits until someone steps in and says "No".
Just as they will seek approval and attention, kids seek discipline when there is not enough of it -- If they don't get enough healthy discipline they can develop a false sense of entitlement.
Many veteran parents can relate to a time when they have firmly said "No" and re-enforced it with a time out or other form of discipline. When this happens the toddler seems to instantly change from rebellious and defiant to warm and cuddly as if some need has been satisfied -- because it has.
When children don't know where the limits are they can begin to feel unsafe. Testing the limits and experiencing the appropriate reaction of their parents they can feel safe again -- as if at some level they get the message "when I can't stop myself, someone will be there to stop me".
Click on the following link to go to the The Iceberg Discussion Forum.
Unmet needs in each of the stages of child development can be observed in present-day symptoms. For each of the following statements assign a rank between 10 (High) and 1 (Low).
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Weight-loss ads and television shows regularly profile people who have transformed their lives through major losses of 30 kilograms or more. These weight-loss ambassadors try to inspire us to do the same by telling us they feel more alive, they can play with their kids and their confidence has grown – now they can fit into a size ten dress.
These messages are echoed by health promotion agencies that encourage us to fight the obesity epidemic – and the rise of chronic diseases – by achieving and maintaining a healthy weight.
Major weight loss certainly sounds like a good plan if you’re overweight or obese and serious about improving your health. But the reality is it’s incredibly difficult to lose 30 kg, and even if you do, it’s even harder to keep off in the long term.
Instead, international guidelines commonly recommend an initial weight loss target of 10% of your starting body weight. Australia’s National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) draft guidelines for the management of overweight and obesity recommend starting with a more modest weight loss goal of 5% or 5kg, whichever is higher.
For people who are overweight (with a body mass index or BMI of 25 to 29) or have crossed over into obesity (with a BMI of 30 to 35), a 5% to 10% weight loss is enough to improve your health and reduce risk factors for chronic conditions such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease. After two years, your risk of developing type 2 diabetes diabetes will have halved.
Some heavier people who have a BMI over 30 may need to lose 15% to 20% of their weight to get the same improvement in risk profile.
The strongest predictor of dropping out of a weight-loss program is starting off with an expectation of losing a really large amount of weight. So, one of the practical problems in starting the weight-loss journey is that people rarely want to limit their weight loss to 5% of their starting weight.
This 2005 study of 1,785 obese Italians is a good example. The group had a mean BMI of 38. Their maximum or “dream” weight loss goal was 32% of their starting body weight, and their minimum “acceptable” weight loss was 23%.
This weight loss expectation is five to six times more weight than is needed to improve their health, well-being and quality of life and to reduce their medication needs.
It’s therefore important for health professionals to manage their patients’ weight-loss expectations. Start with a goal of 10% of initial body weight and focus on health improvement, reductions in medication use and improved quality of life. Once this has been achieved, then you can revise the goals.
Losing weight and keeping it off
The good news is that we now know a lot more about how to successfully maintain a reasonable weight loss.
A 2011 study of more than 5,000 Americans with existing type 2 diabetes found that almost one quarter had maintained a weight loss of 10% or more of their starting weight after four years. Importantly, success was associated with attending more treatment sessions, reporting greater adherence to the lower kilojoule diet and burning more kilojoules in physical activity.
A review of the long-term weight loss trials found a mean weight loss of 3kg to 6kg (3% to 6%) was maintained in trials that extended to four years.
It’s important to note that participants regain some weight once treatment the ends. This is completely normal, and should be expected because as soon as you ease off on the kilojoule restriction or exercise routine needed for weight loss, your weight will creep back up.
Therefore, based on current research, the definition of successful long-term weight loss is being able to maintain a weight loss of 5% of your starting body weight for more than a year.
Bariatric surgery is the only intervention where weight losses greater than 10% body weight have been maintained for 10 years or longer.
Step by step weight loss
Weight loss is never easy but a little common sense can go a long way in helping you achieve your goals. If you are planing to lose weight, here are some things to keep in mind:
Clarify your reasons for weight loss and identify your “dream” weight versus your “acceptable” weight
Set an initial weight loss goal of 5% to 10% of your starting weight, to avoid triggering a drop out
Participate fully in your diet and exercise program. The more sessions you attend or the more entries you make in web programs, the more weight you lose
Enlist the help of a weight-loss professional such as a dietitian, or another person trying to lose weight
Self-monitor both your physical activity and eating habits to make sure there is an increase in the kilojoules you burn up in exercise and a decrease in your kilojoules intake
Hang in there – the National Weight Control Registry of people who have kept at least 13 kg off for five years report that it does get easier over time.
Finally, long-term weight loss depends on long-term lifestyle changes. Being physically active each day, reducing your daily kilojoules intake, maintain healthy eating habits on weekends and holidays, and jumping on weight rebounds when they’re small will all increase your chance of success.
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Name of Book: Mockingjay
Author: Suzanne Collins
Book Design: Elizabeth Parisi
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Audience: Ages 12 and up
Summary: The third in a trilogy of science fiction stories, Mockingjay is written for adolescent youth and older due to graphic and violent content.
Katniss Everdeen has survived two rounds of competition in the Hunger Games arena and returns to District 12 to see the ruins after it has been bombed and destroyed by the Capitol. Citizen refugees have been relocated to District 13, the first district destroyed by the Capitol which went underground. The residents of District 13 and the refugees have together plotted the details of the revolution and assassination plan for President Snow.
Peeta has been captured and tortured by President Snow and special army team from District 13 is sent to the Capitol to rescue Peeta and other games survivors. The Capitol retaliates with bombing the districts, but 13 is spared. The district president works to create an army capable of leading the other districts in the revolution against the Capitol to gain freedom from oppression. With Katniss in the army group leading the way as the mockingjay, she will again experience and participate in violence and death as they work to rid Panem of the evil in power.
This particular book moves much more quickly through time than the past two in the series. A war rages on and much death and destruction take place, although it is described over weeks and months rather than days.
Note: While the series has no Christian references at all, there are a number of routes one can take in discussing Christian faith with teenage readers. Parents are strongly encouraged to read this book either before their children or alongside their children and engage in regular faith-based discussions.
Literary elements at work in the story: This is a science fiction dystopia of revenge imposed by the country leadership onto the individual districts. It is told from the first person point of view of Katniss, a 16 year old tribute to the Games. It is her story of survival in not just the games, but in everyday life as a citizen of the poorest district in Panem. Katniss is portrayed as a survivor, as is her friend Gale, while many of the other child characters, including her sister (and even her mom) are portrayed as weak and needy. The setting of this book takes place in District 13, as well as in the Capital during war time.
How does the perspective on gender/race/culture/economic/ability make a difference to the story? This book portrays all citizens of Panem, even those of District 13, as under oppressive authority. Many citizens have been tortured either physically or mentally, and even within the safety of the district, there is no freedom for citizens. The culture is that of a benevolent dictatorship, creating citizens who will survive the war and hopefully repopulate the country after it has been recaptured.
Scripture: Isaiah 57:19-21
Theology: As humans we fall short of the glory of God, but we are still loved and desired by God. We have turned away from God, and each other, in search of our own personal and societal gains. As sinners, we have gone against “the way it’s supposed to be.” We are unable to turn ourselves back toward God and unable to make our relationship with God and one another right. We have been sent Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, to lead us back into relationship with God and others.
Faith Talk Questions:
- Have you ever been given a gift by someone that you know you can’t repay?
- How can we trust God when we don’t physically see or feel God?
- Are there any characters in the book that value human life?
- What does God teach us about the value of a human life?
- Katniss struggles with the loss of friends close to her and feels responsible. Have you ever lost someone close to you? Has someone close to you been hurt before? How did you feel?
- How do you think God would react to the Capitol’s treatment of the citizens of Panem?
Review prepared by Union Presbyterian Seminary alumna Katie Todd
Mockingjay by Storypath is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
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These two words can be tricky because one uses a hyphen and one does not. As a verb, follow through is two words with no hyphen. As a noun, follow-through is one word with a hyphen between the two parts.
Here are examples of follow through used as a verb:
The lizard will follow through with his plans of world domination.
Saul followed through with his idea of starting a clothing store for lizards.
Here are examples of follow-through used as a noun:
The lizard has lots of goals, but his follow-through is poor.
Denise’s follow-through earned her a promotion.
Hint: If you are wondering which word to use, look at the role it plays in the sentence. And remember: If it’s a verb, follow through has no hyphen. If it’s a noun, follow-through has a hyphen.
Fill in either follow through or follow-through in the blanks. The answers are below.
1. Lizzy has good _______, and her organizational skills help.
2. Sally keeps saying she will start writing her book, but she doesn’t _______.
3. One criterion for the new position is level of _______.
4. Tina wants to become an accountant, and she knows she will ________ on that dream.
1. follow-through 2. follow through 3. follow-through 4. follow through
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A: Of course. It’s not your job or mine to decide how people in other parts of the world should raise their children. That’s really the central point of “Schooling the World:” that we need to drop the assumption of superiority that inclines us to think that we can or should decide how other people should raise and educate their children.
Rather than unthinkingly promoting our own system as superior, we can share accurate information and engage with other cultures in an honest dialogue about its pros and cons. Life in the “developed” world has definite material comforts and conveniences – as Wade Davis points out in the film, if you get in an accident and your arm is cut off, you want to go to a modern emergency room, not a traditional herbalist, and people everywhere are entitled to seek access to these benefits. But as new measures like the “Gross National Happiness” model originated in Bhutan suggest, development, technology, and material affluence do not necessarily lead to happier or more fulfilling lives, and the billions spent on economic development projects have so far not made the world a happier, more equitable, and more sustainable place. So we need to be honest with ourselves about the pros and cons of modernized life — about the inequality, the isolation, the competition, the family and community breakdown, the depression and mental instability, the environmental destruction, the economic insecurity — and we need to learn more about the pros and cons of traditional cultures — before we impose our way of raising children on other societies.
More specifically, we need to stop romanticizing our system of education as the only pathway to enlightenment and freedom, and start sharing accurate information about the severe and chronic problems of this institution — its persistent inequity, the massive and persistent failure rates, the loss of self-esteem and creativity in many of our children, the boredom and loss of curiosity, the high rates of depression and drug and alcohol abuse.
And finally, we need to stop assuming that we have nothing to learn about education from traditional people. Because of our unconscious assumption of superiority to less technologically advanced societies, it never occurs to most people working in education that traditional cultures embody a wealth of practical information about children and learning. School as we know it is such a historically young institution – less than a century old – and modern educators are continually baffled by the fact that students don’t learn the things they are intended to learn, programs don’t work the way they are intended to work, new initiatives don’t have the impact they are meant to have.
Indigenous societies base their modes of learning and teaching on thousands of years of experience, observation, trial-and-error, and collective wisdom. The relationships between children and adults often appear effortless, with little or no obvious teaching going on. And yet children reach adulthood with an encyclopedic knowledge of their local ecosystems, spiritual traditions, and sustainable ways of living. If we can let go of thinking that there is one right way to educate children, and fully perceive the value of diversity both of cultural modes of learning and of individual talents, temperaments, and learning styles, it opens up a universe of possibilities for solving the seemingly intractable problems that face all of our children in the 21st century.
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An eastern Iowa state park that’s more than nine decades old could become the state’s first-ever park to be designated as a National Historic District.
Dennis Murphy, park manager of Wapsipinicon State Park in Anamosa, says the park contains a host of unique features, plus, it was created entirely by inmate labor.
“Back in 1920, the men’s reformatory was going to log some of the woods from a local farmer but the citizens of Anamosa didn’t want it to happen,” Murphy says. “They got together, raised $20,000 and purchased the land from this lady and then turned around and just donated it right to the state.”
It marked the first time in Iowa history, Murphy says, that community residents made such a donation for the creation of a state park. Inmates from the state prison in Anamosa were put to work in converting the forest into a beautiful public park. Their handiwork is still very evident.
“All the roads were laid out by the prisons, we have two stone arch limestone bridges that are still intact,” Murphy says. “We have an old dam that was used to feed into the swimming pool that was down there. The swimming area is not there but we still have the limestone walls and the dam is still in place.”
The 400-acre park contains a host of stunning features, including limestone bluffs, long hiking trails and caves to explore. Among them is Horse Thief Cave, which legend says was once a camp for two horse thieves. Murphy says there are also 11 archaeological sites in the park that date back more than five-thousand years.
There’s also the restored Hale Bridge, already on the National Registry of Historic Places. This bowstring bridge, placed by helicopter, is the only three-span bridge left in Iowa.
For all of these reasons, Murphy says the Jones County Historic Preservation Commission is pursuing the National Historic District designation. With that, the state could apply for federal grants to restore some of the park’s facilities.
“Most of the times you hear of the historic districts as being in the cities, for their downtowns, for the squares because that’s where everything was,” Murphy says. “This is actually the whole park wanting to be designated. It was one of the first ever to be donated and it was done by inmate labor to develop it.”
Wapsipinicon State Park, named for the river that runs through it, would be Iowa’s first state park designated as a National Historic District and among the first in the nation. Murphy says the application process is underway and the title may come in 2014.
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On the 2nd of June 1533, Jane Seymour made her first appearance as royal Consort. While never crowned, she was Henry’s unofficial Queen and the mother of his son, making her his beloved wife and the woman he chose to be buried next to.
Henry VIII proposed to Jane Seymour right after Anne Boleyn had been executed. This was seen as tactless by many people, including some of Catherine of Aragon’s female relatives. Nevertheless, Henry VIII was King and Head of the Church which made him infallible in the eyes of the state. And Jane, much like Anne, had no friends in high place. While her mother was related to the Howard clan, she wasn’t closely related to them as Anne was, making her position less stable than her predecessors.
In her documentary, the Secrets of the Six Wives (Six Wives in the UK) which aired on PBS 2016, Dr. Lucy Worsley is fair in her assessment of Jane, neither favoring nor faulting her for choosing to play along. She says: “if I were her, I would’ve probably done the same.”
She goes on add, “her motto says everything: Bound to obey and serve. She was the typical English rose and English roses aren’t too interesting … She chose to be passive … I would do the same thing if I was married to Henry VIII, to be meek and mild even if I wasn’t to stay alive. Jane was a peacemaker, she improved Henry’s relationship with his children … For a long time, he had been estranged from his daughter Mary … She persuaded Henry to meet Mary once again.”
The man Jane married was far less stable than the young boy who fancied Catherine of Aragon and thought himself as a knight rescuing his fair maiden princess from near penury, or the chivalrous lover who fancied himself in love with the most virtuous of his wife’s ladies. Now at mid-age, Henry was a moody and dangerous bedfellow who was congenial one moment and hostile the next.
As a result, Jane thread carefully. She watched everything she said and made sure that her words were subtle so she wouldn’t get in trouble, in case her family’s enemies, primarily the staunch Protestant faction or the pro-French Catholic one, were looking for ways to bring her down. Luckily for her, thanks to her brothers, Edward and Thomas Seymour, she didn’t have to worry about the former. Edward wasn’t as educated as her predecessor’s brother, but he had a keen eye for detail and was just as dedicated and hardworking as George Boleyn, and by the time his sister had become Henry’s wife, he had already shown a deep interest in Protestantism. It would be over a decade, after his royal brother-in-law died and Jane’s son was crowned King, that his sympathies would become more obvious and he’d try to reconcile every religious faction by making the Anglican Church more Protestant -yet not enough (for many of his initial supporters) so it wouldn’t anger the Catholics. Edward’s scheme would fail. Unlike his sister, he wasn’t keen on playing the nice guy, but neither was he eager to become everyone’s most hated man. Like Jane, he was eager to please but unfortunately, it didn’t work for him.
Jane however, being a woman and one whose position was highly dependent on Henry and who had previously served two queens, was observant enough to know what personae she had to play to appease Henry’s royal sensibilities.
Jane and Henry were married on the 30th of May 1536 in the Queen’s Closet at Whitehall Palace. The ceremony was officiated by none other than the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer, who had been Anne Boleyn’s chaplain. The wedding, according to biographer Antonia Fraser, was done “quickly and quietly” to avoid more controversy.
Jane quickly established herself in her new role. Although she wasn’t as vociferous as her predecessors, Jane did voice her opinion on several occasions. Biographers Elizabeth Norton and the late David Loades in their respective biographies of her and the latter’s biography on her family, noted that she was a good masker. They also inferred that if she lived, she would have taken on a more prominent role as mother of the future king.
Three days after Henry and Jane’s wedding, Jane made her debut at Greenwich, one of Henry VIII’s favorite residences and the place where he and his daughters were born.
According to Sir John Russell from a letter to Lord Lisle:
“The Queen sat abroad as queen, and was served with her own servants. And they were sworn that same day. And the King and Queen came in his great boat to Greenwich the same day, with his Privy Chamber and hers, and the ladies in the great barge. I do ensure you, my Lord, she is as a gentle lady as ever I knew, and as a fair queen as any Christendom. The king hath come out of hell into heaven, for the gentleness of this, and the cursedness and unhappiness in the other.”
Jane made a good impression, and began to assemble her household at once. She proved herself worthy of her new role, and as her predecessors, she was very strict with her ladies. While Chapuys remarked that she possessed little wit, he noted that she was very observant.
Two days later, on Whitsunday, the 4th of June, Jane was officially recognized as Henry VIII’s new queen in the same royal residence. A procession was held, with Jane at the front with her husband by her side and her ladies falling in line behind them. When they reached the palace of Placentia, the royal couple dined under a cloth of state.
Jane’s star was rising and so was her family. Her older brother, Edward Seymour, was created Viscount of Beauchamp. His wife and Jane were very close; the two women also had one common friend and that was the lady Mary, Henry VIII’s estranged daughter.
While Jane showed very little interest for her rival’s daughter, she showed a lot of sympathy for Mary whom she probably regarded as Henry’s true heir, at least until she bore him a son. However, Mary’s return to court not only depended on Jane but on her willingness to sign the Oath which labeled her a bastard born of incest and referred to her mother as the King’s mistress. When Mary finally signed the Oath, and she returned to court, Jane made no secret of her happiness at seeing the former princess again.
It is not known what her view of Mary’s half-sister was. Did she hate her or view her as a threat? Possibly not, and most certainly no. If anyone would have been a threat to her future offspring, it would have been Mary (who in the eyes of many was Henry’s trueborn daughter). But due to her faith and her attachment to her mother, Jane didn’t it see it that way. As for hating Elizabeth, Jane would have no reason to hate her except if she thought Elizabeth was somehow responsible for Mary’s humiliations when she was forced to serve her. In which case, the blame would lay with Anne and Henry than with their daughter.
Jane showed no hostility towards her youngest stepdaughter, nor did she try to prevent Mary from convincing her father to welcome her back, or use some of her new income to pay for Elizabeth’s new clothes and ensure that her sister was also being treated with the respect she deserved as the daughter of a king.
Jane’s first and only act of defiance against the King came during the Pilgrimage of Grace at the end of that year. Henry VIII reminded her to keep her opinions to herself by saying two simple words: Anne Boleyn. Jane became even more complacent after that, concerning herself with keeping her husband happy, being a good hostess, and praying for a son so she could get to keep her head and her family could keep on rising.
These last months were trying moments for Jane. Not only did she have to act more congenial so she would avoid another moment of awkwardness with Henry like when she tried to convince him to be merciful towards the rebels, she also had to face the sudden loss of her father, Sir John Seymour. He died on the 21st of December, he was buried on the Church of St. Mary in Great Bedwyn. Today visitors can see a memorial for Jane’s father who was 62 at the time of his death.
Jane didn’t have to mourn her father for long, or distress herself about what her future would be if she didn’t give Henry what he desired the most because the following year, she became pregnant. On the 27th of May 1537, her pregnancy became public.
“The 27th of May 1537, being Trinity Sunday, there was Te Deum sung for joy of the Queen’s quickening, my lord chancellor, lord of the privy seal, with diverse other lords and bishops being then present; all gave loud praise to God for joy of the same; the Bishop of Worcester made an oration before all the lords and commons after Te Deum was song, showing the cause of their assembly, which orations were marvelous to the spectators; also the same night diverse great bonfires were lit in London, and a hogshead of wine at every fire for poor people to drink as long as it would last. I pray Jesus that he sends us a Prince.” -The Wriothesley Chronicle
She went into confinement months earlier, delivering a healthy baby boy on the 12th of October. Her labor was long and arduous, lasting over two days. Jane however, appeared to be in good health when three days later she and Henry saw their son again after the christening ceremony was over. But complications arose once again, and like her late mother-in-law, she became ill and died of puerperal fever (also known as childbed fever) on the 24th of October, twelve days after she had given birth to Edward.
Masses were conducted in her honor. She was buried on St. George’s Chapel in Windsor where her husband would join her less than ten years later.
In fiction, Jane is generally shown as a bland or insipid character. A lesser figure when compared to her mistresses, Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn. But there are notable exceptions, and not just in TV and film, but int historical fiction as well. Janet Wertman offers a sympathetic portrayal of Jane Seymour that doesn’t negate her flaws, or put her on a pedestal (as it is often done with many queens from this period); Diane Haeger also offers a fair portrayal of Jane in her novel, and so did Frances Betty Clark with her novel that ties in with the 1972 movie Henry VIII and his Six Wives starring Keith Michell as Henry VIII and Jane Asher as Jane Seymour, and Lauren Gardnier with the novel “Plain Jane”. Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall and Bring up the Bodies which have been on the mouths of everyone lately, also offer a generous portrayal of Jane, without overlooking her family’s ambitious or her own.
- Norton, Elizabeth. Jane Seymour: Henry VIII’s true love. Amberley. 2009.
- Loades, David. Jane Seymour: Henry VIII’s Favourite Wife. Amberley. 2013.
- Fraser, Antonia. The Wives of Henry VIII. Penguin. 1993.
- “Beheaded, Died.” Six Wives with Lucy Worsley, written by Chloe Moss, directed by Russell England, BBC, 2016.
- Licence, Amy. The Six Wives and the Many Mistresses of Henry VIII. Amberly. 2014.
- Seymour, William. Ordeal by Ambition: An English family in the shadow of the Tudors. Sidwig & Jackson. 1972.
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I try to keep the geologic formations straight when venturing on the Colorado Plateau, but the smaller stuff is just as fascinating. Geology nuances that were not as noticed as much as on previous visits. I would note that my non geologists travelling companions generally could care less about the names of formations, but often appreciate an explanation of why things look the way they do.
One feature is the concept of a hard resistant rock formation forming steep spectacular cliffs with softer rock below protected by the cap rock.
The cap rocks are the very upper part of the mesa which are underlain by Shinarump Conglomerate of the Chinle Formation. The huge red cliffs are the De Chelly Sandstone of the Cutler Group. Below the sandstone is the softer Organ Rock Shale also of the Cutler Group.
The cap rock of Shinarump is not very thick at these mesas near Monument Valley, but is the critical protective layer. While the De Chelly Sandstone forms the scenic cliffs and is clearly capable of standing as steep vertical cliffs for very long periods, once the cliff face peals away and tumbles down the slope, the increased surface exposure makes quick work of the sandstone. Hence, there is very little talus apron of De Dhelly Sandstone at the base of these high cliffs.
Note the lack of talus below the cliff wall where sandstone blocks had previously fallen out of the cliff face. More recent rock falls to the left and right have not yet been turned into sand.
If not for the ready breakdown of the De Chelly Sandstone blocks from angular boulders to sand, the monuments of Monument Valley would not exist but instead would be mounds of talus with a low cliff near the top at most.
Note the near lack of talus blocks at the base of this monument.
The lack of talus also allows for ready viewing of the underlying Organ Rock Shale.
While the hard De Chelly Sandstone is readily turned to sand when surface area is increased post rock fall from the cliffs, some rock types are very resistant to erosion even with large surface exposure. The silica rich petrified forest logs in Petrified Forest National Park weather out of the soft mudstone of the Petrified Forest Member of the Chinle Formation, and in places form a resistant veneer of silica rich wood on the surface or as scattered logs laying on the ground surface after the surrounding mudstone as been completely eroded away.
Note log encased in mudstone on cliff face
Most of the red boulders below the cliffs are blocks and logs of petrified wood.
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The Addition of an Inductive Coil
The simplest DC electric drive system used a battery pack switch and a motor. When you close the switch, over 1000 amps of current would flow in the circuit, producing so much torque that it would break parts (axle, transmission, drive shaft or mounting brackets). So resistors were added to the early systems; this wasted energy but minimized damaging parts. Modern controllers are better because there is an electronic switch that turns on and off so fast that it can control the current through the motor and the torque it produces. Most of the time, the motor and controller work well, but it is difficult to identify exactly how they will work together.
With the large number of systems we sold last year, now in operation, some customers (~1%) have run into some operating problems, such as a periodic burp in the system. Dave Mosher of Custom Electronics has determined that these problems were due to low inductance in the system. Inductance can be added to the system by making an inductive coil.
The instructions for making an inductive coil are:
Make a coil of 2/0 cable using about 10 ft of cable by wrapping it around a 2x4 or PVC pipe; then wire tie the coils together. Remove the 2X4 or pipe. You want 8-10 coils. Connect this coil between A2 and S2 on the motor (CCWDE), replacing the existing short cable that connects the field and armature in series. If the motor is set up for CWDE, then the terminals will be A1 and S2. This coil does not need to be beside the motor, so you have some flexibility in location. Use quality lugs and heat shrink.
The addition of an inductive coil eliminated the operating problems that these few customers encountered. Others found that the motor and controller ran cooler, indicating more efficient operation.
Adding an inductive coil to the motor circuit will be beneficial for all of our customers, because it will decrease the heat in the controller and motor and possibly provide additional range. To date, the inductance coil has been implemented on a few vehicles with no negative results. We are fine tuning the existing system.
Let us know how it works for you.!
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Miscellaneous Mechanical Components
Coolers used on the discharge of a compressor are called aftercoolers. Their purpose is to
remove the heat generated during the compression of the air. The decrease in temperature
promotes the condensing of any moisture present in the compressed air. This moisture is
collected in condensate traps that are either automatically or manually drained.
If the compressor is multi-staged, there may be an intercooler, which is usually located after the
first stage discharge and before the second stage suction. The principle of the intercooler is the
same as that of the aftercoolers. The result is drier, cooler, compressed air. The structure of
a particular cooler depends on the pressure and volume of the air it cools. Figure 7 illustrates
a typical compressor air cooler. Air coolers are used because drier compressed air helps prevent
corrosion and cooler compressed air allows more air to be compressed for a set volume.
Figure 7 Compressor Air Cooler
Hazards of Compressed Air
People often lack respect for the power in compressed air because air is so common and is often
viewed as harmless. At sufficient pressures, compressed air can cause serious damage if handled
incorrectly. To minimize the hazards of working with compressed air, all safety precautions
should be followed closely.
Small leaks or breaks in the compressed air system can cause minute particles to be blown at
extremely high speeds. Always wear safety glasses when working in the vicinity of any
compressed air system. Safety goggles are recommended if contact lenses are worn.
Compressors can make an exceptional amount of noise while running. The noise of the
compressor, in addition to the drain valves lifting, creates enough noise to require hearing
protection. The area around compressors should normally be posted as a hearing protection
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Most of our actions have costs as well as benefits. Although you know that smoking is bad for your health, do you know all the different types of problems caused by smoking?
Do you know what are your chances of developing various chronic diseases?
Here is a partial list of health problems caused by smoking:
- cancer of the lung, bladder, mouth, voice box, throat, kidney, cervix and bowel; heart attack, circulatory problems, stroke,
- lung disease including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema, chronic bronchitis;
- flu, pneumonia, colds,peptic ulcer, Crohn’s disease, tooth loss, gum disease, osteoporosis, sleep problems, cataracts, thyroid disease, and menstrual problems.
- Smoking is also related to infertility, sudden infant death syndrome and infant health problems.
Based on the information you have provided, here are some potential health and budgetary costs to consider about your smoking.
Although it is your choice to smoke, others are affected by these choices. There is a great deal of scientific evidence from all around the world that people exposed to second-hand smoke are more likely to develop and die from heart problems, lung cancer, and breathing problems. Unfortunately, many of the harmful products in smoke are in the form of gas.
Therefore, they cannot be filtered out through ventilation systems or special fans. Because children breathe faster than adults, they are particularly vulnerable. Parents who smoke increase the chances that their children will develop asthma by 200 to 400 per cent. Children exposed to second-hand smoke are also more likely to develop ear infections.
Your decision to smoke may also send a message to your children that it is OK if they start to smoke. Finally, even your pets can be affected by your second-hand smoke. They too are more likely to develop cancer and other health problems. So, if you decide to smoke, please be careful where you smoke.
It is not how many years we live, but what we do with them. Health Service Food and Human Resources: Discount Cigarettes Brands
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Away from the negotiating tables in Lima, climate change is a reality in Peru’s mountainous Andes range. Adapting to rapid weather changes, sometimes with the help of ancestral techniques, has become a way of life for poor inhabitants.
In Pumatalla, some 200 kilometres southeast of the ancient Inca capital, Cusco, Silverio Choqueneira says seasons have clearly become erratic, complicating crop planting and harvests.
“Before, the dry season lasted from May to September, and the rainy season ran from January until April. But now, the rain could come at any moment. This year, none of us here could harvest,” he said.
“Before, it used to rain peacefully, but now when it rains, it whips the land.”
Choqueneira mans a weather station in his community, providing local radio stations not only with daily temperature, wind and humidity readings, but also with information about what this means for locals in their daily lives.
“We were losing our harvests, so many people are now focusing on cattle and others are migrating to the cities,” he explained.
The weather station was built three years ago as part of the PACC (Adaptation to Climate Change Programme) and supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), Swiss NGO Helvetas and Peru’s environment ministry.
PACC has also been central in supporting a network of high-altitude water reservoirs, or “qochas”, to “harvest and sow” water, explained Victor Bustinza, programme coordinator at PACC.
In this region, where joint studies by Switzerland and Peru’s National System of Meteorology and Hydrology show that rainfall will drop 15-30% by 2030, PACC offered families and communities technical and modest financial support to build naturally dammed lagoons. These had been used in agriculture by Incan ancestors, allowing water to be used more efficiently.
One of the projects has since been awarded a national prize for climate change management.
Peru is the third most vulnerable country in the world to climate change risks, behind Honduras and Bangladesh, according to a report by the UK-based Tyndall Centre. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which provides a scientific view of climate change knowledge, reported that mountain ecosystems are among the most likely to be exposed to severe ecological effects.
At 4,300 metres above sea level, Bernabé Huarca herds a few dozen alpacas, sheep and half a dozen cows near the summit of a watershed above Anansaya Ccollana, another farming community in the region of Kuntukanki.
Over the past two years, with PACC’s help, he has built a small barrage at the lower end of a plain that locals previously used as a football field.
“We are going to build it up higher,” Bernabé explained, as his herd waded into the lagoon to drink and eat the floating vegetation.
In previous years, four of his sons left this poor farming area, but he said that since the qocha was built, pastures are greener and he knows that neighbours are also benefitting from his and other smaller community reservoirs.
As part of a comprehensive community-based plan, PACC has supported the building and reinforcement of two types of qochas. Built on naturally flat areas at high altitudes and reinforced with mud blocks, some of the lagoons retain water, “harvesting” rain for use in dry stretches, while others allow water to infiltrate into aquifers and other lower qochas, soaking sub soils along slopes and irrigating vegetation from below.
The qocha plan involves competitions among farmers, who subsequently receive technical assistance and training through PACC.
Flavio Valer, a PACC coordinator, shows how the reservoirs were built at different levels of slopes, respecting the geology of natural watersheds. From high above, swaths of pale green vegetation stand out against an otherwise arid landscape covered by the native ichu grass.
Selected as a leader by PACC to promote climate change awareness in his native community, Pucacancha, Henry Mamani explains that the qochas have been such a success that people from other villages have asked the authorities to develop more of them in their own communities, where conflicts over water had existed.
Food security and development
“It helps to relieve us a bit from poverty and malnutrition, offering food security,” Mamani explained.
Extreme poverty, which, according to the National Statistics Institute, affects 23% of Peru’s population, involves 52.9% of people in mountainous rural areas.
According to Mamani, approximately 2,000 people in the area benefit from water originating from the four communal qochas, including the largest, Moroccacca. He says farmers at lower altitudes now produce milk and cheese which they bring to market in Cusco and Puno, the two closest cities.
The PACC porgrammes in Peru run until December 2016. For Jean Gabriel Duss, head of the SDC in Peru, they are an example of how Switzerland, in its 50th year of cooperation with Peru, has provided technical as well as financial backing to programmes which regional and national authorities have adopted and expanded.
“At the start of PACC, the scientific side was quite important. There was a need to see if there really were changes in the climate in Peru – and when it came to mountain climatology, Switzerland had the know-how,” Duss explained.
“People in the region live with the climate and they know how to manage the climate. The mini hydraulic systems came from knowledge that they have. So it was interesting how science comes together with ancestral knowledge.”
Bustinza explained that a decrease in rainfall in the surrounding Vilcanota glacial watershed, where approximately one million people live, would be devastating, having a serious impact on development.
Eduardo Jaime Durand, director of climate change, desertification and hydric resources at Peru’s environment ministry, warned that an increase in global temperatures by four degrees Celsius if no concerted action is taken “would be very worrying for Peru” and its “climatic mosaic”, including its desert coast, mountains and jungle.
“We need to innovate,” he stressed. “New models are needed, and ancestral knowledge exists to deal with climate change.”
Worries for the future
Choqueneira, the weatherman and local leader in Pumatalla, agrees. “We mustn’t lose our ancient knowledge. Between science and our old knowledge, I can see that things coincide,” he said.
“Our ancestors said, in Quechua, ‘uraymantan wayra wayramu paran challanqana’, meaning it will rain because the wind comes from the west. This is what I read from the weather instruments.”
In spite of the development of nearby qochas, Choqueneira still worries about the future. Unlike many of his neighbours who have left this poor region, he insists on staying put and continues to plant vegetables.
“If everyone goes away, who is going to produce food to eat?”
But with other neighbours having converted to livestock, he worries about future supplies of water.
“How are you going to dedicate yourself to raising cattle? Without water there is no life.”
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Graphing Practice Problem #1
Oxygen can be generated by the reaction of Hydrogen Peroxide with Manganese Dioxide.
2H2O2 + MnO2 2H2O + Mn + 2O2
A chemistry class sets up nine test tubes and places different masses of MnO2 in each test tube. An equal amount of H2O2 is added to each test tube and the volume of gas produced is measured each minute for five minutes. The data from the experiment is:
||MnO2 (g)||1 min (ml O2)||2 min (ml O2)||3 min (ml O2)||4 min (ml O2)||5 min (ml O2)
- What volume of O2 did tube #3 produce between the second and fourth minutes?
- How much O2 is produced in tube #5 during the first two minutes?
- How much oxygen did tubes 7 and 8 produce together during the third minute?
- What volume of oxygen gas, in liters, was produced during this procedure?
- Graph the amount of oxygen produced each minute in test tubes # 2, 4, and 6.
- By comparing the slope of the graph curves, which tube was producing oxygen at the fastest rate between minutes four and five?
- Make a graph using the mass of manganese dioxide and the volume of oxygen for all tubes at five minutes.
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Planned efforts to relocate human populations often entail protracted struggles over the terms on which local populations may be compensated for the loss of land, assets and livelihoods. In many instances, compensation has been established on the basis of historical market value, which in effect excludes stakeholders (e.g., encroachers, landless laborers, sharecroppers, etc.) whose livelihoods are adversely affected by land acquisition. Establishing ways of recognizing and compensating the loss of informal land and livelihood is therefore a pressing policy priority.
The act or process of making amends for something.
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The Members of Congress and distinguished guests, my fellow Americans, we gather here today to right a grave wrong. More than 40 years ago, shortly after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, 120,000 persons of Japanese ancestry living in the United States were forcibly removed from their homes and placed in makeshift internment camps. This action was taken without trial, without jury. It was based solely on race, for these 120,000 were Americans of Japanese descent.
Yes, the Nation was then at war, struggling for its survival, and it's not for us today to pass judgment upon those who may have made mistakes while engaged in that great struggle. Yet we must recognize that the internment of Japanese-Americans was just that: a mistake. For throughout the war, Japanese-Americans in the tens of thousands remained utterly loyal to the United States. Indeed, scores of Japanese-Americans volunteered for our Armed Forces, many stepping forward in the internment camps themselves. The 442d Regimental Combat Team, made up entirely of Japanese-Americans, served with immense distinction to defend this nation, their nation. Yet back at home, the soldiers' families were being denied the very freedom for which so many of the soldiers themselves were laying down their lives.
Congressman Norman Mineta, with us today, was 10 years old when his family was interned. In the Congressman's words: "My own family was sent first to Santa Anita Racetrack. We showered in the horse paddocks. Some families lived in converted stables, others in hastily thrown together barracks. We were then moved to Heart Mountain, Wyoming, where our entire family lived in one small room of a rude tar paper barrack." Like so many tens of thousands of others, the members of the Mineta family lived in those conditions not for a matter of weeks or months but for 3 long years.
The legislation that I am about to sign provides for a restitution payment to each of the 60,000 surviving Japanese-Americans of the 120,000 who were relocated or detained. Yet no payment can make up for those lost years. So, what is most important in this bill has less to do with property than with honor. For here we admit a wrong; here we reaffirm our commitment as a nation to equal justice under the law.
I'd like to note that the bill I'm about to sign also provides funds for members of the Aleut community who were evacuated from the Aleutian and Pribilof Islands after a Japanese attack in 1942. This action was taken for the Aleuts' own protection, but property was lost or damaged that has never been replaced.
And now in closing, I wonder whether you'd permit me one personal reminiscence, one prompted by an old newspaper report sent to me by Rose Ochi, a former internee. The clipping comes from the Pacific Citizen and is dated December 1945.
"Arriving by plane from Washington," the article begins, "General Joseph W. Stilwell pinned the Distinguished Service Cross on Mary Masuda in a simple ceremony on the porch of her small frame shack near Talbert, Orange County. She was one of the first Americans of Japanese ancestry to return from relocation centers to California's farmlands." "Vinegar Joe" Stilwell was there that day to honor Kazuo Masuda, Mary's brother. You see, while Mary and her parents were in an internment camp, Kazuo served as staff sergeant to the 442d Regimental Combat Team. In one action, Kazuo ordered his men back and advanced through heavy fire, hauling a mortar. For 12 hours, he engaged in a single-handed barrage of Nazi positions. Several weeks later at Cassino, Kazuo staged another lone advance. This time it cost him his life.
The newspaper clipping notes that her two surviving brothers were with Mary and her parents on the little porch that morning. These two brothers, like the heroic Kazuo, had served in the United States Army. After General Stilwell made the award, the motion picture actress Louise Allbritton, a Texas girl, told how a Texas battalion had been saved by the 442d. Other show business personalities paid tribute-Robert Young, Will Rogers, Jr. And one young actor said: "Blood that has soaked into the sands of a beach is all of one color. America stands unique in the world: the only country not founded on race but on a way, an ideal. Not in spite of but because of our polyglot background, we have had all the strength in the world. That is the American way." The name of that young actor—I hope I pronounce this right—was Ronald Reagan. And, yes, the ideal of liberty and justice for all—that is still the American way.
Thank you, and God bless you. And now let me sign H.R. 442, so fittingly named in honor of the 442d.
Thank you all again, and God bless you all. I think this is a fine day.
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The presenter is recounting the story of a boy who broke his leg in a swimming pool accident.
What? Is alcohol the latest innovation in professional care for children?
It keeps the audience in suspense for a while. Until it turns out presenter meant to say (teddy) ‘bear’, not ‘beer’. That presenter was me by the way 🙂 we had a good laugh about it.
Ambulance staff are often the first at the scene when a child is seriously injured. What do they know about children’s stress reactions? Have they had any training in psychological first aid? And how confident are they about providing it?
Those questions guided our latest project on emergency professionals’ care for injured children. It just came out in the European Journal of Psychotraumatology.
Our previous study focused on how Emergency Department nurses and doctors support children around the world. We found a strong need for education. This time, we conducted a survey among 812 ambulance staff, mostly working in the USA, Canada, and Australia.
These were our key findings:
1) Quite a few basic facts about child traumatic stress were unknown. For example, only a third of the respondents recognized that toddlers can develop long-term stress reactions. And only a fifth knew that more than 50% (actually, as much as 80%) of children may develop at least one symptom of acute stress post-trauma.
2) Similar to the ED staff, only a handful of paramedics had received any training regarding traumatic stress, while a large majority wanted to receive training. To be honest, we knew this already from our earlier interviews and conversations with staff; our surveys were secretly meant to provide a solid argument for anyone who wants to barrack for more education.
3) Overall, ambulance staff felt moderately confident about providing psychosocial care (a 3 on a scale from 1 – not at all, to 4 – very). On the one hand, that’s a good thing considering the pressure that paramedics are under when working with children:
“If there is any time that you want to do everything absolutely right, it’s when you have a small child” (Ambulance Nurse in Nordén et al. 2014, p. 77).
On the other hand, having confidence despite a lack of knowledge can be dangerous.
The surveys established that many emergency care providers want to learn about children and traumatic stress. Good materials can be found via the Health Care Toolbox, AfterTheInjury, Psychological First Aid online training, and Recover. In addition, several teams are busy developing specific online training packages for healthcare providers.
Considering the time pressure that ambulance staff are under, it may be useful to establish priority elements of psychosocial care with them; what should a training package definitely include? If anyone is interested in such a project, do get in touch 🙂
Alisic, Tyler, Giummarra, Kassam-Adams, Gouweloos, Landolt, & Kassam-Adams (2017). Trauma-informed care for children in the ambulance: international survey among pre-hospital providers. European journal of psychotraumatology, 8 PMID: 28326162
Nordén, Hult, & Engström (2014). Ambulance nurses’ experiences of nursing critically ill and injured children: A difficult aspect of ambulance nursing care. International emergency nursing, 22, 75-80 PMID: 23711561
*Probably needless to say but for good measure: the picture, the name, and the story are not related to each other.
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Question: What special considerations should I make for a child or teenager who is 'stressed out' by school or work?
Answer: There are a number of things you can do to help a child or teen who might be stressed out by school or by a part-time job. The first thing that's most important is to talk to the child or teen to find out what might be trigging the stress for them.
It's important to find out whether the stress might be caused by external factors like a heavy schedule, a heavy workload, lots of classes or maybe even stress in relationships at school, stress with friends or teachers at school. Or if the stress is being caused by something more internal -- that the child is having trouble coping or that they don't have enough coping skills in their arsenal so that they can tackle the stress they're dealing with.
Once you've talked to the child and you have some ideas, then you can make adjustments, either changing the external factors that are stressing them or helping them improve their coping skills by learning new techniques, learning ways to relax, better handling the things that are stressing them in their lives.
In severe cases, you may even look at changing the school schedule or the work schedule and even considering having the child see a therapist or a counselor for some help.
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Imagine, for a moment, the sum total of all information stored on every computer -- every desktop, mini and mainframe -- in the entire world at this exact point in time. Consider the trillions of gigabytes of information existing as electronic impulses stored in millions of hard drives planetwide. Now, image this universe of data doubled!
According to The Essential Client/Server Survival Guide, 2nd ed., the total quantity of data on computers worldwide doubles every five years. With the widespread use of client/server technologies, including the Internet, expectations are that this doubling factor may soon occur yearly. The sheer quantity of data now being stored digitally is almost unimaginable. The size and scope of a database containing complete information from a single state motor vehicle department, for example, is staggering. The task of enabling users even basic access to such large repositories is challenging to say the least. However, growing requirements for storing, evaluating and analyzing massive data stores have brought about a new technology field -- data mining and data warehousing.
Data Grows With Population
In some instances, increases in state agency databases have been triggered by nontechnical factors. For example, the state of Florida, in general, and Palm Beach County, in particular, have experienced explosive population growth in the last 20 years, according to Roger T. Presas, certified public accountant and business process consultant to the Clerk of the Circuit Court in Palm Beach County. Following this population uptrend, the volume of information being stored by state agencies has rapidly expanded along with the people served. "The need to serve the fast-increasing population coupled with the requirement to improve the cost-effectiveness of governmental services have caused us as public officials to search for new solutions," Presas said.
The search led to the examination of new ways to store and analyze digital data to improve the accuracy, availability and relevance of related information. Initially, the Palm Beach County Circuit Court stored and retrieved information using mainframe technology. As the volume of data and the demand for retrieving it increased, county officials decided that a more flexible solution was needed. A decision was made to search for better tools.
The county targeted the processing of child support information as a specific function requiring better data tools. The Child Support Enforcement (CSE) system, an Informix-based data-mart application, was created to replace a 15-year-old mainframe application developed in-house. The resulting new data-warehousing application solved significant problems, such as the need to increase the turnaround time between receiving and disbursing child support payments.
A second, equally important, requirement was the need to store and retrieve a greater quantity of child support case information required by both the courts responsible for processing child support cases and state and federal agencies. "In addition to meeting this need," commented Presas, "the data-warehouse solution enabled us to achieve more strict compliance with ever-changing legal mandates, reduce costs and increase employee productivity."
Choosing A New Solution
Arriving at such a solution is never an easy task. In this case, the decision-making process was simplified when the clerk of the court initially recognized the need to improve the state's child support data-management operation. This preliminary decision was further supported when the state of Florida mandated development of a new child support enforcement application.
The new application was made available to all court clerks in the state. "Clerks, early on, had concerns regarding the use of a database-based application. Many clerks lacked the technical personnel to undertake a project of this significance and were not familiar with the possible benefits of the solution," Presas said. Consequently, initial acceptance of the new tool was slow.
This was not the case, however, with the clerk of Palm Beach County, where Presas works. The clerk decided to move ahead with the data-warehousing solution. When deployed in June 1997, Palm Beach County's approach proved to be the most successful implementation of the CSE application in the state.
Architecture, Deployment and Benefits
The CSE application maintains information required to process over 35,000 active child support cases in Palm Beach County. Data is stored and managed using Informix OnLine 7.23 running on an IBM RS/6000 SP 2 UNIX (AIX) server. All programs are written in the Informix "4GL" language. Hundreds of users access the application using a wide area network running TCP/IP. Users include the clerk's staff directly responsible to operate child support, judges hearing support cases in courtrooms, the public, and state and federal agencies. Interested parties can access payment information by calling an integrated voice response server running Edify software that connects directly to the database.
Data conversion and migration from the mainframe-based application to the CSE system required significant efforts. The structure of mainframe information was completely different from the design of the new data warehouse. Additionally, data elements -- like codes, indicators and similar items -- had to be converted to the new format. The critical nature of the information made these tasks more challenging. Data-conversion programs were developed and tested for extended periods until everyone involved was assured of the accuracy of the results. At the same time, the application was ported from the original Unisys 6000 platform to operate on an IBM server. This effort was undertaken to meet requirements for effective response to hundreds of concurrent user inquiries.
Once deployed, the increased efficiency of the CSE application allowed clerk management staff to reallocate human resources to other functions. This has resulted in estimated annual savings of over $200,000. Hardware and software maintenance costs have also been reduced but have not been specifically quantified. "Other benefits of the new system," stated Presas, "include increased payment turnaround, improved information flow to the courts, state and federal agencies and improved enforcement due to the availability of more timely, detailed information."
Mining For Fraud
How about information stored by major insurance companies for a daunting dataset? As insurance company information stores grow to unwieldy proportions, data-mining techniques are becoming an increasingly important weapon for companies trying to fight all sorts of fraud.
According to a report from the Newsbytes wire service, medical insurance fraud recently made headlines due to the use of data-mining technology, which helped insurance investigators ferret out a scheme in which fictitious companies used the names of real doctors and patients to bill for services that were never provided.
Joyce Hansen, vice president of Integrity Plus Services in Minneapolis, told Newsbytes that Integrity Plus, an insurance fraud detection company, has been using IBM's Fraud and Abuse Management System to catch many forms of fraud. Integrity Plus has caught bills for services supposedly provided on Sundays and holidays, for clinics claiming to serve patients who live far away, and so on, Hansen said. While it is difficult to say exactly how much the system saves, Hansen said that in the first year of its use, the claims savings from catching fraudulent billing increased 20 percent.
According to an IBM technician, the system, designed in consultation with several customers in the insurance industry, looks at about 100 different claim characteristics to spot abnormal patterns that might suggest fraud. It might identify, for instance, the fact that a particular ambulance operator consistently claims longer runs than others in the same area. When the system spots a suspicious trend such as this, investigators can take a closer look.
Ben Barnes, general manager of global business intelligence solutions at IBM, admitted that the system usually cannot work fast enough to pre-screen claims, so when fraud is caught, the insurer may have to take legal action to recover money already paid. However, the service provider who has been caught once will be watched more closely in the future.
The fact technology exists to analyze claims looking for fraud should deter some would-be fraudsters. Others will try to outsmart the system, and Hansen said that is already happening as the perpetrators of fraud change their behavior in attempts to avoid detection. "They're learning those controls, and so they can bypass them," she said. However, she added that detection technology will continue improving to stay ahead of the fraud attempts.
Planning For The Future
The only thing one can say for certain is that information stores will continue to grow. Impossibly huge databases and the demands of an increasingly sophisticated user base will continue to challenge data managers. Fortunately, experience to date suggests that the industry will follow that growth trend and endeavor to provide more robust tools to facilitate the management and examination of these digital mountains.
A new "sub-industry" of data warehousing and data mining has sprung up almost overnight to meet the demand. Government agencies will turn to these solutions more to meet increased demand from both internal and public users. Technology advances in data storage, transfer (for data warehousing) and artificial intelligence (for data mining) will make the job easier moving forward.
A note of caution: Data managers would be wise to carefully examine all the elements of a proposed solution to ensure it will be compatible with existing infrastructures and those of related agencies and organizations. One's ability to extend and evolve the application down the road is also important.
As with any new technology arena, different vendors will promote different proprietary approaches to the problem. To the extent possible, try to implement a solution that will evolve with future demands. Make the investment in this new technology an investment for the future and not a "one-shot" solution likely to be rendered obsolete with the next wave of technological change.
While these areas are still developing, a working set of definitions is necessary to understand what data mining and data warehousing are and what they are trying to do. The following have been compiled from a variety of sources and seem to be currently agreed-upon descriptions (Note: However, like any new technology, these definitions are subject to change as things develop.)
Data Warehousing -- A collection of data designed to support management decision-making. Data warehouses contain a wide variety of data that presents a coherent picture of business conditions at a single point in time. Development of a data warehouse includes development of systems to extract data from operating systems plus installation of a warehouse database system that provides managers flexible access to the data. (Courtesy of ZDNet's Webop
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Call something seminal when it's so original, so groundbreaking and awesome that it will influence everything that comes after it. Picasso produced more than a few seminal works of art, for example.
Technically, seminal means something related to semen or seeds. But these days people more often use the word to describe something that plants the seed for creative growth. An innovative piece of music or literature, a fresh new idea, or an invention that changes everything could each be called seminal. Synonyms include critical, fundamental, original, and primary.
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That bunch of carrots in your refrigerator—where did you get it? Fresh from your garden, clotted with earth? Or from the produce section at the local supermarket? Or the farmers market? Or directly from the farmer down the road? To consider what you eat and what you feed your family is to consider your health. To consider where you grow or buy your food is to consider the health of the Earth, yes, but also the economic health of your community. That bunch of carrots in your refrigerator can represent a lot more than a dose of carotene.
How food reaches your table has become a growing concern for many, and for many reasons. While the corner grocery store or supermarkets have been the most popular choices for consumers in past decades, food hubs have become a fast-growing alternative.
The Michigan State University (MSU) Center for Regional Food Systems defines "food hubs" as businesses or organizations that actively manage the aggregation (gathering together), distribution and marketing of source-identified food products.
Regional food hubs provide a market niche for small to mid-size farmers that the current conventional food distribution does not provide. In a 2013 survey of food hubs, the largest national survey of food hubs to date, MSU found that:
• Food hubs are financially viable businesses.
• Food hubs are creating jobs.
• Food hubs are growing to meet market demand.
• Food hubs are creating marketing opportunities and providing crucial services for small and mid-size producers.
• Food hubs are supplying food to their communities.
The MSU survey found that more than 95 percent of Michigan’s food hubs are experiencing an increase in demand of their products and services. The average food hub’s sales in 2012 exceeded $3.7 million, and their three most commonly reported customer types were restaurants, small grocery stores, and kindergarten through 12th-grade school food services. Among these food hubs, 74 percent reported that most of their customers were located within a 100-mile radius. The survey also demonstrated that the majority of food hubs helped increase access to healthy foods in underserved neighborhoods, thereby supporting a healthier population. About half of food hubs are equipped to accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, federal food assistance) benefits.
Dotting the state of Michigan, the most active food hubs are: Upper Peninsula: U.P. Food Exchange
; Northwest Michigan: Cherry Capital Foods, LLC
; Central Michigan: Allen Market Place
; Southeast Michigan: Washtenaw Food Hub
; West Michigan: West Michigan FarmLink
; and in Southwest Michigan: Sprout BC
(formerly Sprout Urban Farms).
Teaching youth how to farm, sharing resources, and farming
Sprout BC dates back to 2009, when founder and executive director, Jeremy Andrews, was approached by residents in his Battle Creek community to begin a community garden.
At the market in Battle Creek
"We became a food hub quite naturally, not necessarily intentionally," Andrews says. "We were a growing farm, teaching youth how to farm, sharing resources and labor with other farmers, and partnering with nearby farms. The food hub grew from that."
Andrews’ interest in growing and strengthening his own community went beyond the community garden to now provide distribution and marketing services to about 20 local farmers.
"We want to see the number and diversity of farmers in our area increase," Andrews says. "When you look around at what so many farmers are now producing for Big Ag, it’s wheat, corn, and soybeans. We’re not here to fight those farmers. We want to offer additional options while building the local economy. Our purpose is to help our farmers bring their produce to market."
Brennan Dougherty, Sprout BC food manager, adds: "We realized, as most emerging food hubs do, that we have incredible producers and wide parts of our community in need of fresh, nutrient-dense food. In Battle Creek, we felt that Sprout was uniquely resourced to help bridge the gap between producers and consumers. We began our food hub on very small scale exchanges, helping one or two restaurants get fresh, local produce from our farmer friends, and then grew from there."
The online food hub
Paul Quinn and Jerry Adams run West Michigan FarmLink, based in Grand Rapids. Adams founded the organization and Quinn oversees financial aspects of the food hub.
"The largest economic impact is keeping locally spent dollars in the local economy," says Quinn. "It has a multiplier effect that resonates throughout the area. In other words, if a buyer in Kalamazoo spends $1 on spring mix from the mainstream supply chain, the unknown grower, on average, receives 12 cents. If that same buyer were to buy spring mix from a farm on the FarmLink system, the local grower would receive the lion's share of that dollar, around 95 cents. That grower would, in turn, have more to spend on labor, fuel and other things necessary to run their farm. The difference is driven by transportation and distribution costs associated with getting those goods to the buyer from a distant, often nebulous farm."
"My idea for FarmLink started from a trip to the farmers market," Adams says. "I looked at all the throngs of people at the market, and I wondered—where do they all go when the market closes? What do the farmers do with their produce? I talked to the farmers, and I thought about putting the farmers market online, designing a website that gives them access, listing the produce and prices they offer, and then connecting them to their customers. I wanted to help the farmers make more money by shrinking the margin and cutting down the people between them and their customer."
What makes West Michigan FarmLink unique is its easy-to-use website. Farmers post on one day, listing what produce they have available at what price, and the following day chefs and other foodies and buyers log in to look over the lists and make their purchases. Farmers invoice on their own business letterhead, packaging the produce specific to the buyer.
"We take only five percent from that transaction," Quinn says. "The farmer makes 95 percent. We encourage our farmers to talk about their product ... and then we check back from time to time to make sure everyone stays honest and transparent. We give farmers the platform, the conduit, to get their product to the market, and the buyer knows exactly where the food he or she buys is sourced."
"We’re no Sysco kid!" Adams laughs, referring to one of North America’s largest food distributors and marketers.
Quinn nods. "We’re changing the world one potato at a time."
Teaching skills to farmers
Michelle Walk is the extension educator for community food systems and tourism at the Michigan State University extension in Sault Ste. Marie in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. She talks about the U.P. Food Exchange, a food hub led by the Marquette Food Co-op and MSU Extension in conjunction with the Western U.P. Health Department, coordinating and supporting local food activities in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
"The U.P. Food Exchange provides easier access for buyers to more farms to be able to purchase more local products," she says. "We are also working to improve the distribution system itself so we can get more product across the U.P. rather than just within the immediate region. We have consistently worked with farms to improve on-farm food safety as it relates to pre- and post-harvest handling and storage of the product. In 2016, we partnered with several entities, including Marquette County, to conduct a meat-processing feasibility study to improve access to USDA-processed meat products across the Upper Peninsula. We will be looking at produce processing next."
The U.P. Food Exchange offers workshops to build skills on a variety of topics, including marketing, communication, procurement, and food safety. The main system issues identified by both institutions and farmers were the lack of aggregation and distribution, the challenge of identifying when and where products were available, and being able to place orders for products in a consistent way.
"As we developed the U.P. Food Exchange, it was with the intent to address the larger system issues that individual farms or buyers would have a hard time addressing by themselves," Walk says.
Based in Okemos, Kelly Lively, policy and outreach partner and food safety team leader for Cherry Capital Foods, talks about what makes their food hub unique: "As many food hubs as there are, there are as many designs. Cherry Capital Foods is a privately-owned company, started when local food was just not an option for many, and diversified farmers and small producers didn’t have a way to get their goods to many outlets.
"In the beginning, our focus was on schools, and today we have built a farm-to-school program to get local, whole foods into school meals. We provide marketing materials and encourage our schools to not only put up farmer/producer profiles in the cafeteria but all around their buildings. If kids are seeing farmers all around the school, they will grow to value those people and begin to look for their produce in the cafeteria."
Today, Cherry Capital Foods also delivers local whole foods to restaurants, grocery stores and specialty food shops in addition to schools, colleges, and universities, hospitals, retirement homes and pre-school programs.
"We not only supply the food and materials, but we actively advocate for change," Lively says. "Our policy team is busy working with organizations locally and nationally to make better food a reality. Changing the food system is no easy or fast task, we are in it for the long haul."
Also in the mid-Michigan area, based in Lansing, is Allen Market Place. The Allen Market Place is an enterprise of the Allen Neighborhood Center, a non-profit organization working to strengthen mid-Michigan’s local food system since 1999. It houses an online wholesale market for local goods, a licensed incubator kitchen, and a year-round farmers market.
Their online market, similar to other hubs, allows farmers and food producers to post their product online, and registered buyers later log on to make their purchases. Purchases are quickly delivered to The Allen Market Place, where buyers can pick them up or choose to have their purchases delivered by Go Green Trikes, a local tricycle and cargo bike delivery service. Buyers include schools, hospitals, grocers, restaurants, and buyer clubs.
"Our goal is to strengthen the relationship between our community and our farmers and food producers," says John McCarthy, exchange manager. "We provide full transparency and traceability, sharing the stories of local farms and processors. We offer farmers additional markets for their products, fair pricing, and a wide range of educational opportunities including ongoing technical assistance, marketing, and business development."
On the east side of Michigan, Ann Arbor-based Washtenaw Food Hub was developed in 2011 by local organic farmers, along with food service, project management, and real estate professionals. They restored a 16-acre historic farm to serve a public and institutional demand for local foods. The farm includes three commercial kitchens and provides storage and distribution services, both wholesale and retail, for local farmers. Washtenaw Food Hub also offers and supports education and research on sustainable agriculture and agro-ecology principles.
Yet another benefit of all of these food hubs is the creation of new job opportunities. Each supports (and some train) new farmers, but each hub also employs staff. According to the MSU survey, food hubs in Michigan employ, on average, 19 paid positions.
The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) and its partner, the C.S. Mott Group for Sustainable Food Systems at MSU, are convening a network of regional food hubs to create and expand markets for local and regionally grown agricultural products. MDARD calls the network the Michigan Food Hub Community of Practice.
The Michigan Food Hub Community of Practice seeks funding for a grant program to create new food hubs and support the success of the food hubs already named here. They support food hub efforts in both rural and urban areas, conduct research on food hub profitability and economic impact, coordinate best practices and training opportunities for a state food hub collaborative, and link to the National Food Hub Community of Practice, sharing experiences, and learning from other food hubs across the country.
Any food hub member will tell you: one of the most valuable "additives" of a Michigan food hub is connection. When you extend your hand to pick up a bunch of carrots, you may just be touching the hand who grew them, pulled them from the ground, and harvested them just for you.
Zinta Aistars is creative director for Z Word, LLC. She also hosts the weekly radio show about books and writers, Between the Lines, at WMUK 102.1 FM.
This article is one of a series of stories about Michigan’s agricultural economy. It is made possible with funding from the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. Read more in the series here.
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Reykholt in Borgarfjördur
The village is situated in the valley of the river Reykjadalsá, called Reykholtsdalur.
Here lived in the Middle Ages one of the most important persons in Icelandic history: Snorri Sturluson. He was a famous poet and politician whose records of the Old Norse language and mythology of medieval Iceland are invaluable to modern scholars. He lived and died here. Remains of his farm and a bathroom with hot pot and a tunnel between the bath and the house can still be visited.
Reykholt was at this time one of the intellectual centers of the island and had for many years one of the most important schools of the country. Today, the village has 60 inhabitants, a school centre and a library concentrating on the works of Snorri Sturluson. A statue of Snorri by Gustav Vigeland can be found here. Archeologists are still working here and finding medieval remains
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August 19, 2014 5:57 am
Regular readers know I talk a lot about new developments and technologies related to home appliances. But despite great strides many manufacturers have voluntarily made creating more energy efficient appliances, clothes dryers that still play an important function in millions of homes across the nation are still a major energy concern.
According to a Natural Resources Defense Council report released in mid-June, clothes dryers in U.S. homes are wasting up to $4 billion worth of electricity annually because energy-saving standards for the common appliance have not been significantly updated for almost 30 years,
The NRDC report, “A Call to Action for More Efficient Clothes Dryers,” finds that today’s typical electric clothes dryer can easily consume as much energy as a new energy efficient refrigerator, clothes washer and dishwasher combined.
Noah Horowitz, director of NRDC’s Center for Energy Efficiency Standards believes it is time to bring U.S. clothes dryers into the modern era and achieve some of the massive efficiency gains all the other major home appliances have seen.
The NRDC’s analysis suggests incorporating existing technology used abroad and adopting recommended technical and policy changes could slash U.S. dryers’ $9 billion annual electricity bills by 40 percent. And it can prevent roughly 16 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually, equivalent to taking three coal-fired power plants offline.
A key reason for the energy waste is that U.S. dryers continue to use decades-old technology that bakes water out of clothing with brute force, wasting a lot of energy and blowing hot-air exhaust to the outdoors.
NRDC’s report recommends steps consumers can take in the interim to cut laundry-related energy use and utility bills:
- Use the washer’s maximum spin speed to lessen the amount of water remaining in the clothing before reaching the dryer
- Choose cold water in the washer will also save up to 50 cents per load in energy costs
- Select dryer cycles like delicate that reduce energy use (but increase drying time)
- And no overfilling the drum, this gives clothes more room to tumble dry more quickly
Read the report at http://www.nrdc.org/energy/efficient-clothes-dryers.asp.
Published with permission from RISMedia.
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SIMPLY, A DIFFERENT WAY OF THINKING
Ideas are older than human race. Useful ideas are the key for
development and that is how we evolved from monkeys to humans. We try
hard to think smart, more or less. But do we, really?
Dr. de Bono started his speech in Piran with criticizing quite a controversial idea man, Leonardo de Vinci. It was said that it has been obvious that Leonardo s switch from art to engineering was more a useless attempt to make valuable ideas. It was said that Leonardo s ideas could not been transferred into value. Answer why that is so, is as simple as anything that Dr. de Bono is talking about. Trying to make value, one should be using the mind potential. For example: the tank that was designed by Leonardo was a fine box on two wheels that were rotating one against each other. So, as the tank would be moving, it would be heading into the ground. Idea is not useful just because of it self, it should be useful and give final value.
Next process mentioned by Dr. Future, as Edward de Bono called himself, was recognition. Mr. Alan Greenspan and his immortal problems with inflation were mentioned. When Mr. Greenspan recognizes standard situation of inflation, he raises interest rates. In case of recession he lowers interest rates. Alan gives us the standard solution. But in many times standard solutions are not sufficient for solving problems. In case of recession and resulting lower interest bank rates for saving, instead of daily products, property is being bought, and the recession grows steadily deeper and deeper
Instead of traditional thinking: What is ? we should ask ourselves the question: What can be ? Because creativity and design give us the value and this value as said before is key for winning the mind games and business.
Dr. De Bono pointed on a kind of business illness called S.K.I.D.S. That stands for Sufficient Knowledge Ideas Deficit Syndrome. Today most of people have information but the key to forward success is ideas. Ideas give us value.
We need value concepts because we can not compete on price. In China wages are 100 $ per month and in Japan they are 3000 $ per month, so there is no way to compete on price, we can compete on values given by new ideas.
But there is another problem with new ideas. For representative policies like United Nations and other world democracies, new ideas by definition are not representative
Humans should make the best use of given information at any time. Sequences of information and the inherent potential at various times make well working brains better than any computer in the world! Think of chess legend Gary Gasparov and the monster chess player Deep Blue. Both have problems; despite hordes of engineers that have been constructing that computer.
Or another example... Man has 11 pieces of clothing. He doesn t know which to wear. So he let the computer calculates how many solutions he has. Computer works for 40 hours non-stop and gives out 39.916.800 options. If only one minute is needed to dress up, a man would need 76 years to try which is the most suitable combination for dinner. But a human being is a unique animal with highly developed brains; so s/he uses routine and creative processes in the brains. Upcoming information is compared to the routine patterns in the man s head and when a similar pattern is found, the problem is solved much quicker that by trying clothes for 76 years.
The biggest barrier in the progress of human race is language. Different meanings are frozen into language so they force us to think of the world in a very old fashioned way.
Aristotle s inclusion/exclusion logic is 2400 years old. His thesis that male species have more teeth than female is build upon recognition. He had more teeth than his two wives, and his horse had more teeth than his mare had. Of course he was wrong. The same logic is used today, and this tells us that human race have never learned how to think.
The next example is based on prosecution and defense lawyer interaction. Confrontation of two people, one stating argument A and another stating argument B, does not give a chance that they would even think of compromise C or D, because they are absolutely deeply rooted in their arguments.
One day a man painted his car half black and half whit. A painter asked him why he is doing something like that. The man answered: If I will have an accident, the witnesses will contradict each other. They will be right about the side of the car they saw, but wrong about the opposite side of the car.
This black & white story is the showcase for why people should use the concept of lateral thinking that Dr. de Bono developed.
Vertical vs Lateral Thinking
Lateral thinking is in contradiction in many ways to what vertical thinking is. Despite contradictions both of them are necessary for using human mind potential. For better understanding of what lateral thinking is and how to use it, here are listed some differences between both ways of thinking, the more common, selective way of thinking, the vertical one and the generative concept of lateral thinking.
The differences between both ways of thinking are fundamental.
Selecting the right way forward to solution by excluding other pathways.
Sequential: one moves forward one step at a time. Each step arises from the preceding step to which it is firmly connected. Once one has reached a conclusion the soundness of that conclusion is proved by the soundness of the steps by which it has been reached.
One uses the negative in order to block off certain pathways.
Vertical thinking follows the most likely paths.
Vertical thinking is a finite process.
Vertical thinking should give us an answer.
Vertical thinking promises at least minimum solution.
Not selective at all; seeks to open up other pathways.
The steps do not have to be sequential. Lateral thinking can make jumps. One may jump ahead to a new point and then fill the gap afterwards.
There is no negative.
Lateral thinking explores the least likely path.
Lateral thinking is a probabilistic one.
Lateral should increase the chances for restructuring the patterns, for an insight solution.
Lateral thinking increases the chances of maximum solution but makes no promises.
Where vertical thinking has come up against black wall one would have to use lateral thinking even if the chances of success were very low.
Lateral Thinking or Parallel Thinking
Person A is thinking about problem A. At the same time person B is thinking about problem B. They both have the same mind process about different problems, A about A, B about B. Why wouldn t they both think of A at the same time and then both about B? So first both are thinking in one same direction, later both change their direction together. In practice this has already given enormous results, meeting time was shortened up to 1/5 or even 1/10 of usual time!
Brain patterns system is asymmetrical .
We should think more asymmetrical and there should be involved as little patterns as possible. The solutions will be as creative as possible. Dr. de Bono developed has 4 fundamental tools. Try then if you want to be more creative.
Fundamental Tools of Lateral Thinking
1. Blocked by openness.
This is technique that helps us avoid inadequate patterns and find much more effective patterns. For easier understanding here is one very successful example of using this method. In 1971 the petrol giant Shell has had significant problems with his oil platforms. While trying to pump oil they have been stopped by enormous granite rock layers in the sea ground. They were searching for a solution for weeks but haven t found one how to skip the problem, so they were thinking of moving platforms. Dr. de Bono asked them, why they wanted to move the oil platform to reach the right position above the gap in the granite layer defending access to oil. He suggested: why not just orientate the drilling head of the pumping pipe? They said that the problem was not in the pipes but in granite layers. He answered that all you had to do is to develop the kind of pipe head that can make bends. That was the ultimate solution, which prevented Shell and many others to move the sea platforms and avoid huge costs. Instead they have just modified the drilling heads and saved a lot of money.
2. Defining the basic concept.
In 1971, again, NASA allocated 2.000.000 $ to solve a space problem! Their cosmonauts needed a pen that would leave ink tracks despite the fact there is no gravity. So for ink to be pressured out of the pen, they developed a space pen in which ink was pushed out by gas. This cost NASA those 2 millions dollars. When the same problem was tackled by the Russian space program, their solution was simpler: they extracted the concept.
The point of this technique is to ask yourself, what the basic concept is, isolate it and take a look where can you go from there.
With concept extraction they needed: something that writes in zero gravity. They used a pencil and by-passed the costs of 2.000.000$.
3. The new word PO.
Provocative Operation is a very useful tool for reaching creative solutions. Usually people are ashamed to say something stupid. But if there would be a special tool that would prevent from sounding stupid, people would have said many more different and creative things.
1. The PO word helps us to say anything we want, not to sound funny. PO the factory is downstream of its output. It doesn t seem logical; to place a factory down the stream her polluted output is, but why not! Using this kind of solution in California they have reduced pollution.
2. PO word is being somewhere between yes and no, so you can use it wherever and whenever.
3. PO is helping us to create new patterns and as well it helps us to challenge old arrangements of information.
4. PO is a random word used by a chance. It helps us to move out of the usual way of thinking.
4. Using side track.
Instead of taking the same (mind) ways everyday, you should experiment using different approaches. Let say driving from home, you always take the main road thought the town. But one day you car breaks down in the periphery of your town. You walk in the town and take the side road and find out that this way is much shorter than the way you have usually been taking with car.
These were just few fundamental tools of lateral thinking. It is not enough that you understand them; you should use them in practice. Some people are unhappy about lateral thinking because they feel that it threatens the validity of vertical thinking. This is not so at all. The two processes are complementary not antagonistic. Lateral thinking is useful for generating new ideas and approaches; vertical thinking is useful for developing them. Lateral thinking enhances the effectiveness of vertical thinking by offering it more to select from. Vertical thinking multiplies the effectiveness of lateral thinking by making good use of ideas generated.
Most of the time you might be using vertical thinking but when you need to use lateral thinking then no amount of excellence in vertical thinking will do instead. To persist with vertical thinking when one should be using lateral thinking is dangerous. You need some skills in both types of thinking.
Lateral thinking is like the reverse gear in a car. You would never try to drive along in reverse gear the whole time. On the other hand you need to have it and to know how to use it for maneuverability and to get out of a blind alley.
For more information, please contact:
About Dr. Edward de Bono
Dr. Edward de Bono is listed as one of the 250 persons who made the most significant contribution to humanity. His special contribution has been to take the mystical subject of creativity and for the first time in history, to put the subject on a solid basis. While his methods are based on a fundamental understanding of how the brain handles information, de Bono's "powerfully simple" thinking techniques can help you make good decisions, solve problems, challenge assumptions and produce practical improvement in your occupation and in life.
NEW MOMENT, Creativity in all its aspects
New Moment is a network of agencies for New Ideas in the territory of the New Europe. It is divided into Advertising Agency (Total Communications), PR Agency (PR & Events) and Ideas Gallery (New Moment Magazine, Ideas Campus creative workshops, BeogrAD review of creativity, and other theatre performances and art exhibitions).
New Moment, Magazine for Art & Advertising was established in 1993. It got many awards for its design and production. The most famous intellectuals and artists contributed for it. 26 issues were produced so far. The subject is always connected with creativity in some form: art, photography, theatre design, design, psychology
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FROM Viking massacres to Jacobite prisons, the often overlooked islands of the Firth of Forth have a rich history.
There are few areas of the world which possess magic and mystery like the seas surrounding Scotland.
Their remoteness and rugged beauty have intrigued travellers throughout the ages.
For centuries, parts of Scotland’s crinkled western coastline and many of the nearby isles were controlled by ‘Lords of The Isles’ - Viking and Gaelic rulers who acted completely independently of the ruling sovereign further south.
As a result much of island history focuses on the west coast and Orkney & Shetland groups which make up the vast bulk of Scotland’s 790 offshore islands, leaving a string of forgotten outcrops on the nation’s east coast.
“It is remarkable that over the entire length of the east coast of mainland Scotland, from John O’ Groats to Berwick-upon-Tweed there is only one island which has an area of forty hectares or more,” says island explorer and author Hamish Haswell-Smith in his book ‘The Scottish islands’.
The marauding Norsemen are said to have slaughtered over 6,000 Fife Christians during the attack and the island remained desolate for generations
Indeed compared to the jagged coastline of the west with its hidden inlets and multitude of watery enclaves the east coast may seem barren.
But this is not the case in the Firth of Forth estuary, which contains a collection of small islands which have their own unique history.
With the exception of a few, small, lonely rocks dotted along the eastern coast, “we have to look to the Firth of Forth to find every other islet on the east coast,” says Mr Haswell-Smith.
“Yet these little islands have a fascinating history.”
Here, we take a look at 10 isles and atolls in the Firth of Forth.
Isle of May
Anchored on the northern edge of the Forth, five miles off from the Anstruther shoreline, the Isle of May is the biggest island in the Forth and is home to a particularly horrific episode of history.
The island was once a celebrated place of pilgrimage after the first Bishop of St Andrew, St Adrian was discovered there and murdered by rampaging Danes around 870 AD. The bishop was buried on the island but local legend has it that half of his coffin (which was made of stone) miraculously floated to shore so he could be put to rest on the mainland in Anstruther Wester churchyard.
The marauding Norsemen are said to have slaughtered over 6,000 Fife Christians during the attack and the island remained desolate for generations.
May remained in the hands of churchmen for many centuries, surviving English incursions during the Scottish war of independence in the 12th century before being sold to a wealthy Fife family in the 1500s.
In modern times it was the scene of more death during the ‘Battle’ of May Island which took place nearby on January 1918. A series of accidental collisions between warships occurred over an hour which saw two submarines sunk and 104 deaths.
The accident was kept quiet by the government of the time and only in 2002 - 84 years later - a memorial plaque was placed in Anstruther harbour.
Today the island is known for its diverse birdlife.
READ MORE: Population of Scotland’s islands on the rise
Like the Isle of May, the little island of Inchcolm was an important religious isle.
Further west in the Forth estuary and just south of Aberdour, Fife, the island literally means ‘Island of St Columba’ in Scottish Gaelic due to the fact the Irish Saint - who is credited with spreading Christianity across what is today Scotland - visited the island around 567 AD.
Its monastery, which can be visited today, was founded in 1123 by Alexander I and was a frequent target of plunder for opportunistic raiders. In 1355 the English swept onto the island and stole all the islands treasure including a much venerated image of St Columba himself.
Yet before the before the English sailors could return home with their booty a storm almost wrecked the ship and the sailors, fearing the wrath of God, duly returned the image to the monks and sailed for home with the remaining treasure.
It was believed that divine powers kept a watchful eye on the tiny islet. In 1384 when the English returned, this time to burn down the monastery, a sudden change of wind direction saved the building.
Approximately equal distance from Edinburgh and Fife, the island likely takes its name from Robert de Keth of the Catti (Chattan) clan from (Caithness (Cattiness). In 1010 Malcolm II rewarded the nobleman for his assistance in repelling the Danes and gave him large estates which included Dalkeith and Inchkeith.
Rich in history, the island served as a quarantine zone on several occasions. In 1497 sufferers from a contagious disease called ‘grandgore’ were sent to Inchkeith Hospital from Edinburgh. Plague victims were also dispatched to the island in 1580 and 1609 while in 1799 Russian sailors were buried on the island after dying from an unknown disease.
Inchkeith was visited by Mary, Queen of Scots in 1549, the day after a combined force of French and Scottish soldiers recaptured the island from Italian mercenaries who were occupying it for the English. Mary is said to have landed and seen ‘three and four hundred of her dead foes still unburied’.
A castle was then built to house the Queen’s French troops, but was later turned into a prison and, finally, a lighthouse in 1808.
The island is now owned by Edinburgh businessman and founder of garage chain Kwik Fit, Sir Tom Farmer.
The battleship-shaped island beneath the Forth (Rail) Bridge, Inchgarvie was used as fortification just of the coast of South Queensferry throughout Scotland’s past.
It too was used as a prison and during the Second World War gun emplacements were installed to defend the bridge from German attacks.
An outcrop not far from North Berwick, Bass Rock’s colour is an indication of the massive gannet population of 150,000 that reside there whose droppings have turned the isle white.
Now uninhabited the island’s first inhabitant was said to be St Baldred, an Irish hermit who died in 606 AD.
During Scotland’s many conflicts the island has housed many notable prisoners and exiles.
In the early 15th century Prince James, later to become James I of Scotland, was sent here for safety by his father Robert III as the King’s brother the Duke of Albany plotted to seize the throne. The young James was due to be whisked away to France but his uncle Albany tipped of the English who intercepted James and imprisoned the Prince for nineteen years in Windsor Castle. James eventually was ransomed back to Scotland and got his own back by capturing his cousin, the Duke of Albany’s son, and imprisoning him on Bass Rock.
In 1691, four remarkable Jacobite prisoners captured the Rock and defeated the entire garrison with only the help of a gunner and 16 friends from Lothian. They heroically held the island for three years before surrendering after securing amnesty.
It is now owned by the Dalrymple family.
A tiny island perched between Inchcolm and Edinburgh’s Cramond area, Inchmickery plays host to one of the more bizarre legends of the Firth of Forth.
The story goes that James IV, who was fascinated by science, wanted to discover the ‘Original Language’ of mankind. The best way to do this, he decided was to send two newborn babies to live on Inchmickery with a mute nurse. According to historical records, after a year or two, James and his court agreed that the children ‘spak extremely guid Ebrew’.
A land bridge connects Cramond Island to the mainland when the Forth is at low-tide. Occasionally unsuspecting visitors get stranded on the island by the unforgiving waters that swallow the land bridge.
There are stone burials on the island that hint at its possible use by Romans, who used the adjacent Cramond village as an outpost.
Four miles off the coast of North Berwick lies Fidra. A broken reef, The Briggs off Figra, lie between the island and the shore. the Briggs house the remains of a Cistercian hermitage, an order of the Catholic faith. The hermitage was founded in in the 12th century and by 1561 housed 11 nuns at the time of its dissolution.
Lamb and Craigleith
Two of the smallest islets in the Forth, situated between Fidra and the Bass Rock. The Lamb is said to have two ‘dogs’ - that are actually skerries - guarding each side.
Craigleith, meaning ‘Rock of Leith’ was once a rabbit warren where the animals were bred for food. Around a mile as the crow flies from Edinburgh’s centre the isle is now the home of the Scottish Seabird Centre’s SOS Puffin Project - which protects the island’s indigenous puffin population.
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Relapse: Phases and Warning Signs - this makes me think of mental health problems in general, not just substance abuse Call drug addiction hotline 1-888-590-0777 http://www.socaladdictiontreatment.com/
Mental Health refers to a broad array of activities directly or indirectly related to the mental well-being component included in the WHO's definition of health: "A state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease". It is related to the promotion of well-being, the prevention of mental disorders, and the treatment and rehabilitation of people affected by mental disorders.
Counselors have a passion for helping people find solutions to their physical, mental and emotional problems. There are different types of counselors today in a variety of specialized areas. Which one is right for you?
Save the date! MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD ON CAPITOL HILL Join us October 5-6, 2015 in Washington, D.C. for the National Council’s Hill Day 2015. Hill Day is held in partnership with NAMI, Mental Health America, Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance, International Bipolar Foundation, Legal Action Center, Association for Behavioral Health and Wellness, and Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association.
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Association (SAMHSA) reports that in 2014, 22.5 million people in the US needed treatment for a drug or alcohol use problem. Only 2.6 million people received treatment at a facility specializing in addiction rehabilitation, and 4.1 million people received any treatment at all.
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A hexagram is the combination of two trigrams bound in a relationship with one another. The combination of one of eight entities in combining with another of the eight entities forms one of 64 possible relationships. The relationships -like with any entity includes the one each entity has with itself.
Each trigram can be in relation with another trigram in one of two ways, the dynamic of each reciprocal is unique. Physical world metaphors illustrate the dynamism within each hexagram well. For example:
A Mountain in a Lake
is a very different affair from
a Lake on a Mountain.
Unique patterns emerge when elemental forces, or entities meet in different ways. In each hexagram, a trigram is represented above the other. This up/down gradient translates to influence the dynamic relationship in each combination.
To reiterate, each hexagram is a relationship. It is also a pattern - another way of saying the same thing, as patterns are relationships between -a minimum of - two forces/entities.
I recommend when first encountering the I Ching as an alternative to immersing immediately into the 'occult' or deliciously exotic names of the hexagrams and historical commentaries, instead ponder each hexagram in two ways.The geographical / geological / seasonal / meteorological / ecological, the 'animated "inanimate" interactions of:
Increasingly (yang)/// Heaven, Water, Thunder, Mountain, Lake, Fire, Wood, Earth ////increasingly (yin)
The interpersonal / psychological / familial family dynamics between the the idealized
increasing (Yang) /// Father, Eldest brother, Middle brother, Youngest brother, Youngest sister, Middle brother, Eldest sister, Mother /// increasinly(Yin)
The I Ching is not like subtle accumulative narrative mythos of tarot cards. More than the visceral human drama/comedy, it is the very nature of simplicity and the self evident. The infinite wisdom that we can all see in nature. Each Hexagram is a situation, and understanding the interaction inside a hexagram can lead to a greater understanding of one's own circumstances.
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Banding and recovery data from 3 populations of winter-banded canvasbacks (Aythya valisineria) were analyzed and survival and recovery rates were estimated. Sex-specific differences in these rates were detected in some populations, and lower survival rates were exhibited by females. Some geographic variation in survival rates was evident, suggesting that canvasbacks should not be managed strictly on a continent-wide basis. Evidence of temporal variation in both survival and recovery rates was found. Lower recovery rates were noted during periods of restrictive hunting regulations, but the relationship between survival rates and hunting regulations was not clear-cut.
Additional publication details
Inferences regarding survival and recovery rates of winter-banded canvasbacks
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I posit the ‘clam-shell expansion’ model which describes the evolution of the Earth’s
crust since Pangaean Earth times. This was a lop-sided development wherein the Pacific
Ocean bed of new crust was built between two large landmasses, Laurasia and Gondwana
as they progressively separated from one another. These two super-continents define
the two components of the ‘clam-shell’ and they were ‘hinged’ together in what is
now the Mediterranean region.
In this role as a hinge, the Mediterranean’s original configuration has been determined.
A strike/slip relationship between the African and Euro-asian plates has been confirmed
as an anti-clockwise rotation of northern Africa and a resultant thinning of the
crust in what is now Libya, Egypt and the eastern Mediterranean.
Other aspects of the evolution of the Earth’s crust have come to light in this work.
Some regions of the crust have been successively strained to much thinner profiles
(Mohos) while others have even been strained to failure point. Contour maps, with
information derived from various sources, define the Moho depths for each continent.
These successive stages of crustal thinning are consistent with an Earth gradually
increasing its diameter by the addition of mass from below the crust.
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Illusion spells deceive the senses or minds of others. They cause people to see things that are not there, not see things that are there, hear phantom noises, or remember things that never happened.
A figment spell creates a false sensation. Those who perceive the figment perceive the same thing, not their own slightly different versions of the figment. (It is not a personalized mental impression.) Figments cannot make something seem to be something else. A figment that includes audible effects cannot duplicate intelligible speech unless the spell description specifically says it can. If intelligible speech is possible, it must be in a language you can speak. If you try to duplicate a language you cannot speak, the image produces gibberish. Likewise, you cannot make a visual copy of something unless you know what it looks like.
Because figments and glamours (see below) are unreal, they cannot produce real effects the way that other types of illusions can. They cannot cause damage to objects or creatures, support weight, provide nutrition, or provide protection from the elements. Consequently, these spells are useful for confounding or delaying foes, but useless for attacking them directly.
A figment’s AC is equal to 10 + its size modifier.
A glamour spell changes an object’s observable qualities, making it look, feel, taste, smell, or sound like something else, or even seem to disappear.
Like a figment, a pattern spell creates an image that others can see, but a pattern also affects the minds of those who see it or are caught in it. All patterns are mind-affecting spells.
A phantasm spell creates a mental image that usually only the caster and the subject (or subjects) of the spell can perceive. This impression is totally in the minds of the subjects. It is a personalized mental impression. (It’s all in their heads and not a fake picture or something that they actually see.) Third parties viewing or studying the scene don’t notice the phantasm. All phantasms are mind-affecting spells.
A shadow spell creates something that is partially real from extradimensional energy. Such illusions can have real effects. Damage dealt by a shadow illusion is real.
Saving Throws and Illusions (Disbelief)
Creatures encountering an illusion usually do not receive saving throws to recognize it as illusory until they study it carefully or interact with it in some fashion.
A successful saving throw against an illusion reveals it to be false, but a figment or phantasm remains as a translucent outline.
A failed saving throw indicates that a character fails to notice something is amiss. A character faced with proof that an illusion isn’t real needs no saving throw. If any viewer successfully disbelieves an illusion and communicates this fact to others, each such viewer gains a saving throw with a +4 bonus.
Spells per Class and Level
|Blur||The subject’s outline appears blurred, shifting and wavering. This distortion grants the subject concealment (20% miss chance).|
|Displacement||An ally's appearance becomes extremely blurred, giving enemies a 50% concealment miss chance when attacking.|
|Hypnotic Pattern||A twisting pattern of subtle, shifting colors weaves through the air, fascinating targets within it. A successful Will save negates this effect. Creatures that the pattern hits will have their will save momentarily weakened (-3 to will) for 7 seconds.|
|Invisibility||An ally becomes invisible, vanishing from sight, even from darkvision. If he or she attacks a target or interacts with certain objects, the effect is removed.|
|Invisibility, Mass||Casts Invisibility on multiple allied creatures, rendering the creatures Invisible for 1 minute per caster level. This spell simply considers the creatures are hidden with a Hide score of 20, but it isn't a bonus to Hide. Attacking a target, or using an object (Door, lever, etc.) removes this condition.|
|Phantasmal Killer||You create a phantasmal image of the most fearsome creature imaginable to the subject simply by forming the fears of the subject’s subconscious mind into something that its conscious mind can visualize: this most horrible beast. Only the spell’s Foe can see the Phantasmal Killer. You see only a vague shape. The target first gets a Will save to recognize the image as unreal to disbelieve the spell and suffer no ill effects. If that save fails, the phantasm touches the subject, and the subject must succeed on a Fortitude save or die from fear. Even if the Fortitude save is successful, the subject takes 1d3+1 points of bane damage per caster level.|
|Shadow Walk||Transports you to the edge of the Material Plane where it borders the Plane of Shadow. While this spell is active, you receive a 40% Enhancement bonus to run speed, and your outline appears faint and you are harder to hit (50% Concealment). Attacking another creature, or otherwise interacting with objects shunts you back to the Material Plane.|
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Download Full PDF (34.1 MB)
A public health survey by Ross C. B. Thornton for Multnomah, Oregon in 1931. Includes information regarding geographical location; history of the settlement; vital statistics; industry; revenue; civic and health organizations; water, milk, foodstuffs, sewage, and garbage control; vital statistics; control of communicable and venereal disease; control of public-use spaces; and general sanitation.
Oregon; Oregon--Multnomah County; Health Surveys; Vital Statistics; Sexually Transmitted Diseases; Sanitation; Water-supply; Food adulteration and inspection; Death Certificates; Public Health Nursing; Sanitary engineering; Research Report
Public Health Survey Records; 2004-025
Description of Data Content
Data consists of average census statistics: age; marriage status; nativity; industry; length of residence; diseases; family physician; home sanitation; economic status; milk and water supply; and condition of home. Extensive descriptive data included.
Thornton, Ross C. B., "Public Health Survey, Multnomah, Oregon, 1931" (1931). Public Health in Oregon: Discovering Historical Data. 52.
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Official publications are materials issued for public use by federal, national, provincial or municipal governments and intergovernmental organisations. They include Parliamentary papers, debates and proceedings, and publications of government departments, agencies and research institutes on any subject. They consist of policy documents, official statistics, research and practice reports, development plans, regulatory and guidance materials and primary and secondary legislation.
Definition from : British Library
This guide will help you access material which you will need for your course.
Click the tabs above to link to information on:
The Official Publications section of the Boole Library is located on Q+2, the 2nd Floor. It houses documents and reports produced and published by official bodies, such as governments, national institutions and Irish and International Organisations. There are four sections: Ireland, United Kingdom, EU and International.
The majority of new items are published online, whilst some items are not produced in print at all.
Staff at the Information Desk on Q+2 are happy to assist you with any queries you may have in relation to this material.
Detail from the mural "Government" by Elihu Vedder in the Library of Congress
Copyright © 2013 Boole Library, University College Cork, College Road, Cork, Ireland. Tel. +353 21 4902292, Fax: +353 21 4273428. Email: email@example.com
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A lot of activities can be done with a photo in a language class.
Elementary level students, from this picture, try to remember the name of the objects you already know. Check on the web, if you are right. Learn new words.
Intermediate level students, start a story with this picture. What is the season ? What is your guess ?
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As a parent, it’s scary to learn that our kids have a food allergy. If we’re lucky they are mild, but sometimes it can be a life-threatening situation called anaphylaxis which requires immediate medical attention.
Although it’s sometimes clear what they are reacting to, often it’s a hunt to ID what is affecting them. Once you see a reaction, note what they recently ate or were in contact with and head to the doctor to have some tests run. They will then be able to clearly identify their allergy.
Symptoms of a food allergy:
- Skin problems
- Hives (red spots that look like mosquito bites)
- Itchy skin rashes (eczema, also called atopic dermatitis)
- Breathing problems
- Throat tightness
- Stomach symptoms
- Circulation symptoms
- Pale skin
- Loss of consciousness
Allergies are caused by antibodies that the body’s immune system produces, which react to a component of a particular food and then release chemicals that cause allergic symptoms like a runny nose, sneezing, coughing, and itching. Children may also experience stomach pain, bloating, cramping, diarrhea, skin rashes, and swelling. Although these reactions can occur almost immediately after consuming these foods, they may be delayed for hours or sometimes even days.
There are other illnesses that can be confused with food allergies, such as food poisoning, reactions to acidic food, or too much caffeine or sugar. Some food-related illnesses are called an intolerance, or a food sensitivity, rather than an allergy. Lactose intolerance, for example, is when a person has trouble digesting milk sugar (lactose), leading to stomachaches, bloating, and loose stool. It’s not a food allergy because the immune system is not what is causing the problem.
Once you learn that your child is allergic to certain foods or allergens, it’s important to sit them down and explain that these certain foods or environments are not healthy for their little bodies.
Your pediatrician or allergist will probably recommend that the item is removed from your child’s diet, including products that contain the item as an ingredient. It’s best to promptly remove the items from the home and notify their school, sitters, and friends and families who spend a lot of time with them. You doctor will give you detailed instructions on how to handle any and all situations.
Life comes with challenges and though this can be a big one, with some education and information it’s something that you can handle.
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“The Line of the Hiwassee River”
On July 23, 2016, Three Star Tour participants boarded pontoon boats for an eleven mile trip on the Hiwassee River near Charleston, TN. National Park Service historian Jim Ogden shared stories and maps describing the Native American, pre-Civil War, and Civil War military significance of the Hiwassee River. At Charleston, participants got a close-up look of the pre-Civil War bridge piers, now supporting a modern railroad bridge. After docking in Charleston, participants explored Civil War sites in Charleston including the Cumberland Presbyterian Church and the privately owned Henegar House. (photo courtesy of Bruce Hari)
While docked in Charleston, Historian Jim Ogden explains the significance of the East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad bridge which was a critical supply line between Knoxville and Chattanooga during the War. The pre-Civil War bridge was burned in November, 1861 by Union loyalists and both sides damaged the rebuilt bridge during the War. The modern railroad bridge in the background of this photo sits atop the original pre-Civil War piers.
The Charleston Cumberland Presbyterian Church served as a Confederate hospital in 1863. Many of the injured troops were part of a cavalry unit sent to evacuate the town.
Tour participants stepped inside the Henegar House for a peek at the home’s historic and well preserved front hallway and parlor. During the War, the home served as the headquarters for both Union and Confederate generals. Here General Sherman received orders in November, 1863, to take command of the column moving to relieve Knoxville.
Taking a break in the shade, participants enjoyed a wonderful lunch provided by volunteers and the Charleston-Calhoun-Hiwassee Historical Society.
TCWPA and the tour participants extend their appreciation to the Charleston-Calhoun-Hiwassee Historical Society for their great support for the tour and to the boat captains Jerry and Mari, Randy and Cindy, Steve and Jane, and Bill and Jane who donated their time and boats to make this tour so special.
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A recent study on northern mockingbirds (Mimus polyglottos) has utilized video cameras in an attempt to validate the predator refuge hypothesis and uncover the mechanisms that might drive it. Mockingbirds are considered to be "urban adaptors"--or, to use the new phrase suggested in the current study, "urban-positive." Previous work has suggested that nest predation rates are lower for this species in urban areas than at rural sites. Researcher Christine Stracey (from the University of Florida and Florida Museum of Natural History) placed video cameras at mockingbird nests across an urban-rural gradient in order to catch predators red-handed and evaluate which species pose the greatest threats to mockingbird breeding success. Further, she assessed whether abundances of these predators varied at urban and rural sites.These data allowed her to assess whether urban mockingbirds were, indeed, at lower risk of predation and, if so, why.
(Northern mockingbird, Mimus polyglottos)
Stracey's study was conducted in and around Gainesville, Florida, where she focused on mockingbirds nesting in 2 parking lots, 3 residential neighborhoods, 2 pastures, and 1 wildlife refuge. After locating active nests, Stracey visited them every 4 days to check whether or not depredation had occurred. This allowed her to calculate survival rates reflecting how likely it was for the nests to escape predation. Over the 3 years of the study, Stracey also placed cameras at a total of 144 nests and successfully recorded 58 predation events. By watching video of the predators in action, Stracey could identify which species were the most common culprits.
When calculating nest survival rates, Stracey investigated the influence of habitat type, nest stage, and date. Interestingly, survival was associated with different factors during each of the 3 years of the study. In 2007, survival was highest in both the laying and nestling stage at later dates in the season; in 2008, eggs survived at a higher rate than nestlings, and survival at both nestling and laying stages decreased throughout the season; in 2009, habitat type was very important, with nests in parking lots surviving better than those in other types of site. Clearly, mockingbird breeding success is determined by a complex interplay of many environmental variables that likely impact both the mockingbirds and the predators, as well as interactions between these two groups of species. However, there was less inter-year variation in urban areas, which may indicate that urban environments provide a constant supply of resources, while non-urban areas experience natural fluctuations from year to year. This flux (or lack thereof) could drive predators to be more or less interested in mockingbird nests as a source of food.
(A Cooper's hawk, Accipiter cooperii. This individual is sitting on a bird feeder--a common activity of small urban hawks, who often treat backyards like buffets.)
The results from the video analysis were a bit more straightforward. Eight different species or species groups were observed preying on active mockingbird nests: domestic cats (Felis cauts), American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos), swallow-tailed kites (Elanoides forficatus), snakes, Cooper's hawks (Accipiter cooperii), flying squirrels, Virginia opossums (Didelphis virginiana), and raccoons (Procyon lotor). Urban mockingbirds could expect to face similar foes regardless of which residential area they settled in, and non-urban mockingbirds could expect the same predators whether they settled in a pasture or a wildlife reserve. However, there was a significant difference between the urban and non-urban sites. Specifically, domestic cats (Felis catus) were responsible for >70% (17/24) of predation events in urban areas, whereas Cooper's hawks (Accipiter cooperii) did the most damage in non-urban areas (45%, or 15/33 predation events).
Although urban mockingbirds were able to take refuge from particular predators--especially Cooper's Hawks--they were by no means living in a safe urban paradise. The most successful mockingbird predators--cats--were present only in urban areas. On the other hand, the predators that were found only in rural areas (including flying squirrels, raccoons, and opossums) were much less of a threat. Stracey feels that, "on a superficial level," her results indicate some prey switching in urban predators. For instance, she expected to find predation by common urban species such as fish crows (Corvus ossifragus), boat-tailed grackles (Quiscalus major), and common grackles, (Quiscalus quiscula), as well as by the deadly rural predator, the Cooper's hawk. However, in urban locations, these birds may be "distracted" away from mockingbirds by other sources of food.
(A northern mockingbird nest, hidden amongst the branches of a bush.)
It is more difficult to determine what the data have to say about the possibility of "incidental predation," when predators eat mockingbird nests that they happen to encounter while searching for other, preferred, food items. In the residential areas, several cats supplemented their diets with mockingbird chicks even though they were receiving food from humans; on the other hand, there was no evidence that predators had actually been attracted to mockingbird breeding areas by the presence of alternate food. Clearly, more information is needed about the diets of potential mockingbird predators, both within urban and non-urban areas individually, and across the entire rural-urban gradient. Though it may be time-consuming, a longitudinal analysis of what the predators are eating, how much they consume, and where they find it will be useful in understanding the specific role of mockingbird-related foods in their diets.
Another interesting follow-up study might focus on nest defense behaviors. Mockingbirds are known to be fiercely aggressive towards nearly all species that trespass too close to their nests. Here, the two strongest predators were those that were most difficult to deter by mobbing--and, in fact, posed threats not only to chicks but also to the territorial adults. For mockingbirds and other species, the effect of urban predators may be mitigated by the strength of the adults' nest defense display. In order to study this in greater detail, it will be important to focus on species of a variety of sizes and "boldnesses," as well as investigating those that utilize different styles and locations of nest (which may be more or less easily discovered by predators).
(Northern mockingbird mobbing a red-tailed hawk.)
Despite the new questions raised by this study, it does provide pretty definitive proof of one thing: the deadliness of domestic cats. Because the majority of feline predation events occurred at night, Stracey recommends that cat owners keep their pets indoors overnight in order to minimize predation of wild birds; although this might be useful year-round, she places particular emphasis on the breeding season, when vulnerable eggs and chicks are abundant.
For supplementary images associated with this post, please visit the Anthrophysis pin board at Pinterest.
Stracey, Christine M. 2011. Resolving the urban nest predator paradox: the role of alternative foods for nest predators. Biological Conservation 144:1545-1552.
Thanks to the following websites for providing the images used in this post:
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CANINE HIP DYSPLASIA
What is hip dysplasia?
Hip dysplasia is a deformity of the hip joint. This is a ball and socket type of joint in which the head of the femur represents the ball and the pelvis holds the socket. It is a hereditary condition in which the socket does not form properly and is too shallow to hold the ball. The result of this poor fit is a loose joint that is unstable. The instability leads to flattening of the femoral head (the ball) and destruction of the acetabulum (the socket). Eventually the joint begins to degenerate and becomes arthritic.
Can any dog get hip dysplasia?
The condition can occur in any breed. The incidence is higher in the larger breeds. The cause may be a combination of genetic, environmental, and nutritional factors. It may be inherited from either or both parents. It affects males and females equally.
How do I know if my dog has hip dysplasia?
An accurate diagnosis of hip dysplasia can be made by your veterinarian. Signs of hip dysplasia usually occur between 4 and 12 months of age. Some pets do not show signs until they are several years old. Dogs with hip dysplasia display general signs of pain in the hindquarters. They are reluctant to walk or run. They may have difficulty lying down or getting up. Some are reluctant to go up stairs or jump. These dogs are usually lame in one or both hind limbs.
How does a veterinarian know if a dog has hip dysplasia?
Your veterinarian will check for signs of muscle atrophy over the pelvis and hindquarters. The examiner will also check to see if the hip feels loose. The diagnosis is usually confirmed by taking x-rays. To take an x-ray the animal needs to lie perfectly still on its back with the legs extended. This is an uncomfortable and unnatural position and usually is best done with the pet under anesthesia.
Can hip dysplasia be treated?
Yes, based on the results of the examination and x-rays your veterinarian can choose among several treatment options. The goal of treatment is to relieve pain, improve function and reduce the chance of further deterioration of the hip joints. Conservative medical treatment includes; weight reduction; exercise restriction; anti-inflamatories and pain relievers. Sometimes surgery is necessary. In one procedure, called an excision arthroplasty, the head of the femur is removed. This allows a false joint to form. Total hip replacement surgery is also available for dogs. In this procedure the femoral head (ball) and the acetabulum (socket) are replaced with a synthetic joint. There are also surgical procedures that may prevent hip dysplasia from developing in young dogs that are predisposed to the condition. In another procedure the acetabulum (socket) is surgically repositioned to prevent instability. In a third procedure certain muscles are cut to try to prevent future hip problems.
Can hip dysplasia be prevented?
If a dog is genetically destined to have hip dysplasia, there is little that can be done to prevent it. Borderline cases may respond to changes in nutrition. By restricting food intake, and feeding a diet designed for large fast growing dogs you may be able to decrease the chance of your dog developing hip dysplasia. Your veterinarian can help you select a diet that is best for your pet. The most effective method of preventing hip dysplasia is to carefully select which dogs are bred. Both the mother and father should be x-rayed at two years of age and their hips evaluated for signs of dysplasia. Only dogs with a rating of good or excellent should be bred. When choosing a puppy, if you select a breed that is prone to hip dysplasia ask if the mother and father have had this done. If it has not, you may want to reconsider if the puppy will be right for you.
Brightwood Animal Hospital serves Mentor, Concord, Painesville and the surrounding communities.
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- acceptance as true or valid
- the accepted meaning of a word
- the act of accepting with approval; favorable reception;
"its adoption by society"
"the proposal found wide acceptance"
- This time the theme was about idolatry, which was tightly linked to the current Pornographic Photo Scandal and Yang Lijuan Affair, obtaining acceptation among the students widely.
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Anger can be normal and healthy emotion that helps us instinctively detect and respond to a threatening situation. More than this, when it is properly channeled, it can be a powerful motivating force – we all know how hard we can work to remedy an obvious injustice.
However it can also be an emotion that gets out of control, leading to stress, distress, unhealthiness and unhappiness. Uncontrolled anger can seriously harm your personal and professional life, because it can become incredibly destructive – to yourself and the people around you.
And in a modern workplace that often demands trust and collaboration, it can cause great damage to working relationships.
This article teaches an effective 12-step approach that helps you direct your anger constructively rather than destructively. The 12-step approach is based on the ideas of Duke University’s Redford Williams, MD, who with his wife, authored the best-selling book Anger Kills. (In this book, Williams discusses 17 steps for controlling anger – these are often abridged to the 12 steps described here.)
Understanding the Theory
Anger is a well-developed coping mechanism that we turn to when our goals are frustrated, or when we feel threat to ourselves or to people, things and ideas we care about. It helps us react quickly and decisively in situations where there is no time for a careful, reasoned analysis of the situation. And it can motivate us to solve problems, achieve our goals, and remove threats.
Acting in anger can serve, therefore, to protect yourself or others. A positive response and constructive outcome can improve your self-esteem and self-confidence.
The Danger of Anger – Foolishness…
On the other hand, a negative response can damage relationships and lead to a loss of respect and self-respect. This is particularly the case when we react instantly and angrily to what we perceive to be a threat, but where that perception is wrong. This can leave us looking very foolish.
So we need to learn to use anger positively, and manage it so that it is constructive and not destructive. Where situations are not immediately life-threatening, we need to calm down and evaluate the accuracy of our perceptions before, if necessary, channeling anger in a powerful but controlled way.
Anger management, then, is the process of learning how to “calm down” and diffuse the negative emotion of anger before it gets to a destructive level.
A Subjective Experience
People experience anger in many different ways and for many different reasons. What makes you angry may only mildly irritate one of your colleagues, and have little to no effect on another. This subjectivity can make anger difficult to understand and deal with; it also highlights that the response is down to you. So anger management focuses on managing your response (rather than specific external factors). By learning to manage your anger, you can develop techniques to deal with and expel the negative response and emotions before it causes you serious stress, anxiety and discomfort.
Despite our differences in the level of anger we feel toward something, there are some universal causes of anger that include:
- Frustration of our goals
- Personal attack (mental or physical) on ourselves
- Threat to people, things or ideas that we hold dear.
We commonly experience these potential anger triggers in our daily lives. An appropriate level of anger that is expressed correctly helps us take the right action, solve the problem that is presenting itself, or deal with the situation in a positive manner. If we can learn to manage our anger, we will learn to express it appropriately and act constructively.
Using the Tool:
So when you’re angry, use Redford Williams’ 12 steps to calm down:
Step 1: Maintain a “Hostility Log”
Download our free Hostility Log worksheet and use it to monitor what triggers your anger and the frequency of your anger responses. When you know what makes you angry, you will be in a better position to develop strategies to contain it or channel it effectively.
Step 2: If you do, acknowledge that you have a problem managing anger
It is an observed truth that you cannot change what you don’t acknowledge. So it is important to identify and accept that anger is a roadblock to your success.
Step 3: Use your support network
If anger is a problem, let the important people in your life know about the changes you are trying to make. They can be a source of motivation and their support will help you when you lapse into old behavior patterns.
Step 4: Use Anger Management techniques to interrupt the anger cycle
- Take deep breaths
- Tell your self you can handle the situation
- Stop the negative thoughts
Step 5: Use empathy
If another person is the source of your anger, try to see the situation from his or her perspective. Remind yourself to be objective and realize that everyone makes mistakes and it is through mistakes that people learn how to improve.
Step 6: Laugh at yourself
Humor is often the best medicine. Learn to laugh at yourself and not take everything so seriously.
The next time you feel tempted to kick the photocopier, think about how silly you would look and see the humor in your inappropriate expressions of anger.
Step 7: Relax
Angry people are often the ones who let the little things bother them. If you learn to calm down you will realize that there is no need to get uptight and you will have fewer angry episodes.
Step 8: Build Trust
Angry people can be cynical people. They believe that others are going to do something on purpose to annoy or frustrate them even before it happens. If you can build trust in people you will be less likely to become angry with them when something does go wrong and more likely to attribute the problem to something other than a malicious intent.
Step 9: Listen
Miscommunication contributes to frustrating and mistrusting situations. The better you listen to what a person is saying, the better able you will be to find a resolution that does not involve an anger response.
Step 10: Be Assertive
Remember, the word is assertive NOT aggressive. When you are angry it is often difficult to express yourself properly. You are too caught up in the negative emotion and your physiological symptoms (beating heart, red face) to put together solid arguments or appropriate responses. If you learn to assert yourself and let other people know your expectations, boundaries, issues, and so on, you will have much more interpersonal success.
Step 11: Live each day as if it is your last
This saying may be overused, but it holds a fundamental truth. Life is short and it is much better spent positively than negatively. Realize that if you spend all your time getting angry, you will miss out on the many joys and surprises that life has to offer.
Step 12: Forgive
To ensure that the changes you are making go much deeper than the surface, you need to forgive the people in your life that have angered you. It is not easy letting go of past hurts and resentments but the only way to move past your anger is to let go of these feelings and start fresh. (Depending on what, or who, is at the root of your anger, you may have to solicit the help of a professional to achieve this fully.)
These 12 steps form a comprehensive plan to get control of inappropriate and unproductive anger. And the quicker you begin the better. Anger and stress are highly correlated and the effects of stress on the body are well documented. Visit the MindTools stress management section to learn even more about the effects of stress and how to deal with it. You will find that many of the techniques presented here are used in stress management as well because both are negative, emotional-based influences in our lives, and the approach for dealing with them is therefore quite similar.
Even if you are not at the point where you feel your anger is a problem, it is a wise idea to familiarize yourself with the processes listed. If you do not have the tools to deal with anger correctly, it has a way of building-up over time. Before you know it, you can be in a position where anger is controlling you and becoming a negative influence in your life. Being proactive with anger management will help to ensure it remains a healthy emotion that protects you from unnecessary hurt or threat.
Anger is a powerful force, both for good and bad. Used irresponsibly, it can jeopardize your relationships, your work and your health.
Redford Williams’ 12-step approach for dealing with unconstructive anger is a well-balanced system that emphasizes knowing yourself and your triggers and then using that awareness to replace negative angry behavior with more positive actions and thoughts. While you don’t want to quell your anger completely, you do need to manage it if you’re to use it creatively.
And remember that anger can be creative. People act when they get angry. And providing their actions are constructive, this actually helps drive change and get things done.
Article originally posted : Anger Management – Stress Management Training from MindTools.com.
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Hamilton House as it appeared when purchased by the Tysons in the late 1890s Unusually for an early New England house, there are three facades, of which these are the back (land) and kitchen fronts. The door on the river facade would have been the main entrance in the 18th century.
Hamilton House, in South Berwick, Maine, is one of the loveliest–and most romantic– properties imaginable. Set on a bluff at the head of the Salmon Falls River and backed by rolling meadows and woodlands, it is an Arcadian ideal brought to life. A large, simple Georgian inspired house built in 1785 by Jonathan Hamilton a West Indies trader, and in his day part of a bustling settlement overlooking his busy wharves, it had fallen on hard times by the late 19th century. Enter the Tysons, persuaded by their friend Sarah Orne Jewett, who had based her novel The Tory Lover at Hamilton House, to buy it and restore it. Emily Tyson was the widow of the president of the Baltimore and Ohio railroad, and she and her stepdaughter Elise set about ‘restoring’ Hamilton House to a glory that far exceeded its earlier life.
The approach to Hamilton house is beautifully orchestrated to heighten the sense of remoteness and traveling back in time. One leaves the highway for a country road, and in turn leaves that road for a narrow country lane, which ends at the simple gate to the driveway, merely two cart tracks, at which one gets first glimpse of the house.
The Tyson’s domestic needs were greater than those of Jonathan Hamilton.’s day. Their renovation architect, Bostonian Herbert Browne, an early proponent of the Colonial revival, also practiced in a grand baroque style that bordered on lunacy (more about that in an upcoming post). He exercised restraint here, adding two low wings (since removed) , one for services, one a porch and first floor bedroom, fronting both with neo-classical treillage covered in vines to make them appear to be open porches. Even as many of their peers were erecting large houses in the fashionable seaside resorts a dozen miles to the south on the coast, the ladies Tyson were part of another movement, one that eschewed fashion in favor of romantic simplicity.
As one approaches the house, the drive is paved with flagstones, leading to a flagged circle in the grass near the house, a firm rebuke to all those McMansion forecourts with fountain in the center
Jonathan Hamilton’s barn was moved, and a lovely sunken garden was built in its foundations, with a shady pergola, now lost, bordering the river bluff and framing the views. In the house, with its large and well proportioned rooms, few architectural changes were made. Taking their cues from the relative simplicity of the interiors, decoration was light and airy—white ruffled or chintz curtains, painted furniture, straw matting, cheerful old fashioned wallpapers—the principles of Elsie deWolfe applied to a colonial inspired design.
In the hall, scraps of the original English ‘pillar and arch’ pattern wallpaper were found, and the Tysons had it reproduced, probably the earliest instance of in America of an historic wallpaper being reproduced in situ.
Hamilton House as enlarged for the Tysons by architect Herbert Browne (Tyson family photographs, SPNEA)
Loggia added by the Tysons
A garden house was built soon after, using elements salvaged from the early 18th century Sally Hart house in Newmarket, NH. This building combined the materials and sensibility of an early American house with the picturesque quality of a 16th century English cottage.
The garden house
Their creation complete, the Tysons sat back and enjoyed the acclaim as visitors arrived. And what visitors: One day Isabella Stewart Gardner and Henry Davis Sleeper, her summer neighbor on Eastern Point in Gloucester, MA, who had recently built an English arts and crafts style cottage there, motored up from the North Shore. And what they saw at Hamilton House was to have a profound effect on the story of interior design for the next 75 years.
A corner in the garden house. This mix of early architectural salvage and carefully and romantically arranged antiques was something very new and fresh in the early 1900s. (Max Weber photograph, originally published in House Beautiful, 1926)
Sleeper was riveted by the Tyson’s collections of hooked rugs, colored glass cued to the decorative schemes of each room, old fashioned furniture, and old prints and objects, all composed in lovely arrangements.. Most of all, he was riveted by the garden house. On the drive up to South Berwick, the party had noticed an ancient house being demolished in Essex, Upon return, Sleeper bought that house, and began incorporating the salvage into his own house, decorating it brilliantly with furnishings like those he had seen at Hamilton House that summer afternoon. Sleeper’s work at Beauport caught the eye of Henry Francis Dupont, who hired him to do up a huge house at Southampton, which in turn begat Dupont’s Winterthur, which house, along with the restoration of Colonial Williamsburg, did so much to begat the much more correct and dull version of 18th century American Georgian that dominated a certain sort of WASP taste through the 1970’s. But, I am wandering from my subject. Back we go.
The dining room, with murals by George Porter Fernald. The use of humble painted chairs with fine mahogany furniture was also new and fresh, and demonstrates the Tyson’s talent at the game of high and low.
few years after completion of their initial decorative schemes, the Tysons had the inspired genius to ask George Porter Fernald, an artist from nearby Portsmouth who had already created charming painted valances for the windows, and had painted some furniture for them, to paint over their leafy floral wallpapers in the drawing and dining rooms.
The Drawing Room Murals, with idealized views of the Pisquataqua region. The leaves and trees survive from the wallpaper over which the murals were painted
In the drawing room, he painted scenes of famous buildings of the area Charmingly, the murals incorporated leaves and trees from the existing wallpaper. In the dining room, a classical landscape, reminiscent of scenic wallpapers, made for one of the loveliest rooms of its time. Porter ran the horizon of the mural to echo that outside, and captured exactly the colors of the outside landscape on a summer day. The distinctions between outside and inside thus blurred, a visual poetry was achieved. Of the many beautiful rooms in every style that I’ve been in, this is one of the loveliest of all.
The dining room as it appears today. The painted valance boards are a little slice of heaven.
After Mrs. Tyson’s death her stepdaughter, by now Mrs. Henry Vaughan, continued to occupy Hamilton House in the summer. In 1946 she left the estate to the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities (SPNEA), now unfortunately renamed “Historic New England. Hamilton House was part of a larger movement in American culture and aesthetics, and is one of the best surviving examples of Colonial Revival decoration, its interiors now carefully restored to the early 1900s scheme. Most of the pictures below are from a late afternoon, late summer visit that I made this year, interspersed with a few photographs originally published in House Beautiful in 1926, The garden house will be featured in an upcoming post.
The door on the riverfront, inspired by English Builder’s books, with stone terrace and grindstone added by the Tysons
And the view from that door
The side door originally opened to a hall, now an extension to the dining room, with views to the sunken garden
The back door, now the main entrance, with sidelights added to the original central motif by Herbert Browne
The view from that door. Old fashioned Loveliness abounds in every direction
The arched doors of the carriage shed, with wonderful classical detail over, applied simply to the board siding (sadly, this arch was covered with square doors)
The cross axis of the garden from the carriage shed in 1926, and now
Main Garden axis toward house, 1926 and now (photo from Virtual Tourist Berwick)
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Contemporary ecological awareness advocates focus on the term “sustainable,” a concept that encompasses many aspects of how we approach our daily lives.
Recycling, minimizing waste and reusing household items are examples of sustainability. And few homeowner practices are more sustainable, easier to manage and more economical than composting, a natural alternative to chemical fertilizers.
By converting normal everyday organic household waste into a beneficial garden/potting soil additive, composting can make sense for most every homeowner; just follow these three basic steps:
Choose a sunny area and assemble clean “feed stock” comprised of 2/3 “brown” (high carbon) materials (leaves, shredded paper/cardboard, sawdust, pine needles, wood chips, etc.) and 1/3 “green” (high nitrogen) items (grass clippings, fresh weeds, fruit/vegetable scraps, non-meat/dairy food leftovers, etc.) and mix them together, alternating layers;
After a couple of weeks, measure the temperature in the middle of the pile. Continue measuring weekly until the internal temperature reaches 131°F. Then after about 2 weeks, and before temperatures reach 170°F, your pile is ready to turn. With a pitchfork, remove about a foot of the mix from the top and sides and place the rest of the material from the interior on top; this aerates the mixture and prevents it from becoming anaerobic (which stops the composting process). If the mix seems dry, sprinkle with a garden hose to keep it moist, but not soggy;
You’ll know the composting process is finished after 5-plus turnings when the internal temperatures start to decline below 131°F.
Successful composting needs only a few tools: a thermometer to measure soil temperatures, (available at garden centers/hardware stores for about $10), a pitchfork and a spray nozzle for your garden hose.
Your compost pile can be located directly on the ground in any sunny location. A pile at least 3 feet in diameter and 3-4 feet high will assure best results. Be sure to alternate adding the brown and green items so they mix together well. If space is limited, you may want to surround your pile with a wire or wooden enclosure. Or consider using a compost bin/tumbler, available in many styles at most garden centers.
Once your compost internal temperature starts to decrease, let the pile rest for a month or more, turning it occasionally. When internal and surface temperatures are the same, your compost is stabilized and ready to apply to your garden or use in a potting mix.
It’s important to use only clean materials in your compost, with no trash or contaminants. Never add meat products, fat, dairy or oils or pet waste. Lawn clippings are considered safe even if fertilizer or herbicides have been used on the lawn. When you measure temperatures and turn your pile at the right times, odors are minimized. The finished compost will have a pleasant “earthy” odor. And you can feel confident you are converting your former waste into a meaningful resource for maintaining a sustainable garden and landscape.
R. Wayne Mezitt is a third-generation nurseryman, a Massachusetts-certified horticulturist and chairman of Weston Nurseries in Hopkinton and Chelmsford. He also owns Hort-Sense, a horticultural advisory business, and serves as trustee chairman for the Massachusetts Horticultural Society at Elm Bank in Wellesley.
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It won’t take long for sea levels to rise by at least six meters. According to a recent study on the matter, governments have to significantly increase their efforts of curbing global warming; otherwise the world’s coasts – from Florida to Bangladesh – will be swamped.
Twenty feet – the approximate equivalent of 6 meters – in sea level rise might not sound like much. However, scientists fear that there’s no going back in this matter, and that whatever the decisions will be in December’s climate summit in Paris, sea levels will continue to rise.
The current study has studied changes in global sea levels and came up with a framework using those changes in order to gain a better understanding of what the future looks like for coastal communities around the world. Analysis showed that the sea has risen with 8 inches since the industrial era has boomed.
Climate Change estimates that, should this rate be sustained, 26 major cities in the U.S. would face flooding crises by 2050. Same projections paint a really dark picture for the costs of the damage caused globally by this situation.
Trillions of dollars are expected to be spent on salvaging the 150 million people who are now occupying land that is predicted to be exposed to frequent flooding or completely submerged by 2100.
Lead study author Andrea Dutton of the University of Florida said that ice sheets seem to disagree with the present climate and the direction it has taken. She also fears that even though governments are developing ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, it won’t be enough to stop the thawing and the increased sea levels.
The current goal set by the United Nations for countries who contribute with the most greenhouse gas emissions is lowering temperatures so they are only 2 degrees Celsius warmer than those before the Industrial Age.
But that is still a pipe dream, which might not be enough to keep the massive ice shelves – the doorstops of Antarctica – on land and not contributing to sea levels, which have been gradually intensifying since the 1990s.
Sea-level rise expert Anders Levermann of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, who has also authored a study on the matter, said the current research is consistent with what has been recorded in the past.
However, the six-meter rise in sea levels might take another several centuries before happening, in spite of some scientists considering historic evidence pointing to extra speedy shifts. The biggest challenge right now is dealing with the rising levels of carbon dioxide, which is uncharted territory.
Image Source: Ice Shelf
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DNS, or Domain Name System, is one of the most important components of the Internet. It is the service of the web that converts an IP address to a hostname, allowing websites to have their easy to remember names like sk33lz.com. Without it, you would need to remember IP addresses for websites like you used to have to remember someone's phone number. Thanks to smartphones we don't need to do that anymore either.
The IPs used in the examples below are the actual IPv4 and IPv6 IPs of this website's server.
IPv4 DNS Records
A Name Record
The A Name Record is probably the most common DNS record, as it is used to assign the TLD, Top Level Domain, and subdomains to an IPv4 IP address.
Parts of the web are also evolving. Did you know we ran out of IPv4, 32-bit, IP addresses last year? Those are the ones that look like 126.96.36.199. The last free IP address block for IPv4 was depleted on September 24, 2015. That was a total of 4,294,967,296 IPs, 588,514,304 of which are reserved IPs, so we have gone through a total of 3,706,452,992 IPs since the inception of the Internet. This means that soon enough there will be no IPv4 IPs to assign to computers and devices around the world. Luckily, we have IPv6, a 64-bit IP address range, that has the possibility of theoretically allowing up to 340,282,366,920,938,463,463,374,607,431,768,211,456 IPs. It should be a while before we hit that theoretical maximum, so let's see what we need to do to get ready for this changeover in terms of DNS.
IPv6 DNS Records
These DNS entries are specific to IPv6, or combined with IPv4 and IPv6.
AAAA Name Record
The AAAA Name Record is similar to an A Name Record, but maps an IPv6 IP address to a hostname instead. Typically you will assign this to @ or hostname of the A Name Record that corresponds to the IPv4 IP.
@ 2600:3c03::f03c:91ff:fe18:a1bc subdomain1 2600:3c03::f03c:91ff:fe18:a1bc
IPv4 and IPv6 Combined SPF Record
Google recently started requiring SPF records to be assigned to mail server transactions on Gmail's servers. This requires a specific TXT record in your DNS. Typically you would assign to @ or the A Name Record and AAAA Name Record you have assigned to the IPv4 and IPv6 IPs respectively.
@ v=spf1 a mx ip4:188.8.131.52 ip6:2600:3c03::f03c:91ff:fe18:a1bc ~all
subdomain1 v=spf1 a mx ip4:184.108.40.206 ip6:2600:3c03::f03c:91ff:fe18:a1bc ~all
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Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Nobel prize-winning author, dies at 87
(CNN) — Gabriel García Márquez, the influential, Nobel Prize-winning author of “One Hundred Years of Solitude” and “Love in the Time of Cholera,” has died, his family and officials said.
He was 87.
The literary giant was treated in April for infections and dehydration at a Mexican hospital.
García Márquez, a native of Colombia, is widely credited with helping to popularize “magic realism,” a genre “in which the fantastic and the realistic are combined in a richly composed world of imagination,” as the Nobel committee described it upon awarding him the prize for literature in 1982.
The author’s cousin, Margarita Marquez, and Colombia’s ambassador to Mexico, José Gabriel Ortiz, confirmed the author’s death to CNN on Thursday.
The author — known by his nickname “Gabo” throughout Latin America — was born in the northern Colombian town of Aracataca, which became the inspiration for Macondo, the town at the center of “Solitude,” his 1967 masterpiece, and referenced in such works as his novella “Leaf Storm” and the novel “In Evil Hour.”
“I feel Latin American from whatever country, but I have never renounced the nostalgia of my homeland: Aracataca, to which I returned one day and discovered that between reality and nostalgia was the raw material for my work,” reads a mural quoting the author outside of town.
García Márquez’s early life was shaped by both familial and political conflict. His grandfather, a widely respected figure known as the Colonel, was a liberal military man who strongly disagreed with the political views of García Márquez’s father, a conservative telegraph operator who became a pharmacist. (His father’s ardent pursuit of his mother later inspired “Love in the Time of Cholera.”)
Their political disagreement came to reflect that of Colombia as a whole, a country that spent a postwar decade in the grip of what was called “La Violencia,” a civil war that followed the assassination of a populist leader.
A storyteller’s childhood
García Márquez spent his early childhood with his grandparents while his parents pursued a living in the coastal city of Barranquilla.
Both his grandparents were excellent storytellers, and García Márquez soaked in their tales. From his grandfather he learned of military men, Colombian history and the terrible burden of killing; from his grandmother came folk tales, superstitions and ghosts among the living.
His grandmother’s stories were delivered “as if they were the irrefutable truth,” according to the García Márquez site themodernword.com. The influence is obvious in García Márquez’s works, particularly “One Hundred Years of Solitude.”
In 1936 the Colonel, died and García Márquez returned to his parents and their growing family. He was eventually one of 11 children, not to mention several half-siblings from his father’s affairs, a familial sprawl that also found its way into his books.
After finishing high school, García Márquez went off to college with dreams of becoming a writer. His parents, on the other hand, had plans for him to become a lawyer. Writing ended up taking precedence: When La Violencia broke out, García Márquez started contributing stories to a local newspaper and eventually became a columnist. He had also been exposed to writers such as James Joyce, Virginia Woolf, Franz Kafka and especially William Faulkner, who had turned his own patch of land in Oxford, Mississippi, into the shape-shifting past and present of Yoknapatawpha County.
In the mid-1950s, García Márquez left Colombia for Europe, a move partly provoked by a story he’d written that was critical of the government. The distance, he later said, helped shape his perspective on Latin American politics.
For years, García Márquez had been writing and publishing fiction, including short stories in Latin American journals and a handful of longer works, including “Leaf Storm,” which was published in 1955. But it wasn’t until 1967 with the publication of “One Hundred Years of Solitude” that he broke through to a wide audience.
‘100 Years’ of literary renown
The novel is set in Macondo, a town founded by the patriarch of the Buendia family, José Arcadio Buendia. Over the generations, members of the family are set upon by ghosts and visions, fall in love, dream of riches and fight in wars. Natural events take on supernatural aspects — rains that last years, plagues that create memory loss. It is a tapestry of almost biblical proportions in which reality and spirit swirl and merge, a world unto itself — as well as a commentary on the politics and history of the world at large.
“The narrative is a magician’s trick in which memory and prophecy, illusion and reality are mixed and often made to look the same. It is, in short, very much like Márquez’s astonishing novel,” wrote The New York Times in a 1970 review upon the release of the English translation by Gregory Rabassa.
Chilean poet Pablo Neruda told Time that the book was “the greatest revelation in the Spanish language since the Don Quixote of Cervantes.”
García Márquez worked on “Solitude” tirelessly, selling off family items, living on credit, smoking up a nicotine frenzy. Upon its release, the book became an instant bestseller in Latin America and was equally successful in English.
The book didn’t ease all of García Márquez’s problems, however. As a vocal leftist and defender of Castro’s Cuba, he was regularly limited or denied visas by the United States until President Bill Clinton, a fan of “Solitude,” revoked the ban. García Márquez also became involved in a feud with onetime friend writer Mario Vargas Llosa, a Peruvian and a Nobel laureate, who punched the Colombian in the face in 1976 — believed to be over politics but later revealed to be over Vargas Llosa’s wife.
García Márquez’s ensuing works were generally praised. They included “The Autumn of the Patriarch” (1975), “Chronicle of a Death Foretold” (1981) and “The General in His Labyrinth” (1990). He is said to be the most popular Spanish-language author in the world.
“Love in the Time of Cholera,” with an English translation published in 1988, was a particular bestseller. The love story, which was turned into a 2007 movie, was referenced in such works as the 2001 movie “Serendipity” and the finale of the TV series “How I Met Your Mother.”
García Márquez’s style and impact have been widespread.
He is credited with spearheading “el Boom,” attracting attention to a generation of Latin American writers, including Vargas Llosa and Mexico’s Carlos Fuentes. Magical realism is now an accepted genre, to the point that its use has made some critics dismissive.
And he prompted a focus on Latin American politics — protesting the 1973 CIA-aided coup in Chile, calling attention to corruption and free speech issues in South America and around the world.
™ & © 2014 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.
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The water from the faucet is full of chlorine, and usually with chloramine, a toxic gas that is a popular disinfectant.
The water we drink should not contain more than 4 mg. of chlorine in 1 liter of water, but, unfortunately, it goes over the limit more often than it is under the limit.
It is desirable to examine the water we drink, and you can easily do that with a Tester (test strip) which tests water’s quality and quantity of chlorine.
Chlorinated water consumption increases the risk of cancer of the bladder, increased cholesterol levels, it also causes asthma and allergy. It is also, bad for the skin, eyes and respiratory tract.
Many health organizations advise, to clean your water from chlorine whenever you can.
How to remove the chlorine?
The simplest way is to put at least a few drops of lemon juice every time you drink water in the cup, because vitamin “C” purifies water.
Quite simply, the water can be purified with tablets of vitamin “C”. Usually the advised ratio is 1 mg. of vitamin for 1 liter of water, but you can add more, it depends of the amount of chlorine in the water.
The water can be cleansed also with water filters which are mounted on the faucets. Also, the chlorine can be removed if you leave a water container open, so the chlorine is transformed into a gaseous state and evaporates. However, to evaporate completely it takes about 2 – 3 days.
The chlorine can be removed with boiling the water. You should boil the water for 15 minutes.
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Genes controlling circadian or 'body clock' rhythms are often altered in the brains of people with severe depression, scientists have found.
Researchers at the University of California, Irvine, analysed a large amount of genetic data obtained from brain tissue samples from 34 severely depressed and 55 non-depressed people.
They found that clock gene rhythms were 'significantly disrupted' in patients who were depressed, according to senior author Dr William Bunney, whose findings are published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
He admitted the team was 'amazed' by the discovery, which suggests a physical basis for many of the symptoms experienced by people with depression.
'The findings provide clues for potential new classes of compounds to rapidly treat depression that may reset abnormal clock genes and normalise circadian rhythms,' Dr Bunney revealed.
Approximately one in ten people are affected by depression at some point during their lifetime, according to NHS figures.
Symptoms may range from lasting feelings of sadness, hopelessness, tiredness and lack of appetite to suicidal thoughts.
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At the end of this topic the student should be able to:
- describe some of the changes that arise when phonetic segments are executed in sequence
- describe how some contextual changes occur because of limitations of articulator dynamics
- use gestural scores to explain how some contextual effects arise in the planning and execution of efficient articulation
- give some reasons why contextual effects may be different in different languages
- give examples of contextual effects of different types: coarticulation, assimilation, elision and harmony.
- Contextual Effects
When sequences of phonetic segments are spoken we do not expect that each one would be articulated in the same way as when articulated in isolation. Of necessity the articulators move smoothly and continuously when moving from one segment to the next, and this requires that their position at some time t is influenced both by their position and movement at times earlier than t and in anticipation of their position and movement at times later than t. We shall call all variations in the articulation of a segment caused by its location within an utterance contextual effects.
Contextual variations in the articulation of a segment are influenced by many factors, including:
- identity of nearby segments
- position in syllable
- syllable stress, word focus and sentence intonation
- rhythm and speaking rate
- speaking style
In this lecture we will mainly focus on contextual effects arising from the identity of nearby segments. We approach this through the "speaking to be understood" model introduced in week 3. In this model, we assume that the speaker has acquired knowledge of what the utterance needs to sound like to be understandable to a listener, then creates some articulation which is sufficient to trigger that understanding. In such a model it is not necessary for the speaker to make each phonological aspect of a word individually discernible so long as the word itself may be identified in context. This allows for the possibility that the realised form may underspecify (i.e. be ambiguous about) its phonological structure.
Thus under the speaking to be understood approach, we have an underlying phonological representation of some utterance and an articulatory plan which the speaker believes will generate a sound which is "good enough" for the listener. Contextual effects arise because there are advantages to the speaker in having a simpler plan which uses less articulator movement: these can be produced faster and with less effort. But the need for the message to be understandable limits which simplifications may be made.
Lastly, we would expect (and indeed we find) that the allowable degree of simplification will depend on many factors of the communicative act: the novelty of the message, the familiarity of the listener to the speaker, or the quality of the listening environment. We shall address these issues in a later lecture.
- Some Elementary Dynamics
Before we look at the movements of articulators, let's consider some simple aspects of the dynamics of moving objects.
An example of a simple dynamical system is a mass connected to a spring responding to an applied force. When a force is applied, the mass accelerates in the direction of the force and travels until the applied force is equal to the restoring force of the spring. Consider a step change in an applied force:
The object moves from its current position to a new position under the action of the force. The path that it takes depends on the degree of damping in the system (what frictional forces apply). If damping is too low then the mass overshoots the new rest position; if it is too high, then the mass takes a long time to get to the new position. If the damping is just sufficient to get to the new position without overshoot, we say the system is critically damped.
Critically damped movement is the fastest way to get to the target without overshoot. A reasonable assumption (and one accepted by various articulatory theories) is that articulator movement is critically damped.
However, if movement of the object is critically damped and if there is not enough time for it to travel to its target location under the applied force, then undershoot can arise, as seen in this diagram:
Here we see a sequence of targets A, B, A, B. For the first A target, the object has sufficient time to reach the target value before it heads off for the following B target. For the second A target, however, insufficient time is available, and the object heads on to the second B target before it reaches the A target position. This behaviour is called undershoot.
What happens when we want to move multiple articulators into a given target configuration? Generally, different articulators will move at different speeds. This means that if we require the articulators to get into a specific configuration at a specific time, then they need to be set off in movement at different times:
In the left panel of the diagram above, we see that if articulator movement is triggered at one time, then the target configuration is only achieved when the slowest articulator is in position. This may be a problem if the intermediate articulatory configurations produce the wrong sound. In the right panel, we see that if the slowest articulator is set off first, it can be arranged that all articulators get into position at the same time.
From this discussion we need to draw the conclusion that speaking sequences of speech sounds - involving multiple articulators each with different dynamical properties - is going to take a lot of planning. We cannot just throw the articulators around and hope that they will be in the right position at the right time. We need to allow sufficient time for each articulator to reach its target location and we need to plan asynchronous starts to ensure that the slower articulators are in position for when they are needed to synchronise with the faster articulators.
- Articulatory Planning and Execution
Elements of Motor Planning
How is the articulation of an utterance planned and executed? There are multiple theories, but each involve elements such as:
- Motor primitives: these are assumed to be pre-stored, pre-planned, learned movements of muscles that control the movement of one articulator (or one part of one articulator). A motor primitive might be a lower-lip raising movement, or a velum lowering movement.
- Motor programs: these are combinations of motor primitives required to execute all the articulators for some stretch of speech: a single phone, a syllable onset or rhyme, or even a whole syllable or word. These are supposed to be well practised and rehearsed, but can be adapted according to need.
- Motor plans: these are combinations of motor programs which are built as required to articulate a complete, new utterance.
Generally the assumption is that speaking is a highly-rehearsed and learned behaviour, and that articulation is not wholly planned from scratch for each utterance, but is composed from more primitive elements (motor primitives & motor programs), which might be finite in number. Such ideas not only reduce the complexity of speaking, but explain some aspects of speech acquisition by children and the occurrence of idiosyncratic speaking habits in individuals.
A Gestural Score
How are the primitive elements assembled into a motor plan for an utterance? One model for this is called the gestural score. Analogous to a musical score, it sets out which primitive gestures need to be articulated at which times to execute the production of an utterance [image source]:
Different combinations of the different primitives give rise to different utterances [image source]:
And the same combination of primitives but with different timing can also give rise to different utterances [image source]:
Articulatory undershoot will have an effect on sound generation. If the tongue fails to reach the articulatory position for a peripheral vowel, then it may appear to sound centralised. If the articulators fail to close for a plosive or create a narrow-enough channel for a fricative then the whole sound may be weakened, this is called lenition. A plosive might turn into a fricative (e.g. "recognition" as [rexəˈnɪʃən], or a fricative into an approximant (e.g. "saving" as [seɪʋɪŋ]).
Anticipatory movements of the articulators
At a minimum the gestural score needs to take into account the different speeds of the articulators, so that slower more massive articulators are started to move into position ahead of when they are needed. In fact we can easily show that forces are often applied ahead of the latest time they are required to position the articulator. Consider lip rounding in the word "sue" compared to the word "see". Since /u/ requires lip-rounding, this must be applied in time to be ready for when the vowel starts. But a moment's reflection shows that the lips are already rounded at the start of the word! In other words the lip rounding articulation of the vowel is anticipated within the whole motor plan even before the onset of the utterance.
Jaw position, lip position and velum position are prone to this type of extended anticipation - perhaps because they can be moved relatively independently of other articulators. We may not be able to move the tongue earlier than necessary because its anticipatory movement might interfere with the currently executing segments.
There is one other important aspect of anticipatory planning worth recording. Whether anticipatory positioning of an articulator is possible will depend on how much it disrupts the segments leading up to the target segment - and that will depend on the phonological contrasts in the language. Consider a language, like English, which makes no contrast between nasal and non-nasal vowels preceding a nasal consonant: here there is no problem in lowering the velum during the vowel because no distinctiveness is lost. But this would not be the case for a language in which oral and nasal vowels were contrasted (e.g. French). In a situation where an oral and nasal vowel are contrasted before a nasal consonant (in the following word typically), the velum must remain closed for the oral vowel until the very last second when it can be lowered for the following nasal.
Adaptability of plans
Another question about motor planning is whether it is complete and unchangeable prior to the execution of the articulation, or whether the plan changes during execution depending on circumstances. Experiments have shown that the motor plans are surprisingly adaptable, and can change even while they are being executed. If, for example, a speaker's lower lip is pulled down while they are attempting to make a bilabial closure, it can be observed that the upper lip makes a larger than normal compensatory movement. This type of behaviour is taken to infer that the quality of articulation is continually monitored during execution, possibly through proprioceptive feedback.
Limits to contextual effects
The design and execution of the motor plan must take into account two aspects: first that the speech should be easy and fast to articulate and second that it should maintain its intelligibility to listeners. If we didn't care about intelligibility, then it wouldn't matter how accurately each segment was articulated and we would see many large contextual effects. Conversely, if we only cared about maximising intelligibility then we would speak very slowly indeed and minimise the contextual effects. Generally we want to speak quickly (since the rate limiting factor is often the articulation rather than the planning or the understanding), but at the same time we want the message to be understood. In good listening conditions, when intelligibility is high a fast speaking rate is a priority, while in poor listening conditions when intelligibility is lower a slower speaking rate is chosen.
- Types of contextual effects
In the literature you will find a range of names for different types of contextual effects. Let us take them in turn, with examples.
- Coarticulation: Coarticulation means 'joint articulation', that is a situation where one articulator is trying to satisfy more than one segment. A classic example is in the articulation of "car" and "key"; in the first, anticipation of the vowel moves the body of the tongue low and back and so the velar closure occurs further back in the mouth [k̠ɑ]; while in the second, anticipation of the vowel moves the body of the tongue high and front and so the velar closure occurs further forward in the mouth [k̟i]. The contextual variation of the two [k] sounds is caused by the joint articulation of the plosive and the vowel. Another example of coarticulation is audible in the quality of /h/ before different vowels. When articulating [h], the tongue anticipates the position for the following vowel and so the vocal tract tube that filters the turbulence generated by the glottal fricative has the frequency response of the following vowel. Indeed we could say that varieties of /h/ are as different to one another as varieties of vowels.
- Assimilation: Sometimes the gestural score is so modified by efficient planning that the resulting score is confused even in terms of what phonological segment sequence it represents. In "good boy" or "good girl", for example, it appears that the alveolar plosive can be substituted for a bilabial or velar plosive respectively: [gʊbbɔɪ], [ɡʊɡɡɜːl]. However, an alternative explanation is shown in the gestural scores below:
These two types of coarticulation work right-to-left, with later sounds influencing earlier sounds. The term for this is anticipatory coarticulation. Left-to-right coarticulation can also occur, although it is less common. This is called carryover or perseverative coarticulation. An example of perseverative coarticulation is the carrying over of voicelessness from the consonant to the lateral in "please" [pl̥iːz].
- Without assimilation:
tongue body ʊ vowel ɔ vowel ɪ vowel tongue tip alveolar closure lips lip closure
- Anticipate lip closure:
tongue body ʊ vowel ɔ vowel ɪ vowel tongue tip alveolar closure lips lip closure
- Drop alveolar closure:
tongue body ʊ vowel ɔ vowel ɪ vowel tongue tip lips lip closure
In this explanation, there is no "shift" from /d/ to /b/, just a plan in which /b/ takes over the role of /d/ and the /d/ is lost. It is hard to call this 'coarticulation', since there is no real problem in producing an alveolar plosive in this context, and in any case the articulators for [b], [d] are different - so it cannot be the case that the change in articulation is due to the tongue tip being jointly articulated for both [d] and [b].
This combination of coarticulation and phonological re-writing is called assimilation.
Another common form of assimilation is devoicing, particularly of voiced plosives and voiced fricatives before voiceless sounds. Since all English voiced plosives and fricatives have voiceless counterparts, a loss of voicing can always be interpreted as a change in the identity of the segment itself (i.e. assimilation could arise from voicing coarticulation). It is common to hear "have to" spoken as [hæftʊ] for example.
It is interesting to note that there is nothing to stop voiceless segments being assimilated to voiced ones in the complementary context, e.g. "nice boy" as [naɪzbɔɪ]. However this kind of voicing assimilation doesn't seem to occur in English, although it does occur in Frenchː "avec vous" as [aveɡvu].
These examples of assimilation are right-to-left or anticipatory, but assimilation can occur left-to-right, as in "happen" [hæpm̩] or in "don't you" [dəʊntʃuː].
Assimilation is important diachronically, since if a motor plan is ambiguous about which phonological sequence it represents then new generations of listeners can misinterpret the phonological form of the word. Historically this may have arisen in the voicing agreement of the plural morpheme "-s" to the voicing of the last consonant in the word; or the pronunciation of "in+possible" as /ɪmpɒsɪbl̩/. A newspaper was once just paper /peɪpə/ containing news /njuːz/, but now for many people it is a /njuːspeɪpə/.
- Elision: In the assimilation example above, we see how elements of the score which become redundant because of efficient planning (like the [d] in "good boy") can seem to be dropped. There are other situations in which elements can be dropped, perhaps simply because there is not enough time to articulate them, or because meaning is preserved without them. This dropping of whole phonological segments is called elision.
- Harmony, liaison and other phonological-level effects: Harmony is a phenomenon of many languages of the world, and refers to constraints on which phonological segments can co-occur within a word or morpheme. In Igbo, a Nigerian language, the vowels in a word must all come from one of two sets, either [i,e,u,o] or [i̙,a,u̙,o̙] (the diacritic is retracted tongue root). For example /isiri/ "you cooked", /osie/ "he cooks", /i̙si̙ri̙/ "you said", /o̙si̙a/ "he says".In other words, the tongue root position is spread throughout the word.
Consider the phrase "next week", it is indeed possible to articulate this as [nekstwiːk] but it is also very often heard as just [nekswiːk]. The [t] is tricky to articulate between consonants, and it is unlikely that the listener will interpret the result as "necks week".
In a famous experiment, Browman & Goldstein used articulator tracking to study tongue tip movement in the phrase "perfect memory", which contains a tricky articulatory sequence [ktm]. When spoken quickly, the bilabial closure precedes the velar release and the [t] is elided to get [pɜːfek̚ memriː]. The scores below show the process:
But articulator tracking gave an interesting result around the elided /t/ segment - the tonɡue tip still made some brief movement, even though there were no acoustic consequences because of the lip closure.
The fact that elements of the motor plan are still executed even when they are redundant is evidence that planning is an active process performed "on the fly" while speaking.
One important aspect of elision that is worth noting, is that elision does not disturb the speech rhythm. That is, deleting segments does not speed up the speaking rate (causality is the other way around: increasing rate causes elements to be dropped). The consequence of this is that listeners can sometimes tell from the timing of the utterance that elements have been elided. Consider the phrase "book-case" as [bʊkkeɪs]; after elision of the first [k] segment, we get [bʊkːeɪs] and not [bʊkeɪs]. This is an example of gemination.
Although harmony is often taken to be a phonological phenomenon operating at the level of segment selection rather than motor planning, it could have its origins in coarticulatory behaviour. Long-range coarticulatory phenomena do occur which stretch over multiple syllables - we see examples of that in English with multi-syllable stretches of nasality and nasalisation, in words like "murmuring". Coarticulatory anticipation of lip rounding can also occur many segments ahead of a rounded vowel. Also the first words of infants tend to exploit reduplication of syllables, which is also a kind of harmony, in "mama", "dada", "wowo", etc.
Thus what we see synchronically as vowel harmony, may have arisen diachronically as a phonologisation of long-range vowel-to-vowel coarticulatory patterns.
A similar story might be told about Liaison: the intrusion of a sound between words to reinforce a word boundary. An example of this in English is "linking-r", where an /r/ sound is introduced between a word ending in a non-high vowel when followed by a word beginning with a vowel, such as [bʊtʃə(r)ənbeɪker] or [ɪndɪə(r)ənpɑːkɪstɑːn]. Such effects might have arisen from situations where a word-final /r/ is lost due to contextual effects, except for these situations where it is still helpful for the listener. This might then appear (diachronically) as a regularity in the phonological pattern which is then applied by new speakers in new contexts.
Finally, some contextual effects are so old and accepted that they enter the spelling system, such as "in+possible" => "impossible". It then becomes questionable as to whether modern speakers even think of such words as arising from derivational morphology plus contextual effect.
- Coarticulation and connected speech processes, a web tutorial by Peter Roach.
- An introduction to coarticulation, some web pages by Sidney Wood.
- Gick, Wilson & Derrick, Articulatory Phonetics, Wiley Blackwell 2013, Chapter 11, Putting articulations together. [available in library].
- Farnetani & Recasens, “Coarticulation and connected speech processes”, in Handbook of Phonetic Sciences (ed W.Hardcastle, J. Laver & F. Gibbon), Wiley-Blackwell 2010 [available in library].
In this week's lab session we will experiment with creating new utterances by gluing together the sound elements from old utterances.
- concatenation of individual segments
- concatenation of syllable components
- concatenation of words
- concatenation using a 'slot and filler' grammar.
Research paper of the week
- A. Toutios, K. Margaritis, "A Rough Guide to the Acoustic-to-Articulatory Inversion of Speech", 6th Hellenic European Conference on Computer Mathematics & its Applications (HERCMA), Athens, Greece, September 2003.
Articulatory inversion is the challenge of deriving an appropriate articulatory motor program to reproduce an utterance that you have heard. Toutis and Margaritis describe the problem:
if the acoustic signal is known (something which is the usual case) can the articulatory state be somehow calculated or even approximated?
The recovery of the articulatory state given the acoustic signal is not a trivial problem. Not having a direct analytical solution, it is considered a difficult and ill-posed problem, puzzling researchers for over three decades now, and being given the status of becoming a whole research area, called acoustic-to-articulatory inversion of speech or, more simply, speech inversion. Of course there are reasons for this difficulty.
One of the first things one has to consider is the way the articulatory state will be described, or modeled ... Another factor that contributes to making the speech inversion problem hard to solve, is the one-to-many nature of the acoustic-to-articulatory mapping. A given articulatory state has always only one acoustic realization. But, from the other side, a given acoustic signal may be the outcome of more than one articulatory states. Furthermore, the mapping is highly non-linear. A slight variation of the articulatory state may give rise to a whole different acoustic signal.
In the paper, the authors review a number of approaches to the articulatory inversion problem. First they review a number of models of the articulatory system such as models of articulator position and vocal tract tube cross-section, models based on phonetic or phonological features, or 3D models based on X-Ray, MRI or Electromagnetic Articulography (EMA) data.
Next the authors review some previous inversion methods, including:
- Codebooks - where many matched articulatory-acoustic pairs are pre-calculated and stored in a codebook. Then the collection is searched to find a sequence of codebook entries that would generate the given sound. A big problem with this approach is how to maintain articulatory continuity. The codebook also has to be very large with more entries in the articulatory space where small changes to the articulation lead to big changes in the sound.
- Neural networks - where the articulatory model is caused to babble sounds, and the neural network learns the relationships between positions/velocities of the articulators and the spectral character and dynamics of the sounds generated.
- Optimisation - where an iterative approach is taken: make a first guess on the articulation, see what sound it produces, then adjust the articulation in the direction of making a sound closer to the target. Repeat until no further improvements can be made.
- Statistical modelling - where explicit constraints on the position and dynamics of the articulators are built in to a generative model of the synthetic sounds, and the inversion problem is posed as a search for the best set of positions and velocities which fits both the required sound and the limitations of articulatory movement.
Articulatory inversion remains an active area of research. It has connections to research seeking to improve speech recognition and speech synthesis. It also has relevance to models of speech acquisition by infants, and in the future, to speech acquisition by robots.
Application of the Week
This week's application of phonetics is an approach to speech synthesis based on the concatenation of extracts from a corpus of recorded sentences.
The basic idea behind concatenative speech synthesis is that new utterances can be generated from pieces of old utterances provided that the pieces are carefully chosen so that they (i) closely match the form required for the target utterance, and (ii) fit together well.
The first stage is to record a 'voice talent' in the studio reading a lot of simple sentences. 1000 sentences would be a minumum, sometime many hours of recording are used.
Next the sentences are annotated: that is a linguistic description is generated for each recorded utterance, and that description is aligned to the signal for that utterance. The linguistic description not only identifies the phone sequence, but also identifies the syllables, stress level, words, word classes and sentence position. Thus each section of signal is seen to be associated with a hierarchy of labelling. This process could be very labour-intensive, but computer tools are available to largely automate the annotation process.
An index is then built which allows for all signal sections that match a given linguistic description to be found rapidly in the database of recordings.
For the actual synthesis, the text of the required utterance is analysed so that a linguistic description is generated that matches the form of descriptions used in the database. The description is then used to find matching signal sections in the database. Is the whole utterance in the database? Are some of the words? Where can the required syllables be found? In each case there may be zero, one or more matches to each part of the target linguistic description. These matching signal sections are then retrieved from the database and analysed to determine which ones fit together best.
The algorithm for selecting the best sequence of signal sections is called unit selection. The algorithm belongs to an interesting set of graph-search algorithms called dynamic programming. These algorithms are very efficient at finding the single best path through a network of graph nodes, where costs are associated with traversing arcs between nodes.
For unit-selection synthesis, the signal sections are put into a graph structure like the diagram below. Each lettered box represents a signal section retrieved from the database. The arcs represent the different ways in which the sections may be concatenated to produce an utterance matching the linguistic description.
You can see that there are many different paths through the network; each would represent different readings of the sentence. But different paths will vary in two ways: (i) in terms of how well each section matches the required linguistic description (is it the right word, is it the right syllable, is it in the right sentence position, ...). This is called the target cost. Then (ii) in terms of how well each section on a path glues to its neighbours (is there a big change in loudness, or a big change in pitch, or a big change in timbre?). This is called the join cost. The best path is then the path which minimises the combination of the target cost and the join cost. This is found by (effectively) exploring all paths and determining the single best path using dynamic programming.
Finally, the signal sections on the best path are concatenated, some additional smoothing is applied, and the resulting signal replayed.
A number of text-to-speech systems are available for demonstration on-line, such as the Acapela TTS demonstration. You can purchase a wide range of synthetic voices for your Windows computer at modest cost.
If you'd like to read more about unit selection synthesis there is a good overview paper by Paul Taylor.
Language of the Week
This week's language is French as spoken by a young Parisian woman. [ Source material ].
You can improve your learning by reflecting on your understanding. Come to the tutorial prepared to discuss the items below.
- What do the diacritics used in the passage [ x̃ ẍ x̥ x̞ x̝ x̹ xʲ ] mean?
- Below are some examples of "liaison" in French. How does liaison relate to the contextual effects discussed this week?
un homme [ɛ̃nɔm] les amis [lezami] vous avez [vuzave] ont-ils [ɔ̃ntil] tout entier [tutɑ̃tje] chez elle [ʃezɛl]
- What type of contextual effects are exemplified by these phenomena:
- Rounding of /s/ before rounded vowel
- Clear vs. dark /l/
- Undershoot of vowel formant frequency in /ɡɒɡ/ vs /bɒb/
- "this shop" as [ðɪʃʃɒp]
- "don't you" as [dəʊntʃuː]
- Linking /r/ in "butcher and baker"
- The opposite of "elision" is "epenthesis" - the insertion of segments. Provide a dynamical articulatory explanation for the insertion of [t] in "prince"
- What things might affect the amount by which a speaker can simplify an articulatory plan?
- Do you think contextual effects make speech harder to understand? What would speech be like if there were no contextual effects?
Word count: . Last modified: 14:22 27-Nov-2016.
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(NaturalNews) 400 passengers and crew aboard two Christmas cruise ships sailing in the Caribbean have been sickened by what health officials believe is the winter vomiting bug, or Norovirus. According to federal health authorities, the first outbreak occurred a few days before Christmas on the grand-class cruise ship the Emerald Princess, where 189 passengers and 31 crew members developed vomiting and diarrhea. The second outbreak was reported on the Queen Mary 2 ocean liner, affecting 194 passengers and 11 crew members.Since procedure requires that outbreaks are reported when more than 2% of the crew and passengers show symptoms of infection, the CDC learned about the Queen Mary 2 situation right on Christmas day. Several people that have been on the cruise ships mentioned that the staff has taken steps to contain the infection.
“The festivities continue and those of us who have avoided this virus continue to enjoy the many offerings we come to expect and appreciate. For those passengers who have been exposed, they are confined to their cabins until declared safe to come out”, said one of the Emerald Princess passengers.
A passenger of the Queen Mary 2, however, is less enthusiastic about the prospect of continuing the cruise. “There is a sense of foreboding, with everyone worried that they will be next to come down with the illness”, she said.
Norovirus kills 800 people each year, while over 21 million are infected and 70,000 require hospitalization.
A highly contagious infectious agent, Norovirus is transmitted through contaminated food and water supplies, but also from person to person, with potentially disastrous effects in closed communities, such as camps, hospitals, prisons, schools and cruise ships. The virus is the most common cause of acute gastroenteritis (or stomach flu), a type of gastrointestinal tract inflammation.
Symptoms of stomach flu include abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and watery diarrhea, coupled with muscle weakness and cramps, low-grade fever, and lethargy. Infants and the elderly are most vulnerable, but immunocompromised individuals may even die from severe Norovirus infections.
While the most efficient way to get rid of Norovirus is to disinfect exposed surfaces and eliminate the source of infection, there are several natural remedies that can bolster immunity and help beat the stomach bug faster and easier.
The most important thing when dealing with vomiting and diarrhea is staying hydrated, so drinking plenty of liquids is also the first measure against Norovirus infection.
Peppermint tea is popular among herbalists for its proven antispasmodic properties, and its ability to swiftly relieve pains and stomach problems, particularly diarrhea.
Apple cider vinegar has been known to have antimicrobial functions, while ginger root is a traditional tummy soother, and its unique properties can help control vomiting.
Coconut water-based probiotic beverages boost immunity by inhibiting the growth of pathogens, and have been known to aid against diarrhea causing viruses, including Norovirus.
Sources for this article include:
About the author:
Raw Michelle is a natural health blogger and researcher, sharing her passions with others, using the Internet as her medium. She discusses topics in a straight forward way in hopes to help people from all walks of life achieve optimal health and well-being. She has authored and published hundreds of articles on topics such as the raw food diet and green living in general. In 2010, Michelle created RawFoodHealthWatch.com, to share with people her approach to the raw food diet and detoxification.
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“My brother had a coal hole, on the Reading ground. They blew his hole shut. That was it! Things got rough then… They had to let the people make a living or there would have been a civil war. Reading bought that ground for four dollars an acre… How in the hell? … Four dollars an acre! … It was the people’s ground. That’s the way we figured. We were digging our own coal. We owned the land! Land of the free!”
– Joe Padelsky, Primrose, PA
This story comes form one place more than any other. In the 1980’s, Mike Kozura interviewed over 100 bootleg miners and wrote an essay called “We Stood Our Ground.” When he did, they told him something over and over again: if you want to understand the bootleggers, you’ve got to understand the Molly Maguires. They were outlaw miners who violently fought the company over terrible working conditions.
The Philadelphia & Reading Coal & Iron Company is called Reading Anthracite today. They are the same company that hung the Molly Maguires. By the time of the great depression, they owned a full third of the anthracite coal region. It was the southern end, from Trevorton over to Minersville and back down to Lykens. They owned the land, the collieries, and the railroads.
The towns had little other industry and were totally dependent on the mines for work. The area was the coal region mix of Irish, Lithuanian, Polish, and other Eastern European immigrants. The southern end of the region was home to a lot of Pennsylvania Dutch, as well.
In the late 1920s, the company started consolidating their operations, putting communities out of work. They shut down many collieries and started investing heavily in two centralized coal breakers: St. Nicholas and Locust Summit. The timing of this couldn’t have been worse for people of the region – constructions on the St. Nicholas breaker started in 1928, just months before Black Tuesday and the start of the Great Depression. Over the next few years, tens of thousands of miners were thrown out of work.
Coal banks are a landmark of the anthracite coal town. The companies dumped their waste coal there, but the miners were the ones who paid for it.
When a miner sent up a car of coal, the company deducted any waste (dust or other rock) from their pay. There was usable coal mixed in the piles, and naturally, the community felt they had a right to it. In cold winters, women and children would pick through it to heat their homes. If they picked extra, they’d barter it around town. The companies didn’t much care. This was tradition going way back.
Things changed with a long strike in 1925 that went all through the winter. The story goes that the coal banks were picked clean. Some miners started digging coal from company land in order to outlast the company. Many of them were arrested by the Coal & Iron police. The strike ended in a stalemate, and the miners went back to work.
The crash and the spark
Reading had already been closing mines by the time the Great Depression came around. Their badly timed investment also put them into bankruptcy.
Because of that, the depression hit the southern end of the coal region the hardest. Unemployment was near 50%. In Shamokin, 4 out of 5 collieries closed. In Mahanoy City, 6 out of 7. Lykens lost the only colliery they had, along with virtually every job.
“Branchdale was reduced to a state of shock and denial. They shut the thing down altogether. They shut the boiler house… there was no steam to run the generator or pumps. They shut everything down… We thought the end of the world was coming.”
– Mike Lucas, Branchdale, PA
This is when miners took things into their own hands. Thousands of miners dug illegal holes on company land. For nearly a decade, bootleg output rivalled the largest coal companies.
We want work – and we’re going to take it.
Local charity and relief couldn’t keep up with the crisis. Dignity was nowhere to be found.
Starvation was a real concern. The closings created desperation and also triggered a deep, old anger against the company.
“There was hate for the company… We couldn’t understand why all the mines were shut down. The companies came in, they raped the land and pulled out… It was their way of punishing the people [after the strike]. We were very bitter. That’s when the bootlegging started… Since the coal was in the ground and we all knew where it was at… people started digging their own coal holes.”
– Jack Campion, Greenbury, PA
The company tried to stop them at first, but it didn’t take long before there were thousands of bootleg shafts. For every the company blew shut, a miners opened a dozen more.
“Equipment was minimal. Typically, a hand windlass and a metal bucket were employed to lower miners into their holes and to bring the coal up to the surface. As operations went deeper and became more substantial, bootleggers would often place an old car or truck up on blocks, attach a rope over a wheel, and use the car engine to power an improved lift.”
– Face of Decline, by Thomas Dublin & Walter Licht
In the beginning, bootleg holes were guerilla operations. They were disguised and camouflaged; the coal usually only being transported at night with lookouts clearing the way. They were family operations, and women widely worked right alongside the men.
“I know a little bit about bootleg coal. In those days, that was the only thing… to survive. Even my mother and my sisters and I used to go into the drift. We used to scoop the coal after my father would fire. We’d scoop it on a wheel barrow and wheel it out and… scoop it on a truck and my brothers would haul it home… We used to scoop it on different screens to size it… stove coal, nut coal, pea coal, buckwheat. I know a little bit about coal!”
– Mary W.
The bootleg coal was bartered and sold locally. Since there were a lot more goods to go around than money, bartering replaced the cash economy in some towns. Local shops were generous with credit to help people get items not produced locally.
“There was no such thing as money. We bartered.”
– Pat Sanza, Branchdale, PA
“It was people helping people. People who had cows, they shared milk. People who had pigs, they shared their meat.”
– Jack Campion, Heckscherville, PA
“I traded flour or potatoes for coal… and I sold the coal in town”
– Mick Kozak, delivery driver for his father’s grocery store, Minersville, PA.
In short time, Mick would be one of the first to save up money and buy a dump truck. Others did the same and within a few years, there were thousands of “bootleg truckers.” They could take the coal to markets in Philadelphia, New York, New England, New Jersey, and Maryland. It was easy to find buyers when they sold coal for less than the companies.
Lookouts would help truckers evade the “Coal & Irons,” but once they made out of the region, they were home free.
Demand for bootleg coal shot up. With real money coming in, depressed towns were revitalized. Miners were making more money than they had working for the companies. Communities became totally reliant on the expropriation of coal from company lands..
“The money you made, you spent. You didn’t hoard it… like the rich guy hoards it… You had to spend it. You kept the wheels turning in this county.”
– Joe Padelsky
“Bootlegger cash supplanted barter, but the ethics that governed the exchange economy – mutual obligation, sharing, solidarity – remained deeply ingrained in the practices of the illegal industry.”
– “We Stood Our Ground,” Michael Kozura
With new markets, bootleg operations outgrew families. Partnerships started between friends and neighbors. Acting as cooperatives, they would share in the decisions, risks, and profits. They worked with other bootleggers, sharing roads and access to the coal lands and even building ventilation shafts shared between mines.
“The bootleggers… we were all neighbors, so to speak. We all had a lot in common. No one resented the other person. Everybody tried to help each other. We shared equipment, new ideas… a new technique in mining.”
– Jack Campion
Reading mines hadn’t totally disappeared, but legally employed miners would often leave work and go right to a friend or family’s bootleg hole. The coal miners’ union, the UMW, officially opposed bootlegging, but more than once, company miners struck in solidarity with the bootleggers.
No trespassing: community support
When the coal company fell apart, so did its systems of patronage and power. The businesses were with the miners – they kept the local economy alive. And without a doubt, they had the support of the churches, both Catholic and Protestant.
The clergy were often asked about the morality of bootlegging. Pastor Butkofsky of St John’s Reformed in Shamokin gave an answer similar to many priests and pastors: “No human being will condemn another when a man who is out of work and hungry will walk along a road, see an apple on a tree, and take that apple. We call it stealing, but morally the man is justified.”
Another clergyman quoted Leviticus: “And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not make clean riddance of the corners of thy field when thou reapest, neither shalt thou gather any gleaning of thy harvest. Thou shalt leave them unto the poor.”
Bootleggers kept the the local economy and dignity alive. The public, including magistrates and judges, sided with the bootleggers. When arrested, local courts often let miners go for “lack of evidence,” or gave them $1 fines. When word spread about this, the industry spread like wildfire. The Coal & Irons could blow bootleg holes shut, but they couldn’t keep up with how fast it was spreading.
People wanted work, not welfare, and now they had a way to get it themselves.
By the early 30’s, dozens of towns organized “bootleg unions.” Their purpose was to spread information and coordinate actions. They began setting coal prices, promoting the industry, organizing rescue teams, running safety trainings, and hiring lawyers for legal defense. Weekly meetings were held at fire companies and union halls, with elected officers and voting on decisions.
“As soon as we got a union everything was going our way. All the men stuck together. We had a guy going from coal hole to coal hole with buttons, ‘independent miners’ buttons… Everybody that was in a coal mine got a button. If you were in trouble and you had a button, you were okay. We fought for you! … If you went to jail or were told to get off the ground, we were right there fighting for you.”
– Pat Sanza
Once the unions started, miners no longer accepted small fines in court. They now pled “not guilty” and demanded jury trials. Juries, made up of local people, would find them not guilty. This made it expensive and fruitless for the companies to arrest miners.
Some unions held mass meetings, inviting activists to speak.
Akulauckas, a bootlegger from Minersville, recounts the message delivered by the widely respected local socialist Con Foley: “Where did the company get the deeds? Did God give them the deeds? Go and mine the coal! They don’t own the land. Don’t run. Let them take you to jail. Send your wife and children to the courthouse and let them feed them.” According to Akulauckas, speakers like Foley “put nerve in the people.”
–We Stood Our Ground
The company was being defeated on all fronts. They began bringing larger groups of armed police to dynamite holes in pre-dawn raids. Hundreds of people, often lead by women, would actually march right into the holes and to stop the detonations. Though people were sometimes injured in these confrontations, locals did not get violent.Feeling proud and legitimate, bootleggers didn’t like the term “bootlegger.” Instead, they called themselves “Independents”.
News spread fast, and it might not seem possible, but the region grew even more militant and organized. Towns would set off fire whistles, waking people who would come by the thousands to defend the mines.
After driving the police out of the mountains, the victorious crowds would hold parades through town, cheered on by the town. Being unsuccessful, Reading slowed down attempts to blow the holes shut.
In Gilberton, the community dynamited the car of a Coal & Iron police after he’d blown shut some bootleg holes. In Shamokin, on the Edgewood bootleggers’ tract, miners blew up a steam shovel.
The company easily picked off lone bootleggers. There was incentive to join the unions.
By this time, there were 13,000 Independent miners, truckers, and breaker operators. They were responsible for 10% of all anthracite being sold in the US, an equal share as the largest companies still operating.
The coal companies demanded that PA Governor Pinchot intervene. The Independents had already convinced him it would be a bad political move to harass them. Being a smart politician, he refused to intervene, suggesting that companies could stop bootlegging by reopening their mines.
Coal companies in other regions were settling strong union contracts elsewhere so they could stop bootlegging from spreading.
Shut down in the government, the companies tried a technological strategy: strip mining. If they could strip the bootleg fields, they would make underground mining impossible.
One of the first shovels was brought into Minersville and was set near the mines outside of town.
A large bootleggers’ union meeting was held that night, and the union came up with a plan to stop it. Steve Nelson was there:
“The next day, I heard a fire whistle blow and drove out to observe the situation… State police were protecting the shovel… Hundreds of miners had gathered and got into arguments with the police to divert their attention… While all this was going on, someone put dynamite under the shovel… and blew it up.
Through the Great Depression, dozens of power shovels, drag lines, and bulldozers were blown up, set on fire, or sabotaged.
The coal companies had lost all control of the situation. Desperate, they went to the state legislature.
In 1935, a bill was pushed through requiring coal trucks to have receipts from state-licensed weigh stations. It was aimed at busting the Independent truckers when they were on delivery.
Four other anti-bootlegging bills were scheduled and a special committee was created to investigate bootleg coal in the market.
Responding to the threat, the bootleg unions united, creating an executive committee. Clergy, civic groups, and town councils gave statements of support. Sixty delegates met in Shamokin for the first convention of the united bootleg unions. They called for a public hearing and a march on the capitol.
10,000 Independents flooded Harrisburg in the back of coal trucks.
They marched through the streets to the capitol. Their dirty work clothes left the capitol covered in coal dust. The public hearing was quickly moved to the much larger farm show building, but still only 7,000 miners could fit in the arena. When coal company officials attempted to speak, they were driven from the platform, and the miners took over the meeting.
It was a powerful show of force. The miners had defeated the companies again. The anti-bootlegger bills failed. The weigh station bill was already law, but Independent breakers simply had their scales certified, and then issued documents to the bootleg truckers.
The Independents established themselves in state politics. For the next four years, they maintained their power. Governor George Earle, a New Deal Democrat, didn’t openly endorse them but did regularly consult with them. He ordered state police to stay neutral in the future, unless the miners got violent. (The Coal & Iron Police had recently been abolished.)
The companies and Arthur James, the next governor, went at them hard. There were nine unsuccessful anti-bootlegging bills. The company began leasing to strip miners, and the governor sent in the state police.
At first, the strippins didn’t interfere with the bootleggers. But in 1941, a company brought in a massive new shovel, and the Independents quickly organized. They called a mass meeting and asked the governor not to send state police. Six more shovels showed up in the morning, and the miners flooded in to block them from moving.
Key leaders among the Independents were also arrested. Another mass meeting was called, so large it was held outdoors in February. There, they condemned the arrests, voted unanimously to defy the Committee’s plan, and organized round round-the-clock pickets of the strippin shovels in the West End.
Summer came, and the blockade had stretched six months. Desperate, the strippin company brought in armed guards from outside the area. The night they arrived, some of these guards ran their mouths at a local bar. Before the sun could rise, 1,000 miners had shown up to the blockade. Word spreads fast in the Coal Region.
After guards fought the miners with billy clubs, they broke out their guns and shot at the crowd. Two had shotguns and two had revolvers. Thirteen people were wounded.
The crowd charged the guards, who fled into the bucket of the shovel and called for a truce. The guards were disarmed and promised safe passage out. Before they had made it to their cars though, a new contingent of miners showed up and, seeing their wounded friends, “beat [the guards] all to hell.” The state police arrived and took the guards away. Meanwhile, the enraged miners set the shovel on fire.
They were seeing red.
“One of the miners said, ‘Hey, there is a shovel moving in at Good Spring.’ Hundreds of cars drove up to Good Spring. Somebody took the oil plug out and left the diesel engine run until it froze up. Then somebody said, ‘There are shovels in the Bear Valley,’ and we stopped those.”
“We thought we had them on the run.”
– Leon Richter
By the end of the day, several more shovels had been burnt and state police had deployed all over the area.
The violence worked in the companies’ favor. State police maintained a heavy presence, stopping the Independents from blockading any more strippins. This demoralized the Independents, and their organizations started to fracture.
It was the same year that the United States entered World War II. Soon, the draft began.
Local draft boards filled southern anthracite induction quotas with bootleggers since miners employed by “legitimate” companies were considered necessary to the war effort and therefore exempt. The older men, the women, and the children were left to hold their ground as best as they could. And hold it they did.
– We Stood Our Ground
By the mid 1940s, local governments had seized a lot of land from Reading because of unpaid taxes. They leased it to Independents. Other lands were sold to investors, who also leased to the Independents.The Independents didn’t die. They eventually become legitimate in the eyes of the law.
Then, in 1953, the state brought the Independents under regulations and taxes, fully legalizing them.
There are still Independents in the mountains. There are less of them than there used to be though. They’ve been struggling with federal regulators who want them out of business to make room for bigger companies. There was a documentary made in 2006 about the current struggles of the Independents, available for free on the internet, called Hard Coal: The Last of the Bootleg Miners.
This is our history. We needed work… when no one gave it to us, we took it ourselves – property rights be damned. When they attacked, we organized and fought back. And won. It was us against the company, not just miners but the whole community.
We still don’t much respected Reading. We treat the strippins like they belong to us. They’re a great place to offroad, party, camp, or hunt. The police won’t really go there, and people ignore the occasional Reading guard who shows up. Some families still keep an old bootleg hole for their winter heat.
We’re due to remember that – today it seems like us against us. We blame our neighbors or people from the next town.
When the collieries closed, we didn’t call the miners lazy. We blamed the company for shutting down, not the miners. When families had to break the law to make a living, we supported them. Let’s remember that spirit.
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Medical mistakes are the third biggest killer of Americans, after heart disease and cancer, according to The BMJ. Researchers analyzed death certificate data from studies going back twenty years and found that about 251,454 people, or three percent of the population, die each year as a result of medical errors.
But while many of us were surprised by this news, doctors were not. "This is one of the biggest issues in healthcare today and clearly something that's extremely important," says Anton Bilchik, M.D., chief of medicine and chief of gastrointestinal research at John Wayne Cancer Institute at Providence Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California. (Related: Here are The Diseases Doctors Misdiagnose the Most.)
By far the most common medical mistakes are due to an error with a prescription medication, like giving the wrong drug or using the wrong dosage, Bilchik explains. Drugs are meant to be used in a very specific way under specific circumstances and deviating from that at all, especially by accident, can put a patient at risk. Surgical mistakes are the second most common, he adds, although they're often the ones we hear the most about. (Like the time a doctor removed the wrong leg or left a sponge inside a patient for years.)
And when it comes to protecting yourself from this serious health threat, patients and doctors share responsibility, says Bilchik. On the medical side, the most common new protective measure is the switch to all electronic health records, which take out some human error, like bad handwriting, and can flag potential problems with drug interactions or existing conditions. One recent survey found that 75 percent of doctors said that electronic health records helped them provide better care. Bilchik adds that almost all surgeons will now insist on consulting with a patient right before surgery to make sure everyone is clear on what exactly will happen. (Interestingly, we caught him for this interview right after he'd come out of a pre-scheduled lecture on reducing medical mistakes, a practice that's becoming increasingly common in hospitals everywhere.)
But there is a lot you can do to protect yourself from medical mistakes too. "The most important thing is to feel comfortable talking to your doctor and asking questions," says Bilchik. "Ask 'what are the chances of mistakes for this?' and 'what procedures do you have in place to reduce mistakes?" He adds that you can also look up the track record for your doctor through your state's records.
One more thing: Always double check prescriptions. Bilchik says it's totally fine to make sure you're receiving the right drug and dosage by asking a pharmacist, nurse, or doctor. (Have you seen this app that compares prescriptions for you with advice from real doctors?) Then, it's up to you to make sure you're following their directions to the letter, he adds.
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Transcript of Main Idea
A. Sloths and tapirs are other creatures that
live in the rain forest.
B. The rain forest is home to many creatures.
C. Monkeys, toucans and macaws live in the
Soccer players learn many skills when playing soccer. Soccer players learn how to dribble and pass the ball. They also learn how to control the ball so they can eventually score. Most importantly, soccer players learn how to work together with their teammates.
A. They also learn how to control the ball so
they can eventually score.
B. Soccer players learn how to dribble.
C. Soccer players learn many skills when
There are many fun things to do at the beach. Swimming is one thing that can be done at the beach. Snorkeling is another thing that can be enjoyed. Playing beach volleyball can be a lot of fun. It is also fun to look for shells. Some people simply like to sunbathe.
A. There are many fun things to do at the
B. It is also fun to look for shells.
C. Some people simply like to sunbathe When you turn on your radio, you may hear music, or you may hear a voice speaking. The person behind that voice is called an announcer. An announcer introduces songs, interviews guests, and gives news and weather reports. Besides spending time on the air talking, announcers also spend a lot of time off the air getting ready for their shows. That way, when the time comes for them to go on the air, they feel prepared and confident.
A. You can hear music or voices when you turn
on the radio
B. Announcers get to talk to guests and
C. Announcers are people who talk on the
radio Snakes are different from other animals. Their eyes are always open, but they cannot see very well. Snakes cannot hear. They have no legs. They move by sliding along on the ground.
A. Snakes are different from other animals.
B. Snakes cannot hear.
C. They move by sliding along on the ground Crunchy, Munchy, Sparkle Stars Cereal!
If your breakfast cereal gives you the morning BLAHS, try Sparkle Stars—star shaped oats covered with powdered sugar! Sparkle Stars are both sweet and nutritious!
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Eat them every morning for a sparkling start to your day!
What is the main reason you should buy Sparkle Stars cereal?
A. They are covered with powdered sugar
B. Sparkle Stars will perk up your morning
C. They taste great with milk The python is one of the biggest snakes in the world. It can be 30 feet long. It can weigh more than 200 pounds. Sometimes it takes many people to hold one python. A baby python might surprise you. It can be three feet long when it is born. That is bigger than other snake babies.
Like all snakes, pythons are born from eggs. The mother python lays 50 to 100 eggs. She curls her body around them. She rests her head on top of the eggs. To keep her eggs warm, she shakes her body to make heat. She might stay with her eggs for as many as 80 days. She only leaves to get a drink of water. Then the eggs hatch.
1. What is the main idea of the first
A. It can be 30 feet long.
B. The python is the biggest snake in the
C. It can weigh more than 200 pounds.
2. What is the main idea of the second
A. She rests her head on top.
B. She curls her body around them.
C. Like all snakes, pythons are born from
eggs. Henry’s Bakery just introduced a new cookie to its product line. Its ingredients include eggs, whole-wheat flour, baking powder, butter and oats. Henry uses all natural, wholesome ingredients in this cookie. He adds honey and vanilla to make it taste good.
The new cookies weren’t a big success at first. When the first batches came out of the oven, they smelled good, but the cookies looked uninteresting. So, Henry added raisins to the top. Now the cookies look as good as they taste!
1.What is the main idea of the first paragraph?
A. Henry’s cookies contain honey and vanilla
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C. Henry’s Bakery introduced a new, all natural
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C. The cookies smelled good straight out of the
oven The main idea of a paragraph tells the topic of the paragraph. The topic tells what all or most of the sentences are about.
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A P P E A L
The deadly armament race, launched by the Soviet Union and continued today by Russia, caused enormous damage to the lives of the indigenous peoples of Eurasia. 715 nuclear tests, made by the USSR, countless industrial accidents on the secret nuclear plants injured and killed so many people, that the average life expectancy in the radiation-contaminated regions today does not exceed 60 years. Russia left its own population to die by poisoning it with nuclear radiation. Each year Russia loses one million people; every hour one patient is being diagnosed with cancer disease. These numbers show the scale of the ecological damage, caused by the nuclear radiation.
All around Russia there are numerous military plants, nuclear enterprises producing nuclear, chemical, biological weapons, abandoned nuclear storage facilities and dumps. But the most dangerous of them is the nuclear enterprise “Mayak”, that’s been producing military plutonium for the Russian nuclear bombs for 60 years. The nuclear wastes from all over Europe are also stored here. Today there are near 1 billion curie of atomic wastes stored at the “Mayak” nuclear facility, 25 tons of plutonium-239 and near 200 tons of 90% enriched uranium-235. There are 30 tons of commercial plutonium, created from the recycling of nuclear fuel from the other nuclear power plants and submarines. There are 331 nuclear dumps; 17 lakes heavily contaminated with hard nuclear wastes near the nuclear facility “Mayak”. Under the secret town of Ozersk, where the nuclear enterprise “Mayak” is located, there is a huge underground sea, overflowing with nuclear wastes. It is drifting towards the regional center Chelyabinsk with the speed 80 meters per year. The “Mayak” itself pours all its radioactive wastes into the river Techa, which through the bigger rivers Iset, Tobol, Irtysh and Ob reaches the Arctic Ocean. It means that the nuclear enterprise “Mayak” poisons with radiation the entire Ural region, Siberia, and the North Pole. The omissions of the inert gas krypton-85 stay in the atmosphere forever and cause deadly diseases. The photos made from the outer space showed that the nuclear plant “Mayak” is the most heavily polluted place on the Earth. Considering the lethal danger caused by this kind of nuclear enterprises to the entire planet and humankind, it is vitally important to close the “Mayak” nuclear plant.
The terrible accident that happened in 1957 on the nuclear plant “Mayak”, when 150 million curies of nuclear radiation was thrown into the atmosphere, when 500 000 people got radiation, and 267, 000 square kilometers of land were contaminated, was a first serious warning to the mankind. This tragedy happened 30 years before Chernobyl and people didn’t know anything! During the years of perestroika the dreadful secrets of the soviet military machine were revealed, and people learned that all this time they lived in a deadly radioactive zone, and the cause of their strange diseases and numerous troubles was the nuclear plant “Mayak”. Today in the city of Ozersk, where the nuclear plant “Mayak” is situated, the level of cancer disease is 20% higher than around the country; 70% of the city residents and plant workers have psychiatric problems; the level of drug addiction here is 5 times higher than around the region. But the worst of all is that these inadequate people are engaged in the production of the weapons of mass destruction.
The local population, living near the nuclear enterprise “Mayak”, also suffer from its deadly activity. After several big nuclear accidents on the plant one part of the local residents was evacuated, while another part is still living in the dead zone. It is the people of several Tatar villages of the Kunashak district of the Chelyabinsk region. The history of these large Tatar villages dates back to the ancient times.
One of them, once heavily populated Tatar village Muslyumovo, today is on the verge of extinction. The authorities started the evacuation of the village just recently, one year ago. In the village of Muslyumovo every fourth child has undergone mutation; every fifth child suffers from the heart disease and has respiratory problems; every sixth child suffers from the abdominal diseases; 70% of school children suffer from the mental retardation. Even those, born after 1997 have their blood marked with nuclear disease – leukemia. Almost all children in the Tatar village of Muslyumovo are being born with some pathology - 90% suffer from anemia and zero immunity. In this village the death rate exceeds the birth rate: there are entire families that died from the radiation-caused diseases; the average life expectancy here is only 40-45 years.
The residents of another Tatar village Tatar Karabulak live under the similar alarming conditions. Located only 30-40 kilometers from the “Mayak” enterprise, this village was the first to see the impacts from all nuclear accidents that took place on the plant. Once having 5, 000 residents this Tatar village has only 500 people left today - 90% of them suffer from cancer, the rest found peace in the nearby cemeteries. After the big 1957 nuclear accident on the nuclear plant “Mayak” the regional authorities of Chelyabinsk decided to evacuate the Tatar Karabulak village. The decision was made on September 29, 1959. However, the evacuation never took place. There is an assumption, that this village was left in the radioactive zone on purpose to experiment the influence of the nuclear radiation on human health. In the military archives of the USSSR the residents of the Tatar Karabulak village are called as “the experimental group to study genetic mutation caused by the chronic nuclear contamination”. In other words, these innocent people were used as guinea pigs in Russia’s nuclear lab.
Despite the fact that after the nuclear accident on the “Mayak” the nuclear cloud has passed over the Tatar Karabulak village, killing or poisoning almost everybody, the village people still can not convince the Russian authorities, that they are the radiation victims. The Russian government does not want to recognize them as the victims and denies help. According to the statistics in every family of the Tatar Karabulak village there are 5-6 people who died from cancer, stroke, heart attack, diabetes, or leukemia. Even young children have these diseases. It is the result of long living on the radiation-contaminated lands, where the radiation level reaches 100 curie per square meter! This terrible picture is seen all around the Kunashak district of the Chelyabinsk region.
The residents of neighboring big industrial cities, such as Chelyabinsk, Yekaterinburg, Kurgan, Tyumen, where the number of the radiated and cancer-stroken people is over three millions, also suffer from the deadly activity of the “Mayak” nuclear enterprise! While the “Mayak” continues to work, the deafly statistics will increase, and radiation will endanger all the people of Eurasia.
Therefore, the Tatar people, suffered from the deadly activity of the nuclear enterprise “Mayak”, demand:
If the Russian government refuses to fulfill the conditions stated above, we have no other choice but to accuse Russia in conducting nuclear genocide against the Tatar people, and file the case to the International Hague Tribunal, taking as a basis the UN Convention of 1948, ratified in 1951, on genocide prevention and punitive measures related to it.
The UN Convention reads:
Chapter 2. Any activity conducted with purpose to destroy utterly or partly any national, ethnic, racial or religious group whatsoever is considered as an act of genocide. The activities include:
We, the representatives of the Tatar people, are convinced that the Soviet Union and its successor Russia conducted the nuclear experiments over the Tatar people, living in the villages close to the nuclear enterprise “Mayak”, forcing them to live up to nowadays in the deadly radioactive zone.
We appeal to the United Nations, International Hague Tribunal and other international organizations with petition to:
More information on this subject you can find on the site:
Dr. Fauziya Bayramova,
Contact information: Shamil Usmanova street, #49, Apt.81, Tatarstan, 423832, Russia.
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Manipulating our genetic code with CRISPR may be a controversial topic, but it offers scientists the chance to work with the public to shape the ethical future of this technology, writes Megan Hochstrasser of the Innovative Genomics Institute.
I recently gave a mock “elevator pitch” on the potential of genome editing to a group of two dozen scientists in our nation’s capital. I implored the audience to consider how they might use a revolutionary new technology to engineer their future children. If it were possible, would you delete a disease gene? Would you change your baby’s eye color? Make your child extra muscular? How would you decide?
After my presentation, a participant raised his hand to comment on my delivery.
“I don’t think you should end it like that. If you leave it open-ended, then religious objections or other moral resistance might come up,” he said.
It wasn’t the first time I’d heard such a sentiment from a fellow scientist, but I was surprised nonetheless. Don’t give the public a chance to disagree with you. I cannot imagine a more dangerous stance for scientists to take. There’s a rare surge of public interest in genetic engineering science right now, and the scientific community can use it to help shape the future of these advancements for everyone’s benefit.
In an era of profound mistrust between the public and the scientific community, candor and mutual respect are more important than ever. An insidious attitude of defensiveness will only widen the gap. Most scientific research is publicly funded, and most scientists believe they’re working for the greater good. One powerful opportunity to bridge any divide between these groups is our newfound ability to engineer the genetic code, which forces us to reconsider the definition of humanity itself.
A recently developed tool for altering the DNA sequence of any organism, called CRISPR, enables extraordinary applications like snipping out deadly disease genes or making robust crops to subvert world hunger. But it also opens the door to genetically engineering humans. Other ethical issues abound, but it is the not-so-distant possibility of “designer babies” that seems to rise to the forefront of any discussion.
As science communications manager for the Innovative Genomics Institute, I talk to students of all ages about the science and implications of CRISPR technology. Inevitably, the final question is about genetically-modified babies. Queries like, “How soon might this happen?” or “Are there laws against modifying human embryos?” are to be expected. What’s surprising to me is that, instead, students usually ask me, “Should we make designer babies? Where should we draw the line?”
What do I know? I often think. Why would they want my personal opinion on something like this? While communicating with the public is important, we are experts on facts and theories, not opinion. Telling people what’s morally acceptable isn’t in our job description.
When faced with questions about morality, I’ve learned to turn it around and ask the student what they think. This invariably leads to an interesting conversation with a substantially more engrossed student. The fundamental role of scientists is to puzzle out how the natural world works and to use this knowledge to solve problems. We need to remind each other that the opinions of non-scientists are valid and their perspective matters.
Far more invested than students are disease patients themselves, whose unity can generate impressive power. Case in point: at the end of February when patient charity CureDuchenne announced that it would finance Exonics Therapeutics, a new startup company working to cure Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy through genome editing. The foundation, which represents boys dying from muscular dystrophy, felt that larger companies weren’t interested enough and took matters into its own hands with a $5 million investment. The patient empowerment movement and growing digital connectedness have emboldened patients to take an increasingly active role in their own healthcare. As voices from often-marginalized communities grow stronger, I urge scientists to listen.
I encourage you to enter the dialogue. Whether you are a patient, student, scientist, or otherwise, I invite you to weigh in. Dig into the issues, write a blog post, talk to your family, and think carefully about the role you want to play. There is no single group responsible for deciding how it all shakes out, so this is an incredible opportunity for humanity to shape its own future.
(Top image: CRISPR-CAS9 gene editing complex from Streptococcus pyogenes. The Cas9 nuclease protein [grey] uses a guide RNA [pink] sequence to cut DNA [green] at a complementary site. Courtesy Getty Images.)
All views expressed are those of the author.
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With the New Year fast approaching many of us will be going through the motions of pledging with all of our heart and soul that we’re going to get in shape and lose weight, starting as soon as our January 1st hangover wears off. Of course wanting to live a healthier lifestyle is never a bad thing, but new research is showing that some of what we base our weight on may not really be necessary.
Since being developed by a Belgian statistician 150 years ago, doctors have been using Body Mass Index (BMI) to determine whether or not a person is overweight, with BMIs between 20 and 25 as optimal, but anything over 25 as overweight, and over 30 as clinically obese. However recent research is showing that BMI calculations might not accurate anymore.
According to an article in The Week:
Recent research has cast doubt over BMI as a measure of health. In 2006, a study of more than 33,000 American adults revealed that life expectancy is actually highest for men with BMIs of 26 – well into what was regarded as the overweight category, and equivalent to a whopping 24lb extra for the typical man. For women, optimal BMI proved to be around 23.5, almost half a stone heavier than the supposed optimum. Such findings are leading scientists to abandon BMI in favour of a simpler yet more reliable measure of waist measurement.
But if the old BMI scale is now off …
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As Director of the Grantham Centre for Sustainable Futures, I hear a great deal about how bad plastics are for the environment. But I’m also coming at the challenges of a sustainable food-water-energy nexus from my perspective as a University of Sheffield Professor of Polymer Chemistry – that is, a researcher in plastics!
Polymer production accounts for less than three per cent of crude-oil consumption and less than one per cent of the global energy budget. Overall, there is a beneficial (i.e. net negative) effect on global emissions due to polymers’ use in lightweight vehicles that have improved fuel consumption, thermal insulation that rescues the need for heating and air conditioning, and sensible food packaging that cuts down on waste, to give but three examples.
Polymers have an important role to play in energy capture (photo-voltaics and wind turbines) and storage (batteries and water splitting) too. We’re even using polyurethane foam as a synthetic soil in precision horticulture. So what we need to do is stop burning the fossil resource and maximise its beneficial use – in making plastics and other petrochemicals, and get our business leaders, policy makers and politicians to understand this.
The UN defines sustainability as “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs”. It’s a definition that has stood the test of time and comes from the 1987 Brundtland Report, Our Common Future, from the United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals provides another guide – in particular, goal nine, “Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and foster innovation”, and goal 12, “Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns”. My discipline offers it’s own definition: according to the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry, green chemistry is “the invention, design and application of chemical products and processes to reduce or eliminate the use and the production of harmful substances”. With words such as these, we can start to see through the greenwash.
These definitions can also help us perceive environmental impacts differently. The waste charity WRAP did a life cycle analysis to show that an ‘bag for life’ made from hessian has to be used 140 times to be less energy intensive per use than taking a new polythene carrier bag each time. And, if you reuse the polythene bag then the effect is compounded. Yet green consumers prefer hessian and paper to ‘nasty’ plastics, even when the evidence tells them otherwise.
Are there similar attitudes behind the current emphasis on ‘sustainable’ (that is, renewable) polymers? The feedstocks for sustainable polymers could come from renewable resources, but the production of those resources should use less water and energy than the petrochemicals they replace. Current commercial ‘sustainable polymers’ may be made from plant starch or oils, or from agricultural waste streams that do not compete with food production. But we don’t know whether using a renewable feedstock to make a plastic might, in fact, result in much greater greenhouse gas emissions because of all the processes involved.
A full life cycle analysis is needed to make the decisions about whether polymers are sustainable or not. Focusing on whether the feedstock is renewable isn’t enough. But who knows? Making polymers from CO2 and disposing of them into landfill, might turn out to be a great way to sequester carbon!
Picture courtesy of fdecomite
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Lymphatic filariasis (LF) is a so-called neglected tropical disease, currently overshadowed by higher-profile efforts to address malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS. Despite recent successes in arresting transmission, some 40 million people who already have the disease have been largely neglected. This study aims to increase understanding of how this vulnerable, neglected group can be helped.
We used purposive sampling to select 60 men and women with filarial lymphoedema (45 with filarial elephantiasis and 15 men with filarial hydrocoele) from the south of Sri Lanka in 2004–2005. Participants were selected to give a balance of men and women and poor and nonpoor, and a range of stages of the disease. Participants' experiences and the consequences of their disease for the household were explored with in-depth qualitative, semistructured interviews.
LF was extremely debilitating to participants over long periods of time. The stigma attached to the condition caused social isolation and emotional distress, and delayed diagnosis and treatment, resulting in undue advancement of the disease. Free treatment services at government clinics were avoided because the participants' condition would be identifiable in public. Loss of income due to the condition was reported by all households in the sample, not just the poorest. Households that were already on low incomes were pushed into near destitution, from which it was almost impossible to escape. Affected members of low-income households also had less opportunity to obtain appropriate treatment from distant clinics, and had living and working conditions that made hygiene and compliance difficult.
This highly vulnerable category of patients has low visibility, thus becoming marginalized and forgotten. With an estimated 300,000 total cases of elephantiasis and/or oedema in Sri Lanka, and around 300,000 men with filarial hydrocoele, the affected households will need help and support for many years to come. These individuals should be specially targeted for identification, outreach, and care. The global strategy for elimination is aimed at the cessation of transmission, but there will remain some 40 million individuals with clinical manifestations whose needs and problems are illustrated in this study.
Lymphatic filariasis (LF) is a tropical disease causing extreme swelling of the limbs and male genitals. Despite recent successes in preventing transmission of the disease, some 40 million people worldwide who already have the disease have been largely neglected. We aimed to increase understanding of how this vulnerable, neglected group can be helped, by asking people with LF in Sri Lanka to recount their own experiences.
Study participants reported that LF was extremely debilitating over a long period of time. The social isolation from stigma caused emotional distress and delayed diagnosis and treatment. Free treatment services at government clinics were avoided because the participants' condition would be identifiable in public. Loss of income due to the condition was reported by all households, not only those of the poorest. Households that were already on low incomes were pushed into near destitution by LF. Low-income households also had fewer opportunities to obtain effective treatment from distant clinics, and had living and working conditions that made treatment more difficult.
With an estimated 300,000 people with swelling of the limbs in Sri Lanka, and around 300,000 men with swelling of the genitals, we conclude that the affected households will need help and support for many years to come, and offer suggestions for immediate action.
Citation: Perera M, Whitehead M, Molyneux D, Weerasooriya M, Gunatilleke G (2007) Neglected Patients with a Neglected Disease? A Qualitative Study of Lymphatic Filariasis. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 1(2): e128. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0000128
Academic Editor: Mitchell Weiss, Swiss Tropical Institute, Switzerland
Received: May 8, 2007; Accepted: October 23, 2007; Published: November 21, 2007
Copyright: © 2007 Perera et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Funding: The study was funded by a grant from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine Lymphatic Filariasis Support Center which is supported by the UK Department for International Development and GlaxoSmithKline. Margaret Whitehead was funded by the Rockefeller Foundation under the Affordability Ladder Programme (ALPS). The sponsors of the study had no role in study design, data collection, data analysis, data interpretation, or writing of the report. The first author had full access to all data in the study and had final responsibility for the decision to submit for publication.
Competing interests: Perera, Whitehead, Weerasooriya, and Gunatilleke declare that they have no conflict of interest. Molyneux is supported by the UK Department for International Development and GlaxoSmithKline.
Recently, the profile of the “neglected diseases” , has been enhanced by a renewed interest by policymakers, including the new Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO). These diseases cause long-term morbidity, rather than high mortality, but have been overshadowed by higher-profile efforts to address malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS . Recent studies show extensive and underestimated morbidity for the neglected diseases , totalling around 56 million cumulative disability-adjusted life years, which is more than for malaria and tuberculosis . Lymphatic filariasis (LF) is one of these diseases and one of the leading causes of disability, infecting some 120 million individuals, with a further 1.3 billion people at risk .
Some of the best “global health buys,” in terms of cost per disability-adjusted life years averted, are preventive chemotherapy for the control of intestinal helminths, elimination of LF, and control of onchocerciasis (the latter two programmes are based on drug donations) . Treatment costs of such chemotherapy packages range from US$0.03 to US$1 –, and it is recognised that cost savings by integration of NTD programmes can reach as much as 47% . Economic rates of return on controlling the neglected diseases are 15%–30% .
The Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis is arguably the most rapidly expanding global health intervention . Since 2000, when nearly 12 million people were treated, the latest WHO figures show that around 381 million people received treatment in 2005 in 42 countries . There is strong evidence to suggest that the WHO strategy has eliminated the transmission by mosquitoes of the causative agent Wuchereria bancrofti in Egypt ,, whilst in other settings, including China, the disease is reported to have been eliminated or transmission arrested .
These successes give an incomplete picture, because some 40 million people who are deformed, stigmatised, and disabled by the disease have been largely neglected. There are, however, promising interventions that could improve the quality of life and reduce the level of disability of patients. If effective interventions are to be successfully implemented, a greater understanding is required of the consequences of the disease for individuals and their families, the barriers they face to accessing the care they need, and their coping strategies. Whilst there have been studies in a number of countries on the social and cultural aspects of LF prior to the advent of the Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis –, we report here a recent in-depth study into the social and economic impact of filarial elephantiasis in Sri Lanka from the perspective of the people suffering from the disease themselves. The objective of the study was to inform future interventions and policy to help these vulnerable, neglected people. By doing so, it responds to needs for specific research identified in the most recent review of the sociocultural aspects of filariasis .
Setting and study population
Reference to LF in Sri Lanka has been traced to the 13th century AD . Brugian filariasis, caused by Brugia malayi, was eliminated by chemotherapy and vector control through the Anti-Filariasis campaign, which began in 1947. The infection currently endemic in the country is due to W. bancrofti, and is presently confined to eight districts in the Southern, Western, and Northwestern Provinces . Our study took place in three villages in Matara and one in Galle in 2004–2005. Further details of the geography, ecology, and social structure of the communities can be found in earlier published work .
For the qualitative study, systematic purposive sampling was used to select 60 participants with LF for in-depth interviews concerning their experiences and consequences of the disease. Participants were selected by poverty status, sex, and lymphoedema stage (Table 1).
Thirty of the 60 participants with LF were selected from three villages: Polhena, Wagama, and Madihe in Matara District. A survey in 2003 identified 117 cases of lymphoedema of varying stages, and six more were identified subsequently. Of the total 123, 107 consented to take part in a lymphoedema management experiment. A sample of 30 was selected from the 107 cases for qualitative interviews, to include a balance of women and men, of poor/nonpoor status, and of lymphoedema stage. Poverty status was identified for the initial sample selection from the questions on occupation in the epidemiological survey, with participants in informal labour occupations categorised as poor (the subsequent in-depth interviews provided detailed information on income to define participants' income status more directly). The main stages of advance of lymphoedema were graded according to the classification of Dreyer et al. . Six of the initial sample of 30 were willing to participate but were unable to complete the full interviews, and so were omitted from the analysis. Six replacements were selected from the 107 cases, all of whom completed the interviews.
A further 15 participants with LF were identified from a fourth village 10 km away from the villages in Matara District, Unawatuna (Galle District), chosen because it had no involvement in the lymphoedema management experiment. Key informants helped identify households containing people with LF. House visits were made to the named individuals and snowballing was then used to recruit further participants for interview. A total of 47 cases of lymphoedema were identified by this process, of which 15 were selected to provide a mix of sex, poor/nonpoor status, and lymphoedema stage. All agreed to participate in interviews.
A separate sample of 15 men with filarial hydrocoeles was selected from one village in Matara District where the Medical Officer of Health for the area considered hydrocoele to be prevalent. Local officials acted as key informants to help identify men with the condition. Recruitment by snowballing identified 42 cases, of whom 15 met the criteria and agreed to participate. Of the 15 men, three had undergone surgery for their condition, while 12 had not (Table 2).
A team of ten trained interviewers (four women and six men) supervised by a senior project officer conducted guided interviews with study participants in the local language, Sinhalese. Interviewers worked in single-sex pairs: one conducting the interview, the other recording the responses manually. To respect gender sensitivities of participants, the pairs of interviewers were assigned to interview participants of the same sex. Interview notes were transcribed and later translated into English for analysis. Interpretations of the data were fed back to, and refined with, the interviewers.
All the interviewers had at least 3 y of experience of conducting interviews according to the Affordability Ladder framework (see below). The discussions encouraged patients to “tell their story,” beginning with the first symptoms to the time of the interview, which covered periods ranging from 1 mo to nearly 30 y. Health-seeking behaviour, costs of access to treatment, and expenditure in the household at each stage were obtained through a historical profile of the disease and its consequences for the household economy. Although the participants recounted experiences that occurred over several years, most had vivid recall of the milestones in their illness because it had made significant marks in their lives. Each interview took 3–4 h, some being undertaken over 2 d. These would normally be considered exceptionally lengthy interviews, but this situation resulted not from the researchers' schedules but from the desire of the interviewees themselves to talk freely and at length about their experiences. Some commented that the interview itself provided a therapeutic release from long-pent-up emotions, as they had been socially isolated when their condition advanced.
Definitions of terms relating to the Sri Lankan health system
These are allopathic doctors practicing for a fee; sometimes referred to as “general practitioners”—very similar to family physicians.
These are private practitioners of Ayurvedic medicine. Many of them treat patients for a fee, charging for medicine that they prescribe and often provide to the patient at the consultation itself. Some are small-time general physicians, while others are specialists. Among them are many who have “inherited” knowledge and many who practice as private physicians.
These include physicians' fees (if private), drugs, transport (of the patient if outpatient, or if an inpatient, costs of visits by family members), diagnostic and other tests done in a private hospital or outsourced when facilities are unavailable in a government hospital
An adaptation of the affordability ladder framework was employed to organise and analyse the data. Figure 1 illustrates the basic conceptual framework. The starting point for the Affordability Ladder analysis on the left of the figure is a perceived or professionally defined health problem, a “need”; in this case, symptoms of LF. Perceived need and the consequences of that need may vary for different types of household depending on socioeconomic circumstances, and it is therefore important in the analysis to look at what happens to different groups in the population. Once the symptoms of LF are perceived by households, their experiences of seeking help for the condition may be very different in different types of households and are represented by the four main steps on the ladder: (1) No care; (2) informal care and/or self-care; (3) access to and utilisation of professional care; and (4) quality of professional care received. At each step of the ladder there are health and social consequences and a burden of payment as a result of the actions taken, as indicated by arrows. The policy environment also affects people's choices and actions in all these steps, as the arrows denote. These are not necessarily sequential steps: people may treat themselves with medicines or consult an informal provider, for example, at the same time as seeking professional help. The pattern of seeking care, however, may differ, again depending on socioeconomic differences.
In using a systematic approach to examine the many different aspects of the pathways from need to appropriate care, one important aim is to identify much more closely where and why the system is working well and where it is breaking down for different groups in the population .
For the purposes of analysing the intricacies of participants' experiences from the qualitative data, we adapted this basic affordability ladder framework to incorporate four distinct ladders (Figure 2). The first, a reference ladder, documented the progression of the illness (historical profile of illness) as described above. A treatment and expenditure ladder recorded the direct and indirect costs incurred at each stage of the illness. The household economy ladder charted the changes in the household economy after a member of the household was identified as having LF and throughout the duration of the illness. Lastly, the impact ladder traced the economic and social consequences of the illness to the participant, the household and other family members. A process of constant cross-referencing each individual horizontally across ladders allowed interactions and the ordering of events and consequences to be identified. Recurring themes within and across the different types of household (low-, middle-, and high-income) were then identified by reviewing the entire dataset within the four-ladders framework. Emerging themes were noted, sorted, and grouped into main themes. Quotations and field notes describing interviewees' experiences with LF (presented in Boxes 1–4) are used to illustrate the main themes identified in the analysis.
From the income information obtained in the interviews, households were categorised as “high,” “middle,” or “low” income, judged against the level of incomes reported in the latest Consumer Finance Survey of the Central Bank . “Low-income households” had income within the lowest three deciles range on the national scale, “high-income households” had income in the top three deciles range, and “middle-income households” had incomes that fell within the 4th to the 7th deciles range of the national scale. To minimise recall errors on expenditures, only costs incurred in the last 3 y, and costs for the most recent episode of inpatient care within the last 5 y, were used. Direct and indirect costs and costs as a proportion of the household income for participants in different types of household were calculated.
Names of study participants have been changed to protect their anonymity.
The ethical approval for the study was obtained from the Research Ethics Committee of the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and the Ethics Committee of the University of Ruhuma, Galle, Sri Lanka. Verbal (oral) consent was given by the participants who were invited to participate; participants were reassured that they could withdraw from all or part of the interview at any time. The investigators judged, on the basis of their experience, that written consent was not obtainable because of the community-wide mistrust of signing any official forms and the level of literacy in the population. The ethics committees accepted this constraint. Studies conducted by the Marga Institute in similar settings have used the same approach, respecting the communities' concerns.
Participants' poverty and associated way of life severely limited their ability to prevent or cope effectively with the condition at all stages of the disease and its treatment. At the infection stage, for instance, poorer participants reported having to work for long hours in contact with stagnant water, with daily exposure to mosquito breeding places. Two common occupations for poor women—making coir yarn and weaving thatch—involved soaking materials in stagnant pits. Often the women had to stand chest-high in them for hours. These pits were generally sited adjacent to homes and were breeding places for Culex quinquefasciatus, the vector of W. bancrofti. The ability of patients to adopt preventive measures in the home was also severely limited. The poor could not afford the costs involved in avoiding exposure to mosquitoes, such as mosquito netting and repellent, and did not have the types of houses that would keep out mosquitoes.
When we traced participants' experiences in accessing and using the appropriate medical care for LF with the affordability ladder, multiple problems for households were revealed. Delayed diagnosis was common and had irreversible consequences. Both poor and nonpoor participants had experienced delays in diagnosis. The low-income households were more likely to report adopting home remedies for all types of illnesses, including lymphoedema. They tended to seek medical treatment only when the disease seriously affected their livelihoods, and then they tended to opt for indigenous treatment (which would not provide an accurate diagnosis), citing convenience, proximity, and cost as reasons.
Even low-income patients consulted private practitioners who charged a moderate fee but had no facilities to diagnose LF. These practitioners invariably treated only the immediate symptoms of fever and pain, and sometimes misdiagnosed the condition. One man, for example, had been treated for 7 y by an indigenous practitioner for the effects of “snake bite.” The lymphoedema of one pregnant woman went untreated for 9 mo because the symptom was judged to be due to the pregnancy.
Some participants reported that they chose to go to a private practitioner to avoid the social stigma brought about by exposure of their affected limbs at a government clinic, despite treatment being free at such clinics. The nonmedical costs of travel and the indirect costs in accessing a distant government hospital were also cited as reasons by low-income participants. The average reported delay from first symptoms to diagnosis for low-income participants was 3.5 y (range 2–7 y), while for middle- and high-income participants it was 2.2 mo (range 1–4 mo).
Once diagnosed, the ability of patients to follow prescribed drug treatment was severely constrained. Although a long course of the drug diethylcarbamazine (DEC) (currently 84 tablets, but previously up to 120 tablets ) was provided free by the Anti-Filariasis Campaign, side effects were reported by participants, who then interrupted or gave up the treatment. One low-income man said of the treatment, “In our daily routine and our struggle to find work each day, how can we think of tablets?” Another low-income woman commented: “Tablets can cause nausea and stomach cramps. Then we cannot go out and do our work.”
Travel costs and income foregone were deterrents for low-income participants to obtaining free drugs from the government hospital. An average direct cost of a visit to the hospital for outpatient care by a low-income participant was Rs 215 (US$2) which was the equivalent of 2 d of earnings for a low-income household. Inpatient care had an average direct cost of Rs 469 (US$4.50), which was equivalent to about 4 d of earnings for a low-income household. Corresponding indirect costs of income foregone because of attendance at health facilities amounted to 2 d of earnings for an outpatient visit and 15 d of earnings for an inpatient episode. Earned income in this population was not constant, but fluctuated from week to week and was unpredictable in poor households (see Box 1).
Box 1. The Economic Loss and Social Stigma of Lymphoedema at Different Income Levels
Low-income family example
Raja was 6 y old when he had the manifestations of LF with recurring episodes of fever, inflammation and pain. His mother could not always find the Rs 30 to hire a vehicle to take him to the hospital; hence he had to walk the 2 km to the hospital, dragging his painful leg. When such episodes recurred, rather than go through that ordeal he was given paracetamol (acetamenophen) to reduce the fever, which cost Rs 10 per card of 12 tablets. When he exposed the leg because he had to wear short trousers, he became the butt of jokes in school. He was instructed to visit the hospital clinic to obtain drugs every month and keep the leg bandaged with an elastic bandage, none of which his family could afford. He left school to become a labourer and so the hope the family had of improving their economic condition through education was lost. His mother developed asthma as a result of the stress caused by her son's condition. The father had to constantly interrupt his work to attend to the mother. Family income dropped to an uncertain one of Rs 1,500 (US$15) a month, with sporadic help from neighbours. The household was breaking down as they could barely afford a daily meal.
Sriya: “I got this big leg when I was engaged to be married. When they heard it was filarial they backed out of the marriage. I was earning Rs 2,500 [US$25] a month from sewing but when the leg got worse the hospital doctor told me I should not pedal the machine. So I lost my income as well. When my parents died and my sister got married, only my brother and I lived in the house. My brother married and left the house, but my sister became widowed so came to live with me with her child. She had no money to buy bandage as instructed by the clinic. So I went to a house to cook. When they saw my leg they asked me not to come there anymore and found fault with me for hiding such a dirty illness from them. When I get fever I cannot walk to the hospital so I take paracetamol for two days and walk to the hospital when I feel less pain.”
Daya was a woman from a middle-income household: “I was only 20 years old when my leg swelled. I could not go to the government hospital which gave free treatment because people would see it and shun me and my family. Without treatment my leg got worse. I could not marry because of my disease. I lived with my sister and her husband. I was earning an income of Rs 3,000 [US$30]. When my leg got bad I sewed less garments and my income dropped to Rs 2,000 [US$20]. I could still continue to sew but my clients who saw my leg refrained from giving me orders for stitching. I lost my income and became dependent on my brother-in-law.”
More advanced stages of the disease were present among both poor and non-poor participants, but there were marked differences in the opportunities for participants from different types of household to manage their condition and ameliorate symptoms. Middle and high-income participants generally benefited from clean homes and facilities to maintain personal hygiene, they reported fewer episodes of fever and fewer injuries to the limbs, and they could afford bandages to reduce swelling of the limbs. Poorer participants lived in less-hygienic conditions and thus were more prone to infection, and they could not avoid frequent lesions and wounds because of the hazardous nature of their work. Several participants reported having wounds that turned into suppurating sores, but out of necessity they had continued to work with an infected limb.
More than half of the low-income participants reported that they could not afford the cost of attending the medical centre. The cost of frequent episodes of fever and swelling with pain was high for low-income participants. One low-income woman with lymphoedema had such episodes every 2 mo on average. She lost Rs 300 (US$3) income (equivalent to 6 d of female wages) from her thatch weaving, her husband lost the equivalent of 2 d of income (Rs 200 [US$2]) when he stayed at home to cook and look after the children and they spent about Rs 100 (US$1) during an episode on Panadol and herbal applications. A total loss of Rs 500–600 (US$5–6) per episode of illness had drained their income, putting them in debt.
The stigma associated with LF was a dominant theme in the accounts of most participants (see Box 1), which caused their condition to be hidden and contributed to delay in diagnosis with the subsequent advancement of the disease. For participants who had social standing in their village, social stigma tended to be a more important factor than costs in deterring them from seeking health care. Even high-income participants who reported no economic problems experienced mental health problems due to the stigma they suffered within the family.
Among the male participants, hydrocoele was a source of both physical suffering and intense social stigma. All 15 men recounted embarrassment and stigma associated with the hydrocoele, which had led them to hide their condition for years, until it was advanced and severely debilitating. Most low-income men earned their living from casual labour, mainly coconut picking, which involved climbing to great heights. They either had to give up the occupation, which caused loss of earnings, or continue to climb with the hydrocoele, thus greatly aggravating the condition. One man commented that his hydrocoele was as big as the coconuts he was picking, but he still had to continue working with it. (see Box 2).
Box 2. The Impact of Hydrocoele in Men from Low-Income Households
Senas' occupation of coconut picking had to be given up because his hydrocoele was so large and had become infected because he had injured it while climbing. His family was impoverished without his income. His son left school since he had to earn from casual labour. When Senas decided to have the surgery for the hydrocoele, his wife began working in domestic service cooking at a house close by. “I did not consider it demeaning—what choice have when we are starving?” She was given food from that house and a daily wage of Rs 50 [US$0.50]. This income, together with her sons' casual earnings, saw them through the 3–4 mo of convalescence after surgery. Senas was able to resume work, not in coconut picking, but in the lower-paid job of labourer. Their household income rose to Rs 4,000–5,000 [US$40–50] a month and the son returned to school.
Other men with hydrocoele could not afford a period off work for surgery and recovery. Men had jobs mainly in hard labour and coconut picking. They aggravated their condition by continuing with picking. “I climbed with a hydrocoele as large as the coconuts I plucked.” (Indrasiri, from a family who could not afford surgery, accepted a labourer's job, but even that was now becoming increasingly difficult to sustain.)
The social and economic consequences for the whole household, not just the participant, spanned years. Loss of income because of the condition was reported by all households in the sample, across all income levels—it was not just confined to the poorest. The narratives of participants revealed reasonably well-off households, the members of which were gradually degraded into poverty by the condition over many years (Box 2). Equally, households that were already poor were pushed further toward destitution (Box 3). For some households in the sample, the presence of a member with LF had been a hindrance to family progress, rather than a cause of poverty, holding the family finances back when they could have achieved an improved standard of living. In one case, a family opted to deny the existence of the family member with lymphoedema, leaving him in a shabby room, given food, but unwashed and depressed, while other family members continued to make social and economic advancement (Box 4). A less extreme case of rejection by a high-income family (Box 4), illustrates the mental distress, as well as economic hardship, that was a consequence of lymphoedema.
Box 3. Impoverishment in Low-Income Households
Bandu, a low-income woman aged 32, developed lymphoedema as a young woman. She had a long period of self-medication, because that was her usual health-seeking behaviour. When she was diagnosed and began treatment the tablets provoked severe reactions of nausea and cramps, so she abandoned the treatment while her LF advanced. Her husband had to stay away from his work to nurse her during recurring attacks of fever and enlarged glands. Their income dropped from Rs 2,500 (US$25) to Rs 1,500 (US$15). She lost her income of Rs 500 (US$5) from coir work. Her daughter dropped out of school, her second daughter failed her public examination, and they became indebted to the grocer.
Soma had advanced lymphoedema, but did not access the Government hospital because she was ashamed to show her leg. She hid in her house for 15 y looking after her widowed daughter's children. She accepted money from her daughter to buy penicillin and paracetamol which she took daily to avoid fevers, but her unsightly leg showed no improvement. She was well on the way to become disabled and she was in despair: “what will my poor daughter do if I cannot care for her children? She has only me.”
Box 4. Mental Illness Associated with Filariasis
Jamis had stage 5 lymphoedema, which was infected and suppurating. He was a coconut picker and climbed trees until he could no longer. He had injured his limb by climbing. He was an embarrassment to his family. His children had dropped out of school because they were too poor to go to school. The sons became divers and acted as tourist guides and soon earned an adequate income. They built their house with tiled floors alongside the old shack. They were progressing up the social ladder; the one problem was their father with elephantiasis. He had been relegated to the shack where he lived in filth and dirt without income. He was given food and left to himself. “I went with the tsunami but someone rescued me—why did I not die then?” he said. He was depressive as a result. This was a family that rejected the undesirable element within it—their father—and moved ahead on a path out of poverty and into affluence, while Jamis waited for death, which he saw as a relief to his suffering.
Ariya, from a high-income household, had hidden her condition from her husband and his family. “I could not take treatment since he would find out. The condition advanced and one day he found out my condition and began to shun me. I stopped going out anywhere specially where I might meet with his family. I am mentally broken down and do not know how long I can live like this, shunned and rejected and confined to this house.”
While LF has been recognised for some time as a leading cause of disability globally, it has been relatively neglected by public health policy makers. Part of the reason for this neglect may be that the full extent of the disability associated with this disease is hidden and not recorded in standard assessments restricted to physical impairment. In this study, we have shown the extremely debilitating nature of LF over a long period of time when mental health, social, and economic consequences are taken into account using the affordability ladder framework. We have identified four areas in which the clinical manifestations of W. bancrofti infection had a major impact on the lives and livelihoods of patients and their families in Sri Lanka.
First, the condition and its diagnosis were severely affected by both stigma and costs. People with LF experienced the negative responses of others to their disfigured limbs or genitals, causing them to cover up the affected parts and, as the disease progressed, to hide themselves away from society in general. The social isolation from the stigma of the disease caused emotional distress, delay in diagnosis, and treatment, resulting in advancement of the disease beyond possible treatment.
Second, treatment services that were available—free—from Government clinics were avoided because the participants' condition would be publicly identifiable. Local private practitioners were favoured, where their condition could be more easily hidden. However, the consequence of this behaviour was that the patients received less effective, or even ineffective, treatment from private practitioners, compared with the interventions available through the government clinics.
Third, we found devastating economic and social consequences of the disease, for both patients and the household. The debilitating physical symptoms restricted the kind and quantity of work that participants could undertake, resulting in loss of earnings and impoverishment. Households were further impoverished by the costs incurred in using health services (even though the services themselves were free) and the cost of drugs, which had to be sustained over many years—leading to a medical poverty trap . The impact of LF on productivity of the patients themselves can be considerable. In India, for example, a estimated US$842 million are lost to patients and households every year in treatment costs and reduced working time through acute and chronic disease caused by LF . Other studies indicate that productivity loss in weavers can be as high as 27% , and male patients with chronic episodes of LF can lose an equivalent of 15% of their earning capacity in any one year . A study of the costs of nonfilarial elephantiasis in Ethiopia provided similar estimates. Direct costs of podoconiosis (nonfilarial endemic elephantiasis of the lower leg) amounted to US$143 per patient per year with productivity lost per patient of 45% of working days, equivalent to monetary loss of US$63. The overall costs of this form of elephantiasis in one zone where the population is 1.5 million was estimated to be US$16 million per year .
For nearly all the participants in our sample, the incomes of other members of the household, in addition to the participant, were affected, either by having to forego employment to look after the patient or by making contributions to the health care costs. Several households in our sample had to withdraw children from school to help with work, which would perpetuate intergenerational poverty.
Fourth, the adverse social and economic consequences were socially patterned. While we found that households from all three income levels had suffered reductions in income, those who were already on low incomes were pushed into near destitution by LF, from which it was almost impossible to escape. Low-income households also had less opportunity to obtain effective treatment from distant clinics, coupled with living and working conditions that made hygiene and compliance with treatment regimes more difficult. They were also less protected from stigma.
These findings have significant policy implications. In Sri Lanka the prevalence of filarial elephantiasis in the population of three villages in Matara district has been estimated to be 3% and the prevalence of hydrocoele to be 6.2% . The villages are typical of endemic areas in terms of socioeconomic mix and occupations. Scaling up the estimates to the whole 10 million population of the endemic provinces gives an expected 300,000 cases of elephantiasis among both women and men, and around 300,000 men with filarial hydrocoele from a male population of approximately 4.8 million. Every afflicted person lives in a household with another four individuals on average, all of whom may potentially suffer social and economic consequences as a result of having a family member with this condition. Even if the LF elimination programme is successful in arresting transmission of the disease so that there are no new cases, hundreds of thousands of people in Sri Lanka will continue to suffer clinical manifestations of the disease and will remain trapped in poverty. The affected households will need help and support for many years despite transmission having been arrested.
Donors and the national government, who have to date understandably focussed on the single-dose annual preventive strategy where DEC and albendazole (400 mg chewable tablet donated by GlaxoSmithKline) have been given annually since 2001, need to re-evaluate how this neglected group can be served more effectively. This will first require a comprehensive survey to ascertain the number of people with elephantiasis and hydrocoele in the endemic districts. This survey needs to be followed by a reassessment of post-Mass Drug Distribution strategies, expansion of the lymphoedema treatment programmes to maximise coverage for those that remain symptomatic, and an aggressive approach to the provision of surgical care for male patients with hydrocoele.
Direct financial support to afflicted families could be provided under the Sri Lankan Samurdhi poverty alleviation scheme of allowances for stipulated poor households. This approach could then take account of the context and barriers to effective treatment when designing and scaling up the post-Mass Drug Distribution implementation programmes. Supporting the evaluation of clinical interventions for the amelioration of lymphoedema will also be important, as the interventions currently being piloted in Sri Lanka and elsewhere need to recognise the social and economic context and constraints on the lives of participants, and how these differ by level of poverty.
The inclusiveness and the caring quality of a health strategy for any given disease has to be judged by its capacity to reach out to the most vulnerable groups affected. The present study demonstrates one of the dilemmas that can arise in a strategy for the control and prevention of a disease leading to chronic conditions of ill health such as LF. The strategy itself, as in the case of Sri Lanka, can achieve its main objectives of prevention and elimination of the disease through large-scale interventions that reach the great majority of the population exposed to it. However, a highly vulnerable category of patients in advanced stages of the disease tends to have low visibility, becoming marginalized and forgotten. Special measures are needed to identify, reach and care for them. As the Global Filariasis Elimination Programme reports successes in arresting transmission, those with the condition should not be neglected but be specially targeted for the support the condition requires. Such support could be promoted by specific poverty reduction policies, which would be entirely appropriate given the evidence presented in this paper of the impact of the disease on poor communities, and particularly at the household level.
Conceived and designed the experiments: D. Molyneux M. Whitehead M. Perera. Performed the experiments: M. Perera. Analyzed the data: D. Molyneux M. Whitehead M. Perera G. Gunatilleke. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: M. Weerasooriya. Wrote the paper: D. Molyneux M. Whitehead M. Perera M. Weerasooriya G. Gunatilleke.
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In Great Britain, the restaurant sector is booming because today’s families are spending twice as much time eating out than families in the 70’s. However, according to Dr. Adison Tedstone, PHE chief nutritionist, the British culture of going out for a meal as a weekly treat for the family is contributing to the obesity epidemic.
According to experts, families today no longer consider dining out as a treat; instead, they have allowed restaurant meals and fast food to become a major part of their children’s weekly diet. Figures from Public Health England (PHE) reveal the significant changes in the nations eating habits wherein one in five meals are eaten in restaurants or fast food chains.
Society has to take action to consume less food so as to avoid gaining weight. Dr. Tedstone warns that people are encouraged to consume so much food because the prevalence of cheap and high calorie food and drinks that are being advertised. A research on 2,000 people found out that 75% had eaten out or ordered takeaway in the last week. Five years ago, the figure was at 68%.
Studies have been consistent in associating dining out to higher calorie intake. Harvard researchers have disclosed that people who eat out regularly are more likely to be overweight than those who eat at home. It is also more likely for the overweight to develop Type 2 diabetes.
To address the problems of obesity, health officials are working with the food industry to remove 20% of sugar from food served by 2020. Councils are also limiting the number of fast food outlets near schools to reduce calorie intake. Restaurants are also advised to provide their customers with healthier choices and reduce portion sizes, saturated fat, salts and sugars in their food offerings. In spite of being reduced in recent years, sugar intakes are still too high.
A common problem among people is annoying belly fat. A solution is HCG weight loss drops that will help the body melt away accumulated fat and turn it into energy. When the HCG drops are taken with a healthy low calorie diet, weight loss will be fast.
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- About Us
- Image Gallery
Published on : Thursday, October 27, 2016
Prior to the dazzling event, the Aurora Watch UK issued a Red Alert for the people of Britain. They informed that the northern lights would be visible by naked eyes throughout the country.
The northern lights got witnessed throughout Keswick in the Lake District, Brecon in south Wales, Lough Neagh in Northern Ireland, Derbyshire Peak District near Hathersage, Carneddau Mountain near Conwy, Staffordshire, Scotland’s Isle of Islay, Cumbria and numerous other corners of UK from Wednesday night till the early hours of Thursday, 27th October.
The lights could be seen from the places which are comparatively pollution free, with dark and clear sky.
According to the Met Office, the lights occur as a consequence of solar activity and result from collisions of charged particles in the solar wind colliding with molecules in the Earth’s upper atmosphere.
The Met Office also added that when the magnetic polarity of the solar wind is opposite to the Earth’s magnetic field, the two magnetic fields combine allowing these energetic particles to flow into the Earth’s magnetic north and south poles.
In order to witness the rare phenomena, several people travelled to the less polluted places of UK, away from the crowded cities and towns.
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In an article to mark 800 years since Louis VIII was proclaimed king of England – on 2 June 1216 – Catherine Hanley, author of new biography Louis – The French Prince Who Invaded England, explores the short period during which ‘King Louis’ held the British crown.
The arrival of Louis VIII…
It’s the second day of June in the year 1216, and excitement is building in the hot and dusty streets of London. For the last year and a half there has been civil war in England, but all that is about to come to an end thanks to the new king, a strong, experienced warrior who will bring peace to the country. Today’s the day he will arrive in his capital … and here he comes! The citizens push and shove to get a better view as the cheering starts. He’s young, blond and handsome; his serious expression convinces onlookers that he understands the momentous nature of the promises he’ll make later today. As he rides past, the citizens heave a sigh of relief. England will be a more peaceful place now that King Louis is in charge.
This might sound like fantasy, one of those ‘alternative’ histories that makes a good story. But it isn’t: exactly 800 years ago Louis, son and heir of the king of France, rode through the streets of London and was acclaimed king of England by cheering crowds.
King John had been in conflict with his barons for some time, and in 1215 they forced him to agree to Magna Carta. But he immediately reneged on his word and tried to have the document rescinded; his forces attacked and burned the lands of the signatories. Enough was enough – having failed to control John, the barons took a logical but unprecedented step and decided to overthrow him. But they were no republicans: England had to have a king. Who should it be?
‘Within months he had about two thirds of the nobility and more than half of the country under his control.’
The barons needed a strong man, an experienced man, a man of royal blood; they looked across the Channel and found one. Louis VIII was the eldest son of the French king Philip Augustus, but he was also a direct descendant of William the Conqueror and married to John’s niece, both of which gave him a passable blood claim to the English throne. But more than this, he had the resources to mount a campaign, the men to run it and the skills to win it. He was renowned as a brilliant warrior and was known to be honest, just, moral and a man of his word – all the things that John wasn’t. A delegation of barons travelled to Paris to offer him the throne, and he accepted. Louis built and equipped a fleet, sailed from France and arrived on English shores on 21 May 1216.
To start with everything went smoothly: about half the barons came over to him straight away, and castles and towns surrendered to him without resistance. John fled to the west of England rather than fight him. Louis marched in triumph to London where he was welcomed and proclaimed king; he sent out letters to all the remaining barons to tell them that they should come to pay him homage. Within months he had about two thirds of the nobility and more than half of the country under his control.
But then in October 1216 John did the one and only thing which could conceivably have helped his cause: he died. Far from being Louis’s moment of triumph, as might perhaps be expected, this was the worst thing which could have happened. John had left five children, two of them sons including the eldest, Henry, who was nine years old; the remaining royalists hastily had him crowned as Henry III and declared their allegiance to him. This left the other barons with a dilemma: supposedly they’d overthrown John because of the laws he’d broken and the wrongs he’d done – they could hardly level the same accusations against a young boy. And Louis, man of principle as he was, was turning out to be less controllable than they’d hoped, preventing them from furthering their own interests.
Louis VIII swiftly found himself being recast in popular opinion – no longer was he the conquering hero here to save the barons from the cruel John, but a foreign bully attacking a little boy. The desertions began.
Louis wasn’t one to give up easily, and he held out for quite some time afterwards. But his father refused to send any more money or troops, so Louis had to make do with his own dwindling forces. In May 1217 he had to split his army in half in order to fight both at Dover and further north, but this did not leave him with enough men to function properly in either area. He failed to take Dover castle, and his northern forces were soundly defeated at Lincoln, many of his nobles captured and many of the English among them defecting back to Henry and his regent William Marshal. Reinforcements organised by his wife were intercepted by an English fleet, defeated in a naval battle off Sandwich on 24 August, and never reached him. Louis VIII bowed to the inevitable, sealed a treaty in September, and withdrew.
Louis’s 17-month interregnum has often been overlooked in the history books, whose smooth succession of the dates of the reigns of kings runs straight from John to Henry III. But it was a pivotal period in English history and his contribution should not be forgotten. Without him you’d never have heard of Magna Carta, and absolute monarchy would have reigned for much longer. His legacy shouldn’t be forgotten, but unfortunately for him he remains to this day the least known of those to have ruled over England.
Dr Catherine Hanley is a writer and researcher specialising in the High Middle Ages, and the author of War and Combat, 1150-1270: The Evidence from Old French Literature (2003).
You can follow Catherine on twitter @CathHanley.
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Researchers from Schepens Eye Research Institute of Massachusetts Eye and Ear have uncovered two factors responsible for the chronic, lifelong nature of autoimmune disorders, which tend to “flare up” intermittently in affected patients. These two factors are cell-signaling proteins called cytokines, specifically Interleukin-7 and -15 (IL-7 and IL-15), that are secreted by cells of the immune system and help modulate memory Th17 cells, a subset of T cells which are known to contribute to autoimmune disorders. Until now, it was unclear how Th17 cells maintained memory; the study results show that IL-7 and IL-15 signal the Th17 cells to chronically reside in the body. These findings, published online in the Journal of Autoimmunity, may lead to the development of new therapies to address a variety of chronic autoimmune disorders.
“We wanted to know the precise factors that maintain memory in Th17 cells so that we can better understand what is causing chronic autoimmune disorders,” said senior author Reza Dana, M.D., M.Sc., MPH, Director of the Cornea and Refractive Surgery Service at Mass. Eye and Ear and the Claes H. Dohlman Professor of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School. “By selectively targeting the production and expression of IL-7 and IL-15, we may be able to prevent the development of chronic autoimmune disorders.”
Affecting up to 50 million Americans, autoimmune disorders develop when the body’s immune system attacks its own healthy tissue. Many autoimmune disorders are chronic, and patients may experience “flare-ups,” in which symptoms worsen temporarily and then enter a period of remission.
Previous research studies have linked Th17 cells to a variety of autoimmune disorders, including multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and chronic inflammatory eye disorders such as uveitis and dry eye disease. When Th17 cells are activated, a subset of them become memory cells, causing them to reside in the body for long periods of time. These memory Th17 cells can become reactivated and cause flare-ups of the autoimmune condition. However, the underlying mechanisms that promote the maintenance of Th17 memory were previously unknown.
Using a mouse model for dry eye disease, an autoimmune condition affecting the surface of the eye, the study authors set out to determine what molecular factors are critical for the maintenance of Th17 memory. They identified IL-7 and -15 as playing a crucial role in the survival and homeostatic proliferation of memory Th17 cells and when they neutralised IL-7 and IL-15, they saw a substantial reduction of memory Th17 cells.
While further studies are needed to determine ways to block these factors, the findings suggest that targeting IL-7 and IL-15 in order to remove the memory Th17 cells may be an effective treatment strategy for autoimmune diseases.
“In the case of dry eye disease, many of the treatments are showing limited efficacy in patients that do not have a highly inflamed eye,” said Dr. Dana. “Targeting the chronic, immune nature of autoimmune diseases may be a better strategy for controlling these conditions.”
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I. What is Homage?
In literature, a homage is a work created in honor of something or someone, generally to show one’s respect. Writing or presenting a homage to something is called “paying homage,” and really, that can come in many forms—essentially, a homage is like a tribute, usually shown by drawing upon different aspects of whatever is being paid homage to. This might sound a bit confusing, but truly it’s not—homages are actually quite common and the idea behind them is fairly simple. Basically, think of it like this: people create things in honor of other things that they like, or create new versions of them, and that’s homage.
The word ‘homage’ actually comes from the medieval Latin term hominaticum, which was a ceremonial process of a man declaring himself to his lord (the region’s ruler). It’s recently become somewhat trendy for people to say “an (h)omage” with a silent “h”, but truly that’s more in line with French or the old Middle English pronunciation. So, just like a knight may have lain down his sword to his king to pay homage, an author pays homage with words.
II. Example of a Homage
Here’s a short homage:
Lollipops, gumdrops, gum balls and chocolate bars are some of the best things in the world. And let’s not forget about cakes, cookies, pies and ice cream sundaes and all kinds of delectable desserts. Ah, what would life would life be without these delicious treats; sugary and syrupy and more delicious than anything else.
Here, the author is paying homage to sweets by listing all kinds of classic desserts and treats and referencing how they make life better. However, you should note that not all homages are this direct—as this article will explain, they can take all kinds of forms
III. Importance of Homage
Of course, homages are important because they let authors pay tribute to significant things. But one of the biggest reasons that they are such valuable parts of literature is because they are the results of inspiration; born from drawing upon other authors and areas of literature to create entirely new works. Specifically, they reflect the idea that a single person or work of literature can be an incredible influential to both other authors and therefore literature as a whole, as homages can become great works themselves. What’s more,
IV. Examples in Literature
John Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost is a classic example of a homage and one of the best known works in literature. The poem is Milton’s reimagined version of the original Christian story of Adam and Eve, which pays homage to the Bible and the creation myth in general. Here is a passage from the poem that shares Milton’s story about how the snake tempted Eve:
Mother of science! now I feel thy power
Within me clear; not only to discern
Things in their causes, but to trace the ways
Of highest agents, deemed however wise.
Queen of this universe! do not believe
Those rigid threats of death: ye shall not die
Here, the snake flatters Eve and tries to convince her that nothing bad will happen if she eats the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. He wants to show people that the snake (the Devil) was truly tricky and evil, and that’s why the innocent Eve disobeyed God and ate from the tree.
The novel version of the new play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child pays homage to the original Harry Potter series with small details that fans are sure to notice. For example, in the opening scene, Harry and Ginny Potter say these words to their son Albus:
GINNY: “All you have to do is run straight at the wall between platforms 9 and 10.
HARRY: “Don’t stop and don’t be scared you’ll crash into it, that’s important. Best to do it at a run if you’re nervous.”
This imitates word for word the very same thing that Molly Weasley said to Harry Potter the first time he was going to Hogwarts in the very first book of the series. Here, Rowling and her writers are paying homage to the beginning of the story and to those first magical moments that every witch and wizard experiences.
V. Examples in Popular Culture
The creators of the comedy movie Hot Fuzz pulled a lot of influence from some of their favorite action films, and they pay homage to those films in a bunch of different ways. First, the main characters watch the movies Point Break and Bad Boys II several times in the movies. Then, later in the film, the characters acting out the some of the scenes from each of the movies:
Here, we see the guys watching the movies, and then seen one of them Actually, Hot Fuzz is a homage on two levels—first, the characters pay homage to Point Break and Bay Boys II, and second, that fictional homage is actually a homage to Point Break and Bad Boys II from the writers of Hot Fuzz themselves (who also happen to be the actors portraying those two main characters!).
Season 1 Episode 20 of That ‘70s Show pays homage to Star Wars by featuring an episode about the first time it came out in theaters. Throughout the episode, the writers make references to the original film and recreate some of its elements, like the famous opening credits:
In this clip, in addition to recreating the opening sequence, they also show the gang intently watching the film in theaters. Each is a way of paying homage to the film; both through using something from Star Wars itself and by also trying to capture the thrill of seeing the movie for the first time.
VI. Related Terms
A pastiche is work that imitates an author, genre, or another work. It differs from a parody because it is does not mock the work it is imitating; rather, a pastiche respects the work it is imitating. In that way, a pastiche is sometimes a homage, but just when an author writes it specifically as a tribute to something—after all, an author may just want to imitate something because he likes it.
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The Center for Complex Network Research (CCNR), directed by Professor Albert-László Barabási, has a simple objective: think networks. The center's research focuses on how networks emerge, what they look like, and how they evolve; and how networks impact on understanding of complex systems.
To understand networks, CCNR's research has developed to rather unexpected areas. Certain studies include the topology of the www - showing that webpages are on average 19 clicks form each other; complex cellular network inside the cell-looking at both metabolic and genetic networks; the Internet's Achilles' Heel. The center's researchers have even ventured to study how actors are connected in Hollywood.
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We had such a fun week learning all about the letter Rr and rain. And after it rains you can find a rainbow! I loved this theme and there were so many ideas to go along with it.
Sing With Me
(to the tune of “It’s Raining, It’s Pouring”)
It’s raining; it’s pouring.
Staying inside is boring.
I’ll put on my boots and run outside.
Then I’ll jump in a puddle, deep and wide!
We read “Rabbits and Raindrops” by Jim Aronsky, “The Rain Came Down” by David Shannon and “Red Rubber Boot Day” by Mary Lyn Ray. These are great books to read to preschoolers all about rain and the letter Rr.
We made rain clouds by painting card stock gray, sprinkled them with irridescent glitter and cut them out into cloud shapes. We then glued strips of blue crepe paper to make it look like the clouds were raining.
We also made rainbows using half of a paper plate, glued cotton balls onto it for clouds and then different colored strips of crepe paper to make the rainbows.
It was such a beautiful day outside that we brought art outdoors. I taped a large piece of white bulletin board paper to the wall outside and had the children take turns making different colored hand prints to make a beautiful rainbow! After it dries I will cut it out and add it to our March bulletin board (post to follow all about our March/St. Patrick’s Day crafts)
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Not just Robinson Crusoe
You’ve read Robinson Crusoe, haven’t you? Do you remember who wrote the book? No?
Daniel Defoe. He wrote that one book, a long time ago, and it became a Classic.
That’s the general impression most people have about the man who wrote Robinson Crusoe. But it’s totally misleading. Daniel Defoe, who was born in about 1660 and died in April 1731, was probably one of the most prolific writers of his day. He wrote at least seven novels, and a total of several hundred published works of all kinds. Robinson Crusoe was his first novel, published in 1719, and may have been the first novel written and published in English. Defoe had a very colorful life, as a businessman, a convict, a spy, and a political campaigner.
Today I want to talk about one of his lesser known novels.
The Life Adventures and Piracies of the Famous Captain Singleton was first published in 1720, a year after Robinson Crusoe. Defoe wrote it as a first person narrative, the memoirs of a retired pirate.
Captain Singleton is not as unreadable as many 18th century books. True, Defoe loves long sentences, but the structure of these long sentences is usually simple, and the vocabulary consists mainly of short words. He uses few obscure words.
The book excels at development of memorable characters. Though most of the characters are villains, many of them are likeable villains. Singleton himself, kidnapped as a small child, at sea by age twelve, captured on his first voyage by Algerian pirates and set ashore in Portugal alone, manages to retain the reader’s sympathy. But the most interesting character is William Walters, the Quaker pirate.
The action takes place throughout the known world (in 1620) and a fair bit of the unknown world. Defoe manages to give quite accurate depictions of places known, such as parts of the coasts of Madagascar, Africa, and India, and then gives totally erroneous descriptions of the blank areas on the maps of the early eighteenth century. An expedition across Africa, from Mozambique to Ghana (modern names), crosses deserts where we know today there is jungle. A voyage from the Philippines to Madagascar finds a new land roughly where Queensland is, but then sails through open ocean where the Simpson Desert lies.
A sailor will appreciate Defoe’s realistic pictures of life at sea. He obviously spent time at sea himself.
I hope I have whetted your appetite for this forgotten book. Now, where do you get it? There are paper copies, available, though you are unlikely to find it in stock at your local bookstore. Why not download it from Project Gutenberg? It is available there in formats for e-readers (Kindle, Nook, and others) and computers.
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Parenting is hard enough, but throw in difficult behaviors, and ugh, watch out! All my respect goes out to parents, I really don't know a harder job out there. Here are some suggestions this week for coping with difficult behaviors: DO:
- Respect the child as an individual
- Remember a child's difficult behaviors do not mean that the child is intentionally misbehaving
- Assess the situation and work out a plan to help the child cope
- Evaluate behavior objectively - is the behavior of involved adults affecting the child?
One thing that sticks out as I look at these above "do's" is the fact that we need to treat and understand children as we would ourselves. Sometimes when we act out it's not intentional, and sometimes we're acting a certain way in reaction to someone else. Keep up the good parenting, and please re-visit us as we have more "do's" for you! Thank you for reading.
*Source: Dealing with Difficult Young Children: Strategies for Teachers and Parents by A.K. Soderman.
Written by: Tamara Wilhelm MA, LMHC
*Tamara enjoys doing marriage counseling, individual counseling, & couples counseling at Imagine Hope. We also specialize in family counseling, child & adolescent counseling. Imagine Hope serves the Indianapolis area, including the surrounding areas of Carmel, Noblesville, Zionsville, Westfield & Fishers.
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Last weekend, I went to the Cambridge Museum of Technology. This was great fun and is highly recommended. Until 1968, the museum was the sewage pumping station for Cambridge; sewage was pumped from the city through a great big pipe up to the sewage works at Milton. Originally this was done using two enormous steam engines, which ran continuously from 1894 until 1968. These, naturally, are all finished out in red paint and polished brass, and are very pretty. Distributing steam to the two cylinders of the engine at the proper points in the cycle requires an insanely complex contraption involving numerous little pipes, valves, and two additional small steam engines. (Later, to cope with surges of runoff water during wet weather, internal combustion engines powered by gas from the next-door gasworks were installed. These are also pretty crazy.)
We should all be grateful that the people who came up with this stuff did not -- as any sensible person would -- throw up their hands in despair and say ``Sod this, let's just wait until somebody invents a microprocessor so that we can use that to control the engine.''
In fact, that seems to have been the antithesis of the attitude: wanting an electrically-lit engine room but lacking a connection to any mains electricity supply the people in charge of the pumping station installed an electric generator and a little steam engine to drive it. They got water from a well using yet another steam engine. ``If the only tool you have is a hammer, everything begins to look like a nail.''
As originally envisaged, the entire thing was run by steam produced from burning household rubbish, which was delivered by horse cart from around the city. This was fed into the gloriously-named `Destructor' furnaces, which are visible in a partially-deconstructed state in the museum. When they first started, household refuse apparently contained a lot of partially-burned coal from house fires, which made it an economical fuel; as time went on, households burned less coal and acquired more efficient hearths, so that the calorific value of the refuse dropped; simultaneously, labour costs rose, and since it was necessary to separate glass from the other rubbish -- to prevent it from melting and clogging up the furnaces -- this eventually made the `Destructors' uneconomical; from 1923 coke from the adjacent gasworks was burned, and the coke boiler is the one which operates the engines now.
The boiler -- which, let's face it, is basically a big tube with a fire underneath it -- does incorporate one really excellent invention, which is a water level gauge working on a simple optical principle. A transparent vertical pipe connects to the boiler at top and bottom in view of the stokers, and behind it is placed a pattern of diagonal black-and-white stripes. When the tube is empty, the stripes show through as normal; when it is full of water, it acts as a lens, and an inverted image of the stripes is seen. So the level of water in the boiler can be seen instantly by looking at the direction of the stripes behind the tube. Isn't that clever?
In another bit of the complex there's a collection of various ages of printing equipment, which is fascinating. Among numerous other clever devices was a machine invented by a German gentleman named Dr. Hell for making halftone printing plates from photographs. Rather than using a chemical procedure, this worked by placing the photograph underneath a sheet of metal which was drilled out to form the plate; the machine drilled a hole, measured the brightness of the bit of the picture underneath it, and expanded the hole accordingly. This thing dated from the 1950s and apparently took only about 20 minutes to make a plate from a photo.... Equally scary was a plate of type made up for a mathematical journal; a real labour of love in those dark, far-off days before TeX.
For some slightly more recent technology, yesterday I went to a talk by Peter Duffett-Smith of Cambridge Positioning Systems. These people make `technology' -- meaning, of course, `computer software' -- for determining where mobile 'phones are. It grew out of a project called `CURSOR' which used medium-wave radio signals to infer location data; the game here is that you build a radio interferometer, one end of which is at a known location, and try to find out the location of the other end. By comparing the phase information measured at the fixed and mobile receivers, a position can be obtained; we were shown a demo of this in which eight radio stations over about a 200km baseline were used to determine the position of a car to within about five meters. Apparently the British Airports Authority were interested in using this technology to track aeroplanes taxiing around Heathrow and other large airports. Duffett-Smith was, he said, rather relieved that GPS filled that niche instead.
The game with positioning mobile 'phones is sort-of-interferometry. Every 50 milliseconds, each base station transmits an `extended training signal' which a 'phone will lock on in order to synchronise its own transmissions. This apparently gives a spatial (radial) accuracy of about 50 meters, though the clocks in the base stations are not synchronised, so there's a timing uncertainty as well. So if you measure the timing differences between a fixed and a mobile receiver for three base stations -- whose positions are, of course, known -- you get to figure out your position. This is one of the technologies being used for the `E911' emergency-call location service being implemented by federal mandate in the United States. This mandate is apparently the source of most of CPS's income, since telecoms companies aren't exactly swimming in money any more. Adapting handsets to talk to the CURSOR system requires, apparently, about 2kB of code running on the 'phone; the remainder of the system is made up of a large collection of acronyms which, I think, basically constitute `a big computer and some software'. Since data have to be sent from the handset being located and all the relevant fixed `location measurement units', the whole location procedure takes a few seconds to do, although the measurements are being made twenty times per second or whatever.
The competing technologies for the E911 stuff are all based either on GPS -- a bit of a bummer if you're indoors when you want to report an emergency -- or on measuring the transmissions of the phone at a variety of fixed receivers, which has serious scalability problems. (Naturally, one shouldn't believe this stuff coming straight from the mouth of the company against which they're competing, but these limitations sound plausible.)
They have another technology which doesn't require the fixed stations at all. The game with this is that with two mobile receivers which can each see five base stations, you can infer the position of both receivers. With a bunch of receivers and base stations, you can continuously update a model of the positions of all of the handsets. We were shown a demonstration in which a hundred people had wandered around Cambridge with CURSOR-enabled 'phones; 95% of them were located to within 50 meters of their true positions.
Now, this is all very clever, but ever so slightly scary. Admittedly, the 'phone company already knows where I am to within one cell, but cells can be quite big; in particular, a lot bigger than 50 meters across. And, of course, in the event of an emergency, it would be nice if the emergency services could locate me to high accuracy. But a requirement of the no-fixed-stations scheme is that a large fraction of 'phones in use are always transmitting the timing data which can be used to determine their location; otherwise, there wouldn't be enough data to locate an emergency caller. So in order for this to work, the positions of all the 'phones in any given region will be recorded at all times. Will the data be logged? Who knows. Let's hope that questions of this sort are made by some higher authority than a system administrator concerned about disk space.... (Another thing to wonder about is what happens in a remote region when there are very few 'phones -- perhaps only one -- in a given cell; presumably in this case you're out of luck when it comes to location data....)
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I am confident the Gospels were written early and were not corrupted or altered over time. As a new investigator of the claims of Christianity, I examined the case for early dating and became convinced the Gospels were written within the generation of the eyewitnesses. But how do we know whether or not the early accounts were corrupted over the years? One way to test the content of the Gospels as they were passed down from generation to generation is to simply compare what was written about the Gospels by those who had direct contact with the eyewitnesses. I’ve written about the New Testament Chain of Custody in Cold-Case Christianity; when testing the validity of a piece of evidence in a particular case, we need to establish who handled the evidence from the time it was first collected to the time it is presented in trial. When it comes to the Gospel eyewitness accounts, we must examine what the students of the Gospel authors said about the text, then what their students said, then what the next generation said, and continue this examination down through history, comparing the statements and quotes to determine if the message of Scripture has changed. Today, I’ll provide an example with the Chain of Custody from the Apostle John (additional “chains” can be found in Cold-Case Christianity).
John (6-100AD) was the youngest of Jesus’ disciples. He was the son of Zebedee and Salome and the brother of James. While a young man, John witnessed the life of Jesus and saw firsthand many of the amazing miracles Jesus performed. John also witnessed the Resurrection. John wrote his Gospel as an eyewitness account, accurately reflecting the truth related to what he observed as a disciple of Jesus. This Gospel is a critical piece of evidence from the “crime scene” and John taught three important students and passed his Gospel into their trusted hands. These three men (Ignatius, Papias and Polycarp) became important early Church leaders in their own right and wrote about what they learned from John.
John Taught Ignatius, Papias and Polycarp
Ignatius (35-117AD) also called himself “Theophorus” (which means “God Bearer”). Church tradition describes Ignatius as one of the children that Jesus blessed in the Gospel accounts. Ignatius was a student of John and eventually became Bishop at Antioch, (Turkey), following the Apostle Peter. He wrote several important letters to the early Church and seven of them survive to this day. These letters are important because they demonstrate the New Testament documents were already written and familiar to the early Christians. Ignatius quoted or alluded to many New Testament books (including Matthew, John and Luke, and several, if not all, of Paul’s letters). Ignatius provides us with a link in the Chain of Custody related to the original eyewitness accounts, demonstrating they were written very early and entrusted directly to key disciples who guarded them as Scripture.
Papias (60-135AD) was described by Irenaeus as a “hearer of John, and companion of Polycarp, a man of old time”. He eventually became the Bishop of Hierapolis (now known as Pamukake in Turkey). He was quite familiar with the oral testimony of the eyewitnesses during the early documentation of their Gospel accounts. These documents were still being written and circulated during Papias’ early lifetime. Papias wrote a lengthy five-volume treatise called “Interpretations of the Sayings of the Lord”, but this text has been lost to us. Papias’ work (as quoted later by Eusebius), alludes to many Gospel passages and stories. Papias represents another link in the chain of custody, learning from John and the other eyewitnesses and passing this information down to the next generation.
Polycarp (69-155AD) was a friend of Ignatius and a student of John. Irenaeus later testified that he once heard Polycarp talk about his conversations with John, and Polycarp was known to have been converted to Christianity by the eyewitness Apostles themselves. Polycarp eventually became the Bishop of Smyrna (now known as Izmir in Turkey) and wrote a letter to the Philippians that references fourteen to sixteen New Testament books (including Matthew, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 1 Peter and 1 John, with some scholars observing additional references to 2 Timothy and 2 Corinthians). Polycarp’s letter demonstrates the early texts were in circulation and familiar to the Philippians, making Polycarp’s references in his letter all the more meaningful.
Ignatius, Papias and Polycarp Taught Irenaeus
Irenaeus (120-202AD) was born in Smyrna, the city where Polycarp served as Bishop. He was raised in a Christian family and was a “hearer” of Polycarp; he later recalled hearing Polycarp talk about his conversations with the Apostle John. He eventually became a priest (and then the Bishop) of Lugdunum in Gaul (presently known as Lyons, France). Irenaeus matured into a theologian and apologist and wrote an important work called “Adversus Haereses” (Against Heresies). This refined response to the heresy of Gnosticism provided Irenaeus with the opportunity to address the issue of Scriptural authority and he identified as many as twenty-four New Testament books as Scripture (including Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, 1 Peter, 1 John, 2 John and Revelation). Irenaeus provides us with another link in the chain of custody, affirming the established eyewitness accounts and faithfully preserving them for the next generation.
Irenaeus Taught Hippolytus
Hippolytus (170-236AD) was born in Rome and was a disciple of Irenaeus. As he grew into a position of leadership, he opposed Roman Bishops who modified their beliefs to accommodate the large number of pagans who were coming to faith in the city. In taking a stand for orthodoxy, he became known as the first “anti-pope” or “rival pope” in Christian history. He was an accomplished speaker of great learning, influencing a number of important Christian leaders such as Origen of Alexandria (who heard him preaching while he was a presbyter under Pope Zephyrinus). Hippolytus wrote a huge ten-volume treatise called, “Refutation of All Heresies”. In this expansive work, Hippolytus identified as many as twenty-four New Testament books as Scripture (including Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, 1 Peter, 1 John, 2 John and Revelation). Unfortunately, Hippolytus was persecuted under Emperor Maximus Thrax and exiled to Sardinia where he most likely died in the mines.
As a result of Hippolytus’ exile and martyrdom, this particular chain of custody ends without a clear “next link”, although it is certain Hippolytus had many important students who preserved the Scripture with the same passion he had as a student of Irenaeus. One thing we know for sure: the Canon of Scripture was already established in the early 2nd Century, as eyewitness accounts were recorded by the Apostles and handed down to their disciples who wrote about them, described them, and identified them for later generations. The following facts about Jesus were affirmed from the earliest “links” in the New Testament Chain of Custody:
Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and born of the Virgin Mary
A star announced His birth
He was baptized by John the Baptist, taught and had a “ministry” on earth
He was humble, unassuming and sinless
He spoke the words of God and taught the Sermon on the Mount
Ointment was poured on Jesus’ head
He was unjustly treated and condemned by men
He was whipped, suffered and was crucified
This all took place under the government of Pontius Pilate and Herod the Tetrarch was king
Jesus died on the cross and was resurrected
He had a physical resurrection body
He appeared to Peter and the others after the resurrection
He encouraged the disciples to touch and He ate with the disciples
The disciples were convinced by the resurrection appearances and were fearless after seeing
the risen Christ
Jesus returned to God the Father
He is our only Master and the Son of God
All things are subject to Jesus and all creation belongs to Him
He is the “Door,” the “Bread of Life,” and the “Eternal Word”
Jesus is our “Savior”, “Lord” and “God”
Faith in Christ’s work on the cross saves us
This salvation and forgiveness are gifts of grace from God
Jesus will judge the living and the dead
The facts about Jesus were written early and repeated often; they haven’t changed over time. We can be confident we have an accurate, unaltered record of Jesus’ life because it was written early enough to be fact-checked by those who were actually there (as Paul claimed in 1 Corinthians 15:6), and faithfully transmitted (and cited) by those who had direct contact with the eyewitnesses.
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Click on photos to enlarge.
We strongly advocate driving across the U.S. sometime. So much is missed travelling only by plane. But imagine if there were no paved roads.
The modern American road system is less than one hundred years old.
Romans paved roads to support military conquests and run their empire. Americans walked on brick-paved streets in Colonial times. But in 1900 America was huge, still overwhelmingly rural and paved roads were a rarity.
American Road: The story of an epic transcontinental journey at the dawn of the motor age by Pete Davis describes that era’s roads. Published in 2002, it is not particularly gripping. But it is filled with interesting facts and tidbits, especially for those who have driven across the country.
On July 9, 1919, the First Continental Motor Train, an Army expedition that included cars, trucks, motorcycles, ambulances, mobile kitchens, machine shops and wreckers, set out from Washington, D.C. for San Francisco, California. There were nearly 300 men in 81 vehicles. Future President Dwight Eisenhower was among the officers. The trip took two months and averaged five miles an hour. There were times when some doubted they could do it.
The first production automobile was made in 1886. Between 1904 and 1908, there were 241 U.S, producers selling cars, mostly made in small shops. Henry Ford created the Model T in 1908, and that same year Durant founded General Motors. By 1913, 485,000 automobiles were produced. Americans owned six and a half million vehicles in 1919.
But only the most adventurous could cross a state in a car let alone cross the nation. Motor vehicles were common in towns, but the roads connecting those towns were mostly dirt.
When Alie and I drive “dirt roads,” we usually mean gravel roads that have been graded at some point. As late as 1919, most roads outside major cities were just dirt, trampled down by passing generations of feet, horses and wagons. As late as 1907, there was not a single mile of paved road in rural America. In 1908, there were no road maps, no road signs, and in some places, especially west of the Mississippi River, no roads, just trails.
The Lincoln Highway Association was formed in 1913 to support the construction of a transcontinental road — or more accurately, a transcontinental route over a collection of roads. Automobile and tire companies wanting a place for customers to drive were among the major proponents. Cement producers also saw a market.
But in 1919, the Lincoln Highway was still a conglomeration of routes from city to city leading from New York to San Francisco.
On the first day, the 1919 expedition went about 50 miles to Frederick Maryland. On the second day, they discovered covered bridges were too low for the trucks. During the next two months, they often discovered bridges were not strong enough and had to be rebuilt.
Progressive Pennsylvania had paved a steep and dangerous road through the mountains. West of Pittsburgh, however, the roads were again unpaved, rutted and full of potholes.
Ohio also had a paved road, mostly brick, 13-foot wide. You can still see part of it near Canton.
In Indiana, local private entrepreneurs sponsored one-mile long “seedling” roads hoping to encourage governments to follow through. But most of the road was so dusty it clogged carburetors.
The road deteriorated as the expedition moved west. Iowa farmers didn’t see the need to spend money on roads. When the drivers weren’t blinded by dust, they bogged down in mud. Where Interstate 80 now runs through Nebraska, the road was little more than a wagon trail. Trucks bogged down in soft soil and sand. In Wyoming, they literally followed the path of settlers’ wagon trains. Bridges collapsed, their wood weakened in the dry air.
On our first trip across the “loneliest road” through Utah and Nevada, we made sure we had enough gasoline because there were few towns. We were interested when we saw another car on the road. Trucks and cars driving across those same salt flats in 1919 frequently broke through the crust into the silt below. They couldn’t even be pulled out; they had to be dug out by hand and moved over a makeshift base of planks and sagebrush.
By comparison, California did have relatively good roads. The first speeder was arrested in California in 1919. Having spotted him but unable to catch him, a policeman chased him down in an airplane, landed on the road, and arrested the motorist who stopped thinking the pilot had trouble. The driver was doing sixty miles an hour.
P.S. Despite have driven across the U.S. a number of times, I found remarkably few pictures of roads in my files — “familiarity breeds indifference.”
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Giorgione: “Discovery of Paris,” or “Encounter with the Robbers on the Flight into Egypt”
Dr. Francis P. DeStefano
[Most of this paper is included in my paper on the Tempest but I include it here since this lost Giorgione has been the source of much speculation about Giorgione. Many scholars believe it to be of great importance although they universally mis-interpret its subject. I also include some additional speculation of my own linking this painting to a “Notte” in the famous correspondence between Isabella d’Este and her agent in Venice.]
A “lost” Giorgione painting which has been misidentified for almost 500 years can shed new light on the work and career of the most mysterious and perhaps the greatest of all Venetian Renaissance painters.
In 1525, fifteen years after the death of Giorgione, Marcantonio Michiel noticed a painting in the home of Venetian patrician, Taddeo Contarini, and described it as a “picture on canvas, representing the birth of Paris, in a landscape, with two shepherds standing.…” Michiel noted that it was one of Giorgione’s “early works.”[i]
This painting has been lost, but copies exist from the 17th century. The editor of the 1903 translation of Michiel’s notes cited a description in an “old manuscript catalog of the time.”
A landscape on canvas, in oil, where there are on one side, a half nude woman and an old man, seated, with a flute.[ii]
One of the copies, made by David Teniers around 1655, is currently in a private collection but was discussed in two recent catalogues. The authors of both catalogues agree that it is a copy of an early Giorgione and also accept, although with some puzzlement, Michiel’s identification of the painting as “the birth of Paris.”[iii] However, details in this early Giorgione indicate that it has quite a different subject than the one imagined by Michiel.
The subject of this “lost” Giorgione comes from a legendary episode on the flight of the Holy Family into Egypt. Here is the version from the apocryphal “Arabic Gospel of the Infancy.”
Joseph and the lady Mary departed and came to a desert place, and when they heard that it was infested with raids by robbers, they decided to pass through this region by night. But behold, on the way they saw two robbers lying on the road, and with them a crowd of robbers who belonged to them, likewise sleeping. Now these two robbers, into whose hands they had fallen, were Titus and Dumachus. And Titus said to Dumachus: ‘I ask you to let these (people) go free, and in such a way that our companions do not observe them.’ But Dumachus refused and Titus said again:
‘Take from me forty drachmae and have them as a pledge.’ At the same time he reached him the girdle which he wore round him, that he might hold his tongue and not speak.[iv]
In Legends of the Madonna Anna Jameson called the encounter with the robbers an “ancient tradition,” and added another detail. After the acceptance of his offer, “the merciful robber led the Holy Travellers to his stronghold on the rock, and gave them lodging for the night.”[v]
The landscape in the background of the painting is commonplace in depictions of the Flight into Egypt. The stream is often seen in versions of the “Rest.” It was used by the Madonna to either bathe, or to wash the swaddling clothes of her Son.
Bathing might explain Mary’s exposed leg and arms but the disarray of her clothing could also be Giorgione’s way of representing her obvious danger from the robbers. In a painting now in the Hermitage Giorgione exposed the thigh of Judith, the famous Jewish heroine whose virtue was also threatened.[vi] In any case Mary sits with her back to Joseph with her eyes intent on her Son, her real protector. Joseph is portrayed as an elderly graybeard as in Giorgione’s well-known Nativities. The infant Christ lies on a white cloth and returns his mother’s imploring look. The white cloth recalls the corporale, used to cover the altar on which the Eucharist is placed.[vii]
The two men on the right side are not shepherds but robbers. A Giorgione shepherd would be kneeling or bending over the Child in adoration. The one with the red jacket has just convinced the other to leave the Holy Family in peace. He has taken off his “girdle” leaving himself somewhat exposed and given it to the other who is in the process of fixing it around his waist. The band of robbers can be seen lounging in the middle ground. Joseph’s flute recalls the well-know verse from Juvenal: “A wanderer who has nothing can sing in a robber’s face.”[viii]
In “The Encounter with the Robbers in the Desert” Giorgione did not attempt to hide the subject of that early work. If no one has recognized its subject from Michiel’s time to ours, it is because the very popular apocryphal legends have largely been forgotten. Early in his career Giorgione was working not on a pagan subject derived from the legend of Paris but on a depiction of an apocryphal legend based on the Flight into Egypt. Moreover, he showed an inclination, even at this early stage in his brief career, to depict the Madonna in a very unusual way.
Marcantonio Michiel may not have been the first to describe this painting. In 1510, the year of Giorgione’s death, Isabella D’Este, the Marchioness of Mantua and a noted collector, was trying to acquire a work by Giorgione for her camerino. When she was informed by Taddeo Albano, her agent in Venice, that Giorgione had just died, she urged him to try to acquire a “Notte” from his estate:[ix]
we hear that among the possessions left by Zorzo da Castelfranco, the painter, there is a picture of a Notte, very beautiful and original. If this is the case, we wish to have it, and beg your Lorenzo da Pavia or any other person of taste and judgment to go and see if it is a really excellent thing. If it is, I hope you will endeavor to secure this picture for me, with the help of our dearest compare the Magnifico Carlo Valerio, or of any one else you may think fit. Find out the price and let us have the exact sum; but if it is really a fine thing, and you think well to clench the bargain for fear others should carry it off, do what you think best…”
I have spoken in your interests to some of my friends who were very intimate with him, and they assure me that there is no such picture among his possessions. It is true that the said Zorzo painted a Notte for M. Taddeo Contarini, which, according to the information which I have, is not as perfect as you would desire. Another picture of the Notte was painted by Zorzo for a certain Vittore Beccaro, which, from what I hear, is finer in design and better finished than that of Contarini. But Beccaro is not at present in Venice, and from what I hear neither picture is for sale, because the owners have had them painted for their own pleasure, so that I regret I am unable to satisfy Your Excellency’s wish.
According to Michiel’s notes the only painting in the home of Taddeo Contarini that could be a “notte” would be the “Discovery of Paris,” or as we have called it, “The Encounter with the Robbers on the Flight into Egypt.” Scholars have never agreed about what Isabella D’Este could have meant by “Notte.” Some think she was referring to a Nativity but Isabella knew a Nativity when she saw one, or when she requested one from Giovanni Bellini. No, the “Encounter with the Robbers,” indicates that a “Notte” was an evening scene where the sun was setting over a landscape at the end of day.
What about the other “notte”? It is certainly possible that the one done for Vittore Beccaro, the one finer in design and better finished; the one described by Isabella as “very beautiful and original” could have been the Tempesta. In the “Encounter with the Robbers” Giorgione was “stretching the envelope” with a presentation of a disheveled and partially nude Madonna. Later he would go even further in the “Tempesta.” But that is another story.[x]
Francis P. DeStefano
[i] The Anonimo, Notes on Pictures and Works of Art in Italy made by an Anonymous Writer in the Sixteenth Century, ed. George C. Williamson, London, 1903. p. 104.
[ii] ibid. note 1.
[iii] Jaynie Anderson, Giorgione, 1997, p. 317; and Wolfgang Eller, Giorgione Catalog Raisonne, Petersburg, 2007, pp. 171-173.
[iv] Extract from the Arabic Infancy Gospel in Edgar Hennecke, New Testament Apocrypha, edited by Wilhelm Schneemelcher, English translation edited by R. McL. Wilson, Volume One, Philadelphia 1963. p. 408. On the web a search for theFirst Gospel of the Infancy of Jesus, Chapter. VIII, will give the story with slightly different wording.
[v] Jameson, Legends of the Madonna, Boston, 1885. pp. 361-362. Mrs. Jameson noted that the encounter with the robbers has been “seldom treated” as an artistic subject but did indicate that she had seen two representations. “One is a fresco by Giovanni di San Giovanni, which, having been cut from the wall of some suppressed convent, is now in the academy at Florence. The other is a composition by Zuccaro.” In a later edition she provided a sketch of the Zuccaro “Encounter,” which shows Joseph assisting the Madonna down from the Ass at the behest of the armed robber.
[vi] In Judith’s famous prayer she recalled her ancestor Simeon who took vengeance on the foreigners “who had undone a virgin’s girdle to her shame, laid bare her thigh to her confusion…” Judith 9:2, Jerusalem Bible.
[vii] For the corporale see the discussion of Titian’s Pesaro Altarpiece in Rona Goffen, Piety and Patronage in Renaissance Venice, Yale, 1986, p. 114.
[viii] Juvenal, Satires, X, 22. I thank Dr. Karin Zeleny of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna for the Juvenal reference.
[ix] The correspondence is in Julia Cartwright, Isabella d’Este, Marchioness of Mantua, 1474-1539. London, 1932. Pp. 390-391.
[x] See Francis P. DeStefano, “Giorgione’s Tempesta,” website address http://giorgionetempesta.com.
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Teenagers who use mobile phones for many hours a day - talking and sending messages or missed calls - may develop psychological disorders, says a study that advices "a reasonable use" for positive effects.
Francisca Lopez Torrecillas, a lecturer at the department of personality and psychological assessment and treatment of the University of Granada, surveyed several 18 to 25-year-olds from the city of Granada in Spain, said the health portal News Medical.
Torrecillas said this addiction was the result of social changes that occurred in the last decade. The main difference between this kind of addiction and alcoholism or drug addiction is that mobile phones do not apparently cause physical effects - only psychological ones.
"Mobile-addicts can be seriously affected at the psychological level but, as they don't show any physical symptoms, their disorder goes unnoticed to others," she said.
About 40 percent of young adults admit using their mobiles for more than four hours a day. Most of them say they spend "several hours a day" on their phones. Many of these people are "deeply upset" if their missed calls or messages do not elicit a response.
Mobile addicts tend to neglect important activities (job or studies), drift away from friends and close family, deny the problem and think about their mobile constantly when they do not have it with them, the study says.
"Most mobile-addicts are people with low self-esteem, have problems with developing social relations and feel the urge to be constantly connected and in contact with others," the study says.
Torrecillas says these people "can become totally upset when deprived of their mobile phones for sometime, regardless of the reason".
"Switching off their phones causes them anxiety, irritability, sleep disorders or sleeplessness, and even shivering and digestive problems," she added.
However, Torrecillas said that making "a reasonable use" of mobile phones can be even positive for teenagers, "since it enables them to keep their friends near and feel backed by their peers", but misusing this device "can have irreversible effects on the development of teenagers' personality".
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“One in four Diabetic Patients can have Retinopathy which can lead to irreversible Blindness, so it becomes mandatory to screen every Diabetic Patient for Retinopathy at least once a year”
Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Advantages:
- One in two Diabetic Patient has some form of Eye Disease
- One in Four Diabetic Patients can have Retinopathy.
- All newly Detected Diabetics should have their retinas checked during first visit.
- All Regular Diabetic Patients should have their retinas Checked at least once or twice in a year
- Retinopathy can lead to Irreversible Blindness.
- No Diabetic Package is complete without a Retinopathy Evaluation
Welcare Installs the Equipment in Diabetes Centers, Labs, General Hospitals etc and will also train staff to take the images, since its a simple easy to use devise, any staff with basic knowledge can take the images, and there is no need for dilatation of the Eyes, and there will be no change in the regular patient flow in the clinic. Images are uploaded via internet into our cloud based server and the back end team of Ophthalmologists will send the reports within half an hour.
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Eight Important Features of Digital Camera
Choosing a digital camera can be very confusing because of all the camera features that are available. Probably the first thing to think about is how much you want to spend. The price ranges are huge and you will most likely be able to find one that fits within your budget.
The main difference is that a DSLR camera has interchangeable lenses, while a point and shoot camera lens is part of the camera. So the lens you buy with a Point and Shoot camera is the lens you get. Period. So one of the most important things if you are purchasing a Point and Shoot camera is the quality of the lens and that it will do what you want it to, regarding wide angle or zoom features.
As far as other features go, here are some of the basic options that are offered.
Amount of Megapixels
Many cameras of today will offer 10MP or more. A high amount of megapixels is a good option if you will be printing large prints or doing a fair amount of cropping.
The higher the optical zoom number, the closer in you will be able to focus and shoot a subject. Optical zooms can range from 3x up to 24x.
Fast shutter speeds (high numbers) are advantageous if you are shooting quick moving objects, such as sports, birds, etc. An example of a high speed would be 1/2000th of a second.
High ISO settings are typically used when you are taking photos in dimly lit or dark situations. Here is where the quality of the digital camera is important. Just because a camera offers a very high ISO setting does not mean that the image captured will be noise-free. Noise is tiny specs that appear in a photo. If this is important to you (taking pictures in dark areas), be sure to buy a camera that produces quality photos even at high ISO settings.
If you like things to be very automatic, be sure the camera you are considering has lots of Scene Modes, where you can set the camera to just shoot, for example, Sports. The camera makes the correct settings automatically.
This is the viewing screen on the camera. Generally they will range from 2 to 3 inches in size the larger, the better. Some cameras offer this with or without an electronic viewfinder, which is the small opening you look through when framing a shot.
Automatic flashes usually work for a specific distance. If you are shooting in situations where you will need to use the flash, check out the flash distance of the camera to make sure it will work well for you.
These are some of the main camera features. There are others also. The best thing to do is to decide what you will be using the digital camera for and choose one that has features and options that are most important to you.
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The native flora
The origin of a significant endemism*Scroll
The flora of Reunion Island is like other intertropical oceanic islands the result of a slow and selective immigration (native species*) and speciation process which, although only recent on the geological time scale, are at the origin of an important endemism.
For lack of own means of locomotion, the natural dissemination of plants is inevitably passive: by ocean currents (sea), winds or cyclones (air), or by birds (animals). Isolated in the middle of the Indian ocean, Reunion Island has always been a destination difficult to reach! Only a few species were able to complete the journey and establish themselves. The original vegetation is based on the nearest continental zones (nearly 70% of the flora comes from Madagascar and East Africa).
The spontaneous flora of Reunion Island currently** comprises 1730 species of vascular plants, of which 1478 spermatophytes*** (85,4%) and 252 "pteridophytes" (14,6%). They are divided into:
- 848 native species (86 of which only likely native), which is about half (49%) of the spontaneous flora. Among these species:
- 237 (28 %) are only endemic to Reunion Island,
- 153 (18 %) are regionally endemic, also growing in the other Mascareignes islands (Mauritius and Rodrigues),
- 458 (54 %) are simply native species, which can also be found in their country of origin,
- 829 exotic species*, which is approximately the other half (48 %),
- 53 cryptogenic* species 3 %.
The native flora of the island may present a relatively reduced plant diversity, it offers a high endemicity (28.0% for the strict endemism and 46.6% for the total endemism), awarding it with an important patrimonial value worldwide. Reunion Island has thus been recognised as one of the 25 hotspots of biodiversity in the world.
Human settlement during the middle of the 17th century enriched the flora of the island with an exotic component that would gradually play a more and more important role in the development of the society on Reunion Island. The wide range of usage (agricultural, forestry, economic, medicinal, ornamental,...) and an always increasing flow of goods and services lead to the intentional or unintentional introduction of several thousands of species from tempered tropical zones all over the world. A certain amount of these species now pose a real threat to the native flora.
Insularity and micro-endemicity make the native flora more fragile and vulnerable, enhancing the risk of extinction and the biodiversity crisis on the oceanic islands.
The alteration and destruction of habitats has had the most destructive impact on the biodiversity of the island. Although the process has slowed down considerably under the combined action of an association of vigilants and a proactive policy for the preservation of native habitats and the conservation of native biodiversity, native vegetation continues to shrink here and there.
Human disturbances (fires, wild grazing and the planting of crops in high mountain areas, plantations under trees, wild camping, the opening of paths, overcrowding, …) are contemporary examples that illustrate the more global problem of biological invasions by introduced species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) considers these invasions to be the third factor responsible for the loss of biodiversity, after the destruction of habitats and the overexploitation of species.
Today, 256 species on Reunion Island are considered to be endangered (according to IUCN criteria), or strictly spoken 30,7% of the native flora. 125 of these endangered species are now in acute danger of extinction (at least in nature).
Consequently, Reunion Island finds itself in the middle of sustainable development projects.
Knowledge of native flora and habitats along with their fragility is an asset that should contribute to preservation.
The challenge of a touristic development towards respect for the natural environment of Reunion Island, requires the involvement of everyone in saving a unique heritage in the world.
* Characterisation of vegetation:
- native species have arrived in a natural way on the island.
- endemic species are native species that have evolved into a new species, growing naturally in a certain place.
- exotic species have been introduced by man, coming from other countries.
- cryptogenic species are potentially native, but have an unclear origin due to lacking evidence.
- invasive species are exotic species whose growth and development have practically become uncontrollable, posing a severe threat to the native species.
** According to the 2008 version of the Index, published by "le Conservatoire Botanique National de Mascarin".
*** Spermatophytes are plants that produce seeds instead of spores such as mosses, lichens and fungi, but very little is known about them on the island.
Article by "le Conservatoire Botanique National de Mascarin"
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- attention is part of the Basic English 850.
- (uncountable) If you pay attention to something, you focus your mind on it.
- Pay attention to me when I'm speaking to you.
- He waved to draw attention to himself.
- She couldn't keep her attention on her books.
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Flamenco is one of the folk music genres of Spain. In Spain the word flamenco is not just associated with the guitar but also the people, songs and dances of Spain. The history of flamenco follows that of Spain. When the Moors ruled Southern Spain they brought with them their instruments and the most important of these was the Ud. This eastern lute is still to be found all over the world but in Spain it collided with European ideas and flamenco is the product. Flamenco is woven into the life of the region of Andalucia where it originated and the people actively engage in the songs and dances. The guitar has always been the main instrument used in flamenco to support the dancers and singers due its percussive timbre. The early flamenco guitarists very rarely played solo; their role was purely to provide music for the dancers and singers. The rise of the solo flamenco guitarist is a late development and many of the great flamenco soloists are also renowned for their ability to accompany singers and dancers.
The modern classical guitar and its physical development can be traced back to the Spanish guitar-maker Torres. Alongside the classical guitar is the flamenco guitar. The flamenco guitar has the same history and the greatest luthiers in Spain have always made both types of guitar. The main structural difference the flamenco guitar has in relation to the classical guitar is a thinner body. This creates a timbre that is sharp and percussive. This is considered the ideal sound with which to accompany dancers. The flamenco guitar also has wooden tuning-pegs, which is the traditional method of construction for all early guitars. The need for the classical guitar to be able to be heard in a concert hall and the demand for greater resonance from classical composers; means that the classical guitar has left behind the use of wooden tuning-pegs and its body size has increased in comparison to the flamenco guitar. In many respects the flamenco guitar is similar in construction to the guitars of earlier centuries.
Paco de Lucia and Sabicas are two flamenco guitarists that students of the guitar should be aware of. Both have played a major part in the changes of this evolving art form. Sabicas developed the technique of tremolo and Paco de Lucia extended the harmonic framework with his use of jazz chord voicings. Juan Martin is a flamenco guitarist who keeps the traditional forms sharply in focus and provides the clearest guide for beginners wishing to study the various flamenco forms.
The flamenco forms have been developed over a long time. There is a distinction of terms when flamenco forms are described. When flamenco vocal forms are described they are called "cantes" and the guitarist forms are called "toques". Each flamenco form has certain rhythmic and tonal qualities that encapsulate the form and flamenco guitarists are expected to have a knowledge of the origin and usage of these.
Flamenco Chord Progression
This is a very common chord progression that most guitarists who wish to learn flamenco start with.
A descending one octave Phrygian mode starting from the note "E" which can be played over the above chord progression.
- Golpe - the Spanish word for "tap". This technique involves "tapping" the body of the guitar to produce a percussive sound. The third finger of the right-hand strikes the table of the guitar with the nail and flesh. Flamenco guitars have a "golpeador" (plastic cover) which protects the wood of the guitar during the use of this technique
- Rasgueo - this is the most common strumming technique for flamenco. The right-hand is formed into a closed fist with the thumb resting against the guitar or low E string for support, and each finger is flicked out one at a time (4-stroke rasgueo) to sound the strings with the nails. A common variation is to use the technique with only the index finger. The index finger is also used for the up-stroke which only strikes the treble strings after the completion of the 4-stroke rasgueo.
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Ranch Home Allure: The Dazzling Watercolors of Chris Choate | KCET
Ranch Home Allure: The Dazzling Watercolors of Chris Choate
In Partnership with USC Libraries: The USC Libraries actively support the discovery, creation, and preservation of knowledge at the University of Southern California and beyond.
Our series, From the Archives, opens the doors to cultural institutions around Southern California revealing the art and objects that are often unseen by the public.
In 1946 the editorial staff at Sunset magazine collaborated with the architect Cliff May (1908-1989) in publishing a book called Sunset Western Ranch Houses, still a definitive history of this architectural style. As is true of much vernacular architecture, the ranch house is not defined strictly by form. Rather, any house that "provides for an informal type of living and is not definitely marked by unmistakable style symbols is called a ranch house."
The ranch house is typically a spread-out and rambling one-story structure with a low roof line that encourages free movement through its interior and exterior spaces. Its floor plan composed of separate wings is flexible and can be expanded to accommodate various family functions: "One wing, such as the nursery, can be closed off with sliding doors....This arrangement allows the children to retire and arise early...without disturbing the rest of the household." The ranch house seamlessly fits into the landscape, so that the garden and the patio are part of the living area. It spreads out to allow maximum view on all sides. In other words, the ranch house is a prime example of indoor/outdoor living, a style particularly suited to Southern California's mild climate.
The architect Chris Choate (1908-1981), Cliff May's collaborator, produced watercolor renderings of some of the ranch houses for presentation to clients. Figure 1 shows his rendering for the Woodacres demonstration home, painted for the magazine House Beautiful, whose editor, Elizabeth Gordon, was a champion of the ranch house:
Surrounded by lushly painted trees that tower over it, the house looks out toward a valley with a hint of other human habitation at the foot of the mountains across. The vegetation is reflected in the pool and throws shadows on the roof. The trees are drawn unnaturally tall, guarding the privacy of the house. Choate's painting style borders on the impressionistic, yet it definitively conveys the informal lifestyle promoted by the house, with the sloping-roofed lanai as its focal point. The floor plan in the lower half of the rendering gives another spatial reading of the house as a marker of a lifestyle [Figure 2].
The large motor court to the right adjoins the small courtyard that separates the service areas from the main house. The first living quarters a visitor encounters are the lanai and sun terrace that surround the dining room and are in turn framed by the pool on one side and a vista on the other. The living room separates the two wings containing private spaces to the left from the more public spaces located at the center. Choate added notations in the floor plan to suggest certain kinds of activities: in the living room there is a schematic drawing of a piano; adjoining the living room and facing the pool is a conversation area around a central square, possibly an open hearth. The artist's hand shifts our perspective from an angle that allows us to see the massing of the house and the landscape around it in the upper half of the rendering, to a bird's eye view of the floor plan, where shapes are set off as separate fields of color. The pencil-drawn small structures at the bottom right and left are rather mysterious, and do not appear to have a corresponding location in the rendering.
The presentation rendering of the house for Mr. and Mrs. Whiteman is stylistically somewhat different [Figure 3]. The symmetrical abstraction of the façade of this very large house rises from the flat color expanses of the patios and the surrounding landscape, and is mimicked in the geometric lines of the fields beyond. Details such as people and horses are drawn very quickly, almost as an afterthought. The trees in the Spanish garden, drawn unnaturally tall and slender, center the pinwheel flow of the rooflines, while throwing long graceful shadows that seem to extend toward the mountains in the background.
Choate took advantage of the painterly medium to generate an aspiration for a life-style in the clients. His colors tend toward shades of green and yellow for the landscapes, and toward creams and reds for the homes. There are also other colors such as deep hues of rose, purple, blue, and black. In the rendering that shows the elegant interior of the Blow house [Figure 4] a muted color palette dominates in such a way that the exterior, framed by the large glass window in center background, becomes part of the interior.
Watercolor was a common medium for these sketch-like renderings, since it could be applied quickly. Choate's style seems effortless, as if it took him just a few minutes to paint. The drawings are on cardboard backing which has yellowed and become brittle. At the USC Libraries we recently discovered that Choate was blending watercolors directly on the board when the cardboard frame came off the Blow drawing [Figure 5].
Clearly, these were working drawings, not intended for longevity or preservation. Yet, luckily for us, they survived first in the architects' office files and now in the archival collections of USC Libraries' Helen Topping Architecture and Fine Arts Library, and can be studied both for their expressiveness and for their craftsmanship which is rarely practiced anymore.
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NHS Symposium October 2,3 & 4, 2014
“The British Empire is at War!” – Mobilizing Newfoundland, 1914
October 2, Thursday night 8pm. Location: The Legion at Pleasantville, St. John’s.
- - Mike O’Brien.
- - Edward Roberts
"The Newfoundland Regiment, the British Army and Preparations for Battle in 1914."
In the early months of the First World War, the process of recruiting, outfitting and training the newly-created Newfoundland Regiment was based on the practices of Britain's pre-war Regular Army. Those practices were informed by British experiences in colonial warfare, especially in the Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902. While those British practices were useful in creating creating a strong and cohesive infantry unit, they were in some ways ill-suited to the type of conflict that would be faced in the trenches of Europe. The Newfoundland Regiment also faced challenges due to the fact that, in the absence of existing military institutions in the colony, their preparations for battle had to be improvised after the war had already started.
“The Blue Puttees, September 1914 to August 1915:
Stories You May Have Never Heard”
On the evening of 21 August 1914, a young man originally from Nova Scotia entered the Church Lad’s Brigade on Military Road and enlisted with the Newfoundland Regiment. Charles Sydney Frost, Reg. No. 58, had only been living in St. John’s for three months when he answered the call to serve; yet he became a devoted member of the Regiment, rising to the rank of Captain, and earning a Military Cross. He also became a staunch advocate for preserving the Regiment’s history during the War and was a principal source for Gerald Nicholson’s official history, The Fighting Newfoundlander. This presentation focuses on Frost’s detailed (and as yet unpublished) memoir of the War, including his enlistment, training at Pleasantville, and voyage to the United Kingdom. It is an account of both the Regiment’s life and Frost’s own personal experiences.
October 3, 2-4pm. Workshop: Researching First World War history. Bert Riggs, Joan Ritcey. Terry Bishop-Stirling, chair. St. John’s main campus, Science Building. Room SN4073.
October 3. Friday night at The Rooms: Keynote Lecture:
- - Dr. John Keiger, University of Cambridge
“Understanding the causes of the First World War.”
A hundred years on, the causes of the First World War have provoked more interest and study than any other subject in modern history. Though the Second World War was more devastating, its causes have not generated such a vast literature, nor provoked such controversy and polemic. Today whole books are written about how the causes of the First World War have been written about.... Why is this? This lecture will attempt to understand and analyse the reasons for this abiding interest and the long running debate it has generated, from the infamous Article 231 of the Versailles Treaty which sealed German responsibility for the conflict, to the July Crisis as a counter-model for decisionmakers in crisis management as demonstrated by President John F. Kennedy during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.
October 4. Saturday daytime sessions, at Hampton Hall at the Marine Institute, Ridge Road will include:
- - Andy Robertshaw
- - Dean Oliver
- - Terry Bishop-Stirling
- - Bert Riggs and David Mercer
- - Sean Cadigan
- - Robin McGrath
- - Shannon Lewis-Simpson
"The Easterns: Breaking the stalemate on the Western Front?"
This talk is an examination of the Gallipoli campaign and the role of the 29th Division with particular reference to the Newfoundland Regiment.
Andrew Robertshaw is a freelance military historian, author and broadcaster best known for his work on the Great War. He is the grandson of John Andrew Robertshaw who served on the Western Front between 1916 and 1919 and grew up in Yorkshire surrounded by relatives who had served on the War and Home Fronts in the First World War. As a teenager his mother worked for a charity shop in Suffolk and the opportunity to buy books about the events of 1914 to 18 did much to foster his interest in military history, as did War Gaming!
He is now based in Surrey and is the owner of a replica trench which is used as the basis for experimental archaeology and learning events. Much of his year is spent on the Western Front where he both carries out field work and guides parties of civilian and soldiers. His big screen appearance was in Steven Spielberg's War Horse and he was both military consultant and an actor in the film.
"Canada’s Guns of August: A Centennial Echo"
There is a standard, largely consensual, narrative regarding popular reactions to the outbreak of war. Broad enthusiasm and public celebration, born of patriotism and imperial fervour, presaged a rush to enlist and the over-subscription of recruiting campaigns. Quebec’s response, or that of French-speaking Canadians more broadly, was different, but nevertheless quiescent, if not actively sympathetic. Hasty moves – legislative, juridical, martial –would have lasting consequences, but collateral impacts came later, as the war intensified, losses grew, and doubts thickened. But in August 1914, the war was a unifying force, soon to be over and not to be missed. At 100, how well do such images conjure reality? What elements are mythic, or dissonant, now, in their persistence? Which ones have proven transient or malleable in light of evidence or changing attitudes? Birthdays can be inopportune moments to expect (or to encourage!) sobriety, and yet opportunities not to be missed for reflection, repose, and the identification of new challenges. Is the war we know the one we entered? Was it ever?
"They also Serve who Knit and Wait: Mobilizing Newfoundland Women for Total War"
When World War One war started, Newfoundland women, like their counterparts throughout the empire, looked for ways to support the cause. They acted quickly to encourage recruitment and offered their services as nurses and Red Cross workers. Thousands united to use their traditional skills to raise funds and supplies for their ‘boys’ and the wider allied cause. This presentation will examine the many and varied ways that Newfoundland women mobilized to contribute to their country’s total war effort.
"Lasting Remembrance: Newfoundland, Labrador and War"
This digital humanities project from Memorial University integrates historical GIS data with archival resources, digital images, digitized newspapers and historical information about the Newfoundland Regiment during the First World War. It is designed to assist scholars, students and members of the general public in their discovery and understanding of primary and secondary sources related to Newfoundland and Labrador’s First World War experience.
"Sealers, War and Post-war Crisis in Newfoundland, 1914-34"
While 2014 is the centenary of the beginning of the First World War for most people, in Newfoundlland this year marks the 100th anniversary of other tragedies: the sealing disasters of the SS Newfoundland and the SS Southern Cross. Those disasters prompted unprecedented class polarization that persisted well into the second year of the war, which in turn fuelled greater political popularity for William Coaker and the FPU's Union Party.
However, over the long term, the political rhetoric of war on the home front and post-war economic crisis undermined Coaker's progressivism, reoriented politics to the right, and reinforced a nationalist mythos concerning sealers as men who welcomed, rather than needed protection from, the dangers of the front.
Frontiersmen to the Front by Robin McGrath
The general perception, in Newfoundland and Labrador and elsewhere, is that in 1914, Labrador was so remote from Europe that it wasn’t much affected by the war. Official records suggested that recruitment in Labrador was 2.58% of the male population, considerably less than the average. In actual fact, the enlistment figure was almost twice that, equal to the average for Newfoundland recruitment, primarily because of the three units of the Legion of Frontiersmen which had been preparing Labradorians for war for several years prior to the outbreak of hostilities. The only non-sectarian paramilitary organization in Newfoundland and Labrador, the Legion of Frontiersmen contributed approximately 150 men to the Newfoundland Regiment, as well as to other fighting units. This paper will look at the contribution Labradorians made to the war effort and the effect it had on them and their families at home.
"Call Out Royal Naval Reserve."
Mobilization is not only the physical deployment of armed forces to the battlespace. Mobilization presupposes the deployment of attitudes, leading to successful force generation, including attractions, recruitment and training of personnel. This paper will track naval reserve force generation from 1902 to World War One. The process was not an easy one, and change was a constant.
No fees or registration required.
The Symposium Dinner will be held Saturday Oct. 4th from 7-9 pm at the Interpretation Centre at Signal Hill.
A buffet dinner by Skipper Ben’s Catering will be followed by:
- - Glenn Keough on the Parks Canada WWI Commemorative Programs
- - Readings from WWI letters
- - Music by our very own, very talented Vice-President Allan Byrne
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The benefits of drinking a little alcohol are at best wishful thinking and at worst a cynical attempt by the alcohol industry to boost its bottom line at the expense of our health, say prominent experts.
New research published in a trusted medical journal has cast doubt on every single previous study linking moderate drinking to good health.
Drinking in small amounts has no definitive health benefits, the British Medical Journal study reveals.
The notion that alcohol might be good for us arose in the 1970s and has persisted ever since, and understandably so.
Alcohol is the nation’s most popular recreational drug, which explains why its users (almost everyone) and those who profit from its sale are quick to jump on any suggestion that the intoxicant is not in fact a dangerous toxin that causes cancer, fuels violence and kills three million people globally each year.
One of the authors of the study, Associate Professor Emmanuel Stamatakis from the University of Sydney, tells The New Daily that it contradicts 30 years of previous research because it focusses very specifically on the question of health benefits and uses far better methods.
“We had the opportunity to have a very detailed and much more thorough and better methodology. Our methodology was more comprehensive,” he says.
Previous studies were “terribly problematic” because they lumped all non-drinkers into a single category, the researcher says.
For example, a long-term alcoholic who had quit for a month would be tested the same as a person who had never had a single drink.
This latest study was based on interviews with almost 53,000 people aged 50 years and older over an average of 10 years.
National Alliance for Action on Alcohol co-chair Mike Daube, who has written an editorial on the study, says the ‘myth’ of health benefits has become an integral part of the “hundreds of millions of dollars” worth of promotion used by the industry to sell its products, which are “an enormous cause of health harm and tragedy”.
“There is a lovely, comfortable feeling out there in a lot of people that it’s alright, a little alcohol will do them good, and probably some people think that if a little bit does them good, maybe a lot will do them a lot of good,” says Professor Daube.
“What we’ve also had, in various subtle ways, is the alcohol industry promoting the notion of the benefits of alcohol.
“I don’t think the drinks industry has any credibility talking about health issues.”
Industry body DrinkWise has issued a statement to The New Daily confirming that it was “aware” of the new study, and that it would consult its scientific advisory committee to examine the research in more detail.
“DrinkWise is committed to working with government, community and industry to create a safer and healthier drinking culture in Australia,” reads the statement.
Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education chief executive Michael Thorn tells The New Daily that he hopes the study “dismantles” the justifications for harmful drinking used by vested interest groups.
The more rigorous scrutiny these claims are subjected to, the more flaws are exposed, he says, which is no surprise.
“We need to ask who and why people would be suggesting that alcohol is beneficial. Almost invariably it’s alcohol industry-led vested interests,” Mr Thorn says.
“I also think it feeds into the cultural denialism about the problems associated with alcohol because it’s scary for people to think about [the side effects].”
The supposed benefits of one standard drink can be achieved with 30 minutes of exercise, so there is no longer an easy excuse to drink too much.
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Belmont Lagoon is another important Dreaming site of the Awabakal. This belief relates to the Creation era when the Moon was a man spirit who never shone a full face. At the same time the Sun, a female spirit, when seen, was always a full face. Thus the Goori people appeared to be active in the day, but not so in the night. One night when the moon was feeling lonely he thought of this, and reasoned that his people didn’t care as much for him as they did for the sun. This made him sad. He decided to go away and leave his people to enjoy only the sun. As he went higher and higher into the sky, he became sadder and sadder. After a long time his sadness built up to such a point that he began to cry.
He cried and he cried. His tears fell back down to mother Earth and formed Belmont Lagoon. When finally he stopped crying he began to think again about his people. Perhaps he had been too quick to think that they didn’t care? Perhaps they were already missing him?
He decided to return. As he got closer to Mother Earth he could hear all the Goori people rejoicing. They were happy that a freshwater lagoon had been formed because they knew it would lead to increased supplies of plants, fish and animals for food. It would also provide an extra place for swimming.
Their happiness made him feel good. So as he got closer he looked down. He could see his reflection in the water and his happiness made his face beam. For the first time he presented a full face. This enabled his people to celebrate further and from that night onwards his full face was a time of celebration.
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