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Protection and the Product Line: Monopoly and Product Quality
Pennsylvania State University - Department of Economics; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)
NBER Working Paper No. w1537
Thereare three points made in this paper. The first is that the question concerning choice of a product line by a monopolist is similar in structure to other adverse selection problems -- and can be analyzed in an elementary way by adapting techniques recently developed for such problems. Such an analysis is developed in the first section. The second is that when a foreign monopolist produces a product line, protection will change the composition of the entire product line.The nature of such effects is studied in the second section and this analysis is greatly simplified by the results of the first sectton. In line with empirical work on the subject, quotas are shown to raise the average quality of imports, while the effects of tariffs are ambiguous.The third concerns the possibility of profit shifting protection which is welfare increasing. The welfare consequences of protection are analyzed in the third section, and are shown to depend crucially on the distribution of consumers.
Number of Pages in PDF File: 35working papers series
Date posted: June 28, 2004
© 2013 Social Science Electronic Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
This page was processed by apollo7 in 0.578 seconds | <urn:uuid:8c35bc83-104f-4434-9089-dc374ab00365> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=336294 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.920354 | 270 | 1.992188 | 2 |
Microsoft's filed a patent that would make avatars more realistic and less idealized, with the point of getting your husky ass out to exercise if what you're seeing in the dashboard is a more realistic presentation of yourself.
"Avatar Individualized By Physical Characteristic," is what Microsoft is claiming. "Linking the avatar to a physical characteristic of a user provides leverage to provide incentives or constraints that can encourage good behavior (e.g., healthy behaviors, virtuous behaviors, etc.)," says the patent.
So therefore, if you're fat, your avatar will be fat - or vice versa. And so Microsoft proposes that your avatar's conditioning would be reflected in its capabilities within a game, or unlocking a budgeted amount of time to play, or just making the little guy look all buff and hawt.
As a parental control, its use is quite clear. For the individual gamer, it sounds to me like an opt-in thing, whereby if you've been feeling bad about all the Hot Pockets and three-hour gaming sessions, you turn on this feature. Sort of like fridge locks, noise reminders and other (in my opinion, abusive) gadgets from the dieting craze.
How is it going to know what the real you looks like? The patent offers that Microsoft would get the info through a "third-party health data collection repository," I guess to which the player belongs and links to his or her Xbox Live account. Or, says the filing "a real-time physiological sensor (e.g., blood pressure, heart rate, blood glucose, peak flow, pedometer, etc.)" Yay! Sounds like more peripherals.
1Up, which spotted the filing, points out that Nintendo's already explored this to some extent in Wii Fit, where your Mii gets porky if the game decides you're overweight. In this case, Microsoft wants to link some sort of tangible benefit to a healthy, balanced lifestyle.
Those are honorable intentions, but given the butthurt that went up when Wii Fit started calling kids fat, I can't see this ending well. Just last night I screwed around with my avatar - which I always set to large size because, hey, I have a beer gut - and was appalled when I tried on the Vault 101 suit, which is not slimming at all. (My avatar normally wears an untucked golf shirt.) And that's with the existing body type templates. Before they do this Xbox Live should implement a "suck your gut in" button, like, click and hold the right thumbstick or something. | <urn:uuid:0f55f52b-afb2-46bf-8d7a-a2df9b66c757> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://kotaku.com/5430286/microsoft-patents-the-exercise-guilt-trip | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.941239 | 528 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Lamb is one of the most popular meats in England, Australia, Greece, the Middle East… pretty much everywhere but the United States, where our paltry annual average of one pound of meat per person pales in comparison to the almost 40 pounds consumed by each person in these countries. Our pals in New Zealand get special mention for eating an average of 57 pounds of lamb a year, thus ranking the nation as number one in the world for eating lamb meat!
When Everyone Ate Lamb
Sheep were one of the earliest staple animals as humans made the transition from hunters to farmers. Meat, milk and wool all come from this useful, relatively small ruminant, making it most likely to succeed as one of the first domesticated animals. And sheep graze happily on meager pasture, so they can be reared in marginal, rocky areas. Also going for them (or their shepherds) is their flocking behavior. It does make it easy to keep track of them when they are out in pasture.
As testament to their success as a domesticated species, there are more than 200 breeds in existence today, each developed to a specific purpose. Some are bred for wool production, like the Merino, others for milk, like the East Fresian, which is responsible for much of the sheep milk in the world (which gets made into some of the best cheese!). In France, the Lacaune breed is the sheep of choice for producing the milk to make the legendary Roquefort cheese. And some breeds are best for succulent meat, like Cheviot, Dorset, Rambouillet or Suffolk sheep. And many breeds are good for all three.
Lamb vs. Mutton
Lamb refers to meat from young sheep less than 12 months old, which is tender and mild in flavor. The meat from a sheep older than one year is called mutton, and it has a more intense flavor and somewhat less tender texture. Some cultures prefer to eat mutton (we’re looking at you, Great Britain!), and have developed recipes that require long slow cooking to break down the meat and tenderize it. There is another category called yearling mutton, which refers to meat from a sheep between 1 year and 2 years old. Yearling mutton will be darker, somewhat coarser and firmer with more fat and obviously larger overall than true lamb. Americans will be more likely to eat young lamb than mutton, when they do hunker down to their one pound of lamb a year.
Why We Should Eat More Lamb
The other red meat is good for you! Lamb meat has eight essential amino acids in the proper ratios, has high-quality protein, and is high in B vitamins, zinc and iron. And lamb is pretty lean compared to other red meats. Most of the fat is on the outside, not marbled throughout the meat, so it’s easily trimmed off. About 36 percent of the fat in lamb is saturated fat, and the rest is mono or polyunsaturated fat. And then there is the CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) which is a unique antioxidant that the human body cannot produce, but must get from eating herbivores like sheep, goats or cows. Lambs that get to eat clean pasture and range in the sunshine produce the most CLA.
D’Artagnan sources humanely-raised lamb from Australia, where there is a strong tradition of pasturing these wooly ruminants. A cross between the Dorset, White Suffolk and Border Leicester-Merino breeds, the sheep dine on clover and rye grasses, ensuring a sweet, mild flavor that is not gamey (a common complaint of uninitiated lamb eaters).
Domestic lamb is raised in the Rocky Mountain region by a small cooperative of family farms. They raise the heritage Rambouillet/Suffolk mixed breed on high altitude pasture, and finish them with a grain supplement. Like the farmers in our other cooperatives, they insist on following natural processes, never administering antibiotics or hormones.
The Rocky Mountains are an ideal place to raise lambs, with hundreds of thousands of acres of open pastures for grazing, comfortable temperatures and plenty of water and sunshine. This pristine and healthy environment minimizes stress on the animals and produces robust, well-fed lambs. Lambs grown in this environment are meatier than lambs grown in many other areas due to the optimal growth environment and unique genetics.
Lambs are raised to an average age of 6-9 months, which means their meat is quite tender with rich flavor. The grass and grain diet contributes to a mild, less gamey flavor than that which many associate with lamb.
Racks, shanks, leg of lamb, lamb tenderloin, lamb shoulder—where to begin? Whatever the cut, the key to tasty lamb is not to overcook it! Nobody will be won over to the flavor of lamb if they are offered dry, grey, overcooked meat. Cook to medium rare, or 130 degrees F, which is the temperature that most chefs prefer for lamb, leaving all the juices, texture and flavor intact. In general, rack of lamb is a great roasted braised, or grilled. Leg of lamb can be marinated and roasted, and shanks respond well to braising and roasting. And if you are too timid to start with a lamb rack, try lamb merguez sausage - a favorite in North African and French cuisine! | <urn:uuid:be273407-74c8-461f-8ac2-439eabd5dfb2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.dartagnan.com/tag/lamb-meat/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949245 | 1,123 | 2.78125 | 3 |
Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) along with Frequency Allocation Board (FAB) has recently carried out an far reaching survey in Pakistan and AJ&K with the help of special tools to check the emission of power level from transmitters and receivers of Base Transceiver Stations (BTSs)/Towers installed by cellular mobile companies.
The survey was conducted at Karachi, Hyderabad, Lahore, Faisalabad, Mirpur, Muzaffarabad, Peshawar, Quetta, Sibi, Rawalpindi and Islamabad.
Results show that the power level of BTSs is below the prescribed danger limits and in line with the policy directives of Ministry of IT & Telecom, World Health Organization (WHO) and International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) guidelines.
The perception, therefore, regarding harmful effects on health of humans by radiation from the towers is incorrect as towers are installed and are working within the specified parameters defined by the regulator as well as the international bodies monitoring the issue.
This survey was undertaken on the directions of Chairman PTA Dr Mohammed Yaseen. PTA is aware of this issue as it straight away affects the health of general public. It would continuously monitor the emissions of radiations from towers to ensure that specific standards are met and would keep the public informed. | <urn:uuid:bfb6d1fa-df4b-4cb2-b3ae-58aef73cc6ff> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://news.paktron.net/2010/08/survey-to-check-power-emission-from-bts.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946672 | 276 | 2.21875 | 2 |
Most Active Stories
KRWG.ORG-The Region's Home Page
Wed January 9, 2013
New Mexico Chile Conference Coming To NMSU
The 2013 New Mexico Chile Conference is set to take place Feb. 4 and 5 at Hotel Encanto de Las Cruces. The annual conference is hosted by New Mexico State University's Chile Pepper Institute and features practical solutions for chile growers, processors and producers.
"This year's conference will cover lots of topics, including research-based solutions for disease and pest management," said Danise Coon, an NMSU agricultural research scientist. "Participants will also learn the latest updates on best management practices and food safety."
Conference speakers will also address genomics, including information about unraveling the chile pepper genome, the potentials of biotechnology, fungicides, curly top virus, food bio-security, direct marketing, social media and laws governing food safety and labeling.
Preregistration is $95 and must be postmarked by Jan. 25. Registration is available online at http://www.chilepepperinstitute.org, by phone at 575-646-3028 or by fax at 575-646-6041. At the door, registration is $110. Registration fees include conference activities, the Monday evening welcome reception, Tuesday lunch and coffee breaks and the traditional social hour and poster session immediately following the afternoon speakers.
Companies and individuals interested in a booth must call to reserve booth space as soon as possible. A six-foot table and tablecloth will be provided. Cost is $400 when preregistering or $450 at the conference. Booth registration includes admission for two people.
Hotel accommodations must be made separately. Special room rates for participants are available at Hotel Encanto de Las Cruces.
For more information about the conference, contact Coon at 575-646-3028. | <urn:uuid:75839ccb-18af-4173-a30f-52a137f89133> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://krwg.org/post/new-mexico-chile-conference-coming-nmsu | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.902758 | 388 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Shows how to develop, debug, and deploy applications for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch using iOS SDK 5 and Xcode 4.
Breaks down the process of becoming an iPhone developer, from getting started with the tools and the language to testing and debugging applications.
“Because of what I learned on lynda.com, I went from being unemployed (and unemployable) to acquiring my very first web development job that pays me an above-average salary. It is the most fulfilling and rewarding feeling finally being "in" on the technology front.” —F. Brown
more from our members » | <urn:uuid:302c39b2-fe49-49a9-91ea-ec2e30f567da> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.lynda.com/Developer-training-tutorials/50-0.html?category=beginner_337%2Cios_413 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00071-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939205 | 127 | 2.109375 | 2 |
This study presents a detailed review of the poultry sector in Ethiopia in order to provide background information for further research related to pro‐poor HPAI risk reduction strategies in Ethiopia. The report surveys information that exists in the literature and among the stakeholders in order to identify the research gaps that can be addressed in the project. In preparation of this report, published and grey literature, expert interviews and official documents were used.
The paper presents information on the role of the poultry sector in the economy of Ethiopia and also information related to role of poultry in rural livelihoods. The information related to the role of poultry at the supra‐household level is presented taking into account the differentiation within the poultry sector. This differentiation relates to the size, organization and levels of bio‐security among other characteristics. The survey distinguishes these characteristics by the types of the poultry sector, poses
conjectures regarding the implications for the introduction and spread of the HPAI and subsequently explores the research gaps.
In assessing the information on poultry’s role in rural livelihoods, the report synthesizes information at the most disaggregated level possible for example by assessing the evidence related to the impact on women. The report considers livelihood analysis to be not only important as an end in itself but also as critical for the implementation of prevention and control measures related to HPAI. In capturing the role of poultry in livelihoods, based on the existing evidence the report takes a supply chain perspective. Based on a scare that occurred (a false alarm) the report provides summary information on the potentially discrete economic and livelihood impacts of HPAI outbreak.
The paper finds that poultry though not a big component of the aggregate Ethiopian economy, its role has been becoming more important over time. At the micro‐economic level poultry is very important especially for women. The structure of the poultry sector has also been changing with more organized segments evolving in urban and peri‐urban areas. The vast majority remains as backyard poultry in Ethiopia. Independent of the level of organization and size and whether in the public or private sector, the report finds that there is significant scope to improve bio‐security levels.
The report also surveys the literature on the disease risk and synthesizes information on the risk assessment for the introduction and spread of HPAI that exist in case of Ethiopia. The risk pathways
relate to migratory birds as well as trade (legal and illegal) of both inputs and outputs. In this segment also, the report first summarizes the existing state of knowledge and methods and subsequently proposes research gaps some of which the project should aim to fill.
Finally, the institutional analysis in the report provides information to assess the response capacity of the public and private institutions and makes preliminary suggestions as to what could be targeted for
better efficacy of prevention and control strategies. Assessing the institutions postulated to deal with HPAI threat the report provides information on the whole gamut of institutions and suggests areas
where there is scope for improvements. These potential areas for improvement also form part of the research gaps identified. | <urn:uuid:8cfaa242-71e4-4c10-971f-edd41edb9dd8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ifpri.org/publication/overview-and-background-paper-ethiopia-s-poultry-sector | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.935576 | 612 | 2.53125 | 3 |
Reading the literature on cold fusion, I came across reports that electric arcs could cause transmutations and other nuclear reactions.
Being in possession of an electric arc welder, quantities of scrap steel, and Geiger-Mueller counting equipment, I decided to do some experiments.
The welder is an Italian-made Cebora type 1722, maximum welding current 140 amps. The radiation detectors are from Aware Electronics, Wilmington DE, type RM-80. These use a pancake-type tube with a mica alpha window on one side, about 30 mm. diameter. At this location in the west of Scotland near sea level, the cosmic background count rate is about 32 counts/min., corresponding to 9 microRoentgens/hour (uR/hr) according to the tube's certified calibration. This is with the tube on its side, as it is normally operated. The background is slightly higher with the tube flat, as the cosmic radiation is principally from a vertical direction. See Web site www.aw-el.com for details of the detectors.
The steel pieces used are old farm gate hinges, being strips about 50 mm. wide by 8 mm. thick. There is no detectable radiation from them before welding.
The welding rods used are from various sources - I can obtain details if required. The flux coating of these contains minerals which are slightly radioactive. I have had them for some time so there can be no short- lived radionuclides in them.
The RM-80 is clamped to a table on its side, with an unwelded portion of a gate hinge close to its alpha window. The computer logging program provided by Aware Electronics is started and run for a few hours to establish background. The raw data file is a sequence of numbers, being counts for successive minutes, with date/time and other data.
The hinge is then removed, and any rust cleaned off with an angle grinder. A large flat weld is then made, about the diameter of the tube's window, the slag knocked off, and the weld quenched in water. It is then clamped in position close to the alpha window and the program left to run for as long as possible.
The computer program allows a curve to be displayed giving successive averages over periods of an integral number of minutes. Initially, this is set to 6 mins. (0.1 hr) but after some time it is increased to one hour or more.
The raw data files can be converted to ASCII for importation into spread- sheets such as Excel.
In every case, when the weld is placed by the tube's alpha window, the count rate rises from the background 9 to typically 23 uR/hr, and then starts to fall. It reaches a minimum after about 12 hours, and then starts to rise again, tending exponentially towards a limit of about 25 uR/hr. with a half-life of about 150 hours. This latter part of the curve is like the charging of a capacitor via a resistor.
Putting various pieces of paper, aluminium sheet etc. between the weld and the detector, it appears that the radiation is partly alpha but primarily beta or low-energy gamma. There is no detectable radiation through the thickness of the hinge (about 8 mm.), behind the weld.
The thickness of the weld does not appear to matter, implying that the radiation is from the surface and not the bulk of the weld. I have tried thick welds using 10 rods (20-30 amp types) and thin ones using only two, and the results are not significantly different.
Due to the extremely low radiation levels involved, the curves obtained are noisy. One thing I have discovered is that the windows of the room should be left open, to dispel any radon or thoron. Even very low levels of these gases can affect the results. The house is in a low-radon area, but some of the modern materials used (such as plasterboard) exude significant amounts of them.
Undoubtedly some of the radioactive flux coating of the welding rods will remain in the weld, causing the initial rise in observed radiation. But why should it change thereafter? In particular, why should it drop off after the initial rise, and then after 12 hours, start to rise again? Is there some diffusion process going on? And why should broadly similar results be obtained in all the welds (about a dozen) that I have done?
Supposing that the electric arc generates neutrons, one might find some neutron-activation of the steel. Suppose that this transmutes the iron into a radioactive isotope with a half-life of about 12 hours, and another with a half-life of 150 hours, which is an alpha-emitter and decays in turn into some long-lived radioactive isotope.
We would see the initial decay of the 12-hour isotope, but not of the 150-hour one, as the alphas would not be able to escape the steel. But we would see the decay product of the 150-hour isotope, a beta/gamma emitter, and this would cause the slow rise over 500 hours which is observed. I have done a fair simulation of this curve using Excel.
The flux coating of the rods is a mixture of various minerals and a binder, and the elements in these substances could also be neutron-activated. The slight radioactivity of the flux could be due to potassium, as naturally- occurring K is slightly radioactive (K-40, 0.0012%, half-life 1.28*10^9 years according to my CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics).
I would be most grateful if someone could repeat these simple experiments,
and if possible use a spectrum analyser on the radiation. I would also
like to know what does in fact happen when Fe, K etc. are bombarded with
neutrons, and the half-lives of any radionuclides generated. | <urn:uuid:b5461308-3c5b-4799-ba58-ff06c1513cfc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aw-el.com/weld.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936411 | 1,219 | 2.796875 | 3 |
Murmurs, murders, business & steamboats
by Stanley Nelson - posted Wednesday, February 13th, 2013 @ 3:20 pm
So busy was the Natchez landing under-the-hill in the mid-19th century that the well-respected national newsweekly, the Niles Register, reported that 38,000 bales of cotton had just been loaded onto vessels bound for Liverpool and 3,500 bales for Boston.
John Quitman, a Natchez lawyer who during his career fought in the Texas Revolution and the Mexican War while also serving as governor of Mississippi and as a Congressman, described the location in a letter to relatives as "a bustling place. The streets are lined with carriages, drays (carts) and wagons. The rush to the river is incessant. Every hour we hear the roar of the cannon, announcing the arrival and departure of steamers. Hundreds of arks or flatboats, loaded with the produce of the western States, even from the interior of Pennsylvania, here line the landing for half a mile, often lying five tier deep..."
Under-the-hill, he said, was a place where "vice and infamy are rampant and glaring, and the law almost powerless. Day and night the orgies of blackguardism and depravity are enacted without shame and restraint. The Sabbath is there particularly a day of profanation and debauchery. The gambler, the bully, the harlot reign triumphant, and little jurisdiction is taken over the atrocities..."
Twelve years after Quitman's arrival, Joseph Holt Ingraham's steamboat came into view of Natchez in 1835 where he observed "a pile of gray and white cliffs with here and there a church steeple, a roof elevated above its summit, and a light-house hanging on the verge."
Ingraham was 26, an educated man born in Portland, Maine. He became a professor of language at Jefferson College in nearby Washington. His most famous work of non-fiction -- "The Southwest. By A Yankee." -- includes his description of Natchez.
From the deck of his steamer, Ingraham wrote that "the foot of the bluffs are long, straggling lines of wooden buildings, principally stores and storehouses; the levee is fringed with flatboats and steamers, and above all, tower majestically the masts of two or three ships. The whole prospect from the deck presents an interesting scene of commercial life and bustle."
He called under-the-hill "a repulsive spot," which "had the tendency to depreciate the city, and fasten upon it a bad name...for many years it has been the nucleus of vice upon the Mississippi. But, for two or three years past, the establishment of respectable mercantile houses, and an excellent hotel, combined with an efficient police, and a spirit of moral reform among the citizens, has, in a great measure, redeemed the place -- changed its repulsive character and canceled its disgraceful name. Though now on the highway of reform, there is still enough of the cloven-hoof (mark of Satan) visible, to enable the stranger to recognize its former reputation was well earned.
"The principal street, which terminates at the ascent of the hill, runs parallel with the river, and is lined on either side with a row of old wooden houses; which are alternately gambling-houses, brothels, and bar-rooms; a fair assemblage! As we passed through the street -- which we gained with difficulty from the boat, picking our way to it as we could, through a filthy alley -- the low, broken half-sunken sidewalks, were blocked up with fashionably-dressed young men, smoking or lounging, tawdrily arrayed, highly rouged females, sailors, Kentucky boatmen, Negroes, negresses, mulattos, pigs, dogs, and dirty children. The sounds of profanity and Bacchanalian (drunken) revels, well harmonizing with the scene, assailed our ears as we passed hastily along, through an atmosphere of tobacco smoke and other equally fragrant odors.
"After a short walk we emerged into a purer air, and in front of a very neat and well-connected hotel. From near this place, extending along the Levee to the north, commences the mercantile part of the 'landing,' lined with stores and extensive warehouses, in which is transacted a very heavy business. The whole of the lower town is built upon a reclaimed flat, from one to two hundred yards broad, and half a mile in length; bounded upon one side by the river, and on the other by the cliff or bluff, upon which Natchez stands..."
GUNSHOT, SCREAMS, DEATH
At 11 p.m. on a cold February night in 1835, Tyrone Power stood at the edge of the Natchez bluff and watched smoke from his cigar drift into the moonlight. He and a friend had just dined with Katherine Minor, the widow of Natchez pioneer Stephen Minor, at the mansion Concord, which stood on a high hill about two miles east of the Mighty Mississippi.
A stage actor and writer from Ireland, Power was in town on an American tour. Several performances of his hit, "Born to Good Luck," had dazzled local patrons who packed the Natchez theater over several nights. He had been served a multi-course meal at Concord, a mansion Power wrote about in his journal. While there, he had given "a lump of fine Cavendish tobacco" to one of Mrs. Minor's slaves.
An hour before midnight, Power and his friend cut through a light winter wind on horseback to the edge of the bluff where they parted. For a few moments Power smoked his cigar and took in the beauty of the night as Natchez slept: "the moon at full, was sleeping over it, in as pure a sky as ever (a) poet drank joy and inspiration from; far below, wrap in shade, lay the scene of my almost dream..."
While the world above the bluff was serene, the world below was wide awake. Thriving under-the-hill was a bustling commercial center by day and an underworld of gambling, thievery and prostitution, which ruled the night.
Below he saw a "line of houses denoted by a few scattered lights," while just beyond was the Mississippi, "rolling on in its majesty through a dominion created by itself, through regions of wilderness born of its waters and still subject to its laws...I could distinctly hear the continuous rush of the strong current; it was the only sound that moved the air."
But a short time later, as he puffed on his cigar, "the murmur of a fray came to me, borne upon the light breeze; my curiosity was excited by the indistinct sounds, and I walked along in the direction whence they came..." He moved slowly along the edge of the bluff for a couple of minutes trying to locate the source of the sound.
"As I neared it," he wrote, "the tumult grew in loudness and fierceness; men's hoarse and angry voices, mingled in hot dispute, came crashing upwards as from the deeps of hell." The commotion frightened Power while simultaneously fueling his curiosity. He had heard about the high crime rate under-the-hill as well as stories of beatings and murders.
That very week he had been told of one recent killing, the story of man murdered aboard a steamboat which had just departed under-the-hill. When the boat first landed, many passengers debarked, and others came on board. Soon the vessel "was leaving the wharf" when "the crack of a rifle was heard, and one of the passengers, who had just gained the upper-deck after his shore-visit of an hour or so, fell dead, pierced through the heart." The boat docked again, and "the corpse laid on the nearest wharf by the captain, with an account of the manner of his death, and, this done, off went the steamer." Power said many believed the dead man had been involved in a gambling dispute which "had excited a spirit of revenge amongst...desperadoes..."
But on this cold February night, Power's attention was focused on the "murmur of a fray...I bent anxiously over the cliff, as though articulate sounds might be caught three hundred feet above their source; a louder burst ascended, then crack! crack! went a couple of shots, almost together...the piercing shrieks of a female followed, and to these succeeded the stillness of death.
"I lay down upon the ground for several minutes, holding my ear close over the edge of the precipice, but all continued hushed. I then rose, and seated myself upon one of the benches scattered along the heights, almost doubting the evidence of my senses...so universal was the tranquillity."
Yet he knew what he had just heard and those sounds "told of a wild brawl and probable murder as having had taken place beneath the very seat I yet occupied..."
The whole episode, he said, was like a dream floating in the bright moonlight and dancing about in the frigid breeze of the February night. | <urn:uuid:15d2eddd-2e77-4108-892f-2fee2704f9d2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.concordiasentinel.com/print.php?story=7495 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977405 | 1,938 | 2.4375 | 2 |
Jobs aren’t the answer for everyone.
They need other things, too, that appeal to their interests and offer them some form of meaning.
That said, I think it’s the only place to start a discussion about improving an economy and reversing the flow of people out of Erie. People go where the opportunities are. The other stuff follows...
...The only way Erie will change is if it can incubate and attract businesses that provide good jobs.
The other stuff will follow.
I’ve heard from many Erie expatriates who say they would gladly move home if they had the right opportunity.
That tells me that jobs just might be the answer here.
But you tell me. Maybe my thinking is flawed.
Increasing the number of jobs in a region is a good idea, but Mr. Panepento's (Outside Erie blog) thinking is still flawed. Helping someone who would like to move back do exactly that is a worthy cause. But attempts at "reversing the flow" are misguided and help feed the brain drain myths that inform ineffective policy.
If shrinking cities such as Erie and Pittsburgh continue to insist on keeping everything within the" family", the demographic problems will persist. Willing boomerang migrants will not do nearly enough to address the in-migration issue. In fact, not all brain circulation is good for a region. What struggling cities need are people who will help create jobs, not just fill open positions.
How can the Burgh Diaspora improve Pittsburgh's opportunity landscape? | <urn:uuid:c87e2b87-1f9a-4a02-811a-1683e801c280> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://burghdiaspora.blogspot.com/2007/09/domestic-diaspora-policy.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00060-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951636 | 320 | 1.695313 | 2 |
Mirrors can be your friends and your enemies both on the wall and in SolidWorks. If you’re making a part that’s symmetric, mirroring can save you a lot of time building matching features on both sides of the part. However, if you don’t do things correctly it can lead to lots of nightmares.
The biggest complications can stem from the base sketches of your part. Mirroring in a sketch is handy to create symmetric entities, but why not just mirror the feature instead? As a general rule, the more entities you have in a sketch, the more chances you’re giving your model to go wrong. Everything might be symmetric when you start, but if you go back in and edit something later it could all blow up.
Another headache can be due to how you’re defining your features. Mirroring “Blind” features is usually no problem. If you start using more advanced definitions like Up to Vertex, Up to Surface and the like the mirroring the feature may not work because it can’t find the appropriate geometry or extends to the wrong place to really be a “mirror.”
Some features like fillets and chamfers are really picky about the geometry they’re made with. If you try to mirror them, and the faces they’re being mirrored to aren’t exactly the same, they will likely fail.
There are so many ways to have issues! Why not just skip all of them? The solution: Mirror Body. Skip all the headaches of trying to mirror sketches and features and just model half your part, mirror the body and be done. Less sketch entities, less features and less hassle. If you want to ensure total symmetricity that’s your best way to go. | <urn:uuid:04d5fc7e-3cbc-44ec-a3db-faa67bc0c6f6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://symsolutions.com/wordpress/page/12/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00048-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.926706 | 377 | 2.375 | 2 |
Tribal belt in central India not shared fruits of growth: RameshApril 21st, 2012 - 12:13 am ICT by IANS
New Delhi, April 20 (IANS) The tribal belt in central India has not shared fruits of high economic growth witnessed by the country over the past few years, Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh said Friday and added that the proposed Bharat Rural Livelihood Foundation (BRLF) will help take benefits of development to these areas.
Addressing a seminar on “Role of Private Philanthropy in Social Development,” organised by Professional Assistance for Development Action (PRADAN) here, Ramesh said the tribals in central India feel marginalised.
“The primary objective of the foundation is to work in the central tribal belt,” he said.
The BRLF is slated to have have a Rs.1,000 crore corpus, half of it from the private sector.
Ramesh said BRLF will be a lean organisation which will help scale up activities of organisations such as PRADAN, which work in rural areas to help people come out of poverty.
He said BRLF would have functionaries in place in “four to six months” and will be good channel for companies looking to fulfill their obligations of corporate social responsibility.
Ramesh also referred to the government’s initiative of Prime Minister’s Rural Development Fellows, which allows young post-graduates to work in rural areas for two years.
He said 156 young persons had been selected as fellows under the programme.
Ramesh said his ministry will provide funds for setting up university chairs for study in development practice.
The seminar had been organised to mark 30 years of PRADAN, an organisation working with the poor in marginalised and isolated villages of central and eastern India to enable them to live a life of dignity.
Founded in 1983, PRADAN has 400 professionals working across seven states and works with nearly 2.5 lakh families.
Deep Joshi, co-founder of PRADAN, said that country’s rural population would remain sizeable despite trends towards urbanisation and part of the effort to improve lives of the marginalised sections had to go in raising their confidence.
- Jairam Ramesh invites corporates to work for tribal welfare - Apr 14, 2012
- Ramesh for low-cost sanitation solutions - May 30, 2012
- Budget trendsetting for rural sector: Ramesh - Mar 16, 2012
- PMRDF programme for Maoist-affected districts launched - Apr 07, 2012
- New land bill will facilitate economic growth: Ramesh - May 18, 2012
- Ramesh seeks PM's help to boost roads in Maoist-hit areas - Sep 14, 2011
- India launches scheme for slum-free cities - Nov 08, 2011
- Bangladesh mulls urbanisation policy - Mar 03, 2012
- 'Need to attract second-generation NRIs to philanthropy' - Jan 08, 2011
- Make CSR mandatory, says philanthropist Sitaram Jindal - Jun 03, 2012
- Ramesh says draft land bill being modified, lauds Rahul (Lead) - Aug 12, 2011
- Wanted: Women to drive development in Maoist areas - Nov 20, 2011
- Delayed wage payments hit rural job scheme: minister - Nov 15, 2011
- Billionaire philanthropists to focus on societal development - Jun 02, 2012
- Maoist-hit areas should share India's growth, says PM (Roundup) - Sep 13, 2011
Tags: central india, corporate social responsibility, development minister, eastern india, fellows, jairam ramesh, joshi, lean organisation, livelihood, post graduates, private philanthropy, professional assistance, rs 1, rural areas, rural development, tribal belt, tribals, university chairs, urbanisation, young persons | <urn:uuid:caab1702-3c10-46e0-9586-3cb3fe6cd672> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/politics/tribal-belt-in-central-india-not-shared-fruits-of-growth-ramesh_100612836.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.930182 | 818 | 1.601563 | 2 |
CHICAGO, IL.- Aristocratic estates in England and France featured the forerunner of the residential yardmanicured lawns as conspicuous luxuryyet the backyard as it is known today is in many ways an American creation. Shaped by the distinctive forms of suburban development in the United States, the residential backyard has become a familiar landscape and a cultural phenomenon with widely recognized contours, from ideas about what backyards typically look like to the activities and cultural meanings we commonly associate with them. Between 1920 and 1930, the United States experienced the first intense episode of suburban development, which established a new kind of residential living, centered on the single-family home on a spacious lot. From the start these houses ideally featured a yard in both the front and back, enforcing a hierarchy of public and private spaces as well as an appeal to a detached, selective relationship with the world outside. Starting shortly after World War II, however, the nation experienced a second, more dramatic suburban expansion, fueled by government policy, rising per capita wealth, and an influx of soldiers returning from the war.
This development was informed by shifting cultural and social values, most notably in ideas about nature and the perceived ills of urban living, but also by a burgeoning notion of family togethernessthe vision of husband, wife, and children spending their leisure time together. The conventional view of the backyard embodies these converging values, and during this period its role shifted from being a decorative backdrop to a place integrated with daily life. In this regard, the backyard is traditionally conceived of as a peaceful, private space in which to spend leisure time and develop a relationship with the natural world, with minimal intrusion from outsiders.
Photographers have found moments of family togetherness in the backyard to be a compelling subject for at least fifty years, as one discovers in Dorothea Langes photographs of Mormon towns in the 1950s. More recently backyards have played a part in depictions of idyllic versions of family life, appearing as largely reassuring settings, as seen in both Meg Gerkens pictures from the Changing Chicago Project in the 1980s and Melissa Ann Pinneys ongoing series of photographs of her daughter. Sociologists have observed that confidence in the American vision of the ideal family life hit its highest point in the 1950s, but it continues to be a beckoning horizon today, even if this ideal is widely recognized to be fundamentally elusive. A number of artists working in a documentary style, such as Larry Sultan and Todd Deutsch, have engaged with the ups and downs of domestic life while grappling with the fact that the atomized environment of suburbia might, in the end, undermine familial harmony.
Other artists have aimed more pointedly at the ideological aspects of this schema of family life, such as embedded gender roles. Martha Roslers early Super-8 films The Backyard Economy I and II (both 1974) follow a woman completing various domestic tasks, such as hanging laundry and mowing the lawn. The backyard has gradually become naturalized, its patterns and conventions taken for granted, but Rosler, in making these mundane activities the very substance of her art, foregrounds the labor that allows for moments of leisure and with it the tacit economy of the backyard.
Dave Jordano and Shawn Records also document ordinary activities and settings, but each of them focuses on more idiosyncratic expressions that suggest deeper cultural significance. A number of Jordanos photographs allude to the fact that the manicured lawn is such a familiar presence in the United States that Americans have difficulty envisioning an alternative landscape, reminding us that the turf-grass lawn is an aesthetic norm. Shawn Records photographs bring into relief how the backyard represents a desire to live with nature on our own terms, and in a controlled setting. The landscapes in his photographs are peaceful and even pretty, but they carry a quiet undercurrent of violence: in one the boughs of a once-living tree are replaced by flowerpots, while in another the backyard is punctuated by imposing fences.
Many of the photographs in the exhibition focus on traditional backyards in small towns and suburbs. A few artists, however, document the backyard in more urban settings, where it is less common and where it takes on different forms. A number of Brad Temkins photographs depict lush gardens in walled-in backyards in Chicago, a series of enclaves within the seemingly inhospitable city. In contrast, Jack Teemer and James Rotz show grittier backyard environments in ailing metropolises like Baltimore and the industrial suburbs of northern Indiana, respectively. Just as commonly, though public squares or parks become alternatives to the backyard. Marc PoKempners photographs around one of Chicagos public housing projects and Stephen Marcs photographs of South Side neighborhoods, both from the 1980s, present sites of communal recreation and families gathered outside of their apartments. Although the images reveal intermittent signs of the inequalities that grew out of government policy on urban development, these particular residents appear as content in their outdoor spaces as the suburbanites do in their backyards.
Nonetheless, in these more public settings different dynamicsor expectationsof privacy and exposure emerge. The photographs in Kohei Yoshiyukis series The Park (197173) provide visceral illustrations. Photographing in three Tokyo parks at night using infrared film, Yoshiyuki reveals amorous couples in the grass under the cover of darkness, but he focuses equally on the numerous voyeurs watching from close by.
These documentary projects begin to suggest the diversity of backyards, but they also subtly undermine the backyards privileged position in suburban mythology. In the heyday of suburbia in the 1970s, Bill Owens completed a groundbreaking study of suburban living in Livermore, California, where he worked as a staff photographer for the local newspaper. His images present what now appear as quintessential backyard activities, such as Sunday afternoon barbecues and watering the lawn, demonstrating the longevity of our ideas of backyard life, and their association with a suburban lifestyle. Owens has said, the people he met enjoy the lifestyle of the suburbs. They have realized the American Dream, and at first blush his pictures assert a rosy ideal made tangible. (2) In the end, though, Owenss photographs, while exuberant and largely optimistic, reveal a deadpan sense of humor and an occasionally confounding mix of empathy and irony: what first appears as an ideal can take on tarnished or even farcical manifestations.
The backyard is more than a place; it is also a social norm , reinforced by advertising and media imagery over half a century. In the 1950s the influential picture magazines Life and Look promoted the now-familiar forms of the backyard as a vital component of suburban living, and these ideas are still asserted today in popular culture, from television sitcoms to advertising campaigns. A number of artists in Beyond the Backyard turn to constructed representations themselves: staging scenes for the camera or manipulating their images, they foster parallels between the ways a photograph can be constructed and the ways in which the backyard is a cultural construction.
In her series Domesticated (2005), Amy Stein re-creates real encounters between people and wildlife in small town Pennsylvania, based on newspaper reports and personal stories. In her meticulously staged photographs wild animals appear at the threshold of the backyard, where they take on the character of voyeurs or prowlers. The borders of the backyard ostensibly separate public and private realms, but Steins work accentuates the fact that these boundaries are unstable and vulnerable to intrusion or outside scrutiny.
Shizuka Yokomizo confronts the viewer with a visceral record of actual voyeuristic encounters between people in a residential setting. For her series Stranger (19982000) Yokomizo sent an anonymous letter to each of her subjects, asking them to stand in one of their windows at a designated time at night so she could photograph them from outside. Her pictures remind us that whether or not one knows the neighbors, they might be watching you at any time. Although her photographs exist as records of specific encounters, the frisson of Yokomizos images emerges from their performative aspect: the artist, poised in the shadows with her camera, effectively brought to life the disconcerting trope of the voyeur for her uneasy subjects, who willingly pose for her within their homes.
In the series Public Displays of Affection, Tricia Moreau Sweeney also depicts private moments in the domestic sphere that are brought into public view. In her photographs pairs of people are intertwinedin urban yards but visible to passersbyin what could be either sexual embraces or violent brawls. It is difficult to pinpoint the nature of these interactions, but equally hard to determine if the photographs are documents of events Sweeney stumbled across fortuitously or small dramas she has produced for the camera. Examining the conventional divisions between public and private life, Sweeney shows that the backyard might not readily align with either. At the same time, she introduces a correspondence between the ambiguity of the backyard space and the ambiguities of the photograph record.
Gregory Crewdson enacts scenarios on the large scale of a feature film, and his photographs mine the hidden anxieties and mysteries of small town American life. In UT (_overturned schoolbus_, 200102), Crewdson portrays a smoking, wrecked school bus, surrounded by a cluster of unattended children. The scene is as enigmatic as it is ominous, but it seems to reify the notionor at least the parents common fearthat danger rather than adventure waits outside of the protected confines of the yard. Crewdson has described his interest as ordinary life and the uncanny, that strange coming together of reality and fiction. (3) He strives for a sense of transparency in his photographs, as if one might step into the image he creates, while exploring how the fictions at play in everyday life resonate with the nature of photographs as particular views of reality.
Nic Nicosia also invites us to think about photographys relationship with ideas of truth and fiction. In Real Pictures #11 (1988/1992) Nicosia presents three kids burning down a tree in the backyard. This situation challenges the notion that the yard is a place where children can play safely, watched by a parent, and it takes the recurring tension between nature and people in the backyard to a dramatic climax. Just as notably, Nicosia emphasizes our persistent faith in the photograph as a reliable document. Using the rhetorical strategies of documentary photography he establishes a feeling of realism while portraying a sensational event that pushes the limits of credibility.
Drawn mainly from the museums permanent collection and its Midwest Photographers Project and featuring over forty artists, Beyond the Backyard provides a range of perspectives on the backyard. The place of the residential yard in American culture appears as sturdy as ever and many of the artists in this exhibition demonstrate its enduring appeal. Others, however, complicate or question the traditional, often-idealized notion of the backyard, the private space. A number of these photographers more explicitly draw the medium of photography itself into the equation, highlighting parallels between photographic constructions and the cultural construction of the backyard. In the end, then, the exhibition might invite each of us to consider how our own experiences of backyards align withor diverge fromthe frequent advertising and media representations of this seemingly well-known place. | <urn:uuid:9a8963b7-f5c5-4d22-a19e-b56e34b49e4a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.artdaily.com/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=25129 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956745 | 2,290 | 2.234375 | 2 |
Get involved: send your pictures, video, news & views by texting BOREHAMWOOD to 80360, or email us
'This policy has environmental benefits'
4:54pm Thursday 13th September 2012 in News
Hertfordshire County Council has defended their decision to turn overnight street lighting off, after campaigners announced their petition had reached 5,000 signatures.
Stuart Pile, cabinet member for highways and transport, said the blackout helps deliver “important savings.”
He added: “This policy has environmental benefits, allowing us to leave a smaller carbon footprint.
"Feedback from residents and the Police was taken into account when finalising the streets included in the final plan for each area.
"The county council will carry out a full review of the part night lighting changes in mid-2013, after every area has been changed over, and a full annual cycle has taken place.
“Only then will we be able to gather meaningful data from across the whole county to inform the review.
"So far, we have found no evidence that crime rises in areas where part-night streetlighting has been introduced." | <urn:uuid:0469f9a0-2250-4c96-9ddd-a2ae45fbccc2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.borehamwoodtimes.co.uk/news/localnews/9928464._This_policy_has_environmental_benefits_/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00046-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963633 | 236 | 1.757813 | 2 |
A sub-trope of the Wire Dilemma
the Wrong Wire
will very often simply speed up the countdown to detonation or, for some reason, jump it ahead an arbitrary amount, typically just enough time to pull out a Million to One Chance
Of course, this would realistically require a far more exotically-designed detonator than most would bother with. In reality, if cutting the Wrong Wire
doesn't cause the bomb to go off, there's really no reason why it should do anything
at all. In point of fact, the easiest to make, and by far most reliable bombs only have
two or three wires: a positive and a negative to the ignition switch, and perhaps a ground. Cutting either
of the non-ground wires would logically disable the bomb*
, since without power to the ignition switch, there's nothing to trigger the detonator, and the ground wire would do absolutely nothing.
Of course, any bomb maker would know this, and could conceivably start thinking of countermeasures to stop a bomb squad if they start to enjoy the "game" too much
. They might even be willing to risk the bomb being disarmed Just in Time
to rub their superiority in their enemy's face.
There is one particularly good reason to build a detonator with wiggle room; if the bombmaker screws up while assembling the bomb, they thus have time to correct
that screwup before it kills them. And just in passing, cops and soldiers have a good hard laugh and a round of drinks whenever a DIY bomb-maker gets Hoist by His Own Petard
Anime and Manga
- In Gunsmith Cats, bomb-maker Ken Taki uses Wrong Wires for safety reasons, and has become more safety-focused recently as he has early stage multiple sclerosis, but was forced by The Syndicate to keep making bombs despite having a degenerative nerve condition that made his hands shake uncontrollably under stress.
: Oh Crap! The power cut off and the power-off switch cycled! We've got ten minutes before it blows!
Rally: Why use a timer when the power's cut? Why not just, "Boom?"
Ken: Hey, everyone makes mistakes, huh? And I like living!
- The Shadow: In The Movie, a colorblind scientist cuts the wrong wire on the nuclear bomb, making the timer go to warp speed. By the time he's reconnected that wire to fix it, he's gone from having hours to having about two minutes.
- In Lethal Weapon 3 the use of this trope leads to the memorable "Grab the cat" line.
- The climax of the mid-90s Denzel Washington vehicle Virtuosity looks like a straight example of this trope, with a virtual recording of the now-dead antagonist mocking every wrong choice thrown in for flavor... until the timer hits 3 seconds, freezes, and begins looping back over the last 30 seconds or so of video. He'd actually gotten the right wire some time ago, but had broken the detonation program in the process.
- The (in)famous ending of Digital Fortress does this with a computer virus, accelerating the destruction when the wrong password is entered. Considering that the password is THE NUMBER THREE, they deserved all they got.
- In The Frogmen by Robb White a Drill Sergeant Nasty at the Navy's frogman school becomes infamous for the fiendish tricks he puts in his training mines. Unfortunate trainees who fail receive a shock.
- The pilot for MacGyver has one of these in its opening scene, prompting him to get out a paper clip and do his thing for the first time in the series.
- In Eureka, a doomsday machine jumps from 20-something hours to 7 hours when the wrong wire is cut. See the entry in Wire Dilemma.
- A similar situation (not with wires, but close enough) occurs in the Stargate SG-1 episode "Serpent's Venom", where Carter and Daniel have to enter a combination code into a mine in order to reprogram it, but they enter the wrong code, resulting in a countdown starting up (as this is the defense mechanism put in place on the mine so it wouldn't be tampered with.)
- An episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation had a bomb tech disarm a bomb, only to discover that it has come back on. He disarmed a decoy bomb and this activates the real trigger mechanism. The bomber specifically designed the bomb to kill the cops trying to disarm it and was playing games with them.
- In the BBC series Danger: UXB our heroes are constantly discovering that the Germans have added new and ingenious Wrong Wires to their bombs. Because this was Real Life, it's never as simple as a literal wire, and it's rarely as harmless as "countdown speeds up".
- Justice League uses the "wrong wire speeds up the countdown" method in the episode "Wild Cards." Justified because the Joker built the bomb in question, and it turned out to be a fake anyway.
- On Archer, cutting the green wire of a bomb speeds up the timer, because Archer misread the bomb's serial number to their bomb expert. M... as in Mancy?
- The classic point-and-click adventure game Discworld 2: Missing Presumed...? further spoofs the above Lethal Weapon 3 example in the intro, with Rincewind and the Librarian standing in for Riggs and Murtaugh. This being Discworld, the Clock Punk bomb three flasks of mysterious bubbling liquid, rather than wires.
- A variation occurs in the Playstation/N64/PC game based on Spiderman, where a group of terrorists have set up a massive bomb in a bank: the player has to pick up the bomb and carry it over to an explosion-proof safe, but dropping the bomb at any point speeds up the countdown.
- In Bomb Squad, incorrectly replacing a piece will cause the Magic Countdown to speed up until you remove it. Cutting the wrong piece causes the bomb to explode unless you quickly resolder it. | <urn:uuid:789cf8fd-d9a6-41cf-a7b3-306ad5423dc3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/WrongWire | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00047-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948661 | 1,260 | 1.828125 | 2 |
In her 13 years at Texas Wesleyan, Dr. Chandrasekaran has enjoyed the variety of her classes. “I get to see the whole spectrum, teaching freshmen when they first come in and students as they are finishing. I went to institutions that were much larger than Texas Wesleyan so getting to know people and following them through to graduation makes it special and more meaningful to me than it would be if I were somewhere where I didn’t know anyone’s name. I find the very real population of students at Texas Wesleyan interesting. I appreciate the challenges they face to go to school and find the student diversity, not just race, but age and background, refreshing.”
She believes “in life-long learning, in always being curious and engaged, and in finding challenges. I try to bring that to all my classes. Sometimes students see college as a means to an end, but I try to instill that learning is a process for the rest of their lives. I put a lot of time and effort into the best way to communicate science to students, especially non-science majors. Biology is literally changing every five to six months, which forces me to stay on my toes.”
Because the field is changing, independent research is extremely important to Dr. Chandrasekaran. “The currency of our field is the public presentation of our work. Doing research and experiments makes you accountable to yourself, your students, and the entire science community. Research and publications show students that the field is alive and changing and if they see faculty engaged in that process, it makes their classes more relevant and introduces them to critical analysis.” Her research focuses on cell biology and genomics, using the fruit fly as the model system.
National Institutes of Health Postdoctoral fellowship — UT Southwestern
Ph.D. Cell Biology — Washington University
B.S. Biology — Stamford University
Did You know?
Dr. Chandrasekaran has enjoyed playing music since she was 7 years old and contemplated majoring in music. She plays classical guitar, viola, and piano. | <urn:uuid:fbe0b966-b618-43c6-8862-2dde2ee1beda> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://txwes.edu/spotlightDetails.aspx?Channel=/Channels/Campus+Wide&WorkflowItemID=63ed58bb-dabe-4136-9e92-62ea3bd5c4d1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972008 | 430 | 1.78125 | 2 |
La Sierra Academy is founded on acreage once part of an 1846 Mexican land grant known as Rancho La Sierra;
the school’s first bulletin proclaims that students will “learn to render effective service.”
With the addition of coursework in preparation for teaching, La Sierra Academy becomes La Sierra Academy and Normal School.
Course offerings expand; La Sierra Academy and Normal School becomes Southern California Junior College.
Southern California Junior College becomes La Sierra College.
Course offerings expand; first year of formal accreditation as a four-year liberal arts college.
La Sierra College merges with Loma Linda University as its College of Arts and Sciences.
The School of Education is organized.
The School of Business and Management and the Division of Continuing Studies are introduced.
The School of Religion is established.
The Loma Linda and La Sierra campuses of Loma Linda University are reorganized as separate institutions.
Four schools (The College of Arts and Sciences; the Schools of Education, Business, and Religion) and the Division of
Continuing Studies become La Sierra University.
The Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) Team wins the SIFE World Cup in 2002.
La Sierra SIFE students win the SIFE World Cup again in 2007.
La Sierra named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll Program: Honor Roll with Distinction.
The award recognizes the many hours of community service provided by La Sierra students. | <urn:uuid:3c75c073-f1e7-446d-b44f-ed6c5d72f7f6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.lasierra.edu/departments/housing/fileadmin/documents/3d/parentconnection/spring2011/index.php?id=678 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.911195 | 299 | 2.25 | 2 |
H5N1 (Avian/Bird Flu)
H5N1 is a highly pathogenic avian (bird) flu virus that has caused serious outbreaks in domestic poultry in parts of Asia and the Middle East. Highly pathogenic refers to the virus’s ability to produce disease. Although H5N1 does not usually infect humans, nearly 600 cases of human cases of H5N1 have been reported from 15 countries since 2003.
- Most human cases of “highly pathogenic“ H5N1 virus infection have occurred in people who had recent contact with sick or dead poultry that were infected with H5N1 viruses. About 60% of people infected with the virus died from their illness.
- Unlike other types of flu, H5N1 usually does not spread between people.
- There have been no reported infections with these viruses in birds, poultry, or people in the United States.
- You cannot get infected with these viruses from properly handled and cooked poultry or eggs.
What is highly pathogenic H5N1?
H5N1 is an avian (bird) flu virus that has caused outbreaks in domestic poultry in parts of Asia and the Middle East. Because H5N1 is so deadly to poultry, it is considered “highly pathogenic,” or highly disease causing.
Is highly pathogenic H5N1 virus still a threat?
Since 2003, nearly 600 human infections with highly pathogenic H5N1 viruses have been reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) by 15 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Near East. About 60% of these people died from their illness.
In 2011, 62 human H5N1 cases and 34 deaths were reported from five countries—Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Egypt, and Indonesia. Six countries— Bangladesh, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, and Vietnam—have widespread and ongoing infections in their poultry. Poultry outbreaks have occurred in other countries recently as well.
Could I get highly pathogenic H5N1?
Human infection with H5N1 is rare. Most infections occurred after direct or close contact with poultry infected with H5N1. There is no evidence that this virus can spread easily between people.
Symptoms and possible complications of highly pathogenic H5N1 in people can include:
- Fever and cough
- Acute respiratory distress
- Shortness of breath/difficulty breathing
- Abdominal pain
- Respiratory failure
- Altered mental state
- Failure of multiple organs (e.g. kidney failure)
How can I prevent highly pathogenic H5N1 virus infection?
The best way to prevent infection is to avoid any contact with sick or dead poultry. This includes avoiding visiting live poultry markets that may be infected with H5N1 when traveling. Also avoid sick people who might have H5N1 virus infection in affected countries.
The United States government carefully controls domestic and imported food products. The US bans poultry and poultry product imported from countries whose poultry are infected by certain bird flu viruses, including H5N1.
You cannot get highly pathogenic H5N1 virus infection from properly handled and cooked poultry and eggs. When preparing poultry or eggs:
- Wash your hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds before and after handling raw poultry or eggs
- Clean cutting boards and other utensils with soap and water to keep raw poultry from contaminating other foods.
- Use a food thermometer to make sure you cook poultry to a temperature of at least 165o F.
- Cook eggs until whites and yolks are firm. | <urn:uuid:e9356f53-4c6c-4051-bdc8-34a633073398> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.jcsu.edu/news-events/jcsu-alert/pandemic-influenza/h5n1-avian/bird-flu- | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950945 | 757 | 3.5 | 4 |
Take a walk through the narrow winding streets of the lovely old walled town. You'll discover historic buildings that include the Archaeological Museum (former University), the Curia, Ibiza Cathedral, Town Hall, the convent church and the castle (under restoration). The Ibiza Cathedral has special history, as it is the site of the first parish of Santa Maria established in the 1200's. This area has been declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO and you can still see Phoenician, Roman, medieval and Moorish remains.
- Open Hours: Monday to Sunday from 12:00 AM to 12:00 AM
Attractions & Landmarks
- Nearest Train: Microbus: Dalt Vila | <urn:uuid:6efbd20c-2525-4a3b-b7a8-ec2407eb535b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://travel.aol.com/travel-guide/europe/spain/ibiza/casco-antiguo-de-dalt-vila-thingstodo-detail-84485/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939225 | 143 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Opinion: Humanists Unite in Ghana
By Graham Knight for the Humanist Association of Ghana
Our country, Ghana, has been listed as the most religious country out of 57 countries polled; 96% of people say they are religious and apparently 0% are convinced atheists. The poll, the Global Index of Religiosity and Atheism, was conducted by WIN-Gallup International (not to be confused with the more widely known Gallup, Inc.). The survey is obviously questionable but it does highlight the importance of the issue in Ghana.
Believing in the existence of a god is inculcated from childhood through family, community, church and school. Questioning the existence of god is actively discouraged through the use of fear of the consequences and social ostracisation. It can mean difficulty finding work, developing one’s business, making friends and finding romantic relationships. The common perception is that if you do not believe in the existence of a god you must either be worshiping the devil or be an immoral person, not to be trusted.
School attendance is often not enforced and education above primary level can remain a luxury for many. In schools, religious control can mean scientific information about issues is omitted or it is openly taught as being false. Critical thinking and questioning is discouraged. It is therefore difficult to encourage people to think critically when their view of the world has been formed by their church, mosque or shrine and reinforced by their family and community and school. By the time they come across skeptical ideas, fear of the consequences of questioning received dogmas and the lack of critical thinking techniques can make people very hard to reach. Questioning dogma means challenging those you rely on for support, in a country in which government is unable to provide a safety net for people.
Non-believers in Ghana gradually started to discover they were not alone and came together, forming the Humanist Association of Ghana in February 2012.
This Association has been important because it has provided an alternative social network and community of like-minded thinkers, allowing people to explore ideas freely. Quite often, members have lost many of their friends when voicing their doubts about the existence of God, as friends tend to consist of fellow church members. Our association has provided an alternative network away from the intolerance of the churches.
A couple of months ago I became a part of a family of a very diverse group of people that I had thought were non-existent in Ghanaian society. Having lived all my life around people who would not encourage any ideas counter to the archaic, anti-scientific and non-realistic norms, the group serves as a safe haven to share my experiences and skeptical thoughts without being ridiculed. They give me advice and support whilst increasing my knowledge. - Emmanuel
We started a project called Freethought Ghana which runs a facebook page and holds a weekly meet-up in which we hope to encourage people to think about issues outside of the restrictions of religious dogma and culture.
Some of those in the Association have bravely come out as non-believers (some are still in conflict with their families as a result) and others are in the position that to do so would be suicidal. We hope that as the news of our existence grows this situation will change and that people will learn to respect the personal opinions and worldviews of others.
Encouragingly, we keep discovering new people and also learn that there are others who support our project in spite of the fact that they are believers.
We recognise we are battling against entrenched ideas and the power bases of those who have made careers out of seeking followers. We do not wish to eradicate religion from our culture but to show there are alternative ways of viewing the world and that asking questions and following the evidence is essential if we are to develop as a nation. Religion should not be compulsory but a personal choice. The free flow of ideas is essential in any democratic society.
The past five months have been a breath of fresh air as we have learnt the importance of ridding our minds of religious dogma (handed down from the days of colonisation), political agendas and out-dated traditions imposed upon our society for centuries. Surrounded by brilliant minds whose thirst for learning is never slaked, I am convinced that this energetic young group of humanists will make great strides in creating change and I am honoured to be a part of the movement. – group member Monica Mould
This year we are excited to be hosting Ghana’s first ever international humanist conference – “West African Humanism in Action” – and we hope this will highlight many ways to develop our work.
Global Index of Religiosity and Atheism | <urn:uuid:4f2d90b9-e66d-46ba-92df-237e2c78e2a6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://dustaccra.com/opinion-humanists-unite-in-ghana/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00067-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96898 | 944 | 1.664063 | 2 |
I saw this article online at newsblaze.com and I had to share it with you here. With Christmas fast approaching (I know I am not ready either trust me) people tend to start thinking of charity more and ways that they can help others who are less fortunate during the holiday season. Newsblaze.com has a great list of 50 Ways to Make a Difference without Spending a Penny that are guaranteed to inspire some goodwill and cheer in everyone. Check it out on the site or see the re-post below.
How to make a difference without spending a cent:
1. Pass on a book that you’ve enjoyed. Write a note in the front saying what you enjoyed and instruct the next “owner” to pass it on after they have read it.
2. Instead of “googling” when searching – use Good Search and these guys will make a donation to Spreading Joy. (Use the link above that will take you there)
3. Donate gently used dvd’s, vhs tapes and video games – I’m sure Spreading Joy can find those that will love to use them.
4. Be Positive today – with the depressing economy, bills falling behind – this can really be tough, but it will encourage those around you and in the process bring joy to yourself.
5. Donate expired coupons to the troops overseas.
6. Thank a Police Officer today (hopefully NOT while you are getting a ticket!)
7. Give time to your spouse – do something together, visit a park, bookstore etc.
8. Donate household items to Spreading Joy to pass along to others in need.
9. Hold a yard sale and donate half of the proceeds.
10. Taking the 30 day challenge? Tell me about it here.
11. Baby sit for a friend/neighbor for free.
12. Serve a meal at a homeless shelter or women’s shelter
13. Encourage our soldiers. Send a free letter here.
14. Mentor someone – have you started your own business? Are you an expert in a certain field? Share that talent!
15. Donate unused craft items to a daycare or elementary school.
16. Turn in those Box Tops for Education – found on Pillsbury items. Keep these, even if you don’t have kids. There is a school near you.
17. Smile at everyone you come in contact with today.
18. Offer to let someone ahead of you in line.
19. Volunteer in a Nursing home.
20. Donate blood.
21. Donate Plasma – and get paid for it.
22. Organize a book drive – get your neighborhood to donate gently used books. Pass out a flier asking for books – giving instructions to leave them in a bag on the porch letting them know you will pick them up the next week.
23. Turn in your Campbell’s Soup Labels
24. Have a family meal at the table – talk about current events in the family.
25. Give a handwritten note of encouragement.
26. Start a Gratitude Journal – leave it out for others to see as they visit you.
27. Donate gently used magazines to a nursing home
28. <-This has been missing for a year and a half, and NO one has said a thing to me about it. LOLOLOL just realized today 10.10.10 hahhaha. I LOVE it!, Leaving it and thank goodness for bonuses.
29. Call someone who is not feeling well and talk until you make them laugh
30. Volunteer at an animal shelter – play with the animals.
31. Visit with the elderly or someone who can no longer get out as much as they’d like.
32. Pick flowers from your garden and give away.
33. Volunteer for your local church.
34. Give a thank you card to someone who has made a difference in your life.
35. Run errands for a new Mom (or someone who is sick)
36. Pick up trash you see as you are walking on your route.
37. Volunteer to read to a class at your local Elementary school
38. Write a thank you note to your child’s teacher.
39. Seek out a store manager and let them know what an excellent employee your grocery bagger was. (or cashier).
40. Donate gently used clothing.
41. Volunteer at a hospital.
42. Donate your “free items” from the buy one get one free – to a local food pantry.
43. Leave a note hanging in or on your mailbox thanking your mail carrier for always being so dependable!
44. Speak to the elderly you pass – look them in the eye and smile. We tend to forget about the great individuals who paved the way for us.
45. Say Please and Thank you – show sincere appreciation.
46. Go to Church. There are so many churches. When people get discouraged, that is one of the first places they’ll go. You can encourage so many people this way!
47. Make extra chili and cornbread muffins – and take to a neighbor.
48. Bake homemade cookies with items you have in your pantry and share with neighborhood children.
49. Donate extra blankets to a homeless shelter.
50. Give a basket of home-grown veggies.
51. (a bonus!) Host a game night with your family – eat dessert first! Turn off cell phones (ok – kids, you can leave yours on….) but spend time laughing together playing games!
There you have it – 50 ways to make a difference without spending a single penny.
These are great ideas, Do you have any of your own? How do you help out during the holidays? What about other times of the year? Share your thoughts (and this post)
**Remember this is not my post it was originally posted at newsblaze.com so be sure to check out the site Here!**
Possibly, But Probably Un-Related Articles
- Creative Ways To Donate (mockingbirdsoap.wordpress.com)
- 5 Ideas for Holiday Volunteering (onekindthing.org)
- Summer Cleaning Donations (turbotax.intuit.com)
- Majority of Americans Plan to Give to Charity this Holiday Season Despite Continued Slow Economy (prnewswire.com)
- Why I Donate Blood: (shutthefrontdoor2007.wordpress.com)
- Charitable Giving: Donating Your Stuff (bargaineering.com)
- Christmas-Helping Others Even When Money is Tight (tulsage.wordpress.com) | <urn:uuid:42dff973-221c-4e7c-8ac9-308d9360e381> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://chasek8.wordpress.com/2011/11/20/make-a-difference-without-breaking-the-bank/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00059-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934311 | 1,411 | 1.914063 | 2 |
MAURITIUS, 30 August 2012 – Rwanda today won a prestigious Commonwealth Education Good Practice Award for its work on fast tracking Nine Year Basic Education (9YBE).
Emmanuel Muvunyi, Deputy Director General of the Rwanda Education Board, received the award at the opening ceremony of the 18th Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers, held in Mauritius on Wednesday.
The Commonwealth awards are held every three years to celebrate and promote new and innovative education projects from across the Commonwealth. They must address at least one of eight action areas which range from achieving universal primary education, eliminating gender disparities in education to mitigating the impact of HIV on education systems. The action areas align with the Commonwealth’s education priorities, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the Education for All (EFA) goals.
Rwanda was one of 123 applications from 27 countries submitted for this year’s awards. Its Fast Tracking Strategy’ was initiated in 2009 to meet the growing demand for secondary education, following the country’s successful introduction of universal primary education in 2003. Judges were impressed by both its innovative and cost-effective approach.
The Mauritian Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Ahmed Beebeehjaun applauded Rwanda for its ‘unconventional approach to school construction,’ where local residents have helped to plan and construct classrooms and latrines to expand access to lower secondary education. The strategy has introduced innovative, cost-effective, efficient and sustainable approaches to developing the school system, through community participation and effective coordination.
Thanks to the fast tracking strategy, Rwanda has seen a rapid increase in enrolment, retention and completion at primary and lower secondary level. Over 8,600 classrooms were constructed between 2009 and 2011. In addition, primary net enrolment increased from 91per cent in 2003 to 96 per cent in 2011, and primary completion increased from 52 per cent in 2008 to 79 per cent in 2011.
“We are delighted to have played a role in making education accessible for all children in Rwanda through our support to the Fast Tracking Strategy,” said Noala Skinner, UNICEF’s Representative to Rwanda. “UNICEF has supported the Government to develop infrastructure standards and guidelines that were used during the fast tracking construction, as well as to ensure the quality of that construction.”
The schools, which were built under the fast tracking strategy are all based on UNICEF ‘Child Friendly Schools’ standards, ensuring that they inclusive, gender responsive and address the health, sanitation, protection and learning needs of all children.
UNICEF works in 190 countries and territories to help children survive and thrive, from early childhood through adolescence. The world’s largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments. For more information about UNICEF and its work visit: www.unicef.org
For more information, please contact:
Misbah M. Sheikh, Chief of Communication, UNICEF Rwanda,
Tel + 250 788 300 731
Shimali Senanayake, UNICEF New York
Tel: + 917 265 4516 | <urn:uuid:936c997e-1994-40e8-9c8c-c66df80d5929> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/media_65676.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00045-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947775 | 689 | 1.703125 | 2 |
Lesser-Known Works by Well-Known Authors
Find these books and more online at http://catalog.coolcat.org
Behind a Mask
by Louisa May Alcott
Louisa May Alcott's little-known novella is an ingenious study of deception, betrayal, and the ruthless power of a woman scorned. When demure Scottish governess Jean Muir arrives at a wealthy household, the family couldn't be more thrilled with their young new resident and find themselves beguiled by her grace and beauty. But this surrender to her "innocent" charms soon sets the men quarreling for her attention, with the women beside themselves with jealousy. Delighted with her success, Miss Muir sets her sights on the highest prize, but she has only three days to claim victory before the truth, behind her mask, will be exposed.
by Margaret Mitchell
Until 1995, "Gone with the Wind"--the 1937 Pulitzer Prize winner and perhaps the bestselling novel of all time--was the only published work of fiction credited to Margaret Mitchell. But 45 years after her death, the Road to Tara Museum unveiled what amounts to a national treasure--a novella written by America's most beloved storyteller. "Lost Laysen" is an exciting tale of love and honor on a South Pacific island.
The Complete Shorter Fiction of Virginia Woolf
by Virginia Woolf
Woolf's short stories originally appeared in various magazines and anthologies, often sloppily or intrusively edited. The 45 texts collected here were carefully prepared by Susan Dick after comparison of all surviving manuscript and printed versions; 17 have never before been published, assuring this volume an important place in the Woolf canon. The earliest pieces date from 1906 and the last were in progress when Woolf drowned herself in 1941. Taken together, they show the evolution of Woolf's experimental methods and the origin of some of the major themes in her novels.
by Charlotte Bronte
Told from the point of view of William Crimsworth, the only male narrator that Brontë ever used, the work formulated a new aesthetic that questioned many of the presuppositions of Victorian society. Brontë's hero escapes from a humiliating clerkship in a Yorkshire mill to find work as a teacher in Belgium, where he falls in love with an impoverished student-teacher, who is perhaps the author's most realistic feminist heroine. "The Professor" endures today as both a harbinger of Brontë's later novels and a compelling read in its own right.
Travels with Charley and Later Novels, 1947-1962
by John Steinbeck
Today, nearly forty years after his death, Nobel Prize winner John Steinbeck remains one of America's greatest writers and cultural figures. John Steinbeck was never content to repeat himself, and his restless search for new forms and fresh subject matter is fully evident in the books of his later years. This volume collects four novels that exhibit the full range of his gift, along with a travel book that has become one of his most enduringly popular works. | <urn:uuid:d2d1979c-6119-48a9-b0a8-df10a35d0c93> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thelibrary.org/booklist/booklistbygenre.cfm?gid1=1&gid2=5&gid3=15&listid=549 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00055-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960331 | 634 | 2.515625 | 3 |
This section describes the use of the Direct Project specification to receive health data securely from a data holder on behalf of a patient or their authorized representative. The ability to receive health data securely enables an ecosystem to be built on patient health data.
Direct Project offers a specification for how existing standards can be used to securely transport health information over the Internet. Direct uses SMTP, S/MIME, and X.509 certificates to achieve security, privacy, data integrity, and authentication of sender and receiver sufficient to meet the data transport needs of health information exchange.
Your application will need to integrate with a component that can accept Direct messages and their payloads. This component is called a Security/Trust Agent (STA). A STA uses SMTP and S/MIME to ensure messages and their payload are delivered securely. A STA can be a component internal to your system, or hosted externally.
When an STA is hosted externally, it is usually by a Health Information Services Provider (HISP).
For Blue Button+, your Direct STA must be able to:
Your application must be able to:
The following diagram depicts a successful transmission. See it full-size.
Once your application has received the message and payload, it needs to process it. It needs to understand what files have been included. It also needs to handle cases in which it receives multiple updates from the same user, over a period of time.
As with all Direct messages, Blue Button+ messages that your application receives from the STA/HISP will be Internet-format Messages following RFC 5322 and Multipart MIME. Blue Button+ provides additional guidance on the contents of these messages to support a higher level of semantic exchange.
Blue Button+ messages will contain:
A human-readable message body. This body may be in text/plain or text/html format, or (as is common in many mail systems) both of these. The content of the body is up to the sending application, except that it will always begin with the text “This message was sent by Data Holder Name at the request of Patient Name.” This tag is intended to clarify the context under which information delivery was authorized.
A clinical summary containing a snapshot of the patient or member’s health history. The summary will be a Consolidated CDA w. Meaningful Use Stage 2 Sections and Fields. This section will have a MIME type of application/xml.
Optional additional documents. These may include any relevant documents, images, or healthcare-specific items such as Transition of Care / Referral Summaries, Ambulatory Summaries or Inpatient Summaries.
A Request.txt that captures the context of the message in a semi-structured way.
In addition to the friendly message in the body, you may receive a request.txt. This is a simple way, much like robots.txt works to provide some semi-structured context to machines.
Destination: [Direct Address] Patient: [Patient Name] Data-holder: [Data Holder Name] Recurring: [Yes / No]
An example of what a request.txt would look like:
Destination: firstname.lastname@example.org Patient: Ellen Ross Data-holder: Ashby Medical Center Recurring: Yes
For a given address, there is the likelihood that your application will receive multiple documents over a period of time. This will be especially so if the consumer sets up an “automated” transmission when ever their health data changes.
This is beneficial for your application, because it will be getting an up-to-date stream of data. However, your application may need to handle the merging of these transmissions. The means of this merge is up to you as the receiver and not part of Blue Button+ guidelines.
You need to submit the trust anchor for your application to the Blue Button+ Trust Bundle in order for a data holder participating in the Blue Button+ ecosystem to send messages to Direct addresses issued by your application. Follow these steps:
Once your application’s trust anchor is in the system, it will take 24-48 hours for data holders to sync your certificate. | <urn:uuid:cdcd6c69-1716-4e4f-b218-ea007927cd5b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blue-button.github.io/docs/receive-using-direct.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.919026 | 859 | 1.8125 | 2 |
It may be the best-kept secret in home real estate: For a couple of hundred dollars, a potential buyer thinking about writing a contract on an existing house can ask for a formal energy audit along with the standard inspection clause. That audit, in turn, can save the buyer thousands of dollars in future operating costs, and pinpoint the specific features of the house that need correction to improve efficiency. It might also be a tipoff to a sobering reality: This house is an energy guzzler. Either the asking price comes down, the seller fixes the problems, or I walk.
Though energy audits have been available to consumers for years – the best known is the so-called “HERS” (Home Energy Rating System) – virtually nobody in the real estate field promotes them to buyers. Of the 120,000 HERS audits completed last year in the country, according to experts, just 12,000 were done on existing houses – a trivial number in a market with 4.5 million resales. The rest were performed on newly built homes.
Since energy costs rank high on the list of ongoing expenses for many homeowners, and multiple studies have demonstrated that energy-efficiency renovations more than pay for themselves in utilities savings, why aren’t more audits performed? In an era of $4-a-gallon gas and autos that are marketed on the basis of their low fuel consumption, shouldn’t buyers know about the operating costs of the houses they are bidding on? Shouldn’t energy audit contingency clauses in purchase contracts be as commonplace as home inspection clauses?
Realty agents who primarily list houses and represent sellers say buyers almost never ask for them. Nor do sellers, who prefer to avoid giving purchasers ammunition to make lower offers during negotiations or costly demands for repairs before closing.
Even real estate agents who carry the “EcoBroker” green designation – described on the EcoBroker website as “the premier green designation for real estate professionals” – don’t necessarily push the subject. Frances Vernon, an EcoBroker with Dilbeck Real Estate Real Living in La Cañada, Calif., said in an interview that she’s “never been asked by a buyer or seller” to order a HERS energy audit on a house. “It’s just not done here. It’s not a pressing issue.”
June Gardner, an EcoBroker with the Evers & Co. realty firm in Washington, D.C., said, “it’s not on people’s minds really. They’re much more worried about mold or radon and lead paint” – the sort of defects that standard home inspections turn up.
Of four EcoBroker designees randomly selected for interviews around the country, only one said he regularly recommends energy audits to both sellers and purchasers, and finds that they help sell houses – even raise prices – rather than wrecking deals.
Leland DiMeco, owner and principal broker of Boston Green Realty LLC, said that although not all clients opt for one, “I do bring it to the table” with everyone. “It just makes sense. Most buyers want to feel comfortable that they’ve done their due diligence and know what they’re getting.” Even sellers are warming to the idea.
DiMeco recently made the energy audit pitch to a seller of an 87-year-old New England colonial that had significant energy leakage and efficiency problems. The seller agreed to do a HERS audit, then spent money putting spray cellulose insulation in the attic, replacing the leakiest windows, upgrading interior lighting and replacing some low-efficiency appliances.
The result: Shoppers loved seeing the energy audit, the upgrades and the seller’s full disclosures. The house sold six days after listing for $50,000 more than any nearby, energy-wasting comparables. Doing the HERS audit “turned out to be a great marketing benefit for the sellers,” said DiMeco, even though they needed some convincing up front.
Steve Baden, executive director of RESNET, the organization that trains and certifies inspectors conducting HERS audits, said that although the “adoption rate” on existing homes “has been low,” builders of new homes have been enthusiastic. Forty percent of all new homes constructed in the country now get HERS audits and scores, he said.
About 4,000 auditors are now certified to conduct HERS studies – they can be found along with information on contractors to do energy efficiency improvements at www.RESNET.us. Equally important to homebuyers, said Baden: RESNET has negotiated agreements with two of the largest home-inspection networks to begin offering lower-cost energy efficiency surveys and performance audits as add-ons to standard inspections. Once this becomes commonplace, there may be little need for separate contract contingencies for energy. Energy efficiency will just be part of the package. • | <urn:uuid:6c469337-b32e-41f8-b4e5-81b53118b74d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pbn.com/Using-HERS-to-audit-your-energy-expenditure,67678 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944249 | 1,038 | 1.671875 | 2 |
For your blog reading enjoyment may I introduce my friend Cameron…. He makes Beer and he was so kind to share his mad skills with us. Take it away Cameron……
Mmmm beer. Thought I’d input a little beer knowledge into this food blog, thanks Sarah for the forum. Thought I’d do a couple different posts. This first one will be about homebrewing.
Ah, the smell of malt and hops, the foamy head on your lips, the quenching refreshment of that first sip. How about a little introduction to the basics of beer. Their are four main ingredients in beer: water, malt, hops, and yeast. Water, I won’t bore you with the chemistry of water and how brewers treat it to make it perfect for their beers, just know 90% of beer is water so you want to start with some tasty water! Malt, the background of most beers, this is usually malted barley, barley that has been germinated to just the correct state and then dried. Malt is what gives you the sugars that the yeast eat to make alcohol, little more about that later. The malt can also contain other grains, wheat beer anyone? Yeast, this is the worker, the yeast take the oxygen and the sugars and make alcohol and carbon dioxide, without it we would just have bitter sugary water. Oh and last but not least, my favorite, hops, they balance the sweetness of the beer and give off the wonderful piney, florally, citrusy aromas!
OK, OK, enough of the boring stuff, let’s brew! Here is a (quick) lowdown of the brewing process. First we take hot water and crushed grains and mix them to extract the sugars. Then we wash and drain the grains and get a sweet wort. We take the sweet wert and boil, during the boil we add hops, this extracts the bitterness and taste from the hops and infuses these luscious flavors into the beer. After this we take the boiling water and cool it down and add yeast. That’s it, finito! Well almost I guess, we still need to let the yeast work, but after about 7-30 days, (while maybe adding another set of hops for aroma, for us hop heads) we have beer. We need to put it in something to drink from, either a keg or bottles and after its carbonated it’s Happy Hour!
Big thanks to Cameron for sharing his knowledge and passion for BEER! make some….. it’s so good. | <urn:uuid:b274e212-ae65-439e-adda-f752c152082c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://spryonfood.com/2012/05/25/guest-blogger-2-home-brewing-with-cameron/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953557 | 532 | 1.882813 | 2 |
Welcome to my genealogy blog. Genea-Musings features genealogy research tips and techniques, genealogy news items and commentary, genealogy humor, San Diego genealogy society news, family history research and some family history stories from the keyboard of Randy Seaver (of Chula Vista CA), who thinks that Genealogy Research Is really FUN!
Copyright (c) Randall J. Seaver, 2006-2013.
Can you find your Great-Grandfather's Civil War Sword?
One of the more interesting "new" services I saw today at the Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference in Springfield, Illinois is Just a Joy (http://www.justajoy.com/), the brainchild of Joy Shivar. I spent some time with Joy, and offered to share her press announcement with my readers:
September 6, 2011
For Immediate Release:
Is It Possible to Find Your
Great-Grandfather’s Civil War Sword?
Joy Shivar, owner of the JustaJoy.com Family Heirloom Exchange has dedicated the last ten years to that question.As she handled many such artifacts as Revolutionary War items, Civil War letters, WWI and WWII identified photos and hundreds of other surname-related antiques in her business, JustaJoy Historical Treasures, she was constantly alert of the need to be able to make family historians aware of the items existence.Noting that none of the genealogy sites or auction sites are specifically designed for this purpose she set her mind to creating one and on May 23, 2011, the JustaJoy.com Family Heirloom Exchange was introduced at the National Genealogical Society’s annual meeting in Charleston, SC to rave reviews.
JustaJoy.com regularly advertises at antique shows and military and Civil War shows to attract vendors who are then invited to add surname related items to the website.Once a member, antique dealers can list an unlimited number of items on the site for free. Joy then advertises the site to genealogists and others who know their family’s history.Buyers and sellers negotiate directly and unlike other sites, JustaJoy.com imposes no listing fees, buyer’s premiums, commissions or final value fees.The annual membership cost of $20.00 per year helps fund the outreach.
The site currently boasts of original items or “Orphaned Heirlooms” associated with nearly 40,000 families.
The annual membership fee also entitles the user to the “Surname Notification Service” - an e-mail alert system that notifies members as items are added to the site that are associated with the user’s specific surname interests.This is an important service as there is usually only one of each item available - one family Bible, one Civil War sword, etc.This also saves the member from the necessity of constantly checking the site to see if anything new has been added, related to his or her specific family.Up to twenty surnames can be included in this service.
If JustaJoy.com members have items that are not important to their own family but would be a special find for someone else, they are also invited and encouraged to add them to the site.As mentioned above this service is free for both listing and selling.If members are not interested in making matches for profit, the site can accommodate free listings, as well.
Although not billed as an “information site”,,JustaJoy.com does serve as a resource.As items are sold, listings remain on the site, allowing users to view and print pictures of the item or the description, as desired - an added value to the site.
In the short time since its introduction, the JustaJoy.com Family Heirloom Exchange has received broad accolades including being filmed by the History Channel and many other television outlets as well as much print exposure and an extensive interview by GeneaBloggers Radio. | <urn:uuid:408123ae-e713-44f2-91f8-d005521bb6fb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.geneamusings.com/2011/09/can-you-find-your-great-grandfathers.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.941297 | 812 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Republicans are supposed to be the tight fisted fiscal conservatives and Democrats the ones who think that problems can be solved by throwing federal money at it. In reality it is just the opposite, a triumph for Republican image makers but a disaster for the rest of us who have lived through a decade of Republican Congressional and then Bush administration profligacy, with nothing to show for it but a widening gap between the favored plutocrats and everyone else. One sees it everywhere, most spectacularly in the Iraq debacle, which has enriched Bush – Cheny cronies while wreaking violence on hapless Iraqis and US soldiers. But it has slopped over into science and science policy as well. Recently the American Institute for Biological Science (AIBS), no radical group by any means, wondered what has become of the billions spent in the biodefense effort (see also here):
Yet according to fiscal year 2009 DHS budget documents, “A comprehensive understanding of how biodefense initiatives are coordinated at various levels of government and the private sector does not exist.”
Evidence pointing toward inadequate oversight amid expansive growth in the number of biosafety research laboratories emerged during an Oc tober 2007 hearing of the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. Keith Rhodes of the Government Account ability Office (GAO) testified that no one agency is responsible for tracking the rapidly growing number of high-containment labs (BSL-3 and BSL-4) in the academic, state, and private sectors. In fact, the GAO review revealed that even the number of BSL-3 labs — where work is done on biological agents such as anthrax and West Nile virus — remains unknown. (AIBS)
We’re talking about some real money here, at least in terms of science dollars. It’s estimated that some $40 billion have been spent in civilian biodefense since 2001, $5 billion last year alone. A lot of it has gone into the construction of laboratories, whose size and location no one agency keeps track of, let alone whether we need them. And with each of them that handles dangerous agents comes the risk of a lab accident. The more these agents are handled the larger the risk and no one knows who is doing the handling, where and for what. Much of the money has also gone to develop vaccines or drugs for diseases no one suffers from (like inhalational anthrax). I am not aware of a single vaccine or drug or diagnostic kit developed under the biodefense enterprise which has come to fruition or is even available for limited use.
The US biodefense initiative is an incompetently managed, unplanned, unthought out, ineffective waste of money. In other words, typical Bush administration. | <urn:uuid:65af20c6-2218-4e8a-bff4-8c2e3c7fee1b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://scienceblogs.com/effectmeasure/2008/06/01/the-biodefense-boondoggle/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951928 | 552 | 1.507813 | 2 |
"Bringing the youth together in the restoration and preservation of Louisiana"
WHO ARE WE?
After the Gulf oil spill, we saw all the things we love about Louisiana—the people, food, music, wildlife, natural environment, industries, and overall rhythm of life—in need. We heard the cries for help and were prompted to action. Since then, we have been on the road to making a positive impact on LA. We love this state we call home, and we are passionate about working to make sure we can continue to thrive here in the future.
Ultimately, we have realized that everything is tied to the fate of our coast. It is for this reason that we can no longer sit back and watch Louisiana succumb to erosion or disasters—whether natural or manmade. Everything in Louisiana is inseparably linked, so if the coast goes, so go the people.
But we'll cut to the chase. Who are we really? We are the youth—the biggest stakeholders of our state—and we are working together to ensure not only our generation's future, but the future of later generations as well. So we invite YOU to join efforts with us to restore and preserve Louisiana. After all it's your future, your choice.
INVASIVE SPECIES THREATEN LOUISIANA, CAUSING GREAT HARM TO ITS WETLANDS AND EVEN SOMETIMES TO ITS PEOPLE. NUTRIA, FOR EXAMPLE, ACCELERATE COASTAL EROSION BY EATING HEALTHY MARSH ROOTS.
TO CONTROL THE POPULATION OF NUTRIA AND OTHER INVASIVE SPECIES, AS WELL AS TO BRING AWARENESS TO THESE SPECIES, SASSAFRAS LA IS HOSTING THE 2nd annual nutria rodeo.
Why exactly does Louisiana need to be restored and preserved?
Well, the Pelican State loses about a football field of marsh every 28 minutes. That loss adds up to 17 square miles a year. Therefore, the action of an educated youth force is pivotal to the survival of Louisiana's coast.
Content copyright . Sassafras Louisiana. All rights reserved. | <urn:uuid:d2e0e347-12d4-4cf8-92fe-7a06c39fee7d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.sassafrasla.org/Home_Page.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00034-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.912048 | 449 | 1.929688 | 2 |
By Daniel Walters
For more than 17 million Americans, the phrase "you are what you don't eat" might be accurate.
A study showed that 6 percent of Americans don't eat meat, according to a 2003 Harris Interactive poll sponsored by the Vegetarian Resource Group. In 1978, on the other hand, a Department of Agriculture survey reported 1.2 percent of people nationwide claimed to be vegetarian. Clearly, vegetarianism is growing. For some social groups, vegetarianism has reached "chic" status.
"It's definitely trendy right now," says Erika Prins, '07. She decided to become a vegetarian while researching an article for the Opinions section of The Whitworthian.
A National Restaurant Association study indicated that almost 20 percent of college students call themselves vegetarians. And one in four teens considers vegetarianism to be "cool," according to Teenage Research Unlimited, a marketing- research firm employed by a diverse group of 200 clients.
This is partly because of positive media portrayals of vegetarians. Dozens of stars featured in People magazine – including Paul McCartney, Orlando Bloom and Kiefer Sutherland – are vegetarians. Lisa, the 8-year-old vegetarian on the The Simpsons, is one of the few characters on the show who is not portrayed as greedy or stupid. Such media portrayals can subtly inspire individuals to investigate the issue more.
"Most people who are willing to be educated about what happens to animals end up going the vegetarian route," says Julie (Watts) Striker, '03.
Are you going to eat that? Why not?
Revulsion toward violence against animals is a theme throughout the vegetarian movement. Books detailing the slaughterhouse culture have inspired people to become vegetarian. Fast Food Nation, by Eric Schlosser, details the grisly facts behind the meat- packing industry: the use of cheap immigrant labor, cruelty to animals and disregard for food safety. Instead of looking at a hamburger and drooling over the juicy meat, potential consumers think of the pedigree of the burger and find their stomachs churning.
"I saw a big brown-eyed cow," says Beezer Cocking, '03, describing a visit to the county fair. "And I had just eaten a cheeseburger, and I felt horrible."
Striker also had concerns about the quality of life of the animals raised for slaughter. She is horrified by tales of calves kept in boxes for veal and cows pumped with hormones for meat.
"They've never had grass under their feet and never had sky above their heads," Striker says.
Prins read about what she describes as "gross" conditions animals are kept in, along with the low wages and lack of benefits for workers in the industry. Ultimately, however, she focused on stewardship. Prins believes it's very important to use the earth's limited resources wisely. Meat requires an enormous amount of time and resources to raise, feed, transport, slaughter, prepare, preserve and ship.
"Americans consume twice as much protein as they need," Prins says. "With so many countries starving, this seems irresponsible. Instead, we should increase demand for healthy products that are created in a way that doesn't harm the environment or subjugate people."
Since Prins enjoys the taste of meat, her vegetarian diet can be an occasional struggle.
"Every now and again, I wish I could have a nice big turkey dinner," Striker says. "The taste of tofurkey just isn't the same." She prefers vegetables to meat substitutes.
For others, the taste of meat itself provides an impetus to stop eating it. "I don't like it. It's not that healthy. I'm done eating it," Cocking says.
Prins says that, blessedly, her craving for meat subsided after a few weeks of vegetarianism.
A Field Guide to Vegetarians
Even the term vegetarian itself is a fluid concept. Not all vegetarians are created equal. In fact, not all people who call themselves vegetarians completely abstain from meat-eating. Pollo-vegetarians eat chicken. Pesco-vegetarians have no problem with eating fish. Once a vegetarian has decided to refuse to eat meat, other decisions must be made. Do they allow themselves to eat products of animals, like milk, eggs and dairy products? Vegans abstain from all three. According to studies conducted by the Vegetarian Resource Group, between one-half and one-third of vegetarians are vegans.
There are even those stricter than vegans. Vegetarians in the "raw-foodism" sub-group won't eat anything cooked above 118 degrees. Fruitarians eat only fruit, and sproutarians eat predominantly sprouts.
Such radical diets, however, can carry inherent risks.
Some vegetarians may fail to get the nutrients they need, like protein and B-12, according to the American Dietetic Association. Vegans are especially vulnerable to these deficiencies. A lack of protein can cause bad skin, brittle hair, a leaky gut and low energy. B-12 deficiency can cause a litany of problems, including numbness in the hands, depression, memory loss, imbalance, weakness and dementia.
If vegetarians plan their meals wisely however, they may even receive a number of additional nutritional benefits.
Acts of Nutrition
Luta Garbat-Welch, '02, a specialist at the Kentucky Department of Health, switched to becoming a pesco-pollo vegetarian as a junior in college after seeing a doctor about stomach problems. Her doctor recommended that she avoid red meat because of the body's difficulty digesting it.
"Red meat, for the most part, carries more hormones and antibiotics," Garbat-Welch says.
Antibiotics, she says, aren't selective — they kill the good bacteria along with the bad. Red meat can also lead to a candida albica overdose, a problem associated with acne, eczema, allergies and digestive problems, Garbat-Welch says.
Eliminating meat – a food often bulging with fat – can also be a powerful diet strategy. Cocking says she lost more than 30 pounds when she became a vegetarian.
"I don't like salad," Cocking says. "I like candy; that's about it."
That doesn't leave many options at the campus dining hall.
"I ate a lot of rice." Cocking adds.
Hinduism and the Seventh-day Adventist Church, along with some other religions, discourage eating meat. The founder of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Ellen White, believed that the human body was God's temple and should not be abused. This meant no tobacco, no alcohol and no red meat.
Hindus, meanwhile, are committed to nonviolence. One book of Hindu scriptures, the Tirrukural says, "Even at the risk of your own self, refrain from acts that cause the harmless, pain of their lives." Since animals have been slaughtered in a state of fear, many Hindus feel that consuming the meat is wrong and performs himsa, or violence.
Some Christians have similar feelings about eating meat. Richelle Reid, '05, says that is Christians' duty to care for creation and not just take dominion over it.
"Meat for consumption doesn't really enter into the picture until [the story of] Noah in the book of Genesis, as part of what seems to be God's covenant with a fallen humanity." Reid says.
Though not a vegetarian, Reid tries to consume food and use products with a minimal impact on the environment. Reid points to organizations such as Restoring Eden, a group of Christians dedicated to protecting the environment.
"For me, it's about energy conservation, soil preservation, and protecting our air, water and land for future generations." Reid says.
She feels she has a spiritual impetus to preserve the earth.
"God's original plan was to hang out in a garden with some naked vegetarians," she says.
As a Christian, Striker says her faith inspires her to maintain a low impact on the environment. She doesn't use pesticides. And she doesn't eat meat.
"God created them as creatures," she says of animals; "not as machines to give us food."
Green with Trendy
In the past, vegetarians often met
with resistance to their food choices. Cocking grew up on a farm. When she became a vegetarian, her parents were less than thrilled.
"To this day my dad thinks I'm weird," Cocking says. "Whenever I'd get sick he'd say, 'What you need is a big ol' piece of meat.'"
Though Striker's parents are both vegetarians, few in her surrounding state were. Sometimes she felt she was the only vegetarian in North Dakota.
Cocking's Whitworth friends were amused by the revelation that she was a vegetarian. Since Cocking was bold, aggressive, played softball and threw the javelin, her vegetarianism surprised her friends.
"You look like you'd be a huge meat eater," her friends would say. "You'd eat a whole cow!"
Prins says some of her friends feel threatened or judged by her dietary choices. "My vegetarianism offends more people than anything else about me," Prins says.
When she explains the reasoning behind her vegetarianism, she believes others feel she's shoving her views down their throats.
In most cases, Striker says, debates between vegetarians and meat eaters tend to be light hearted and silly. Most of the arguments she hears against vegetarianism tend to be of the "If God didn't intend us to eat animals, then why are they made out of meat?" variety.
Some vegetarians try to avoid conflict by eating meat at social occasions or when they're in another country.
"I grew up in Africa, so I'm sensitive to cultural expectation," says Garbat-Welch. "Being hospitable is more important."
It's Easy Being Green
It's much easier to be a vegetarian today than it was 20 years ago, Garbat-Welch says.
"Today, there are more resources available to a vegetarian," Garbat-Welch says. "There are vegetarian cookbooks and online sites where you can find substitutions."
Vegetarianism's cultural acceptance can be seen on grocery shelves, as well. Soymilk, tofu and Boca Burgers can be found right next to the eggnog, bacon and beef. There are often entire aisles devoted to "healthy foods," such as organic fruits, meat from free-range cattle and vegetarian substitutes. Occasionally, entire stores specialize in organic or vegetarian foods. Striker says that most restaurants now have three or four vegetarian items on the menu. In fact, Americans consume 20 percent more vegetables than they did in the 1970s, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
"You could be vegetarian and the people you live with might never even notice," says Striker.
Vegetarianism is also no longer associated only with political liberals. Rod Dreher, op-ed columnist for the Dallas Morning News and for the conservative National Review, even coined a phrase for the vegetarians at the other end of the political spectrum: "Crunchy Cons," conservatives who eat organic or vegetarian foods and try to leave a minimal impact on the environment. Vegetarianism has gone from radical to mainstream.
"People see people who are vegetarians whose health is still good and who are not falling down sick," Cocking says. Since people are seeing no ill effects in their friends who convert to vegetarianism, she says, more people are becoming vegetarians.
Even at Whitworth, Sodexo Food Services has continually strived to improve the once-dismal vegetarian section. Jim O'Brien, the general manager of Sodexo, is himself a vegetarian. In 2005, Sodexo brought together a group of students to discuss options to make the vegetarian section better. Where only rice and chopped carrots once were, the vegetarian section now carries such foodstuffs as hummus, pita bread, grits and couscous. Prins says she was glad to see Sodexo respond to demands for a broader range of vegetarian and vegan options. She makes an effort to take advantage of these offerings, for both health and moral reasons.
"You can have a negative or positive impact on nature," Prins says. "I try to have a positive one." | <urn:uuid:1b836c0c-fbc4-44ec-a357-5015a6b47b9a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.whitworth.edu/Alumni/Transitions/Articles/Calling/TheyretheOtherWhiteMeat.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00033-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970848 | 2,588 | 2.4375 | 2 |
No reason to panic and no reason to think the worse; if your child is experiencing low back pain, just take a deep breath and read. And contrary to popular belief, low back pain in children is usually not caused from a backpack full of books. No, a majority of back pain seen between the ages of 10-18 years of age is related to sports. Children who are involved in football, gymnastics, wrestling, diving, volleyball, or racket sports tend to be the most likely kids who will experience back pain. Fortunately, these aches and pains usually go away with good conservative care because they rarely represent a dire problem.
Although dire problems like infections and tumors do rarely occur; thus, a child with low back pain should see a doctor just to be sure. A doctor will ask a lot of questions about what makes the pain worse or better, general health, and other feelings of numbness, pain or weakness. After these questions have been answered, the doctor will test the reflexes, strength and sensation. Your doctor will especially want to look for scoliosis or other abnormal postures. Most of the time, a simple doctor visit is all that is necessary to rule out serious problems. Experts in the field say that "pediatric back pain frequently does not carry a definitive diagnosis and that exhaustive diagnostic protocols may not be necessary for this problem". So, do not expect an entire litany of tests and imaging studies. Resist the urge to be like many parents who insist on MRI's, x-rays, lab tests, and the whole nine yards for little Billy or Jane. Without just cause for the specialized tests, much time and money can be wasted.
When is it necessary for a child with low back pain to have a special test? If other joints are painful or fevers are involved, some laboratory tests can look for signs of infection or arthritic conditions. If the child is an athlete or was involved in an accident or has persistent pain, some imaging may be needed. In particular, a SPECT is very helpful to look for fractures in the bone. If there are signs of nervous system involvement, an MRI is probably needed. All of these specific problems are rare; in turn, special tests are rarely needed.
What is needed is: rest, a little physical therapy, and a whole lot of reassurance. Yes, the season might be over for your child athlete. But without proper care now, the risk of low back pain in the future is high. In fact, this may be a wonderful opportunity to improve your child's general health and fitness level by teaching him/her better ways to take care of the body including the spine. With only one spine to live with, proper spine care should begin early in life, starting with the first episode of low back pain.
So do not panic or think the worst when your child complains of low back pain. With a pinch of medical care, a dash of rest, and enough reassurance added to taste, everything will be okay. | <urn:uuid:d72b0287-cdd3-4f15-80f3-2f2d6790adeb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.healthcentral.com/chronic-pain/c/27148/139491/child-lower | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00064-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948904 | 611 | 2.34375 | 2 |
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Boston Public Schools is committed to transforming the lives of all children through exemplary teaching in a world-class system of innovative, welcoming schools. We aim to develop within every learner the knowledge, skill, and character to excel in college, career, and life.
Graduation Rate Hits New Peak
Graduation and dropout rates released by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education indicate for the fourth year in a row, the Boston Public Schools graduation rate continues to climb while the annual dropout rate continues its downward trend. The four-year graduation rate is at the highest level since the state started keeping track.
Graduation Rate Climbs for 4th Consecutive Year
Of the students who entered high school in the 2006/2007 school year, 63.2% graduated within four years. This 2010 data is an increase of 1.8 percentage points from 2009 and more than 5 percentage points since 2007. BPS calculates the dropout rate fell from 6.4% in 2009 to 5.7% in 2010.
Graduation Rate Key Part of Accelaration Agenda
The BPS Acceleration Agenda, a five-year strategic plan for the district introduced in 2009, sets a graduation rate goal of at least 80% and an annual dropout rate of 3% or lower by 2014.
Performance Exceeds Target
Performance Near Target
Non Scored - Context Measure | <urn:uuid:b1d45024-7889-48f1-a6d3-45b120b93880> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://cityofboston.gov/bar/results/Default.aspx?dept=113 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936727 | 290 | 2.015625 | 2 |
Potential New Target Identified in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
A subset of triple-negative breast cancers contains a genetic change that contributes to cancer growth and may be possible to target with drugs. These results were published in Nature.
Each year, more than 220,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States. For these women, tests to identify certain characteristics of the tumor play an important role in treatment selection. Cancers that are hormone receptor-positive, for example, are commonly treated with hormonal therapies such as tamoxifen or an aromatase inhibitor. Similarly, cancers that overexpress a protein known as HER2 tend to respond to treatment with a HER2-targeted drug such as Herceptin® (trastuzumab).
Triple-negative breast cancer refers to breast cancer that is estrogen receptor-negative, progesterone receptor-negative, and HER2-negative. This type of breast cancer currently has fewer treatment options than other types of breast cancer because if doesn’t respond to hormonal therapy or HER2-targeted therapy. Ongoing research into the biologic underpinnings of triple-negative breast cancer may provide clues about how to target this type of breast cancer.
A study recently published in the journal Nature sought to identify genetic changes that may contribute to certain types of breast cancer, including triple-negative breast cancer. The study collected tumor samples from 103 breast cancer patients from Mexico and Vietnam. The DNA from the tumor samples was compared with DNA from normal tissue.
A genetic change that was identified in a triple-negative sample involved a fusion of two genes: MAGI3 and AKT3. The protein produced by this fusion gene is thought to contribute to cancer growth. When the researchers looked for this fusion gene in another set of tumor samples, they found it in 7% of triple-negative samples (5 out of 72).
Drugs that target this biological pathway are already being investigated for other purposes, and may eventually prove to be useful for triple-negative breast cancers that contain the fusion gene. If researchers are able to find a targeted drug that is effective against these cancers, it would be an important advance in the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer. Only a subset of triple-negative breast cancers contain the genetic change identified in this study, but ongoing research may identify additional targets.
Reference: Banerji S, Cibulskis K, Rangel-Escareno C et al. Sequence analysis of mutations and translocations across breast cancer subtypes. Nature;2012;486:405-409.
Copyright © 2012 CancerConsultants. All Rights Reserved. | <urn:uuid:720d5119-cdac-476c-b7a5-1bb0b73d7a0b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.westclinic.com/2012/07/31/potential-new-target-identified-in-triple-negative-breast-cancer/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933016 | 540 | 2.859375 | 3 |
The shadow health secretary, Andy Burnham, has called for an urgent cross-party consensus on new policies to get more of the population physically active, amid fears that the "post-Olympic moment is slipping away".
Despite promising that the Games would succeed where all other Olympics had failed in inspiring more people to take up sport, there are fears that cuts to school sport and local authority budgets, together with a lack of unified thinking across departments, could lead to the opportunity being missed.
"The post-London 2012 period is a once in a generation opportunity to get people physically active, and I feel the Olympic moment is slipping away. I don't believe the government has any strategy to get more people physically active," Burnham will tell the Fitness Industry Association conference in London on Thursday.
"We have queues outside swimming pools because council funding has been cut, waiting lists at sports clubs because the capacity isn't there, kids being turned away from rowing and athletics clubs because there aren't enough coaches. Why was there no strategy in place to meet the expected rise in demand following the Olympics?"
Burnham will on Thursday send a letter to his coalition opposite number Jeremy Hunt to echo recent calls from the former Olympics minister Tessa Jowell and Lord Coe, the London 2012 chairman who is now a legacy adviser to the government, for a long-term, cross-party strategy.
In his letter to Hunt, Burnham will call on him to invest in a strategy that has buy-in from the Department of Health as well as the Department of Culture, Media and Sport and sets a national ambition of reaching the OECD average for physical activity.
Burnham said he saw little appetite at cabinet level to drive a cultural shift in the attitude to physical activity, which tended to be a Whitehall "orphan" with no one prepared to take responsibility and a cultural bias against prevention rather than cure at the Department of Health.
He is likely to suggest setting a target of getting 50% of the population physically active by 2025, a figure comparable with Germany and Scandinavia. According to recent OECD figures, more than 26% of the British population are obese.
"I want to argue that with a growing obesity crisis and people living longer lives, the sustainability of our public services depend on a physical activity strategy. Costs to the economy and NHS will rise rapidly in coming years as obesity related diseases set in," Burnham will tell the conference.
Before the Games, the government was forced to axe a target set by the previous Labour administration of which Burnham was a part of getting one million more people playing more sport by 2013.
The sports minister, Hugh Robertson, has argued that its investment of £450m over four years in governing bodies grassroots programmes through Sport England is starting to bear fruit, and also points to investment in facilities through its Places, People, Play fund.
But Burnham is expected to argue that investment through the DCMS alone will not be enough to boost physical activity and improve public health, putting the onus on the Department of Health.
Burnham will call for fresh thinking on sports policy and suggest remodelling towns and cities to favour cyclists and pedestrians over motorists and a new school sports strategy that takes academies and free schools into account.
The education secretary, Michael Gove, has been consulting with sports over a new strategy after facing intense criticism over his decision to axe £162m in ring-fenced funding for a national network of school sport partnerships.
Other policy suggestions will include looking again at the evidence on the free swimming programme that was introduced by Labour and axed by the coalition, and promoting the shift from inactivity to activity as the easiest change people can make, over eating less or giving up smoking.
Burnham will also echo recent calls from athletes and governing bodies for more coverage of women's sport and a wider range of minority sports to be covered by the media, particularly the BBC. | <urn:uuid:00c05127-bd04-465b-87e2-ab984337582a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/nov/22/shadow-health-secretary-post-olympic | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970779 | 797 | 1.742188 | 2 |
Philosophy & Expectations:
In carrying out our mission, Georgia Southwestern State University's Division of Student Affairs is guided by Student Development Theory. This theory views students in a holistic fashion and employs it as a guiding principle in its delivery of services and programs to students. In doing so, it recognizes the need to understand and know the extent and levels of effectiveness and efficiency of its services and programs.
Of equivalent importance is the need to understand and know about students in general; this includes but is not limited to their: experiences, holistic development, impressions, successes, involvement in campus life, involvement in community and service learning efforts, and perceptions and beliefs about the overall campus environment. In order to determine our levels of success regarding these issues, ongoing and/or periodic evaluation and assessment efforts shall be employed by all departments/units/areas to enhance the Division's influence on students' experiences at Georgia Southwestern State University. Specifically, each department/unit/area will:
- Conduct assessment and evaluation of their services and/or programs on an ongoing basis
- Utilize the CAS [Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education] Standards as a guide and reference for employing assessment and evaluation strategies in their respective areas
- Utilize their assessment and evaluation results to modify programs and services in their respective areas
- Stay abreast of current dialogues, literature, and research about student development and assessment and evaluation in the Student Affairs profession
- Cultivate and monitor compliance with SACS and the Council for the Advance of Standards in Higher Education [CAS] criteria, relative to activities, programs, and services provided via the Division of Student Affairs. | <urn:uuid:c296c51f-df61-4e03-80a3-cf89c04a12d8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://gsw.edu/Campus-Life/StudentAffairs/AssessmentEvaluation/index | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945533 | 341 | 1.617188 | 2 |
This book features one of the first, and funniest, examples of that mystery mainstay, the spinster sleuth. From Mary Roberts Rinehart’s plucky one-off heroines to the more professional investigating of Agatha Christie’s Jane Marple and Patricia Wentworth’s Maud Silver (both first appeared in 1928), this is a subgenre with lots of Golden Age appeal. Nosy schoolmarm Hildegarde Martha Withers is my favourite though. She and Oscar Piper, her Inspector friend/nemesis in the New York Police Department (they were even engaged once for about half an hour) made their jolly debut in The Penguin Pool Murder (1931). I opted not to review that one as plenty of others have got there before me, planned on doing the follow-up, Murder on Wheels (1932), but darn it if the indefatigable John Norris didn’t get their first (again!) at Pretty Sinister Books, so I’ve plumped for the third …
The following review is offered as part of Kerrie’s 2012 Alphabet of Crime community meme over at her Mysteries in Paradise blog, which has reached the letter M. It is also eligible under the guidelines of Bev’s 2012 Mystery Readers Challenge, specifically the 8 books I have pledged to read with an educational setting. I also offer it as part of the Friday’s Forgotten Books meme run by Patti Abbott at her Pattinase blog.
“A Copse doesn’t get up and wander about, as a rule.”
The novel begins on 15 November 1932 at 15:55 (Palmer provides exact date and time at the top of each chapter, except the last …). Jefferson Grammar School is nearly empty but Hildegarde is keeping back one of her naughtiest pupils after class. She hears the comely new music teacher head off to the cloakroom and never return. Curiosity gets the better of her and the intrepid lady finds the dead body of her young colleague. Realising that the murderer must still be in the building as there is no other way out other than through the front doors, she goes to the candy store across the street to keep an eye on the exit and calls Oscar. When he arrives they both head in, armed only with her cotton umbrella, to find that the body has now gone. While exploring the basement, Oscar is smashed on the head and taken to hospital with severe concussion, while later the hatchet-faced Hildy is also menaced by, well, a hatchet …
Piper is thus absent for much of the novel after he is hospitalised, though this leads to a great scene in which an emotional Hildy is given his badge so that she can continue the investigation without him after the body of the woman is found in the furnace, burned beyond recognition; and the introduction of Viennese criminal psychoanalyst Professor Augustine Pfaffle, who briefly gets put in charge of the investigation and makes a complete hash of it, with the inebriated janitor getting arrested early on. Hildy however is sure he is innocent (pretty much just on grounds of social status):
“You must have read enough mystery novels to know that the janitor and the butler never commit a murder. It’s always the nice man who seemed so disinterested and helpful all through the progress of the story.”
So who did it? One of the teachers, the principal, his dotty wife, his secretary (who was the dead girl’s roommate), or the janitor after all? An empty school is a great environment in terms of atmosphere and Palmer makes good use of it here as we spend lots of time exploring the various rooms of the multi-storey building. Along the way Hildy picks up a dizzying mixture of clues including bootleg liquor (Prohibition was still in effect, though not for much longer), a dead ant, a collection of ladies’ shoes, a musical notation on the eponymous blackboard, a winning Irish sweepstake ticket, a burned ring, another missing schoolteacher, a secret room in the basement and much more … Eventually she figures it out and sets a trap for the killer, using Oscar as bait.
“I’m not thinking, yet,” the sergeant announced.
“Let me know when you start”, Miss Withers said softly.
I am often drawn to the nexus between movies and literature in the mystery genre and Stuart Palmer excelled as both the author of a series of humorous mystery novels and the stories and screenplays for over a dozen movies, including exciting adventures for Bulldog Drummond, The Lone Wolf and even some featuring George Sanders and his brother Tom Conway as The Falcon. His introduction to the movies came when the first three of the dozen novels featuring the hatchet-faced school teacher Hildegarde Withers were filmed by RKO with Edna May Oliver wonderfully cast in the role. The studio then made three more, but had Helen Broderick and Zasu Pitts take over the part, with considerably less success though James Gleason was retained throughout as Oscar Piper. The full list of movies (and one later TV pilot starring Eve Arden) is as follows:
- The Penguin Pool Murder (1932)
- Murder on the Blackboard (1934)
- Murder on a Honeymoon (1935) from The Puzzle of the Pepper Tree (1933)
- Murder on a Bridle Path (1936) from The Puzzle of the Red Stallion, with Helen Broderick
- The Plot Thickens (1936) from ‘The Riddle of the Dangling Pearl’, with by Zasu Pitts
- Forty Naughty Girls (1937) from ‘The Riddle of the Forty Naughty Girls’, with Zasu Pitts
- A Very Missing Person (1972) from Hildegarde Withers Makes the Scene (1969), with Eve Arden
Bill Lengeman over at his blog Traditional Mysteries has written some affectionate posts on these films.
One of the (many) pairings I could have included in my Partners in Crime listing from last year would have been for the collaboration between Palmer and Craig Rice, which saw what Anthony Boucher thought was one of the first joint literary conjoining of two sleuths when upright teetotaler Hildegarde Withers and the rarely sober lawyer JJ Malone appeared in several short stories together (eventually collected in 1963 in the book, The People Vs. Withers and Malone). Here is a complete list of the Withers books, including Hildegarde Withers: Uncollected Riddles, the posthumously published collection of short stories from Crippen & Landru that includes the two short stories adapted into the Withers movies starring Zasu Pitts.
- The Penguin Pool Murder (1931)
- Murder on Wheels (1932)
- Murder on the Blackboard (1932)
- The Puzzle of the Pepper Tree (1933)
- The Puzzle of the Silver Persian (1934)
- The Puzzle of the Red Stallion (1935) [aka The Puzzle of the Briar Pipe]
- The Puzzle of the Blue Banderilla (1937)
- The Puzzle of the Happy Hooligan (1941)
- The Riddles of Hildegarde Withers (1947) – short stories
- Miss Withers Regrets (1947)
- Four Lost Ladies (1949)
- The Green Ace (1950) [aka At One Fell Swoop]
- The Monkey Murder and other Tales (1950) – short stories
- Nipped in the Bud (1951) [aka Trap for a Redhead]
- Cold Poison (1954) [aka Exit Laughing]
- The People Vs. Withers and Malone (1963) cowritten with Craig Rice
- Hildegarde Withers Makes the Scene (1969), completed by Fletcher Flora
- Hildegarde Withers: Uncollected Riddles (2002) – short stories
Like all the Withers books, Murder on the Blackboard is well plotted and has bags of humour (at one point Hildy even has to slide down a fore escape pole), especially the character names. Along with Pfaffle, two of the more incompetent detectives are named Burns and Allen, the school principal is named Waldo Emerson Macfarland while his wife Chrystal prefers to be known as ‘Madame Chrysanthemum’!
For more information about Palmer and his amazing life an books, see Steven Saylor’s website, www.stevensaylor.com. Red Morgue Press specialises in reprinting crime novels that deserve to be better known and Murder on the Blackboard is available from their website: www.ruemorguepress.com.
Great fun and well worth seeking out | <urn:uuid:95b267c1-04cf-48da-842f-6010d8cc27af> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://bloodymurder.wordpress.com/2012/08/17/murder-on-the-blackboard-1932-by-stuart-palmer/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00068-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948701 | 1,882 | 1.679688 | 2 |
Jean Picard was born in La Flèche, a town on the banks of the Loire. Nothing was known about his family and early life until the research of Olmsted presented in . The details we give about Picard's family and early life are taken from this work. Jean Picard's father, also called Jean Picard, was a bookseller in La Flèche while his mother, Marie Rezé, came originally from Le Mans. Jean, the subject of this biography, was one of a fairly large family of which we know details of two younger children; René born in 1623 and Charlotte born in 1625.
Jean studied at the Jesuit College at La Flèche. The castle in La Flèche, which had been built by the grandparents of Henry IV, was given by him to the Jesuits in 1603 to found a College. It was to be called the Collège Royal Henry-Le-Grand and was given instructions "to select and train the best minds of the time". One of the most famous students at the College in the years immediately after its foundation was René Descartes. By the time Picard studied there, the College had the reputation of being one of the best educational establishments in France :-
It had more than a thousand students in attendance - some as day boys (presumably Picard's status) and others as borders - and because of its size, provided as comprehensive an education as could be offered by the Jesuit Order. It must remain a matter of conjecture as to how far Picard's studies were interrupted by the civil unrest which was so prevalent in that part of France in the 1630s and 1640s; and the Jesuit College itself was a highly volatile institution as the breakdown of social order affected the conduct of the students too. There were several problems of indiscipline in the late 1630s and early 1640s (the time of the revolt of the Nu-Pieds).
Picard left the Jesuit College at La Flèche around 1644 and went to live in Paris. Pierre Gassendi was appointed as Professor of Mathematics at the Collège Royale in 1645 and it is likely that Picard attended his lectures there. At any rate Picard became a disciple of Gassendi around this time and helped him with observations of a solar eclipse on 21 August 1645. The two would remain in contact from that time on until Gassendi's death in 1655; for example there are records of Picard assisting Gassendi in observations of lunar eclipses in 1646 and 1647. He was very much the assistant for these observations, for we know that his responsibility was setting up the equipment and using it under Gassendi's directions. There are a number of puzzles which, despite Olmsted's research, still remain about Picard's life and one should be mentioned at this point. He had gone from the Jesuit College at La Flèche, where he would have learnt some mathematics but not a great deal, to Paris where very soon after he was knowledgeable enough to be an assistant to the leading scientist Gassendi. There is no evidence that he attended any advanced mathematics or astronomy lectures, so it is a reasonable guess to assume that he was largely self-educated in these topics. The fact that his father was a bookseller could be relevant here, for it would have given Picard access to advanced texts which he could have studied on his own.
What is also unclear is how Picard was supporting himself during these years in Paris. Other than the few records of his work with Gassendi, there is no other evidence of his astronomical researches (or any other for that matter). Certainly any work with Gassendi ended in 1648 for in that year Gassendi left Paris and went to Provence for health reasons. In 1655 Picard became professor of astronomy at the Collège de France in Paris, following the death of Gassendi in October of that year, but not on the strength of any published work for none had appeared. By this stage he had gained an outstanding reputation and Huygens, who made his first visit to Paris in 1655, would seek him out to discuss research topics. Picard became a member of the Académie Royale des Sciences in 1666, just after its foundation, and from this time on devoted himself to working for the Académie. Again it is worth noting that he had published nothing before his election to the Academy.
There is another puzzle that we need to examine at this point. In his later writings he referred to himself as the 'Abbé of Rillé.' Certainly there is a town of Rillé is in Anjou, not that far from La Flèche, where Picard was born, and it has been assumed that this was where he had worked as a priest and prior. If this is so, then when did he train for the priesthood, and at what point in his life did he actively fill the role of Abbé of Rillé? Sturdy, like a number of other historians, casts doubt on whether Rillé is the place in Anjou, and also suggests :-
... he may simply have been an abbé commendataire i.e. a layman who drew that revenues of a benefice.
This would also have given Picard an income and explain other puzzles about Picard's life. Let us now look at his work for the Academy of Sciences.
Picard devised a micrometer to measure the diameters of celestial objects such as the Sun, Moon and planets. In 1667 he added a telescopic sights to the quadrant making it much more useful in observations. Albert van Helden writes :-
The micrometer and telescopic sights were not Picard's ideas; for these we must go to others - William Gascoigne, Christiaan Huygens, Adrien Auzout, and Pierre Petit. Jean Picard was a shy and modest abbot who took their innovations and applied them systematically to astronomy, geodesy, and levelling. Picard's passion was precision, and in this area he was unsurpassed; not even John Flamsteed could match his accuracy. Picard was a tireless worker, often away in the provinces or abroad on some important project while others were in the limelight in Paris.
Picard greatly increased the accuracy of measurements of the Earth, using Snell's method of triangulation. He measured the length of the arc of the meridian; the measurements appear in Mesure de la Terre (1671). He began by accurately measuring his baseline from Villejuif to Juvisy-sur-Orge then, using thirteen triangles, measured by triangulation one degree of latitude along the Paris Meridian from Malvoisine, in the southern suburbs of Paris, to the clock-tower of Sourdon near Amiens. Finally he measured the altitudes of stars. All the instruments he used to carry out this work were fitted with telescopic sights which gave him values correct to 10 seconds of arc (Tycho Brahe had only attained an accuracy of 4 minutes of arc) and he produced a value for the radius of the Earth which was only 0.44% below the correct result. The use of these techniques meant that Picard was one of the first to apply scientific methods to the making of maps. He produced a map of the Paris region, and then went on to join a project to map France. His data on the Earth was used by Newton in his gravitational theory. Picard was honoured for these contributions with a pyramid erected at Juvisy-sur-Orge, one end of his baseline, in 1740.
In 1671 Picard went to Tycho Brahe's observatory at Hven Island in Sweden so that its location could be determined accurately and so Tycho's observations could be directly compared with others. There over a period of several months, working with Ole Römer, he observed about 140 eclipses of Jupiter's moon Io, while Jean-Dominique Cassini in Paris carried out the same observations. In 1673 Picard moved to the Paris Observatory where he collaborated with Jean Richer, Jean-Dominique Cassini and, slightly later, with La Hire. Römer also went to the Paris Observatory following the visit to Hven Island and, with Picard, continued to observe the moons of Jupiter. It was from the data that Picard and Römer collected that Römer was able to calculate the speed of light by noting the discrepancies in the timings of the eclipses due to the time light takes to travel to the Earth. We should also mention another significant discovery by Picard, namely his discovery of barometric light in 1675. This is the luminous glow which is seen in the vacuum above the mercury in a barometer when the tube is shaken. This discovery prompted Newton to make studies which led to spectrometry.
Picard was also involved with the measurement of the length of the second pendulum. Finding that the length was not constant led to the first proof that the Earth was not a perfect sphere but was flattened at the poles. Also at the Paris Observatory, Picard was involved with measuring the parallax of Mars. This was important since an accurate value would give the scale of the solar system. The value Picard, working with Jean-Dominique Cassini, and Jean Richer, deduced for the distance from the Earth to the sun underestimates the true value by 8.5%. Also at the Paris Observatory, Picard tried to measure the parallax of nearby stars and so verify the fact that the Earth orbits the sun. In 1680 he found the first certifiable variation but at this time aberration was not understood, so he cannot be credited with the discovery of the first stellar parallax (see for further details).
Among Picard's other skills were hydraulics, a topic on which he wrote but also one where he put his skills into practice. He solved the problem of supplying the fountains at Versailles with water. Albert van Helden writes :-
The many ponds and fountains of Versailles needed a copious supply of water, and the palace was not well situated in this respect. Prodigious engineering efforts went into the solutions to this problem, and Picard's new levelling instruments with telescopic sights helped determine routes and avoided costly errors.
Picard corresponded with many of the leading scientists of his time including Bartholin, Hevelius, Hudde and Huygens. He published the first Connaissance des temps for the year 1679 and continued to produce the annual work for the following four years. It has been published continuously since then. However, his astronomical observations were not published in his lifetime. In fact it was 60 years after his death before they were published by Pierre-Charles Le Monnier. Albert van Helden ends his review with this assessment of Picard :-
... it is now evident just how much modern precision measuring owes to this quiet, unassuming man who stayed out of the limelight.
Article by: J J O'Connor and E F Robertson | <urn:uuid:0f14f91f-7860-4263-abe6-53623bf98d00> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www-history.mcs.st-and.ac.uk/Printonly/Picard_Jean.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.98351 | 2,283 | 3.109375 | 3 |
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Healing with Fire
This manual is the first of its kind to focus on the Tibetan technique of moxibustion, an external therapy that uses the power of heat to stimulate a curative effect. A widespread form of traditional healing in the East, moxibustion is one of the most ancient medical therapies known to humanity. Mainly popularized as a branch of Chinese medicine, moxibustion was originally practiced in Shang Shung, a kingdom predating Tibet whose existence can be traced back at least four thousand years. Healing with Fire is a comprehensive compendium of the five hundred most important and effective moxibustion points in the Tibetan and Shang Shung system, with an emphasis on practical instructions for readers with varying levels of expertise in the healing arts. The book is the culmination of decades of painstaking research by Professor Choegyal Namkhai Norbu, a foremost scholar of Tibetan culture and philosophy, who, inspired by his personal experience of this unique and effective treatment method, has gathered knowledge from ancient scriptures ranging from the well-known Four Medical Tantras to recondite manuscripts found in the caves of Tun-Huang. The book features twenty-five original drawings illustrating the positions of the individual points, as well as an index of indications to facilitate the identification of points for the treatment of specific medical conditions. It includes an appendix that discusses arcane astrological factors frequently taken into consideration in Tibetan traditional medicine. | <urn:uuid:d894feae-1577-47f0-8d50-458ed96303a4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.shangshungstore.org/index.php?l=product_detail&p=424 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.912851 | 430 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Patiently waiting in a 100-deep line to board buses at the Erato Street cruise terminal Saturday, Mike and Rhonda Howard of Anniston, Ala., found themselves among the latest victims of a Mississippi River oil spill that has disrupted national commerce, local drinking water supplies and summer vacation plans for thousands of cruise-goers.
Like the 100-plus ships and barges that have idled in the river since Wednesday's spill, the Howards were stranded without warning. They flew to New Orleans on Friday, only to be told they would be bused back to their home state to launch the five-day journey to the Yucatan from Mobile.
"We left Alabama to go back to Alabama," Rhonda Howard said.
Whether their ship will return to New Orleans on Thursday is largely up to the Coast Guard, which continued Saturday to slowly increase access to the 100-mile portion of the Mississippi River closed after Wednesday's early-morning collision between a tanker and a barge containing more than 400,000 gallons of a thick industrial oil.
Cleanup crews reported progress in mopping up the oil, though only about 10 percent has been collected so far and the barge continues to leak more oil.
Officials admit that some of the oil will reach environmentally sensitive areas as it travels farther south toward the marshes and waterways of the river's delta.
"Sometimes in the marsh we'll have to leave some oil because it's the best thing to do," said Roland Guidry, who heads the Louisiana oil spill coordinator's office. "If you go into the marsh and destroy the marsh, then you've lost the battle."
Wildlife conservation officials said they have received reports of 67 oil-coated birds, mostly egrets, plus two beavers and a muskrat. So far, though, crews have captured only a single dove.
"The ones that have a lot of energy are tough to catch, even if they're flightless," said Buddy Goatcher, a contaminant specialist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Ship traffic picks up
Fifty vessels were allowed to move inside the spill zone Saturday, up from only four Friday, and Coast Guard Capt. Lincoln Stroh said a maritime recovery unit is working with shipping industry officials to allow additional travel during the next few days.
Two cleaning stations have been set up for ships leaving the spill zone, one at New Orleans and the other near the mouth of the river. As of Saturday afternoon, three ships had been allowed to pass into the Gulf of Mexico, and another was able to leave the zone's northern end.
Another 10 ships were cleared to leave the zone once they are cleaned.
The first boat to be released north of the closed zone had to wait 12 hours to be cleaned, but Stroh said crews will become more efficient in coming days.
At the north end of the spill zone Saturday, four boats outfitted with pressure washers chipped away at chunks of oil on the Saamis Adventurer, in line to be just the second ship to venture north of New Orleans since Wednesday.
The Coast Guard on Saturday also allowed a ship to enter the contaminated section of the river from the Gulf of Mexico. The "litmus test ship" will be inspected at the Uptown station to help officials gauge how polluted the waterway really is, Stroh said.
A Coast Guard utility boat rumbled upriver Saturday morning, giving those on board a full panorama of the aftermath of Wednesday's spill.
Hundreds of feet of tar-covered orange containment rings, or "booms," lined the docks alongside the Riverwalk and the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. "Skimmers," specialized oil moppers that resemble industrial shrimp boats, circled the shoreline.
Where the skimmers can't reach, such as the pilings below the Riverwalk, scores of multicolored "pom-poms" tied to the wharf leached up the greasy mess beneath.
The Coast Guard boat motored over to the West Bank near Gretna, where two oil supply boats marooned since Wednesday waited for permission to move north.
Heading back downriver, the Coast Guard boat skirted past the marooned barge still nestled against the Crescent City Connection.
Thick chunks of the No.¤6 fuel oil can still be seen on the river near downtown New Orleans, but most of it has dispersed into a translucent sheen that coats the surface, with much of the oil now collected in pockets along the river's banks.
American Commercial Lines, the owner of the barge, has so far fronted nearly all the cleanup costs as the "responsible party" for the accident. Ultimately, whichever boat is found liable will have to work out the expenses under a "polluter pays" system established after the catastrophic 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill.
Even under that system, companies are liable for only a certain amount of damage. After that, the government can tap into the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund, a $2.7 billion pot of money generated primarily by taxes on oil.
The tanker ship Tintomara, largely undamaged by the collision, is managed by Laurin Maritime of Houston. DRD Towing Inc. of Harvey was operating the tugboat attached to the barge, but Coast Guard records show that American Commercial Lines owns the tugboat as well as the barge that spilled the oil.
David Parker, a spokesman for American Commercial, said Saturday that any comment on liability would be "speculative" until the Coast Guard completes its investigation.
He said there is no estimate for the cost of a full cleanup. "Our insurance carriers have allowed us to continue with this," he said.
The average cleanup cost for a spill involving a comparable tanker barge is about $23 million, according to a Government Accountability Office report released last year in the wake of an oil spill in San Francisco Bay.
All of the operators aboard the tugboat lacked proper licenses, but the Coast Guard has released few other details about its investigation into the collision. Stroh said the Coast Guard will release audio footage in the next few days that will shed light on what happened.
Chris Kirkham can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.org or 504.826.3786. | <urn:uuid:3cb2df1f-794c-4ef8-a315-d645ebedb15d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nola.com/news/index.ssf/2008/07/river_opens_a_little_wider_as.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963502 | 1,301 | 1.65625 | 2 |
I found this somewhere on the web and thought it was well worth pondering together (does anyone forget where they found content? ). In the quotations below, pastor Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill Church (Seattle, Washington) defines what he sees as the difference between a “load” and a “burden” that we carry in our personal lives:
A “load” is a light enough pack that someone should be expected to carry it alone. Practically, this means that the typical person needs to find a job, pay their bills, read the Bible, attend church, pursue Christian friends, pray, repent of sin, share their faith, watch their diet, exercise, and look after themselves and their spouse and children if applicable.
A “burden” is a heavy load that is simply too much for one person to bear without the loving help of Christian friends. Practically, the person with cancer or another debilitating ailment, the mother of young children who is abandoned by her husband, the poor elderly widow who cannot pay her bills, and others like them should not feel guilty for seeking reasonable help nor should they be chastised for doing so. Rather, the church exists in part to help lessen their burden by taking some of the financial, emotional, and practical weight out of their pack and carrying it for them.
He goes on to suggest a helpful practice for ministry:
One key to ministry is discerning what is a load someone else has to carry (in which case we show concern) and what is a burden we and others need to help carry (in which case we take some responsibility).
He concludes with a nice exhortation to not extract too much from our church leaders and thus become part of their pastoral “burden”:
Are you someone who is expecting too much time, energy, money, and/or investment from the leaders in your church? Which loads do you need to just buck up and carry without whining until someone else does your job? Have you manipulated others’ concern for your load to get them to take on your responsibilities as their burden in the name of loving Christian community?
This is a nice piece, and these are sound words. I was challenged by it to do all I can not to be a burden to my pastors. It can behoove all of us, I think, to reflect on how we can serve our churches rather than primarily asking them to serve us and our personal desires.
Exhortation like that of Driscoll, of course, can do much to create a culture in which the leaders love the people, the people love the leaders, and each group seeks to outdo the other in serving one another in the name of Christ.
(Photo: Adrian Schoonmaker) | <urn:uuid:a8098174-f498-4580-b1c5-9afa1758bf62> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtlife/2009/09/wise-words-from-mark-driscoll-on-loads-and-burdens/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00069-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973709 | 571 | 1.679688 | 2 |
Hollande wished Sargsyan and the Armenian people happiness, prosperity and good luck.
Armenia may be proud of the way it passed since independence. It succeeded in progressing as a democratic and prosperous country at the same time reinforcing its role in the international arena.
Special relations between Armenia and France are deeply anchored in history and are marked by friendship between the French and the Armenian people.
Hollande also welcomed Sargsyan’s desire to continue the Karabakh peace talks stressing that France, as an OSCE Minsk Group co-chairing state, is attaching importance to the peace process. | <urn:uuid:f726d6f2-93ad-4968-96a5-8993889874d1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.news.az/articles/armenia/68688 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943521 | 128 | 1.734375 | 2 |
One of Washington's major wildfires is expected to be contained this week, but gusty winds may threaten fire lines.
Firefighters expect to have the Table Mountain Wildfire burning north of Ellensburg contained by Friday. The fire has grown to 40,738 acres and is 70 percent contained.
The Wenatchee Complex of wildfires, burning close to the Table Mountain fire, has grown to 55,234 acres. It is a little more than half contained.
A Red Flag Warning was issued for the area on Tuesday. From the Cascade Mountains to the Idaho Panhandle, forecasters expect humidity to drop and wind gusts to reach as high as 40 mph.
Fire officials will provide the public with an update on the Table Mountain fire at a meeting Tuesday evening. The meeting will be held at the Central Washington University Student Union Recreation Center, room 202 at 6:30 p.m.
Both the Table Mountain fire and Wenatchee Complex were started by a lightning storm on September 8. | <urn:uuid:1074bed2-f33f-4a0e-b131-124763a1ba85> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.krem.com/news/wildfire/172369761.html?ref=next | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950008 | 202 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Research at the CI2 Studio
The CI2 Studio is focused on innovation and fostering the development of Creative Intelligence in the individual and the group. The studio is a space that provides project driven interdisciplinary experiential learning through collaboration. Faculty and students from all disciplines work together to pursue creative or entrepreneurial projects that address the needs of a Creative Economy. The CI2 Studio recognizes the importance of bringing together the intellectual core of many disciplines to create new technology centric creative expressions, products and or services while also solving real world problems.
Faculty and students work together in an open creative environment to conceive and develop research ideas that can lead to new projects with potential for commercialization. The focus in the lab is in creativity, discovery, sharing knowledge and collaboration.
If you have an idea, or would like offer your talents and abilities to work with others, then contact us and see if the CI2 is the place for you innovate and get creative. The application process is simple, if you are a USM student then download the PDF and follow the instructions provided, USM faculty please contact Raphael Diluzio directly.
The CI2 Studio provides physical workspace, a range of equipment and a mix of knowledge and skills from a cross section of USM’s faculty and students. There is also limited funding each year to help get a few of the best projects started and we will also help you find and apply for grants and other funding sources.
Current projects underway in the CI2 Studio are:
Raphael Speaks on Creativity at TEDx Dirigo In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations) | <urn:uuid:8a10c077-d01a-4db4-aeeb-fdf8c400e17e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://usm.maine.edu/ci2/research | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00073-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931184 | 423 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Do you eat food?
The "Films For Thought" films series will screen Fresh in Hopwood Auditorium at 6 p.m. Tuesday as part of LC's Year of Sustainability. A discussion will follow.
In this documentary, the latest in what might be called the what's-the-matter-with-corn-syrup genre, Ana Sofia Joanes provides a brisk indictment of industrial farming and its devastating toll on our soil, health, and livestock.
Making her argument are those committed to bucking the system -- farmers, beekeepers, lawyers, and retailers with alternative visions. Though the horror stories are here -- like the hog farmer who exterminated his entire herd after contracting an antibiotic-resistant infection from one of his animals -- the film is more folksy in tone than the recently shown Food, Inc. and more focused on practical solutions. | <urn:uuid:ce9d3474-7677-4565-8247-bda8e7dce721> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.lynchburg.edu/content/do-you-eat-food | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00072-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949279 | 178 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Lake County is named after Clear Lake, around which most Lake County real estate make their Sonoma County homes. The county seat of Lakeport sits on the western side of the lake, while Clearlake, the largest city in the region, is directly south of the lake. Communities in the area include Blue Lakes, Clearlake Oaks, Clearlake Park, Cobb, Finley, Glenhaven, Hidden Valley Lake, Kelseyville, Loch Lomond, Lower Lake, Lucerne, Middletown, Nice, Spring Valley, Upper Lake and Witter Springs. Clear Lake is the largest natural body of water entirely in California, and offers all the advantages of lakeside living. From the spring to early fall, Clear Lake homes enjoy the warm weather and swimming, sailing, waterskiing and boating on the lake, while fishing remains popular throughout the year. Clear Lake is known as the Bass Capital of the West, and a number of fishing tournaments are held there every year. The Clear Lake basin attracts large quantities of waterfowl, making it an ideal area for nature enthusiasts. Lake County properties run the gamut from posh vacation homes and sprawling mansions running along the water to more affordable single-family-style houses and a few apartments mixed in. | <urn:uuid:2e32c240-2ae2-42f6-aa54-0033c8e81606> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.sothebyshomes.com/Monterey-Real-Estate/areas/clear-lake-real-estate | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945846 | 257 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Places to find places of interest near your current location.
Google Maps to search common places that you would want to find, such as the nearest gas station or ATM kiosk.
Important: Before using
Places, you need to enable location sources.
From the Home screen, tap
Tap the type of place you want to search, or tap
to enter what you're looking for.
When several places are found, the search results appear as a list.
Map view to see where these places are on the map.
- From the search results list, tap a place to view more information. | <urn:uuid:a5d72f70-a278-499e-b794-918b0e84c536> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.htc.com/vn/support/howto.aspx?p_id=449&id=198126&p_name=htc-desire-c | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.932691 | 126 | 1.789063 | 2 |
Plant of the Week
Range map of red maids. States are colored green where the species may be found.
Red maids in rocky, sandy soil. Photo courtesy Sierra National Forest.
Red Maids (Calandrinia ciliata (Ruiz & Pavón) DC.)
By Forest Jay Gauna
Red Maids (or, more technically, "fringed redmaids") are a wonderfully edible plant, and quite beautiful as well. This plant has a wide distribution; it received its Latin name from Spanish botanists on a late 18th century expedition to Peru and Chile. The common name refers to the bright red flowers, which (to an 18th century European mind) are like beautiful, delicate maids. The official USDA common name, which adds a translation of the Latin specific epithet, rather kills the symbolism.
The PLANTS map shows that this is mainly a Pacific coast plant. There appears to be an amazingly disjunct population occurring in Massachusetts, however.
Red maids belongs to the Portulacaceae, or Purslane family; other family members include bitterroot (Lewisia, with beautiful flowers), miner’s lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata, an edible plant), and purslane (Portulaca, a common weed). One may find it in sandy or loamy soils, in grasslands or disturbed areas. It is a spreading annual plant, with linear flat leaves, alternately arranged. The flower petals are crimson red, with 5 petals notched at the end; the sepals beneath are often ciliated; the stamens above are white filaments terminating in bright yellow-orange anthers. The fruit is a thin, papery capsule with 3 slits for opening. Each capsule contains 10-20 seeds, which are small, flattish and black (1-2½ mm long). One author of the early 20th century says that they resemble grains of gunpowder, if that is helpful.
The leaves, especially the young leaves and young shoots, may be eaten fresh, although due to their content of oxalic acid, should be eaten sparingly. Other plants with oxalic acid include spinach and woodsorrel (Oxalis spp.); cooking helps to reduce the amount of this compound. Cattle enjoy grazing this plant and are seemingly undisturbed by the oxalic acid.
The major food use of this plant is for the black, oil-rich seed. This plant constituted a major part of the diet to many, especially the Indians of southern California. This fire-following species was a motivation for some native peoples to periodically set grasslands on fire. The seed was collected, winnowed, toasted, and ground into pinole (a Spanish term for pulverised, parched, oily seeds). When something is metaphorically shattered or pulverised, a common Mexican expression says that it was turned into pinole. Pinole can be further prepared into cakes. Small wildlife such as birds, insects, and little mammals also enjoy a meal of C. ciliata seeds. Besides it being used for food, this plant is also planted as an ornamental in gardens.
For More Information: PLANTS Profile - Calandrinia ciliata, Red Maids | <urn:uuid:4d778e4c-e644-4852-9ba3-91441b9f5386> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/calandrinia_ciliata.shtml | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945349 | 680 | 3.171875 | 3 |
High-flying U.S. grains prices could sink as much as 19 percent by year-end from their drought-fueled peaks, a Reuters poll showed, a decline that could temper expected inflation for a variety of food ranging from meats to cereals to cooking oil.
The poll of nine analysts showed that prices for grains will keep climbing over the next two months to fresh highs, then taper off after the U.S. harvest, and as traders turn their attention to crops in the southern hemisphere and preparations to plant crops anew in the United States for harvest next year.
Prices at the end of the year, however, will remain historically high, with Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) spot corn futures seen at $6.91 per bushel, the highest ever for that time of the year. But it will be off 17 percent from its current all-time high of $8.28-3/4 set on July 20. The poll showed that corn futures are seen peaking at $8.87 in early August.
Investment bank Goldman Sachs on Monday raised its forecast for corn prices to soar to a record high $9 per bushel in three months, and for soybeans to hit $20 after cutting the yield estimates for both crops. It pegged the wheat price at $9.80.
"The importance of the current U.S. drought for the global crop outlooks is magnified by detrimental weather conditions in other key world production and exporting nations in 2012."
On Monday, CBOT corn, soybean and wheat prices tumbled due to forecasts for rain in some of the parched areas of the northern U.S. Midwest and as concerns over Europe's debt crisis sparked a sell-off in equities and other commodities.
The Reuters poll showed that CBOT soybean futures were seen ending the year at $15.40 per bushel, the highest ever at that time of year but off 13 percent from its all-time high of $17.77-3/4. It showed the price peaking at $18.04 per bushel.
Chicago wheat is forecast to end the year at $7.72 per bushel, down 19 percent from its peak of $9.52-3/4, the highest in nearly four years. The analysts were expected the price to peak at $10.01 per bushel in late August.
Corn and soybean futures set all-time highs last week as the worst drought in 56 years withered crops in the world's largest grains exporter, sparking worry about a food crisis like the one in 2008, when food shortages sparked riots in 30 countries.
Ricky Volpe, research economist at the Economic Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture said higher food prices this time around will not be comparable to 2008.
"None of the dynamics and indicators are approaching that for 2008," he said, adding that the food price increases in 2008 were the highest in 20 years.
He said major differences include much lower crude oil prices this time around, and lower wheat prices too.
In 2008, crude oil prices hit an all-time high above $147 per barrel. There was also a severe shortage of rice in Asia, which was a major factor behind the civil unrest that year.
RALLY ADDS $30 BILLION TO FOOD COSTS
While wheat prices remain well below all-time highs above $13 per bushel set in 2008, they have soared 55 percent in just over a month in tandem with corn and soybeans.
Economist Bill Lapp of Advance Economic Solutions in Omaha, Nebraska, said the price rally has so far added about $30 billion to food costs that may be passed on to consumers.
"There is a cumulative $30 billion cost bubble due to the rise in prices for corn, soybeans, soymeal and others," said Lapp, whose clients include food companies and restaurants.
Analysts said that while some of the higher food prices will come later this year, the bulk of the gains could come in 2013 as it usually takes several months for food companies to run down their inventories before restocking with fresh supplies.
The analysts said some companies might have been caught flat-footed by the surge in grains prices since just a month ago the United States was seen heading for bumper crops after one of the mildest winters provided perfect planting conditions.
As the United States is the world's largest exporter of corn, soybeans and wheat, food inflation could also be exported to importing countries, especially in Asia.
The drought in the United States has been more critical for soybeans, which are used to feed livestock, produce biodiesel, make cooking oil and in some countries like Indonesia eaten as a protein-rich snack, because global production was slashed by a drought in leading growers Brazil and Argentina.
The two South American countries -- the second and third largest soybean exporters -- will plant their next crop this fall and begin exporting early next year.
Some analysts, however, are expecting any food crisis this time around to be worse than in 2008 when riots broke out in 30 countries and helped spark the "Arab Spring" that toppled the leaders of Tunisia, Libya and Egypt last year.
"It could be more severe than in 2008," said Dennis Gartman, a commodities trader and editor/publisher of The Gartman Letter.
He said cereal makers were likely to raise prices even though "the cardboard box containing the cereals is far more expensive than the grain."
Abdolreza Abbassian, senior economist and grain expert at the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization, told Reuters in Milan that while rising grain prices were a cause for concern it was too early to be referred as a food crisis. (Additional reporting by Sam Nelson, and Mark Weinraub; Editing by David Gregorio) | <urn:uuid:16cdf249-4d86-485d-8e31-b58097971f72> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dairyherd.com/dairy-news/US-grain-prices-seen-easing-tempering-food-inflation-163402226.html?source=related | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967569 | 1,201 | 1.710938 | 2 |
May 25, 2013 Sections
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Barry Prentice has been telling everyone who will listen for more than 10 years that there is a future for lighter-than-air airships, especially for heavy cargo transportation and especially in Canada's North.
One person who Prentice convinced was Dale George, a pilot, airship enthusiast and the industrial designer who invented, among other things, the plastic playground slide more then 25 years ago.
Last week George, a graduate of Georgian College in Barrie, Ont., was named a winner of the prestigious Premier's Award for Ontario College Graduates, along with five others.
A year and a half ago, George moved to Manitoba and joined Prentice in forming Buoyant Aircraft Systems International, a company that intends to design and hopefully build large LTA airships and help solve the infrastructure deficit in Northern Canada.
"My natural talents is finding ways to improve products or come up with brand new ones," George said. "I have always been interested in airships. Barry and I knew of each other but we'd never met and I never thought we would be in business. He is a professor and I am an entrepreneur."
Prentice is thrilled George agreed to join him in his visionary pursuit.
"It's amazing that he won such a prestigious award," Prentice said. "It was also amazing that he agreed to come to Manitoba to design airships. What will really be amazing is if I can convince him to stay."
Prentice decided to form Buoyant Aircraft Systems and try to build his own airship after spending about a decade unsuccessfully trying to attract a manufacturer to Manitoba.
He had started a non-profit group called ISO Polar in 2005 as an airship research institute to do economic and engineering studies, co-ordinate demonstrations and facilitate tests and other activities.
But he found that as a non-profit, there were certain funding opportunities he was unable to go after.
That is not to say his for-profit company is flush with cash. The opposite is more accurate. But the two partners believe a demonstration of their rigid-framed concept will eventually attract funding to take it to the next level.
The firm owns three other small airships and while putting the rigid design concept together, the company can conduct various services for third-party customers using its smaller airships.
Prentice is frustrated at the lack of support he has received from local government, but he takes solace that over the last two years, about $1 billion has been spent on developing airships by various branches of the U.S. military
"One day this will be so commonplace people will not even look up," Prentice said. "It may not be in my lifetime but I see this industry grow continuously once it starts."
Their enthusiasm is particularly strong these days because a California company called Aeros is getting ready to fly the first rigid-design airship in 75 years.
George's design model that is currently being developed is for an aluminum-skinned airship about 200 metres long (perhaps as big as 400 metres) that could lift 50 to 60 tonnes of cargo and maybe up to 80 tonnes with gas cells enclosed inside, electric engines and safety equipment on board.
"I'm going to make a 100-foot model," said George. "People will see it and then Google or someone like that will say they want to fund that to the next round. This will do what Dr. Barry Prentice has talked about for 20 years."
One of the first things they will need to invest in with that first round of funding will be a hangar big enough to build the massive vehicles they have in mind.
Prentice is committed to the idea of using airships as a way to enhance development in Canada's North and as such, all the design work factors in cold-weather operating conditions.
"I believe we are ahead of the competition when it comes to cold weather operation," Prentice said.
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition December 5, 2012 B5 | <urn:uuid:4c3a8f9c-78ea-48d5-8450-5ee7076c99f8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/partnership-aiming-for-airship-development-182139451.html?device=mobile | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00068-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978965 | 831 | 2.125 | 2 |
|Pretoro, Chieti, Abruzzo|
The first great find of the day was stumbling across the Il Grande Faggio environmental centre in Pretoro as we were looking for the path up to the E2 trail into the Majella. What a great centre! Full of loads of information on the Majella, il Grande Faggio (the Great Beech Tree) is an agency for sustainable development that aims to share the environmental intricacies of the Majella National Park, as well as the ancient traditions of its people, with schools, groups and families. We were shown around and given a real insight into the work of the centre. They offer laboratory eduction into the rich biodiversity of the area, take hiking excursions into the mountains, as well as organising volunteer work within the Majella. A fabulous centre for the discovery of nature, history and the culture of the Majella.
We were given loads of advice on the tracks and trails of the area, and pointed in the right direction for the E2 that we were looking for. We found it easily, and what a treat we had, despite getting absolutely drenched!
We followed the E2, E1 and the Valle del Foro until the cold and wet forced our retreat.
|Pointing the way...|
|...to the Valle del Foro|
|So much water...|
|...tumbling down, and down |
from the melting snows of Passo Lanciano
We came across ancient, abandoned mills...
|...with enticing entrances|
|...nooks and crannies|
|...and scary deep drop wells still showing the marks |
of rope pulleys worn smooth into the rock
And even a climbing centre project, started but long forgotten. We couldn't believe it! Here in front of us, two climbers, was an amphitheatre of fabulous climbing and even an artificial climbing tower! It was clearly the child of someone's passion and funding, but never completed. Why??? Maybe too unstable? How tragic.
|Such a beautiful wall|
|...there's an old sign that explains it, but my very poor Italian failed me.|
I don't understand :(
But our disappointment was quickly dispelled.
|There was so much choice, so many paths to take...|
|...and fun to be had|
Despite the cold and the wet, this was a beautiful area, just launching into spring. The flowers were stunning. Never, ever have we seen woodland flowers like it.
|...and the primroses! Carpets and carpets of them|
|...even these teeny weeny sunflowers, a little bedraggled, |
but still managing to bloom and wave and smile
We weren't the only visitors either...
|Boy, did I jump when I saw this little chap!| | <urn:uuid:14b312ce-71bf-498d-bc48-92e0a15880d2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://kokopelli-italy.blogspot.com/2012_04_01_archive.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956803 | 598 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Residents who want to be ready the next time a disaster like the December windstorm hits will get some help from the City of Bellevue. The Fire Department's Emergency Preparedness Division will discuss the Strengthening Preparedness Among Neighbors (SPAN) program tonight, March 14, in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 7 to 8:30 p.m.
The Dec. 14 windstorm was a natural disaster of historic proportions, which caused extensive damage to Puget Sound Energy’s electric system and widespread power outages. In fact, most disasters are weather-related, and Washington has more risk for natural disasters than any other state. The focus of SPAN is neighbors collectively organizing to be ready to take care of themselves and each other after a disaster.
Parking is limited, and you may want to carpool. Since this is an after-hours event, enter the visitors parking garage from 110th Avenue Northeast and pull a ticket to gain entry. The exit gate will be open when you leave.
Return to News Release Index | <urn:uuid:9f5d09a6-30ee-4e41-9ffa-2cbb6b674d77> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bellevuewa.gov/span_class_3-14_news_release.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950796 | 215 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Steamboat Springs For the past five years, forest officials have been discovering that suppressing fires on public lands allows dead trees and dry underbrush to pile up to dangerous levels.
With that in mind, the U.S. Forest Service has been given money to pay for efforts to reduce those fuel loads on public lands that butt up against urban areas. Locally, it will mean cleaning up primarily by burning 2,732 acres around Steamboat Springs and 2,177 acres near Stagecoach. Areas that also need fuel reduction have been identified near Gould and Kremmling as well.
The actual work won't happen for another year or so, which will be none too soon for local forest officials.
For much of the country, the doctrine of putting out and in effect, postponing fires ended last summer when 7 million acres of public and private land in the United States burned, Forest Service spokeswoman Diann Pipher said. In Colorado, Mesa Verde National Park was scorched in a massive wildfire.
A primary reason the blazes got out of control and burned so much land was all that fuel that had built up under the trees thanks to suppression efforts, explained Forest Service fire suppression team leader Andy Cadenhead.
Downed timber, for example, has increased through the years. And when a fire starts in an area where there is plenty of toppled trees, it can quickly build to an intense blaze that hops from treetop to treetop and is difficult to put out.
"The conditions in which that could happen is pretty random," Forest Service fuels specialist Glenn Webb said. "It could take 50 years. But the one time it does happen, it could be pretty critical."
Through the $1.8 billion National Fire Plan, a recently funded mandate from the U.S. Congress, the Medicine Bow/Routt National Forest received an initial $400,000 to plan fuel-reduction efforts.
"We've been told to expect to see this kind of funding for five years," Cadenhead said.
After that, the Forest Service is expected to continue receiving smaller amounts of funding for another five years to do fuel reduction.
Pipher said fuel-reduction efforts will include controlled burns, thinning, mowing brush or removing younger trees in a mature tree stand. Officials will decide which technique will be most effective in each area.
Around Steamboat, which is being called the "Dry Lake Analysis Area," the land that will be cleaned up runs from the north side of the Steamboat Ski Area, through Buffalo Pass and stretching west toward Elk River Road through Copper Ridge. In Stagecoach, the area is near Morrison Creek.
Controlled burning is likely to be the main technique used to reduce fuels, Cadenhead said.
"Smoke management will be a real issue," he said.
All that burning near urban areas and near wilderness areas, where air quality standards are strict will create smoke that will be a challenge for the Forest Service to deal with, Cadenhead admitted.
That is why intense controlled burns are not for certain. In the next year, forest officials will determine the best plan to reduce fuels and then begin implementing it, probably in April 2002.
In the meantime, the Forest Service will hold public meetings to inform people of the National Fire Plan and the planned fuel reductions. | <urn:uuid:4b9e9045-d3ed-4afd-947f-c1f8a9c01991> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.steamboattoday.com/news/2001/jan/28/agency_planning_burns/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00049-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959532 | 685 | 2.859375 | 3 |
Listed below are all of the accredited schools in Alabama that offer Health Administration degree programs.go to school listings
Across the country, there is a shortage of health care administrators and managers. Alabama is experiencing this shortage as well. The need for administrators is particularly strong in rural areas.
Health Admin Education in Alabama
Most people employed as medical and health services managers and administrators possess a master’s degree regardless of the state in which they’re employed. A minimum of a bachelor’s degree is required in all states. Additionally, you must pass a licensing exam and complete a state-approved training program. Financial aid programs in Alabama include the Junior and Community College Athletic Scholarship Program, the Alabama Student Grant Program, and the Alabama Student Assistance Program.
Outlook for Health Admin Careers in Alabama
Job growth in the health care sector in Alabama is expected to increase steadily over the next 10 years. Currently, you can expect to make an average annual salary of $89,420 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2010 data), depending on your level of education and experience. | <urn:uuid:98ee4acc-1391-46aa-b49a-4f5684bfe23d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.healthadministrationdegrees.com/states/alabama/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947301 | 220 | 1.695313 | 2 |
By Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm:
It is Halloween time again, and everyone who is a kid or young enough to party like a kid, is preparing their temporary identity for the night: a pirate, a witch, a vampire. This year, apparently, the trending looks are less traditional, including "Angry Birds" and costumes for this year's angriest bird of all, Big Bird, are flying off the shelves. Of course, the idea of temporary identity, of being something else for a short period of time, isn't limited to October 31st. It is something that sets the stage for human communication in every context. In different situations, we adopt different personas. There is overlap, of course, but when you think about it, there are probably some pretty clear distinctions between the "work-you," "friends-you," and "family-you."
There is also a "juror-you." That is, there are differences between the identity a juror assumes during trial and the identities that person may hold in any of their other life contexts. While we might think of attitudes and personalities as something fixed and immutable -- something that a person "has" -- it is more accurate to see them as highly changeable and sensitive to the situation -- something that a person "does," and does differently in different contexts. We've raised the issue previously of jurors being in different "decisional mindsets" at different stages in the trial. In this post, I'd like to take that point a little further and discuss ways to get jurors into a preferred role or identity during trial. I'll be choosing two early moments in trial, voir dire and opening statement, where a juror's understanding of her role can be critical, and providing suggested language on ways to encourage and adapt to a juror's temporary identity at that stage.
I got to thinking about the importance of a juror's temporary identify after reading a recent piece by Maggie Koerth-Baker in The New York Times Magazine. In that essay, "The Mind of a Flip-Flopper," she explores the idea of changing minds, initially in the political "Romney-Obama" sense of revising political positions, but then ranges into a diverse body of research on how we decide and redecide. Much of it, she writes, has to do with flexibility in identities: "Our identities, of course, are also stories we tell ourselves about ourselves. In some cases -- if we want to think of ourselves as thoughtful and open-minded -- we can adopt identities that actually encourage flip-flopping." Drawing a parallel to juries, she also draws from research on an unusual setting for deliberation known as the Oregon Citizens Initiative Review. As part of the state's "Healthy Democracy" program, Oregon addresses popular ballot initiatives by pulling together "a panel of randomly-selected and demographically-balanced voters," who then hear from the campaigns for and against the measure prior to drafting a "Citizen's Statement" that is published in the voters' guide: a kind of mini-verdict from an unbiased group that has looked closely at the measure.
If that sounds a little like a jury, it is meant to. Like a jury, it can sometimes lead to decisions one wouldn't expect from looking at popular attitudes alone. Koerth-Baker quotes Penn State professor John Gastil who shared the example of Oregon Measure 73 focusing on mandatory sentencing. To those who gave it only a little thought -- the majority of the population -- the idea of strict and fixed criminal sentences held widespread appeal. To the panel, though, the negative consequences far outweighed the positives and the panel voted 21 to 3 to oppose it. According to Gastil, that finding played an important role: "You got a shift from two-thirds in favor to two-thirds against just by reading the report."
The point is that a working group can end up assuming an identity where "facts suddenly matter." A jury is such a group. Rather than simply importing and applying the baseline attitudes they brought in the courthouse door, those individuals who are selected become "jurors" and that role can mark them internally as surely as the sticky badge marks them externally. The trick for litigators is to adapt to and cultivate the best aspects of that special identity as you prepare and present your case.
Create and Speak to a Preferred Juror Identity...
Addressing the juror in their appropriate role matters in all phases of trial, but let me speak more specifically to two of the early stages.
During Voir Dire
During voir dire, especially attorney-conducted oral voir dire, attorneys have an early opportunity to put a frame around the venire members and help them see their activity and their statements in an appropriate light. That role is not to be "auditioning" for a part, and it is neither to be in a contest with the court or counsel. Rather, the identity you most want panelists to embrace is the identity of one who is openly and honestly sharing views in a context that makes those views critically important.
It is also not, at least from a juror's perspective, about admitting to something called "bias." By that name, bias is a bad thing that no panelist is comfortable admitting. Instead, voir dire is about the kinds of knowledge, attitudes and experiences that everyone has.
Here is one example of how counsel might appeal to a juror's temporary identity in voir dire:
My part in this process requires that I ask you some questions about your experiences and your views on several issues. It isn’t my goal to single you out or to embarrass you, but our jury trial system is based on the idea that cases need to be decided by people who have no strong attitudes at the start of the case that would influence how they understand and use the evidence. We all go through life forming opinions based on our experiences.That is normal. But it means that not every juror is right for every case. For example, I live in Denver and I'm a big football fan, and a big John Elway fan. So I wouldn’t be the right kind of juror for a case against the Denver Broncos. There isn't anything wrong with that, it just wouldn't be the case for me.
By framing the questions in that fashion, you can help a potential juror understand that admitting to a strongly-held attitude doesn't mean failing some kind of test, but instead means helping a worthwhile process.
During Opening Statement
After jury selection, the next opportunity to encourage jurors to embrace a particular identity is opening statement. That is typically the time when attorneys talk about how grateful they and their clients are that the jurors are sacrificing their time, how important jury service is, and how it is second only to military service in the good it does the country. That can be an important message, but the lesson for counsel is that a little goes a long way, and it is often a message that sounds best coming from a judge. Too much from an attorney, and it sounds like flattery and ingratiation.
The better message is to reinforce and empower jurors' identity. Tell them what they are there for. At the stage of opening statement, they are there to hear what the story is about. But they don't want to be in the passive role of an audience, or just consumers of information. And they also aren't there to be a judge of which attorney has the better persuasive skills. Instead, the opening is an ideal time to tell jurors that they are there in order to be active, to be investigators of the facts, to try and find answers. One way to introduce that role might be as follows:
As both sides begin this case, we are given the opportunity to speak to you directly. That is an opportunity we won't have while we are presenting the evidence. In fact, we won't have it again until closing argument. We aren't given this opportunity to provide an opening statement so that we can argue to you. We aren't given it so that we can tell you a story. And we aren't given it so that we can show off our persuasive skills. No, we are given this precious opportunity in order to help you in your role. To assist you in working with the testimony you are about to hear, to help you to be investigators. Because that is what you are. Not passive listeners, not critics, but active determiners of what is and is not factual in this case. To help you in that investigation, I want to share what I expect the evidence to show in this case.
That message can precede an opening that is strong, and an opening that does indeed tell a story while staying on the right side of the "argumentativeness" line. The most important theme is that the jury is in control: They're the ones reaching their own conclusions based on the evidence and facts, the arguments, and their own process.
Rather than being a mask or anything false, this temporary identity we are asking jurors to assume is something that helps your case as long as you take care in shaping it and in strategically appealing to it. If jurors see the verdict as their own unique product, they are empowered. If they see trial as merely a persuasive contest between two sides, however, they can easily see it as all trick and no treat.
Other Posts on Mindset and Persuasion:
- Play It Where It Lies: Throughout Trial, Match the Message to the Mindset
- Avoid Condescension and Other Sins of Legal Argument: Know Your 'Second Persona'
- Leverage the Persuasive Advantages of Beating Expectations
Photo Credit: Mags20_eb, Flickr Creative Commons | <urn:uuid:38472218-b3d7-4971-ba24-f87a248ed534> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.persuasivelitigator.com/2012/10/appeal-to-your-jurors-temporary-identity.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965869 | 2,001 | 2.09375 | 2 |
On June 6, 2002 Maryland’s Historic Wye Oak tree fell during a storm. This living tree was estimated to be 460 years old and was the largest white oak tree in the nation and possibly in the world! The Wye Oak was commonly thought to be “Maryland’s State Tree”, and in fact was the magnificent specimen that inspired the white oak species to be named Maryland’s official state tree in 1941.
Recognizing the profound historical significance of this tree and its importance to the citizens of Maryland, Governor Parris N. Glendening directed State agencies to work together to salvage as much of the tree as possible. The end goal is to ensure that future generations can continue to learn about its history and enjoy and appreciate its magnificent beauty and splendor by maximizing appropriate use of the tree material.
Every effort was made to salvage as much of the tree material as possible including leaves, twigs, bark, branches and the bole (i.e., trunk). Engineers were consulted during the salvaging efforts to ensure that whole pieces were dismantled and moved in as intact a form as possible to preserve options for use. All parts were taken to secure storage locations where they will remain until final decisions are made regarding use and disposition of the material. The only pieces of the tree that have been made available to the public to date are a limited number of leaves and small twigs that State personnel put in tubs for people to take when they came to view the fallen tree and witness the salvage efforts on site.
Governor Glendening asked Marylanders to submit creative ideas and suggestions on how to use the salvaged material from the Wye Oak. In response, 520 people submitted suggestions and ideas on what to do with the tree and the Wye Oak State Park. Material salvaged and available for use includes the main bole, tree branches, sawn boards, pressed leaves, dried leaves, twigs, “punky” (i.e. decaying) wood, bark, decaying leaves, and cable wire.
Governor Glendening created an interagency Wye Oak Advisory Committee to review public suggestions and develop a plan to memorialize the Wye Oak. Key findings and recommendations of the Committee include:
FINDING: Every part of the fallen Wye Oak tree, including bark, stems, leaves and decaying material, has value and can be used for education, research, display, artwork, and/or souvenirs.
FINDING: The tree has inherent education qualities.
- There should be at least one spectacular art piece and/or museum piece created which conveys the magnificence and splendor of the Wye Oak
- Some of the tree and products made from the tree should be available for official State use including: educational programs, research, public displays, certificates, awards, and commemorative items. The limited lumber milled from the branches should be commissioned for special pieces of furniture to be used in perpetuity in the State House such as a Governor’s desk, Bill Signing Table, or Governor’s Podium.
- Core samples should immediately be taken from the bole for investigative purposes
- The bole should be treated as soon as possible to protect it from damage from micro-organisms
- All material from the tree should be authenticated to protect the integrity and uniqueness of this project. To maintain authenticity:
- All material should be inventoried, photographed and catalogued
- Chain of custody records should continue to be kept for all material
- The official logos created for this project should be protected through trademark and/or copyright registration
- All products should have the official logo incorporated into them, and
- A certificate of authenticity should accompany all original material and products.
FINDING: Wye Oak State Park is an integral part of the local community.
- Education and outreach regarding the Wye Oak should occur via the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Forestry Education program. Other existing public outreach and education venues should also be used such as the State Fair; the DNR Website; production of an MPT program; and development of an education packet
- Additional education opportunities for the creation of in-school programs should be solicited through a Request For Expression of Interest (see below).
FINDING: The State does not have adequate resources to fund, staff, or manage this process.
- A permanent Wye Oak museum should be established in the existing buildings at the Wye Oak State Park
- The Wye Oak bicentennial seedling growing on site should be honored
- The existing Wye Oak stump should be enclosed for public observation
- A structure should be built which has a significant piece of the original Wye Oak incorporated into it so visitors can take pictures and perform ceremonies there.
FINDING: The public has an interest and would like to be involved in making recommendations regarding appropriate uses of the Wye Oak.
- The State should not manage the day-to-day implementation of this project. The State should partner with one entity to manage production and sale of products, creation of artwork and disposition of wood. The following process should be followed:
- The State should issue a Request For Expression of Interest (REOI) to formalize the solicitation and submission of ideas for uses of the Wye Oak material
- The expanded Wye Oak Advisory Committee (see below) should evaluate all proposals submitted via the REOI process along with ideas previously submitted by the public. The Committee should recommend appropriate and preferred uses of the material to be included in a request for proposals (RFP)
- The State should issue an RFP to solicit an entity to manage the project and implement the recommended uses of the materials.
- Project efforts should be funded via sale of original Wye Oak products. A licensing agreement should be negotiated with the entity selected to manage this project. The agreement should include royalty payment details and other financial conditions to ensure adequate compensation to the State
- Preferred items to produce for sale include jewelry, collectables, souvenirs, fine art objects, and limited edition pieces
- The revenues generated from the activities of the Wye Oak Commemoration Project should initially be placed in the State’s Forest or Park Reserve Fund. Upon review of the RFP, a decision should be made as to whether it would be most appropriate to pursue creation of a special fund, through submission of legislation in the FY2003 Maryland General Assembly, to account for revenues generated and expenditures incurred from the activities of the project
- Special requests for wood from the Wye Oak should be considered through the REOI process.
- The existing Wye Oak Advisory Committee should be expanded to include five additional members including representatives of the State Parks Advisory Commission, Forest Advisory Commission, business community, legislature, and local community (i.e., public)
- The expanded Wye Oak Advisory Committee should make final recommendations regarding disposition of the bole and preferred products to be crafted from the Wye Oak materials. The Committee’s recommendations should be incorporated into the RFP to clearly communicate to potential vendors what the State wants produced and delivered in the management of this project. | <urn:uuid:7d659496-de16-4553-81af-39a3138cc5a8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://dnr.maryland.gov/forests/publications/wyeoak/executivesummary.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943928 | 1,468 | 3.296875 | 3 |
A successful first chapter in most cases will be followed by a sequel but what is most expected is the third part to complete the trilogy.
However, what should be avoided is repeating yourself without betraying those believing in your sayings.
To do so, no matter how disturbing you may be for some people, the truth, although bitter, it must be said at all costs even if you have to go against all odds, as long as you have a clear conscience.
So, since we have so far observed the arena from the ring seats, it is about time we entered the battlefield and once entering the arena there is no going back, that is why we should be best prepared for the ‘traps’ and the fine details that make the difference between victory and failure.
That is why you should be very careful over the ‘battle’ you pick!
The last few years all the more students and parents ask for exams wholly based on multiple choice questions, turning their backs on those which require from candidates to put their knowledge into practice in writing.
For sure these exams apart from being more accessible and popular they are also reliably testing all four skills but what you should bear in mind is that just knowledge is not enough as they are based on psychometrics, where limited time in combination with tricky vocabulary or grammar items come to be confusing and rather difficult, while just choosing at random will, in most cases, be unsuccessful, so you’d better not under evaluate them in respect of difficulty.
In addition, producing an essay under limited time entails a lot of practice, while listening requires concentration; there is no turning back.
Finally, the fact that a candidate may fail a part and, consequently fail the whole exam, should be your prior concern since some of your students may be, by nature, weaker in one skill or they might just be in a bad frame of mind on the day of the exam and thus perform poorly in one part.
Once you choose exams testing all four skills, bear in mind that they are much more demanding in respect of knowledge of vocabulary, grammar, phrasal verbs and idioms.
However they allow more time. Listening is heard twice and above all students get an overall score, which means that failing a part does not mean failing the whole exam.
However, hard preparation and practice is needed and examinees should be self confident and very familiar with the content and format of these exams. Hopefully, past papers are there to help you test candidates’ abilities much better from an early stage.
In case you choose exams which do not directly test use of English or vocabulary but still assess all four skills, testing rules are hopefully the same but some may require passing all skills separately, while others may be based on a scenario approach; there again some students may feel less confident regarding vocabulary.
As for those requiring ‘mediation’ in the oral part, remember that this kind of oral testing may not be as easy as you may think.
In case you choose an exam in the form of a placement test, bear in mind that the material tested is highly demanding in respect of vocabulary. Audio scripts are heard once and time is extremely limited.
Finally, there are ‘exams’ where material is tested in most part through projects. Candidates prepare them in advance and then present them to examiners through speaking and writing while listening and reading are never directly tested.
In my opinion they do not test students’ competence in all skills, under real exam norms as is the case with the majority of the English exams.
Taking everything into account instead of just picking a ‘battle’ when entering the arena, you’d better consider all the aforementioned in order to make the best choice for your students.
Present them with a variety of exam formats in order to see which suits them best and which helps them really demonstrate in the best way what they know. Using past papers as your guideline should be among your priorities.
Do not choose exams which ‘promise’ an easy pass but those which test candidates’ real knowledge, are student friendly and all four skills are tested.
The students you are now coaching will probably find themselves practicing their English in non native societies, working or studying abroad. Just presenting a language certificate that has no real value, will be frustrating for them, once they realize that they are unable to use the language.
In the meantime we can still be crossing our fingers for quality and equality in English testing in Greece, when holding an English certificate will guarantee real fluency in all aspects.
A battlefield may be a hard place to be, but great warriors have nothing to fear as long as the rules are fair. The arena is there -just make sure you enter with confidence! ‘
English teacher, consultant, and author | <urn:uuid:a3c7ceec-6b2b-4c46-a47c-0f6f54cde224> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.eltnews.gr/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=540:the-examination-arena-part-3-in-the-battlefield&catid=3:articles&Itemid=17 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959541 | 987 | 2.234375 | 2 |
A debut collection of eight stories that run the literary gamut, from seafaring parables to domestic realism, with the quality of the stories varying as well.
The opening, title story relates the adventures of “the first underwater vessel commissioned for combat by the Confederate State of America,” a Civil War submarine “that has failed—spectacularly—almost every meaningful test it has been given...the underwater equivalent of a bicycle strapped to a bomb with the intention of pedaling it four miles through hostile waters to engage an infinitely better equipped enemy….” “The Saint Anna” offers another unlikely seafaring tale about a ship ice-bound in the Arctic during the last gasps of czarist Russian rule, leaving those onboard split over whether to stay with the ship, where they’ve been trapped for a couple of years, or try to walk to wherever on the ice: “Each group is conscious of what abandonment means: they are leaving us to our death and we are letting them walk to theirs.” Like a Beckett fable of nothingness and bleak faith, the story suggests that “[t]here’s no explanation of what’s happening to us except that it’s happening.” The final story, “Dirwhals!,” replaces endless ice with endless sand, and unbearable cold with unbearable heat, in its diary of a man who has fled his family and abandoned his sister to serve on “a slow moving factory, an ungainly vessel that serves as both a hunting ship and a one-stop bio-processing plant,” as if Melville’s Ishmael has found himself sandlocked. Amid stories that inhabit parallel dimensions of history, in a geography of the imagination, many of the rest are contemporary family realism, often involving a boy of the same generation as the author undergoing some sort of rite of passage. In “Camp Winnesaka,” a battle between rival summer camps escalates into rockets and casualties, with a subtext that evokes Weapons of Mass Destruction. The longest story, “John, For Christmas,” is the most melodramatic, as a troubled adult son exposes the strains in his parents’ seemingly strong marriage.
The author seems well-read, and he aspires to the highest literary standards, but some of these stories seem more significant in their inspiration than their execution. | <urn:uuid:2d08c250-a8ba-4635-9942-e288fdf8ad0e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/ethan-rutherford/peripatetic-coffin/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967196 | 499 | 1.695313 | 2 |
1. Eventually you will reach a point when you stop lying about your age and start bragging about it.
2. Don't let anyone tell you you're getting old. Squash their toes with your rocker.
3. The older we get, the fewer things seem worth waiting in line for.
4. Some people try to turn back their odometers. Not me. I want people to know why I look this way. I've traveled a long way and some of the roads weren't paved.
5. Maturity means being emotionally and mentally healthy. It is that time when you know when to say yes and when to say no, and when to say WHOOPEE!
6. How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are? (I like this one...)
7. When you are dissatisfied and would like to go back to youth, think of Algebra.
8. I don't know how I got over the hill without getting to the top.
9. The golden years are really just metallic years, gold in the tooth, silver in your hair, and lead in the seat.
10. Life would be infinitely happier if we could only be born at the age of 80 and gradually approach 18.
11. One of the many things no one tells you about aging is that it is such a nice change from being young. One must wait until evening to see how splendid the day has been.
12. Age seldom arrives smoothly or quickly. It is more often a succession of jerks.
13. Yeah, being young is beautiful, but being old is comfortable.
14. Old age is when former classmates are so gray and wrinkled, and blind they don't recognize you.
15. If you don't learn to laugh at trouble, you won't have anything to laugh at when you are old.
"As an OK State Trooper once told me, "Why shouldn't a "good" citizen be allowed to carry a gun, all the "bad" guys already do.""
Certified Glock Armorer | <urn:uuid:ab9bdf42-e47b-4ccb-ab8e-efb73f59f569> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://glocktalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=149613 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00027-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978268 | 426 | 1.59375 | 2 |
“The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our [robot], but in ourselves, …”
Posted May 05 2010 12:00am
The Wall Street Journal carries a sad story today of what can go wrong when surgeons with insufficient skill, focus, and experience use high-tech equipment to carry out complicated operations.
The situation reported in this article does not relate specifically to prostate cancer but it does relate to the use of the da Vinci “robot” and its use as a marketing tool as opposed to a piece of complicated medical equipment that should be used only by surgeons with an appropriate level of training and expertise and who use the equipment on a very regular basis.
We wish to be very clear in repeating what we have said many times before. Patients who choose to undergo surgery as a treatment for their prostate cancer should worry less about the equipment and the technique that is proposed and much more about the level of skill, focus, and expertise of the surgeon who is actually going to operate on them. An insufficiently trained and inexperienced surgeon wielding a da Vinci robot is at least as dangerous to your health as an insufficiently trained and inexperienced surgeon wielding a traditional scalpel. | <urn:uuid:349891a4-7ac8-406f-80b8-57ee4dc1a029> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wellsphere.com/cancer-article/8220-the-fault-dear-brutus-is-not-in-our-robot-but-in-ourselves-160-8230-8221/1098360 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00069-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974849 | 245 | 1.796875 | 2 |
Posted on Fri, Jul. 23, 2010
last updated: March 15, 2013 11:58:33 AM
In the midst of the worst oil-spill disaster in U.S. history, California voters' opinion of allowing new drilling off their coast took a nose dive from two years ago, according to a Field Poll released today.
Voter support for drilling in state water began to slide 30 years ago, but the poll shows it plunged from 43 percent two years ago to only 31 percent today.
Sixty-one percent now oppose it, nearly a 2-1 ratio of opposition.
The last year that voter opinion for offshore oil drilling was as low as today was in 1990 – the year after the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill disaster in Alaska.
"Events seem to matter on this issue," said Field Poll Director Mark DiCamillo. "We're seeing a similar decline now after the Gulf of Mexico oil spill."
The poll found a partisan divide, however.
Three-fourths of Democrats are against new drilling, but a majority of Republicans – 52 percent – said they favored more.
More oil drilling was also supported by 59 percent of those who said they planned to vote this November for GOP candidates Meg Whitman for governor and Carly Fiorina for U.S. senator.
As the November election approaches, oil drilling "could become a big deal if the candidates are on different sides on this issue," DiCamillo said.
He noted that Fiorina has said she would support more drilling off California, while her opponent, Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer, opposes it.
To read the complete article, visit www.sacbee.com. | <urn:uuid:d8304430-5c7f-417a-b83d-de05edfc16ce> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/07/23/v-print/98011/poll-offshore-oil-drilling-losing.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974412 | 340 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Health concerns about the consumption of red meat are the top driver for a booming meat-free market in the UK, which has grown 20% over the past five years, according to market research organisation Mintel.
The market researcher says that 15% of British people now choose to avoid red meat, with most of them doing so due to health and lifestyle reasons. Meanwhile, about 6% of British people describe themselves as vegetarians, and 2% avoid red meat due to an allergy or intolerance.
Senior food and drink analyst at Mintel Amy Price said in a statement: “Perfectly positioned to thrive in the current climate, meat-free foods benefit from a cost, health, ethical and environmental stand as well as providing variety in consumer diets. The rising cost of meat has propped up past performance and could act as a boost to the meat-free market in the future.”
Mintel estimated the value of the meat-free market at £607m (about €752m) in 2012, with around a third of sales in the ready meals segment. Pastry and snacks round out the top three meat-free foods by sales value, it said.
Chilled foods account for 70% of sales, and frozen make up the remaining 30%.
Thirty-eight per cent of British people say they have bought vegetarian or meat-free foods, while 13% say they buy vegetarian or meat-free foods as a cheaper alternative to meat, fish or poultry.
“The sizeable group of health-conscious consumers are ripe for targeting through vegetarian or meat-free foods and meat substitutes, possibly along the lines of ‘stealth health’, encouraging families to swap a meat-based meal for one that is vegetarian and therefore better for them,” Price said.
In addition, two per cent of the UK population avoids red meat because they have an allergy or intolerance.
However, the meat-free market still faces challenges, particularly with taste perception. Mintel said that more than a third of British people (36%) think that vegetarian foods taste bland, while 42% say that they do not like meat substitutes. | <urn:uuid:93309cf5-cdce-464e-9a7f-ae3d638f41f8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.foodnavigator.com/Financial-Industry/Red-meat-health-concerns-drive-UK-meat-free-market | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00066-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97005 | 436 | 1.984375 | 2 |
When is $20 million not equal to $20 million? When, for some, it's an interest payment and, for others, it's all they're worth. Here's how that one number means two totally different things to two different green car companies.
Speaking to Bloomberg Television
about the early repayment
of Tesla Motors
' DOE loan, CEO Elon Musk said today that, "ultimately, the US taxpayer actually made a profit above $20 million on this loan. For this loan at least, people's tax bill actually went slightly down."
Musk said that, now that the loan has been paid back, more people might take a look at Tesla. "We were attacked a lot in certain quarters for having some government debt," he said. "I think that actually matters to some consumers out there, whether or not a company actually does have government debt, and being able to say we fully repaid that debt with interest, I think it is helpful to some number of people out there in thinking about buying a car." So, for Tesla, which recently raised over a billion dollars
, $20 million is an easy price to pay to potentially sell more EVs.
Now, let's look at Fisker Automotive
, which is still fending off bankruptcy
. We learned this week that VL Automotive and Wanxiang made an offer to buy
the troubled automaker for an undisclosed sum. Word out today is that the amount that the two companies are willing to pay for Fisker is, you guessed it, $20 million
. That's about one percent of Fisker's $2 billion-plus value back when the Karma plug-in hybrid was launched, according to Reuters
. It's unclear how a potential Fisker buyer will have to deal with the outstanding DOE loan amount of $171 million and other issues
, but the $20-million offer a striking contrasts to Musk's statement on Bloomberg Television
, which you can watch in the video below | <urn:uuid:3307745e-b1c2-4375-a60e-b73e3beb1ffb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.autoblog.com/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00055-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980918 | 407 | 1.90625 | 2 |
Admitting Rajapakse into US criminally similar to allowing-in genocidaire Karadzic, says Boyle
[TamilNet, Thursday, 20 January 2011, 02:30 GMT]
Comparing alleged war-criminal and Sri Lanka's current President Rajapakse's reported admission into the United States to the Clinton administration's providing entry visa to genocidaire Radovan Karadzic to enter the U.S in order to attend the Vance-Owen Peace Negotiations in New York City, Professor Francis Boyle, expert in international law at the College of Law, University of Illinois, told TamilNet that Obama administration is obligated to apprehend, investigate and prosecute alleged genocidares for violating Geneva Convention and Genocide convention. Obama administration giving Rajapakse visa to enter US and allowing him free movement is "Machiavellian Realpolitik at its worst," said Boyle.
"Why did the Obama administration give Rajapaksa a Visa to enter the USA in the first place? Arguably if he were going only to UN Headquarters in New York, he would have a right to enter the country in order to do work at the U.N. under the terms of the U.N. Headquarters Agreement," said Boyle, adding, "But he has no right under international law to enter the USA itself.
"Indeed, the Conservative Reagan administration put Austrian President Kurt Waldheim on the Watch List and barred him from entering the country for mere alleged complicity in World War II war crimes—not ordering and supervising them like Rajapaksa.
"Where are Michael Posner, Harold Koh, and Samantha Power?" Boyle asked in disbelief. Michael Posner is the Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, Department of State, Samantha Power is in the National Security Council Staff, where she serves as a Special Assistant to the President and runs the Office of Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights, and Harold Koh is the Legal Adviser of the Department of State.
"Somewhat ironically and tragically, the Reagan administration had more respect for the Geneva Conventions than the allegedly “liberal” Obama administration. This is Machiavellian Realpolitik at its worst," said Boyle accusing the Obama administration for allowing Rajapakse to enter the U.S.
In a recent leak of US diplomatic cable, US Ambassador in Colombo, Ambassador Butenis, has openly acknowledged the complicity of Rajapakses in war-crimes in Sri Lanka.
"This reminds me of when the Clinton administration gave a visa to the mass murderer, war criminal and genocidaire Radovan Karadzic to enter the country in order to attend the so-called Vance-Owen Peace Negotiations in New York City. Instead, the moment he set foot into the country the Clinton administration had an obligation to apprehend, investigate and prosecute Karadzic for violating the Geneva Conventions and the Genocide Convention. The same should be done by the Obama administration to Rajapaksa," Boyle added.
Professor Francis A. Boyle was also a member of Board of Directors, Amnesty International USA (1988-1992).
The United States should investigate Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapksa, when he arrives on a surprise visit to the US this week, for his alleged role in perpetrating torture and war crimes, Amnesty International said Wednesday.
Spokesperson for US-based activist group Tamils Against Genocide (TAG) told TamilNet: "In the U.S. only the Justice Department can file criminal charges against individuals for war crimes. TAG's indictment document against Sri Lanka officials is already with the Justice Department. This document, together with the information collected by the State Department's war crimes division, and the recently made public contents of US diplomatic cables attaching culpability for war crimes on Rajapakses provide sufficient evidence that should exceed required "probable cause" standard to initiate investigations.
"Also, private citizens can file civil suit asking compensation for damages resulting from war-crimes. TAG intends to use this approach if the Justice Department does not act, or delays acting on, war crime charges," said the spokesperson.
29.12.10 Rajapakse fares worst in WikiLeaks damages, says Boston Glob..
17.12.10 WikiLeaks: Gotabaya sanctioned extra-judicial killings by Pa..
10.12.10 US Senators call for Independent International Investigation..
02.12.10 Rajapakse, brothers responsible for alleged War Crimes in Sr..
30.11.10 Wikileaks show US probing UN's position on Sri Lanka
01.06.10 ‘Era of impunity is over’, ICC to go beyond African cases – ..
07.03.10 US Supreme Court ruling on "sovereign immunity" key to war c..
23.08.09 Boyle debunks Kohona's war-crimes braggadocio
15.02.09 Genocide in Sri Lanka - Boston Globe | <urn:uuid:c664d7c6-7570-4119-b398-a8bd6ba77e9b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=33441 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.913827 | 1,025 | 1.5625 | 2 |
(Beyond Pesticides, January 31, 2007) On January 29, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) concluded a month-long review of the Department of Agriculture’s (NJDA) petition to waive the state’s ban on aerial-spraying of broad-spectrum pesticides. The state will uphold the ban, effectively blocking widespread use of the chemical Dimilin.
The ban affects towns seeking to reduce rising gypsy moth populations. Roughly 125,000 acres of trees suffered defoliation in the state as a result of gypsy moths, one of the worst years in recent memory. Gypsy moths have been in New Jersey since the 1920s, and their destruction peaking in 1981, with 800,000 acres defoliated.
Dimilin is a restricted-use pesticide (available only to certified applicators) that has been unavailable for broadcast use for decades. For the past 20 years, in lieu of aerial spraying of Dimilin – also known as diflubenzuron – the pesticide specified in NJDA’s request, New Jersey towns have used bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) , a bacterial agent. With gypsy moth populations expected to be higher in 2007 than in recent years, NJDA argued that Bt would be insufficient to protect hardwood trees across the state.
In a letter to NJDA, Marcedius T. Jameson, DEP’s administrator for pesticide control wrote, “The case for Bt being ineffective was not made since the municipalities in New Jersey are being offered Bt as a viable option for control in 2007.” NJDA also argued that the gypsy moth situation in the state could be categorized as an environmental emergency. Mr. Jameson responded, “The variable potential for tree loss and the nuisance that gypsy moth caterpillars pose do not rise to the level of an environmental emergency.” With the prohibition on aerial spraying of Dimilin still intact, towns have the options of spraying Bt, applying Dimilin in smaller amounts, or individuals can hire private applicators to treat their property with Bt as well.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classifies Dimilin as “moderately toxic” to humans. Jane Nogaki, of the New Jersey Environmental Federation, added, “The breakdown product is a probable carcinogen and it can rob blood cells of oxygen.” In addition, as a broad-spectrum herbicide, Dimilin affects both gypsy moths and beneficial organisms, such as aquatic crustaceans and other molting insects. “We’re pleased that the governor and the DEP weighed in on the side of the public and the environment,” said Ms. Nogaki.
See Beyond Pesticides’ January 16, 2007 story on New Jersey’s Dimilin. | <urn:uuid:dc3e4796-4ba8-4c92-8864-68640db94bfb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.beyondpesticides.org/dailynewsblog/?p=18 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00065-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.935007 | 632 | 2.46875 | 2 |
So Much for the Meek October 26, 2010Posted by Dan R. Dick in Christian witness, Church Leadership, Congregational Life, Core Values, U.S. Culture.
Tags: Christian Community, Church Leadership, Values
This morning’s USA Today has a front-page story below the fold on bullying among teens. It appears that bullying is widespread, and apparently acceptable. 52% of students have hit someone in anger in the past year. 50% admit that they have bullied, and 47% report being the victim of bullying. 37% of males think it is okay to hit or threaten someone who makes you angry, and 19% of females concur. I think I understand where this comes from. Ours is a competitive, reality-show addicted, Donald Trump idolizing, what’s-in-it-for-me culture. It is obvious walking down the street, at school, in the office, and not amazingly, in the church. So much for the meek, it’s a dog-eat-dog world out there.
And it’s a dog-eat-dog church in here. There is a shocking amount of bullying in our congregations today. Inappropriate comments, intimidation, yelling, rumor-mongering, gossip, email threatening, vandalism, and name-calling are not unusual in our loving communities of Christian virtue and behavior. Nothing counter-cultural about churches that turn every disagreement into a win-lose proposition where people will openly state that they are “out to get the pastor,” or “drive a family out” of the congregation. Think we’re above bullying and bad behavior? Okay – “gay clergy.” That one certainly brings out the best in us. “Universal health care.” At least we all agree on this one. “Immigration reform.” Everyone stays level-headed about this. Aunt Edna’s memorial Jesus clock in the sanctuary? Move it to the parlor and see how civilly and decently people respond. Have we lost our minds? Perhaps not, but what about our faith?
Infighting, quarrels, unresolved anger, disrespect, violence, arrogance, bullying of every sort — these are not fruits of the Spirit. They should NEVER define us, and we should all commit ourselves to expunging them from our shared life together. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control — where does bullying fit here? Where does intimidating someone connect to this list? Where do nasty emails and gossip belong in this list? Where are mercy and compassion to be found in our congregations? Oh, the majority don’t subscribe to such infantile and immature behavior, but it only takes a few. And if these few are unchallenged, their bad behavior becomes acceptable and normative. More and more people can get away with anything they want because they know there is no accountability for their hateful and hurtful behavior. They can march the fruits of evil and corruption in to displace, rot, and destroy the fruits of the Spirit. And all the while, the world is watching.
Why should anyone be attracted to a church that is no different than any other organization in the world? Why should people who are sick and tired of people behaving badly at work, school and on the streets want to join a congregation where they will simply receive more of the same? The church is called to be different. We are called to rise above the petty squabbling and rank division to witness to the reconciling and loving power of Jesus Christ. Instead, well, there are women and immigrants and homosexuals and minorities and young people and differing theologies we need to “take care of.” Jesus wept.
So many of our problems in our churches today are nothing more than people treating one another badly — bullying included. The Golden Rule need not apply. We do unto others any damn way we choose, thank you very much. When I did my research into clergy morale, bullying, threats, intimidation and anonymous insults and personal attacks were reported by 67% of all clergy — 88% of clergy who chose to leave ministry. Laity regularly report feeling bullied by their pastors. I guess my message here is fairly simple: stop it! No one will clean up this mess for us. We need to say “enough” and work together to find healthier ways to disagree. We need to covenant together to treat one another decently and to not tolerate bad behavior. When we all agree together, then it is much easier to hold each other accountable. We promise to “first, do no harm,” then, “to do all the good we can, as far as we are able, to ALL,” and then we name, challenge, and eradicate any and all bad behavior when it crops up. In so doing, we witness to the love of God and we proclaim to the world that as Christians we are committed to a higher standard of behavior. It has to start somewhere. If God is love, we need to start acting like it.
We all know the kinds of behavior that are unacceptable in civilized, mature society — gossip, lying, insults, mockery, spreading rumors, intimidation, yelling, threatening, hitting, shooting firearms (yes, I did a mediation where church members were driving by the parsonage in the middle of the night shooting rifles and shotguns out lights and windows…), etc. No one has to tell us we shouldn’t act this way. Or at least, no one SHOULD have to tell us these things, but maybe we do need to make the implicit (what we think everyone knows and agrees to) explicit. It’s time to step up here, and do better. Our kids are learning it somewhere. If bullying is the norm in schools it is because it is becoming the norm at home, at church, on the streets and in the media. The system is designed for the results it gets — if we want different results, it’s up to us to change the system. | <urn:uuid:e6658880-081c-4436-bf3f-483dc6d1be3b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://doroteos2.com/2010/10/26/so-much-for-the-meek/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00057-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959757 | 1,258 | 1.71875 | 2 |
Anselmo G. Canfora was looking to engage architecture students in a timely and relevant design–build project when disaster struck — literally. When Hurricane Katrina hit the American Gulf Coast in 2005, Canfora watched in dismay as the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency conducted disaster-relief efforts with its much-maligned travel trailers.
“That’s when I started to focus on disaster-recovery housing,” said Canfora, assistant professor in the University of Virginia School of Architecture and director of Initiative reCOVER. “The FEMA trailers were highly inadequate, exacerbating the deplorable conditions people were living in after a natural disaster. This was a compelling design problem I wanted to concentrate on through my research and teaching.”
To address this problem, Canfora focused his studio, the equivalent of a research lab, on transitional disaster-recovery housing. With the help of partners in the School of Architecture and the School of Engineering and Applied Science, and external partners such as the Building Goodness Foundation and the Arup Cause, Initiative reCOVER was born.
When an international competition sought solutions for Haiti’s displaced population following a magnitude 7.0 earthquake in January 2010, reCOVER responded. The team’s innovative “Breathe House,” so named for its natural ventilation strategy, took first place in the competition and will be built this spring in the Haitian community of Bois l’Etat, near St. Marc.
The pioneering structure combines panelized and modular prefabricated building components with new and proven strategies for leveraging the environment for comfortable, economical living, off the grid. The home’s rooftop photovoltaic system, for instance, provides the electricity required to power low-volume ceiling fans, lighting, a small refrigerator and sensors that monitor system efficiency.
Passive ventilation strategies, solar walls, expanded rooftops and advanced water filtration work to keep occupants cool and mitigate the spread of disease — particularly airborne tuberculosis, the second leading cause of death in Haiti after HIV/AIDS. The reCOVER team also took great care to incorporate indigenous building materials into their design and involve local trades to help preserve Haitian culture and revive the local economy.
All of the home’s components — minus the modular amenities unit — ship flat-packed in a kit that can be assembled using only hand tools and in just two days, making it a smart and practical housing solution for the months and even years following a disaster.
Canfora and his partners are adapting the innovative design, copyrighted by the U.Va. Patent Foundation (now the U.Va. Licensing & Ventures Group), for use in a variety of climates and other site conditions, so that reCOVER can provide disaster relief housing wherever it is needed.
“Haiti is proving to be a challenging place to build a unit,” Canfora said. “We hope to learn as much as we can from this experience and continue to improve and adapt the design for future applications around the world.”
Initiative reCOVER is funded by the Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission, the National Science Foundation, the Environmental Protection Agency, U.Va.’s Jefferson Public Citizens program and Vice President for Research, and several additional organizations and individuals.
Open the original version of this page. | <urn:uuid:cb11df98-ef67-4857-8a1c-30f9066e02e7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://transcoder.usablenet.com/tt/innovation.virginia.edu/news/331 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940627 | 705 | 2.46875 | 2 |
Changes in Smoking Prevalence in 8 Countries of the Former Soviet Union Between 2001 and 2010.
American Journal of Public Health, 2012
[Epub ahead of print] Changes in Smoking Prevalence in 8 Countries of the Former Soviet Union Between 2001 and 2010.
We sought to present new data on smoking prevalence in 8 countries, analyze prevalence changes between 2001 and 2010, and examine trend variance by age, location, education level, and household economic status.
We conducted cross-sectional household surveys in 2010 in Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine.
We compared smoking prevalence with a related 2001 study for the different countries and population subgroups, and also calculated the adjusted prevalence rate ratios of smoking.
All-age 2010 smoking prevalence among men ranged from 39% (Moldova) to 59% (Armenia), and among women from 2% (Armenia) to 16% (Russia).
There was a significantly lower smoking prevalence among men in 2010 compared with 2001 in Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Russia, but not for women in any country.
For all countries combined, there was a significantly lower smoking prevalence in 2010 than in 2001 for men aged 18 to 39 years and men with a good or average economic situation.
Smoking prevalence appears to have stabilized and may be declining in younger groups, but remains extremely high among men, especially those in lower socioeconomic groups.
PMID: 22594739 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher] Full Text Sources
Prevalence of smoking in 8 countries of the former Soviet Union: results from the living conditions, lifestyles and health study. | <urn:uuid:01e540a4-7ab1-4c28-a201-b7e2170106cf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tripdatabase.com/doc/1337589-Changes-in-Smoking-Prevalence-in-8-Countries-of-the-Former-Soviet-Union-Between-2001-and-2010- | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.925539 | 345 | 2.125 | 2 |
Dogs can be trained to use a certain area set aside for elimination. They’re less fussy than cats about what materials you use to absorb the waste, so you could put old newspapers, paper litter, clay, or another absorbent material in the bottom of the pan. No matter what material you decide to use, use it consistently. At first, you may want to leave the litter a little dirty, because dogs tend to go back to a place where they have gone before. For the same reason, clean the carpet whenever your dog has an accident, to be sure she doesn’t return to the same spot.
Most of all, be patient and consistent. Develop a schedule of feeding, playing, walking, and sleeping, which will keep your dog on an elimination schedule as well. Learn the times when she will generally have to go: after eating, after waking up and, for puppies, about every 20-30 minutes when they are awake and playing. Watch for the cues your dog gives before urinating, like sniffing and circling, and place her in the pan when you see her getting ready to go. Praise her when she uses the pan.
Different dogs learn at different rates, so it may take a few days of accidents before your pet learns to use the pan. Eventually, though, with gentle persistence, she can learn to use the litter box consistently. Remember, though, the pan is not meant to replace trips outside, but to supplement them. Your dog still needs to go outside for exercise and fresh air every day. | <urn:uuid:543a9164-7979-4c68-bd70-663ee002ce66> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.healthypet.com/PetCare/DogCareArticle.aspx?title=Can_I_train_my_dog_to_use_a_litter_box | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951785 | 318 | 2.65625 | 3 |
“High and long, / Thick and strong, / Wide and stark, / Was the ark.”
From Peter Spier’s Caldecott Medal–winning Noah’s Ark
By Janice Harayda
No Bible story has fared better at the hands of picture-book illustrators than that of Noah’s Ark. Preschoolers love stories about animals, so picture books and the Flood are a natural fit. And there are so many outstanding versions of the story in Chapters 6–9 of Genesis that many bookstores and libraries have several or more.
The best book for toddlers and younger preschoolers is Noah’s Ark (Dell, 48 pp., $7.99, ages 2–6), illustrated by the Dutch-born American artist Peter Spier, who won the 1978 Caldecott Medal for it. Noah’s Ark begins with a translation of a Dutch poem about the Flood that has singsong rhymes simple enough for 3-year-olds: “Dog and cat, / Mouse and rat, / Fly and vole, /Worm and mole … In they came, / Pair by pair, / Gross and fair.”
From then on, Spier uses only pictures – his signature black line drawings washed with color – to tell the story of the Ark from the gathering of the animals through the appearance of the rainbow symbolizing God’s promise never to send another flood like the one Noah survived. And Spier’s vibrant and sympathetic illustrations suggest both the gravity of the situation and the potential for humor in crowding so many species onto a wooden boat. Within the larger story of the Flood, his drawings tell hundreds of smaller stories of the endless tasks faced by Noah and his family, such as milking cows and gathering eggs from hens. Noah’s Ark has stayed in print for decades partly because you see something new each time you return to it.
An excellent book for older preschoolers and young school-age children is Arthur Geisert‘s The Ark (Houghton Mifflin/Walter Lorraine, 48 pp., $7.99, ages 4–8). Geisert tells Noah’s story through a spare, interpretive text and black-and-white etchings that include wonderfully detailed cross sections. The pictures in his book may fascinate even children who shun traditional Bible stories, because they show how ships of any kind might transport animals. Larger creatures like bears and elephants take up the lower decks while flamingoes strut and peacocks spread their tails on the upper ones.
Jerry Pinkney won a 2003 Caldecott Honor citation for his Noah’s Ark (North-South/SeaStar, 40 pp., $16.99. ages 4–8). It tells the story of the Flood in modern words arranged on the page like stanzas of free verse: “The zebras munched their hay. / The geese gobbled up the grain. / The monkeys nibbled on sweet grapes / and climbed to the roof / where the sparrows / perched and sang.”
As usual in Pinkney’s books, the exquisite illustrations steal the show. Pinkney works on a dramatic artistic scale. His illustrations bleed across gutters and off the page. And he zooms in so closely on faces – human or animal – that you can see the whites of Noah’s eyes and up the nostrils of a bear. Among living picture-book artists, perhaps only David Wiesner has more skill at creating stylized watercolors that are dreamy yet realistic.
Pinkney’s book is harder to find than Spier’s and Geisert’s but available in many libraries. And children who like it may enjoy learning about his unusual techniques, which he described in The Essential Guide to Children’s Books and Their Creators (Houghton Mifflin, 542 pp., $17), edited by Anita Silvey. “In illustrating stories about animals, as with people, research is important,” Pinkney said. “I keep a large reference file and have over a hundred books on nature and animals. The first step in envisioning a creature for me is to pretend to be that particular animal. I think about its size and the sounds it makes, how it moves, where it lives. When the stories call for anthropomorphic animals, I’ve used Polaroid photographs of myself posing as the animal characters.”
© 2007 Janice Harayda. All rights reserved.
A new review of a book or books for teenagers appears every Saturday on One-Minute Book Reviews. The site does not accept advertising or free books from publishers, and all reviews offer an independent evaluation by an award-winning critic. Please bookmark this site or subscribe to the RSS feed to avoid missing these reviews and, if you work for a school or library, consider adding the site to your Ready Reference links. | <urn:uuid:819b33f2-0cb3-41b3-a69d-19001a46f7eb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/05/05/good-picture-books-about-noah%E2%80%99s-ark/?like=1&source=post_flair&_wpnonce=02ce0efcc9 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.932089 | 1,034 | 3.03125 | 3 |
"Peter's birthday is coming up next month," I told the neighbor girl. "Peter, tell her how old you are going to be."
"Five," he says with full confidence.
"Five? No! You're going to be three. You're two now, but you will be three next month."
"I two now, I be free on my birfday."
The neighbor girl asks, "Peter, can you count? How do you count?"
Peter holds up one finger, then two, then three, then four...
I encourage him, "Count out loud, Petey. One..."
Peter says, "One...two...five!"
And that explains it. | <urn:uuid:829bc519-3a4f-403d-a1b3-8eab4c750789> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mreitemeyer.blogspot.com/2008/05/so-i-got-fired-from-my-preschool.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00047-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97214 | 146 | 2.03125 | 2 |
An easy thing to do for Earth Day 2013 – please sign Ted’s petition, and take a few minutes to see how this actor is using his resources to make a difference. Because this petition is directly to the White House, if enough signatures are collected in a 30 day period the government will have to give full consideration to the issues, and will have weigh whether or not industry should be allowed to deafen and destroy ocean life in its quest for oil.
“To most, Ted Danson is known for TV and movie acting roles, but for those in the conservation movement, he is much more famous for his work as a passionate ocean advocate and Oceana spokesman.”
The Petition: “We petition the obama administration to:
Stop seismic airgun testing for oil and gas off the U.S. East Coast.
According to your Department of the Interior, seismic airgun testing for oil and gas in the Atlantic will injure or kill 138,500 dolphins and whales, including endangered North Atlantic right whales.
Seismic airguns and offshore drilling threaten commercial and recreational fisheries as well as ocean-based tourism and coastal recreation from Delaware to Florida. 730,000 jobs in this region depend on a healthy ocean. Seismic airgun testing is the first step toward expanding deepwater drilling, the same practice that caused the well-known Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster.
Offshore drilling is dirty and dangerous, and seismic airguns are an insult to ocean economies and ecosystems. With respect, we call on your administration to reject seismic airgun testing in the Atlantic.” PLEASE SIGN.
“Oceana, founded in 2001, is the largest international organization focused solely on ocean conservation. Our offices in North America, South America and Europe work together on a limited number of strategic, directed campaigns to achieve measurable outcomes that will help return our oceans to former levels of abundance. We believe in the importance of science in identifying problems and solutions. Our scientists work closely with our teams of economists, lawyers and advocates to achieve tangible results for the oceans.” | <urn:uuid:aab8a074-9821-48c7-b1e5-27fca7b0dfc5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.seattlepi.com/candacewhiting/tag/sound/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00059-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.941012 | 426 | 2.125 | 2 |
There were once more than 200,000 Zapara people in the Amazon rainforest of present-day Ecuador, more than any other Indigenous group. Everything about the Zapara, including their language, rituals and mythology, has been influenced by the rainforest in which they live. However, in the 400 years since their first contact with outsiders, the Zapara have suffered from the introduction of foreign diseases, been forced into slavery, and been persecuted for practicing their religious beliefs.
In 2001, the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) recognized the unique value of Zapara culture and language by declaring that the Zapara "have developed an oral culture rich in knowledge of their natural environment, as evidenced by the abundance of its terminology on the flora and fauna and their knowledge of medicinal plants of the jungle." This cultural heritage, UNESCO added, "also expresses itself through myths, rituals, artistic practices and their language. This, which is the depository of their knowledge and their oral tradition, is also the memory of the entire region."
The survival of the Zapara hinges on their ability to gain control of and sustainably manage their own traditional territory. To support the Zapara's struggle for land and cultural revitalization, RAN has provided several grants through our Protect-an-Acre Program.
Manarikaji Ushigua, president of National Zapara Organization of the Ecuadorian Amazon (ONZAE), said, "the grants we received from Protect-an-Acre were critical in our struggle to protect our ancestral territory from international oil companies and local colonizers. We are the smallest Indigenous nationality in the Ecuadorian Amazon, but our territory is undamaged and has a higher density of animals than any other area of Pastaza. Thanks to Protect-an-Acre, we are preserving this beautiful land for our children and for all people." | <urn:uuid:32768c7c-a76d-4fec-85ed-236072f2651c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ran.org/national-zapara-organization-ecuadorian-amazon | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00048-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96097 | 381 | 3.359375 | 3 |
Brison and colleagues collected and analyzed Canadian data on fatal agricultural injuries to young children to determine rates, identify patterns and devise prevention strategies on farms and ranches. They found that children 1–6 years old, particularly boys, when on farms are about twice as likely to die from accidental injury as young Canadian children altogether. Most of these mortal injuries occurred at the agricultural worksite. The researchers identified three main ways that such injuries occur, and propose strategies to prevent them.
In a related commentary, Day discusses the importance of these findings and reviews the response to child farm injury in his country, Australia.
p. 1723 Fatal agricultural injuries in preschool children: risks, injury patterns, and strategies for prevention
-- R.J. Brison et al
p. 1731 Pediatric safety on farms: redefining the unacceptable -- L. Day
Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 21 Feb 2009
Published on PsychCentral.com. All rights reserved. | <urn:uuid:ed877b6d-2e5b-4c38-854e-87218396426c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://psychcentral.com/news/archives/2006-06/cmaj-fka060206.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00046-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.90818 | 202 | 3.171875 | 3 |
Democracy breeds gullibility. Lord Bryce observed in 1921, “State action became less distrusted the more the State itself was seen to be passing under popular control.” The rise of democracy made it much easier for politicians to convince people that government posed no threat, because they automatically controlled its actions. The result is that the brakes on government power become weakest at the exact time that politicians are most dangerous.
Blind trust becomes a substitute for informed consent. But mass trust in government compounds the political damage brought about by pervasive ignorance.
The bias in favor of trusting government brings out democracy’s worst tendencies. The normal defenses that people would have against alien authority are undermined by a chorus of politicians and government officials continually reminding people that government is themselves, and they cannot distrust the government without distrusting themselves.
How should people think about their rulers? This is a question that is rarely asked. Instead, it is preemptively squelched by myths pummeled into people’s heads from a very early age.
Since it has not been possible to neuter political power, citizens’ thinking on government has been neutered instead. Fear of government is portrayed as a relic of less civilized, unrefined times. There is a concerted effort to make distrusting the government intellectually unacceptable, a sign of bad taste or perhaps ill breeding, if not downright ignoble.
The central mystery of modern political life is: Why are people obliged to presume that politicians and government are more trustworthy than they seem? The question is not, Why do people distrust government? The question is, Why do people follow and applaud politicians who they recognize are lying to them? The mystery is not that politicians lie, but that citizens believe. It is not a question of giving rulers one benefit of the doubt — but of giving such benefits day after day, year after year, ruler after ruler.
America is perhaps the first nation founded on distrust of government. Checks and balances were included in the Constitution because of the danger of vesting too much power in any one man or one branch of government. The Bill of Rights was erected as a permanent leash on the political class. As Rexford Tugwell, one of Franklin Roosevelt’s Brain Trusters and an open admirer of Stalin’s Soviet system, groused, “The Constitution was a negative document, meant mostly to protect citizens from their government.”
The Founding Fathers issued warning after warning of the inherent danger of government power. John Adams wrote in 1772, “There is danger from all men. The only maxim of a free government ought to be to trust no man living with power to endanger the public liberty.” Thomas Jefferson wrote in 1799, “Free government is founded in jealousy, not confidence…. In questions of power, let no more be heard of confidence in men, but bind him down from mischief by the chains of the Constitution.” The term “politician” was in disrepute from 1776 onward (thanks to the antics of Congress during the Revolutionary War and the conniving of some of the state legislators after 1783).
Many of the initial curbs on federal power were maintained for most of the first century of this nation’s history in part because Americans often had a derisive attitude toward government — especially the federal government.
Wariness toward government was one of the most important bulwarks of American freedom. Representative government worked fairly well at times partly because people were skeptical of congressmen, presidents, and government officials across the board. However, beginning in the early 1900s and accelerating in the New Deal, government was placed on a pedestal.
Trust after failure
Trust in government is sometimes demanded most vociferously after some horrendous government blunder or abuse. Such was the case in the aftermath of a deadly no-knock raid by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and an FBI tank-and-toxic-gas assault on the home of the Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas, in 1993, which ended with 80 dead men, women, and children. The Washington establishment almost instantly closed ranks around the federal government, canonizing Attorney General Janet Reno — the person who had approved an FBI plan to destroy the Davidians’ home to bring the siege to an end — as a hero.
The precedents established by one political party are routinely exploited for totally different ends by their opponents. During the 1990s, liberals were in the vanguard, preaching the need to trust government. After 9/11, it was George W. Bush who exploited boundless trust to expand government power in ways that mortified many liberals. The Bush administration could exploit 9/11 because Americans were predisposed to see credulity and obedience as paramount virtues.
The number of Americans who trusted the federal government to do the right thing more than doubled in the weeks after the attack. By the end of September 2001, almost two-thirds of Americans said they “trust the government in Washington to do what is right” either “just about always” or “most of the time.”
The foreign-policy response to 9/11 would have been far more targeted if scores of millions of Americans had not written George Bush a blank check in the form of automatic trust. The adulation and deference that he received in the immediate aftermath of 9/11 encouraged federal officials to believe that they could do practically whatever they pleased. Top administration officials were laying plans to attack Iraq within days after the Twin Towers collapsed, though there was no evidence linking Iraq to the attacks. Less than two weeks after 9/11, senior Bush administration officials were already claiming that the attacks gave the U.S. government carte blanche to attack anywhere in the world. Deputy Assistant Attorney General John Yoo sent White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales a memo on September 25, 2001, suggesting that “an American attack in South America or Southeast Asia might be a surprise to the terrorists,” since they were expecting the United States to target Afghanistan.
The most costly entitlement
Blind trust in government is often portrayed as a harmless error — as if it were of no more account than saying prayers to a pagan deity. However, the notion that rulers are entitled to trust is the most expensive entitlement program of them all. “Follow the leader” has often been a recipe for national suicide. Throughout history, people have tended to trust most governments more than rulers deserved.
Blind trust in government has resulted in far more carnage than distrust of government. The more trust, the less resistance. It was people who believed and who followed orders who carried out the Nazi Holocaust, the Ukrainian terror-famine, the Khmer Rouge blood bath, and the war crimes that characterize conflicts around the globe. It is not just a question of acquiescence but of breeding a docile attitude toward political events and government actions.
Docility is a far greater danger than blind fanaticism, at least in Western societies. It is mass docility that permits fanatics to seize power and wreak havoc. The more people there are who unconditionally trust the government, the more atrocities there are that the government can commit. All that the government needs to do afterward is to label and blame the victim.
Excessive trust in government breeds attention deficits. People assume they do not need to keep an eye on government and politicians because government is no threat to them — because their government tells them so. Ignorance combined with blind trust produces citizens pliable for practically any purpose the ruler decrees.
When people blindly assume that their leaders are trustworthy, the biggest liars win. To believe their lies almost guarantees submission. To accept a false statement from one’s rulers is to submit to a lie — to intellectually submit. And submission is habit-forming. Politicians do not need to promulgate a duty to submit because as long as people believe, most will submit to almost anything. After people lower their mental defenses, political perfidy is halfway home. If people are trained not to doubt — politicians need only to continue lying and denying until all barricades that guard individual rights have been smashed, one by one.
Any politician who violates his oath to uphold the Constitution has proven himself unworthy of trust. What is the case for trusting someone who has proven himself untrustworthy? Should people be proud to trust politicians in a way that they would consider foolish regarding any other profession?
Much of the American public appears to separate the issues of trust and power — as if a person’s character is irrelevant to how much additional power he should be permitted to capture. For instance, regardless of the number of people who believed that Bill Clinton was a liar, his proposals to expand federal power to protect people or to give them specific new benefits generally had high levels of popular approval (excepting his 1993-94 health-care plan). Public support for vesting more power in an untrustworthy ruler is a sign of how few Americans still understand the nature of government.
In the same way that power corrupts, blind trust corrupts. To say that people should not blindly trust the government is not to call for anarchy or for violence in the streets or the torching of city halls across the land. It is not a choice between trusting the government and refusing to drive on the right side of the road. Instead, it is a call for people to cease deluding themselves about those who seek to control them.
Trust in a dishonest government is true escapism — an evasion of responsibility for one’s own life and liberties. Deference to lying rulers is self-betrayal. | <urn:uuid:628ef1e6-3e00-4e13-bdf3-ce43bbb1c4ed> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://fff.org/explore-freedom/article/folly-blindly-trusting-government/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972537 | 1,974 | 2.875 | 3 |
Pronunciation of Ballet Names
Posted 06 November 2003 - 10:57 AM
Posted 06 November 2003 - 11:35 AM
Interestingly, when I listened to the same Russian announcer, I heard the stress on the first syllable.
Posted 06 November 2003 - 11:53 AM
Russian is not completely phonetic — some vowel sounds change depending on whether they’re stressed or unstressed (e.g., an unstressed “o” is pronounced like an unstressed “a” — somewhere between “ah” and “uh”). If a consonant is the last letter in a word, it’s pronounced unvoiced, even if it’s a voiced consonant. For example, all those “-ev” endings should really be pronounced “-ef” (the alternate spelling “Prokofieff” is sometimes seen). There are more rules, but if all these rules were followed in the transliterations, the names might look quite different than the transliterations were used to seeing. It would be handy if everyone were taught the international phonetic alphabet.
Posted 06 November 2003 - 11:57 AM
Posted 06 November 2003 - 11:58 AM
Posted 06 November 2003 - 12:14 PM
Posted 06 November 2003 - 01:20 PM
Posted 06 November 2003 - 10:43 PM
Gomes: Is it Gomez or does it rhyme with "homes"?
Steiffel: (not even sure how to spell it) Is it Steyefel or Steefel?
Xiomara: I have heard it pronounce Shiomahra? Is that correct?
Posted 07 November 2003 - 12:30 AM
Stiefel: STEE-fel, according to the recent PBS Special, I believe.
Xiomara: Well, I've been fudging it as a kind of Dzho/Cho -MAR-a , but I'm learning that calling her X-Rey's communicates adequately.
Posted 07 November 2003 - 09:24 AM
Posted 07 November 2003 - 11:37 AM
As a native Russian speaker I vouch for djb - no Russian phonetics professor could've put it any more clear for you! You actually had that "YO" character figured out!!
BRAVISSIMO DJB !
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Help support Ballet Alert! and Ballet Talk for Dancers year round by using this search box for your amazon.com purchases: | <urn:uuid:f696f334-eae0-4a11-8864-82f412ef7531> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://balletalert.invisionzone.com/index.php?/topic/12342-pronunciation-of-ballet-names/page__st__15 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00059-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.929183 | 540 | 2.15625 | 2 |
Center for Safety, Simulation & Advanced Learning Technologies (CSSALT)
The Center for Safety, Simulation & Advanced Learning Technologies, CSSALT, provides education, training and services to residents, faculty, clinical personnel and staff throughout
the UF Academic Health Center including the Shands Healthcare system, to clinicians in the state of Florida, to UF medical, veterinary, dental, engineering and other health profession students, to local and regional emergency personnel and to industry executives and personnel worldwide. CSSALT builds on the legacy of a continuous and sustained R&D effort in simulation that began in 1985 with the “Bain group” under the direction of Drs. JS Gravenstein and Beneken and remains active today in the development and application of simulation technology. The current dean of the UF College of Medicine, Dr. Good and the director of CSSALT, Dr. Lampotang developed in 1987 the first prototype of what would become the UF Human Patient Simulator (HPS) mannequin patient simulator technology that is licensed to Medical Education Technologies, Inc. (METI) and used worldwide. The Virtual Anesthesia Machine (VAM) team, affiliated with CSSALT, offers a portfolio of web-enabled simulations.
CSSALT works closely with the Investigational Review Board of the University of Florida and has access to undergraduate students in Psychology, medical students (120 per class) undergoing their compulsory anesthesia rotation as well as 70 – 90 anesthesia residents and fellows. CSSALT also has access to two educational psychology PhDs and a biostatistics PhD for learning outcome studies.
Click here to read more about The Department of Anesthesiology’s Center for Safety, Simulation & Advanced Learning Technologies. | <urn:uuid:0345f46f-fd67-4f44-97ac-a23cb438e3bc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://anest.ufl.edu/research/cssalt/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00047-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.91971 | 346 | 1.695313 | 2 |
Nearly half of the reported hate crimes in 2011 were motivated by racial bias, and one of every five hate crimes was motivated by a sexual orientation bias or religious bias. One in five was motivated by bias involving national origin or ethnicity.
Nearly 60 percent of the people who allegedly committed hate crimes were white. Some 20 percent were black.
The FBI has been collecting information on hate crimes for more than two decades. The highest-recorded number of hate crimes was in 2001, when 9,730 such crimes were reported.
Law enforcement agencies reported 6,222 hate crimes last year, compared to 6,628 in 2010 and 6,604 in 2009. | <urn:uuid:affbb811-98b9-48b6-87a0-c3b304f0618a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://romenews-tribune.com/pages/full_story/push?article-FBI-+Hate+crimes+down+slightly+in+2011%20&id=21085401 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.990282 | 131 | 2.65625 | 3 |
Vagus Nerve Stimulation: When Medications don’t Control Seizures
Vagus nerve stimulation, or VNS, is one of the latest epilepsy treatment techniques. It’s been available since 1997. The vagus nerve is part of the nervous system that affects body functions that we can’t control. This nerve goes from the brain stem through the neck and into the chest and abdomen. Stimulating the vagus nerve can decrease seizure activity in some people, although nobody knows for sure exactly how or why it works.
Candidates for VNS are people with “defined” epilepsy (those who have been diagnosed with actual epilepsy, not just seizures) that’s sufficiently severe. Additionally, candidates are not able to control their seizures with medication.
During the VNS procedure, a stimulator that looks very much like a pacemaker is implanted in the patient’s chest. “A wire from the stimulator wraps around the vagus nerve in the neck and stimulates it every 5 minutes,” explains Dr. Mark Bej, a neurologist in private practice in northern Ohio.
There are some effects of the stimulator that the patient can feel. “There can be some hoarseness during stimulation, because it affects the voice box, and there may be some coughing during stimulation, but for most people, these side effects are mild,” says Dr. Bej. “And you can manually control the stimulator with a magnet. For people who can tell when a seizure is coming on, they can sweep the magnet across the chest where the stimulator is. This turns the stimulator on, and can often stop or decrease the severity of the seizure. People who might want to turn the stimulator off for a brief period of time, say if they’re about to give a speech, can tape the magnet on their chest and the stimulator goes off.”
Results of the VNS technique vary widely. Dr. Bej says, “I have one patient who was on two medications but she was having one or two seizures per month. She had the VNS procedure, her seizures went to zero, and I was eventually able to take her off one of her medications. So now she’s on one drug plus the stimulator, and it’s been like this for her for several years.”
At the other extreme, “Some people have the stimulator placed and they have absolutely no change.
But for people who do respond, VNS is very helpful. “Putting people on the stimulator is about as effective as adding an additional medication. This can be helpful because epilepsy medication can cause side effects like drowsiness or dizziness, and the VNS doesn’t have those types of symptoms,” Dr. Bej says.
According to Dr. Bej, “For now, the stimulator is used only for people who can’t control their seizures on their current medication. In a few years, we might see a clinical trial to determine whether people who do control their seizures with medication are good candidates for the stimulator.”
The procedure is performed under general anesthesia. Patients typically go home that day with pain medication, and they’re usually back at work in a few days.
O. Devinsky. Epilepsy Patient & Family Guide. F.A. Davis Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 2002; Dr. Mark Bej, Northern Ohio Neurologist. | <urn:uuid:b1ca0ffc-e203-467f-8544-a073c71e0bc5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mercyweb.org/mercy_health_articles_view.aspx?type=2&issue=68&article_id=545 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950604 | 724 | 3.015625 | 3 |
Terris-Prestholt F, Vyas S, Kumaranayake L, Mayaud P, Watts C. The Costs of Treating Curable Sexually Transmitted Infections in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review. Sex Transm Dis. 2006 Oct;33(10 Suppl):S153-66.
To systematically review the costs of providing services for curable and treatable sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in low- and middle-income countries; and to explore the relationship between unit costs and potential moderating variables related to costing methods, impact measures used, mode of service delivery, form of STI management, intervention scale, and study location.
Between November and December 2005, the authors searched PubMed, conference abstracts, and other grey literature for studies examining the cost of treating curable STIs. A detailed search in PubMed was conducted using the term “cost” and various STI pathogens and syndromes. Only English-language publications that focused on low- or middle-income countries were eligible for inclusion. Articles that had no reference to cost in the title or abstract were excluded, as were articles that focused on the laboratory aspects of diagnosis. No date/time limitation was specified. All papers and abstracts were reviewed independently by two of the authors, and discrepancies were reconciled through discussion with other authors.
Fifty-three original studies from low-and middle-income countries (as defined by World Bank criteria) were included in this review. Most studies (n=35, 65%) were from sub-Saharan Africa. The non-African studies were from Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Nicaragua, Peru, Russia, and Thailand.
Most studies targeted general population or symptomatic males and females. Some studies focused on specific groups, such as commercial sex workers (CSWs), the clients and partners of CSWs, family planning and antenatal clinic attendees, workplace STI screening attendees, voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) attendees, glue sniffers, and transvestites.
The included studies covered a range of issues associated with the provision of STI treatment services. Forty-two studies focused on the provision of STI treatment, four estimated the drug costs associated with STI treatment, five focused on patient expenditure, one focused on provider profits, and one discussed the cost of tracing defaulter patients and partners. No studies were found that examined the costs associated with mass treatment of STI.
Cost per (unspecified) STI treated was the most common outcome. Of the 53 studies included in this review, 31 (58%) estimated the empirical costs of STI treatment, 34% (n=18) the economic costs, and 17% (n=9) the estimated full costs. To enable comparison and analysis, all costs were converted to constant 2004 US dollars. Studies reported unit costs for 20 different outcomes. In total, the studies provided 117 observations on the costs of STI drugs and 134 observations on the cost per STI treated.
The median cost for drugs was $2.62 and for treatment $17.80. In regression analysis, the cost of outreach services was 51% higher than clinic-based services for symptomatic patients. Unit costs in Africa were 3.34 times the costs of interventions elsewhere. Interventions that used syndromic management protocols to identify STIs were half the cost of using other forms of STI management, such as etiologic diagnosis. The cost per HIV infection averted was $2,299.
The compiled cost data provide an evidence base that can be used to help inform resource planning.
Using the QUOROM criteria for assessing the quality of systematic reviews, this study was of high quality. The quality of this systematic review was limited in that only English-language articles were searched and key pieces of technical information were missing from the descriptions of the methods used to calculate unit costs, and that when available, methodologies varied significantly. It should also be noted that because studies often reported on the cost per case cured and did not account for the secondary effects of treating STIs on the transmission, the overall cost-effectiveness of these interventions may be underestimated.
Although several reviews have summarized the evidence of the costs and cost-effectiveness of various forms of HIV prevention, no reviews of the costs of providing services for curable STIs have been published. It has been estimated that in developing countries, STIs, excluding HIV, account for 17% of economic losses caused by ill-health.(1)
Data on intervention costs, such as those presented here, can be used to inform resource decisions. As treatment using syndromic management was shown to reduce unit costs, this approach can be encouraged in low-resource settings. Additionally, although outreach interventions were shown to be more expensive per outcome, their cost-effectiveness would depend on the prevalence of treatable STIs in the target groups.(2,3)
- World Development Report 1993: Investing in Health. New York: Oxford University Press for the World Bank, 1993. [PDF, 6MB]
- Terris-Prestholt F, Watson-Jones D, Mugeye K, Kumaranayake L, Ndeki L, Weiss H, Changalucha J, Todd J, Lisekie F, Gumodoka B, Mabey D, Hayes R.
Is antenatal syphilis screening still cost effective in sub-Saharan Africa? Sex Transm Infect. 2003 Oct;79(5):375-81.
- Vickerman P, Terris-Prestholt F, Delany S, Kumaranayake L, Rees H, Watts C.
Are targeted HIV prevention activities cost-effective in high prevalence settings? Results from a sexually transmitted infection treatment project for sex workers in Johannesburg, South Africa. Sex Transm Dis. 2006 Oct;33(10 Suppl):S122-32. | <urn:uuid:decbb668-431c-463e-aa99-e45eb4af165d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://hivinsite.ucsf.edu/InSite?page=jl-03-02 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949746 | 1,219 | 1.609375 | 2 |
How can Regulations, Tariffs and Customs services help?
Regulations, Tariffs and Customs services are always important for a company successful international business development. Professionals in that field of activity offer vital assistance to companies doing business around the world, and bring expertise, advices and solutions for this important aspect of their growth. An accurate knowledge of national and international regulations and trade compliances can be critical in some industries like the pharmaceutical business or agribusiness. Customs policies and regulation issues dealing with exporting goods can be complex and assistance in that field - through custom brokers and other specialists - is often very important: it address a vast array of issues, from temporary imports/export to duties and custom tariffs, export documentations, incoterms, national and international standards, labelling of products and duty drawbacks (Import duty refunds).What do Regulations, Tariffs and Customs services consist of?
Service providers usually offer excellent relationship with customs specialists and attention to detail with documents, tariffs and quarantine requirements. Their priority is to provide fast and effective clearance of goods. Global Customs Specialist are responsible for providing Companies product line groups and business units with information regarding tariff classification, documentation, duty rates, trade preferences and restrictions to comply with standard regulations.Being aware of and using services available in terms of regulations information, tariffs and customs services is important for any organization. | <urn:uuid:ef0c8c31-3d11-4765-bceb-003b1a1f0418> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.globaltrade.net/El-Salvador/Tariffs/detailed-service-provider.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.928111 | 271 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Bachelor of Arts in English
Prerequisites and Recommendations
There is no prerequisite to the major, aside from English 1050 or Advanced Placement (for students from the class of 2014 and earlier) or (for students beginning with the class of 2015) the Sophomore Literature and Writing Seminar, but we strongly recommend that you take English 2101 (The British Literary Tradition I) early, since it will introduce you to writers, texts, and issues that are crucial to most subsequent courses.
Overall Course Requirements
For an English major, you need to complete 11 courses, five of which are free electives. (Students from the class of 2014 and earlier should note that the course you take to fulfill the Advanced Literature requirement does not count toward the major, even if it is an English course.)
Of the six required courses, one is the junior research requirement course (two are offered each term) and another is the senior seminar (at least two are offered each term).
The department’s other requirement—four courses chosen from a number of possibilities—are chiefly designed to give you a sense of the historical range and diversity of English literature. (English 2101, 2102, 2103, and 2104, which provide broad surveys covering more than one area, do not fulfill these area requirements. English majors may count only two of those courses for the major and the Advanced Literature requirement.)
You may also choose to give more shape and focus to your English major by creating a track. See the Tracks webpage. Tracks are entirely optional.
Course Planning Chart
To see the requirements in brief, and to help you plan your program, you can use one of our handy charts, which are slightly different because of the changes in the Core Curriculum. See the dowload inks below.
Two courses in British/Irish literature before 1800, in two different areas. This field is divided into three areas: Medieval; Renaissance; and Restoration and 18th Century. (For a full list of the courses in each area, click on the highlighted text.) To fulfill the requirement, you have to take two courses in different areas. (Of course you are not limited to taking two courses in this field; you may take as many as you like.)
Two courses in literature primarily after 1800: one in British/Irish literature and one in American literature. One of these courses must be in 19th century literature and one must be in literature after 1900.
Often this requirement will mean either
> Pairing a course in American literature to 1900 with a course in British/Irish literature after 1900
> Pairing a course in 19th century British/Irish literature with a course in American literature after 1900.
(For a full list of the courses in each area, click on the highlighted text.)
Note your flexibility here: If you happen to take courses in both areas of American literature, you may take a course in either British/Irish area; similarly, if you happen to take courses in both areas of British/Irish literature, you may take a course in either American area.
(Don’t rely on the CAPP program to tell you whether you have fulfilled this area requirement; it does not assess this requirement properly.)
The Junior Research Seminar (English 2250)
This course must be taken in the junior year or earlier.
A Senior Seminar
This course, numbered 5000, is meant to serve as a capstone course for your experience as an English major. At least two senior seminars, limited to English majors and capped at 15 students each, are offered each term.
These courses can be any English department courses numbered 2000 and above, with the partial exception of the British Literary Tradition and American Literary Tradition courses (2101, 2102, 2103, 2104); a student may count only two of those courses towards the major.
For students from the class of 2014 and earlier: An additional literature course for the Advanced Literature requirement
English courses numbered below 2100 (courses in writing and rhetoric) do not fulfill this requirement. This course does not have to be an English course; some courses in other departments (especially Classical and Modern Languages) can also fulfill this requirement. | <urn:uuid:c39c96ad-c805-437a-8f11-1eab330ac462> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www1.villanova.edu/villanova/artsci/english/undergraduate/majorinenglish.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00044-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934384 | 855 | 1.554688 | 2 |
After researching bacteriological agents for my novel, I considered myself something of an expert. Little did I know that my partner had first hand experience ...
Cole's early life was spent on a farm in Australia's Snowy Mountains where the battle to eradicate rabbits was carried out using the same toxic gas mixture used in the trenches in World War 1. The mere killing of rabits was not the aim, there was a need to permanently effect the species, to permanently affect populations in sufficient numbers to cause permanent decline. Rabbits need homes to breed and survive predators, and so fumigation of rabbit warrens was carried out. A toxic gas mixture was blown throughout the warren system (pressure fumigation).
Both my partner and his father were frequently overcome by fumes and were fortunate not to have died. It should be noted that fumigants are dangerous to both the aggressor and the victim. | <urn:uuid:a74ed2b8-b6aa-4515-b6ea-1cdc0f2fc710> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.authorsden.com/visit/viewarticle.asp?AuthorID=141043 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.982753 | 183 | 1.640625 | 2 |
Multistate Outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 Infections Associated with Beef from Fairbank Farms
Updated November 2, 2009
States where persons infected with the outbreak strain of E. coli O157:H7 live, United States, by state, from August 21, 2009 to November 2, 2009
Infections with the Outbreak Strain of E. coli O157:H7 By Illness Onset
Several state health departments, CDC, and the United States Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS) are investigating a multi-state outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 infections. On October 31, 2009, FSIS issued a notice about a recall of 545,699 pounds of beef products from Fairbank Farms that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7. Health officials in several states who were investigating a cluster of E. coli O157:H7 illnesses, with isolates that match by “DNA fingerprinting” analyses, found that most ill persons had consumed ground beef, with several purchasing the same or similar product from a common retail chain. At least some of the illnesses appear to be associated with products subject to these recalls. A sample from an opened package of ground beef recovered from a patient's home was tested by the Massachusetts Department of Health and yielded an E. coli O157:H7 isolate that matched the patient isolates by DNA analysis.
The cluster includes twenty-eight persons from 12 states infected with matching strains of E. coli O157:H7. Of these, the genetic association of 7 human isolates and the product isolate have been confirmed by an advanced secondary DNA test ; secondary tests are pending on others. The number of ill persons identified in each state is as follows: California (1), Connecticut (4), Massachusetts (8), Maryland (1), Maine (2), Minnesota (1), New Hampshire (4), New Jersey (1), New York (1), Pennsylvania (2), South Dakota (2), and Vermont (1).
The first reported illness began on August 18, 2009, and the last began on October 10, 2009; however all but 2 patients reported becoming ill between September 17 and October 10, 2009. Sixteen patients are reported to have been hospitalized and 3 developed a type of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). Two deaths have been reported. Sixty-seven percent of patients are male and 43% are less than 18 years old (range 1 to 84 years).
Most of the beef packages in the recall bear the establishment number "Est. 492" inside the USDA mark of inspection and have identifying package dates of "091509" or "091609." Consumers are urged to check their refrigerators and freezers for beef products produced by this firm and purchased on or after September 15, 2009 and discard or return the recalled beef products to the place of purchase for a refund. Customers with questions about the source of a package of beef should contact the place where they purchased it (e.g., grocery store, club store, or meat market).
More information on the recalled products can be found at:
New York Firm Recalls Fresh Ground Beef Products Due to Possible E.coli 0157:H7 Contamination
Advice to Consumers
Cook Beef Thoroughly
Eat ground beef or ground beef patties that have been cooked to a safe internal temperature of 160° F.
- Use a food thermometer to measure the internal temperature—it is the only way to be sure ground beef is cooked to a high enough temperature to kill harmful bacteria.
- Color is NOT a reliable indicator that ground beef or ground beef patties have been cooked to a temperature high enough to kill harmful bacteria such as E. coli O157:H7.
For more information go to Is It Done Yet? (USDA).
- Refrigerate raw meat within two hours after purchase or within one hour if temperatures exceed 90° F.
- Store ground beef in a refrigerator set at 40° F or below, and cook or freeze it within one or two days of purchase
- Refrigerate cooked meat and poultry within two hours after cooking, and use or freeze it within three or four days
Page last modified: November 2, 2009
Content source: National Center for Zoonotic, Vector-Borne, and Enteric Diseases (ZVED) | <urn:uuid:d9bfe40f-732c-4157-b7b5-d9cd807dbe56> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cdc.gov/ecoli/2009/1102.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939803 | 911 | 2.28125 | 2 |
Jared Bouck has created what he calls the sprout board. It’s is a high-quality main board that is designed to allow users to simply plug in an Arduino and create a wide variety of high-quality practical projects.
Jared's system is 100 percent open-source and totally customizable to the needs of each implementation. The applications based on the sprout board range from automated gardening control, home heat, and sprinkler systems to interactive art projects. Because this gadget is based on the flexible Arduino platform, anyone from a beginner to an expert -- with a little programming background -- can customize it.
Here is the finished sprout board. It allows the microcontroller and an accessory shield to dock with it
and utilize the on-board features with ease.
Here is the board with Arduino and Ethernet shield mounted.
The assembly of the sprout board is very simple and requires very little experience with soldering.
Tom, I think you need to calm down a bit. There are lots of ways to solve any problem. As for the Arduino, I am not so impressed. I have found vendor evaluation and startup boards that are less costly and are stull "open" enough to be set up in lots of different ways. They generally come with complete drawings and software. They are meant to be modified and adapted to an application. While I see the Arduino used in some Univeristy programs, I have been advocating that they use boards from the commercial vendors. There are two reasons for this. One, in the real world, they will need to be familiar with the vendors' products. Part of an engineer's job is doing a make/buy trade study. They need to determine if there is an existing part that will meet the need (perhaps with some modification). Second, I have found that a lot of the vendor boards are less expensive. Software is generally free with a restriction on the size of the application.
This is a nice project but it's not earth shattering news. Parallax has had the Basic Stamp for over 20 years!
The Parallax development board is more compact.
Also the Pic microcontroler has been around just as long, and I am sure there are priject boards out there for them too.
As far getting them into schools, I know Parallax has a forum dedicated to teachers, and they offer discounts to schools on their project boards. The even kit the microprocessor with components to create a fully functional and programmable robot.
Things are getting quite lively here with the generational bickering. Interestingly, the kids' skills with gaming software and familiarity with electronic communications and social networking will come in handy with future technology, even present-day technology. One of the trends mentioned in Beth's piece, The Top 6 Design Hardware and Software Trends of 2011 mentions design tools that use social networking.
and not intended for mobile or industrial use. No provisions have been made for surviving EMC compliance tests, so better be careful if using this board for home automation, except if you are at home...
Nevertheless, this is another helpful contribution, now based on the Arduino form factor. Give it to kids which are otherwise destroying the universe several times a day with their game computers, and they will show you whether they are able to do something useful or not. Let' see!
" I am so tired of these 50 year old has been old school myopic elitist ass hole engineers"
Whoa ! I am a 64 year old with wide angle ( somewhat fading ) vision .
I had been designing and building equipment with CMOS logic since the 60s, always saying I will get into micros one day, but never had the time to learn.
The Arduino concept ( warts and all ) was my stepping stone that allowed me to quickly absorb the programming concepts, and within a year I am using ATmega 328s on nearly all my projects.
I am sure if I had time to get into Z80 or whatever 30 years ago, I would still rave about the Arduino concept now, not because of its name, shape , or its offset socket mistake :-), but because its ability to allow beginners and old-farts alike, to jump straight into the hands-on side of microprocessors.
Those with the inclination can then move on to "real" micro projects should they wish.
Your attitude is a "what have you done for me lately?" sort of thing. If I'm such a geezer, then you don't need me.
Seriously, I do help out. I have the Arduino, some MSP-430 stuff, protoboards, radios, ocilloscopes, DVMs, and a really messy shop where I can show my kids and their friends what real electronics and ham radio are like.
I teach these kids programming at assembly, low level, and high level languages, soldering, receiver design, modulation theory, and many more things.
You want people to contribute? Don't insult them. And don't make assumptions about their character.
May your new year be less elitist and more hands-on than this one.
First off, nice work, Jared! Probably a lot nicer than a software monkey like myself will ever understand. Good luck with 'the market'!
I tend to agree about renaming stuff - ditto the shields 'wt...' - but the question is not so much what bugs us, but what works. Arduino has succeeded nicely in a world overfilled with iPods and PSPs. Jared's rack-mount form factor may be short-sighted -- or it may be way ahead of its time. We'll know in a few years!
IMHO, the coolest innovation is seeing open source invade the hardware world. Sure, it makes a lot of people uneasy - just like it did with software. But proprietary SW didn't die, which bodes well for the future of HW. Meanwhile. open source continues to 'democratize magic.' Freak on!
('Bodes well'? I'm dating myself!) The more I think about Jared's design, the more I like it. Know what's missing? An ugly jumble of wires. Fantastic!
Because it fulfills a need. It provides open source server room / general environmental monitoring platform that is fully open source. This is not a catch all product. It is for specific industries. And costs about 10% of a comparable comical product with no residual licensing costs. For companies, data centers, even green houses this is a critical savings and will drive prices down to a reasonable level.
This is only true in part overall. It looks like more thought has gone into this than you give credit. They also have a wall mount version that allows the placement of an lcd screen in the board cutout. Seems to me while yes still ridged, it provides a great amount of further flexibility.
A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is | <urn:uuid:dac96e93-b9da-4308-aaab-ac56b2a01faf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.designnews.com/author.asp?section_id=1362&f_src=designnews_section_1362&doc_id=236840 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.9564 | 1,548 | 1.90625 | 2 |
Stories of survival in Pakistan: Boundary walls
Anwer Saeed works in an electronics store to support his 40-year-old mother, Pashima, and two younger brothers. His father passed away more than 10 years ago in a car accident.
Anwer Saeed stands amid what's left of his family's home. He wants to rebuild the outer walls before winter.
Photo: Donna Fernandes/CWS
See also video Pakistan floods: Inside the CWS response
By Donna Fernandes/CWS
ZIARIATABAD VILLAGE, DISTRICT SHANGLA, PAKISTAN -- Anwer Saeed works in an electronics store to support his 40-year-old mother, Pashima, and two younger brothers. His father passed away more than 10 years ago in a car accident. However, that was not the only loss for the family. The 2005 earthquake brought down the family’s house in Kohistan. The family once again faced great loss as devastating floodwaters washed away the so-called boundary walls, two bedrooms, and the kitchen of their home.
“We received a compensatory cheque from the government for the loss of our house during the 2005 earthquake. Together with some borrowed money from relatives we were able to construct this house,” says Anwer. Pointing to the dried brown zigzag lines on the wall he said, “The recent floodwaters filled our house. After the waters receded, we came back from staying with relatives and cleared out the mud.”
Anwer’s house is situated along the Hunza River. Eight other houses in the village were also ravaged by the floods. These families received food packages from Church World Service. Anwer says, “The food packages are good and will last us for up to two months. We cook in our neighbor’s kitchen and use their utensils. All of our utensils have been taken away by the floods.”
Anwer would like the bedrooms back, and there is no doubt that his mother misses her kitchen, as well. “My youngest brother sleeps inside near my mother, but my other brother and I need our rooms,” says Anwer. “We did not have much time to leave with our things. In fact we saw people moving from nearby houses and quickly decided to move.”
At the age of 23 and with much responsibility on his shoulders, Anwer plays the role of not just an eldest brother, but also the bread earner of the family. “I earn an income of 4,000 Rupees per month ($47.10) and it is not easy to rebuild what we have lost. The coming of winter is another worry. It gets really cold here, and my immediate concern is to get boundary walls constructed to protect us from the winter winds.”
His younger brother works irregularly, and together they bring home an average of 6,000 Rupees per month ($71). With the rising cost of living and persistently high inflation rates in Pakistan, Anwer and his family face an extremely difficult phase in their lives once again. “Our clothes were ruined--most of them washed away by the waters-- so we need to get ready for the coming of winter.”
How to help
Contributions to support the emergency needs in Pakistan may be made online
or by phone (800.297.1516), or may be sent to your denomination or to
Church World Service, P.O. Box 968, Elkhart, IN 46515, Attention:
World Service is a member of the ACT Alliance, a global coalition of
churches and agencies engaged in development, humanitarian assistance
Lesley Crosson, 212-870-2676, firstname.lastname@example.org
Jan Dragin, 781-925-1526, email@example.com
Browse news release archive | <urn:uuid:e75e8dde-7cfc-4bef-bb36-8bb2f27e324e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://hunger.cwsglobal.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=10151&news_iv_ctrl=1361 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00021-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972099 | 818 | 2.28125 | 2 |
On March 9, 1964, Ford assembled thousands of brand-new 1964 Ford Mustang parts to create the first ever Mustang. It was unveiled at the World’s Fair in New York on April 17, with 22,000 orders secured by the end of the day. The car and the many 1964 Mustang parts came in coupe and convertible format, with three different engines. Many of the 64 Mustang parts were based on the design of the Ford Falcon initially, with a similar horizontal speedometer and many of the Falcon parts from the under hood being mechanically similar to the 1964 Mustang parts. Production of 1964 Ford Mustang parts ran from March to the end of July in 1964 and ended up consisting of 121,538 sales in just a few short months.
For customers with one of these first Mustangs, CJ Pony Parts has more than 3,800 1964 Ford Mustangs parts available for purchase. These 64 Mustang parts are from big vendors, like ACC Carpets, American Autowire, Cardone Select, KYB, New Vintage USA, Pertronix and many, many more! CJ Pony Parts also offers graphics, decals, guides and books for many 1964 Mustang parts. Any customer can also contact CJ Pony Parts for installation help, technical questions, or to order 1964 Mustang parts. CJ Pony Parts’ sales and customer care teams are all very knowledgeable about all 64 Mustang parts and are available via phone and online for all customers, 7 days a week.
Many 1964 Ford Mustang parts from CJ Pony Parts are in stock now and ready for order! If an order is placed by 5 p.m. daily, it ships the same day, and many orders ship free! | <urn:uuid:5de36278-7b1e-4b03-b147-68fc256d87df> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cjponyparts.com/Category.aspx?ss=&c=9_1001_2&sb=&sd=&pgnum=354&pgsize=&filter= | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00052-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94929 | 339 | 1.625 | 2 |
play an important role in summarizing baseball
performance and evaluating players in the sport
. Since the flow of baseball has natural breaks to it, the game lends itself to easy record keeping and statistics. This makes comparisons between players' on field performance relatively easy, and therefore gives statistics more importance in baseball than in most other sports. Statistics have been kept for professional baseball
since the creation of each league. Many statistics are also available from outside of Major League Baseball, from leagues such as the National Association
and the Negro Leagues
Development of statistics
The practice of keeping records of player achievements was started in the 19th century by Henry Chadwick
Based on his experience with cricket
, Chadwick devised the predecessors to modern day statistics
including batting average
scored, and runs allowed
Traditionally, statistics such as batting average (the number of hits divided by the number of at bats) and earned run average (approximately the number of runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings) have dominated attention in the statistical world of baseball. However, the recent advent of sabermetrics has created statistics drawing from a breadth of player performance measures and playing field variables. Sabermetrics and comparative statistics attempt to provide an improved measure of a player's performance and contributions to his team from year to year, frequently against a statistical performance average.
Comprehensive, historical baseball statistics were difficult for the average fan to access until 1951, when researcher Hy Turkin published The Complete Encyclopedia of Baseball. In 1969, Macmillan Publishing printed its first Baseball Encyclopedia, using a computer to compile statistics for the first time. Known as "Big Mac", the encyclopedia became the standard baseball reference until 1988, when Total Baseball was released by Warner Books using more sophisticated technology. The publication of Total Baseball led to the discovery of several "phantom ballplayers", including Lou Proctor, who did not belong in official record books and were removed.
Use of statistics
Throughout much of modern baseball, several core statistics have been traditionally referenced—batting average
, and home runs
. To this day, a player who leads the league in these three statistics is referred to as the "Triple Crown
" winner. For pitchers, wins
, and strikeouts
are the most often cited traditional statistics, with a pitcher leading a league in these statistics referred to as a "Triple Crown" winner. General managers and baseball scouts
have long used the major statistics, among other factors and opinions, to understand player ability. Managers, catchers and pitchers use statistics of batters against opposing teams to develop pitching strategies and set defensive positioning
on the field. Managers and batters study opposing pitcher performance and motion in attempts to improve hitting. Managers often base personnel decisions for a game on statistics, such starting lineups or relief pitcher
Some sabermetric statistics have entered the mainstream baseball world that measure a batter's overall performance including On-base plus slugging, commonly referred to as OPS. OPS adds the hitter's on base percentage (number of times reached base by any means divided by total plate appearances) to his slugging percentage (total bases divided by at bats). Some argue that the OPS formula is flawed and that more weight should be shifted towards OBP (on base percentage).
OPS is also useful when determining a pitcher's level of success. "Opponent On-base Plus Slugging" (OOPS) is becoming a popular way to evaluating a pitcher's actual performance. When analyzing a pitcher's statistics, some useful categories to consider include K/9IP (strikeouts per nine innings), K/BB (strikeouts per walk), HR/9, WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched) and OOPS (opponent on-base plus slugging).
However, since 2001, more emphasis has been placed on Defense-Independent Pitching Statistics, including Defense-Independent ERA (dERA), in an attempt to evaluate a pitcher performance regardless of the strength of the defensive players behind him.
Also important are all of the above statistics in certain in-game situations. For example, a certain hitter's ability to hit left-handed pitchers might incline a manager to provide increased opportunities to face left-handed pitchers. Other hitters may have a history of success against a given pitcher (or vice versa), and the manager may use this information to create a favorable match up.
The use of performance-enhancing anabolic steroids in Major League Baseball has affected the value of statistics, according to the Mitchell Report, released 13 December 2007, which concluded, in part
The illegal use of performance enhancing substances poses a serious threat to the integrity of the game. Widespread use by players of such substances unfairly disadvantages the honest athletes who refuse to use them and raises questions about the validity of baseball records.
Commonly used statistics
Most of these terms also apply to softball
. Commonly used statistics with their abbreviations
are explained here. The explanations below are for quick reference and do not fully or completely define the statistic; for the strict definition, see the corresponding article for each statistic.
- 1B—Single: hits on which the batter reached first base safely without the contribution of a fielding error.
- 2B—Double: hits on which the batter reached second base safely without the contribution of a fielding error.
- 3B—Triple: hits on which the batter reached third base safely without the contribution of a fielding error.
- AB—At bat: Batting appearances, not including bases on balls, hit by pitch, sacrifices, interference, or obstruction
- AB/HR At bats per home run: at bats divided by home runs
- BA—Batting average (also abbreviated AVG): hits divided by at bats
- BB—Base on balls (also called a "walk"): times receiving four balls and advancing to first base
- BABIP Batting average on balls in play: frequency of which a batter reaches a base after putting the ball in the field of play. Also a pitching category.
- BB/K—Walk-to-strikeout ratio: number of base on balls divided by number of strikeouts
- XBH—Extra base hits: doubles plus triples plus home runs
- FC—Fielder's choice: times reaching base when a fielder chose to try for an out on another runner
- GO/AO—Ground ball fly ball ratio: number of ground ball outs divided by number of fly ball outs
- GDP or GIDP—Ground into double play: number of ground balls hit that became double plays
- GPA—Gross Production Average: 1.8 times on-base percentage plus slugging percentage, divided by four
- GS—Grand Slam: a home run with the bases loaded, resulting in four runs scoring, and four RBI credited to the batter.
- H—Hits: times reached base because of a batted, fair ball without error by the defense
- HBP—Hit by pitch: times touched by a pitch and awarded first base as a result
- HR—Home runs: hits on which the batter successfully touched all four bases, without the contribution of a fielding error.
- IBB—Intentional base on balls: times awarded first base on balls (see BB above) deliberately thrown by the pitcher. Also known as IW (intentional walk).
- K—Strike out: number of times that strike three is taken or swung at and missed, or bunted foul
- LOB—Left on base: number of runners not out nor scored at the end of an inning.
- OBP—On base percentage: times reached base (H + BB + HBP) divided by at bats plus walks plus hit by pitch plus sacrifice flies (AB + BB + HBP + SF).
- OPS—On-base plus slugging: on-base percentage plus slugging average
- PA—Plate appearance: number of completed batting appearances
- RC—Runs created: statistic that attempts to measure how many runs a player has contributed to his team
- RP—Runs produced: statistic that attempts to measure how many runs a player has contributed
- RBI—Run batted in: number of runners who scored due to a batters' action, except when batter grounded into double play or reached on an error
- RISP—Runner In Scoring Position: the batter's batting average with runners in scoring position
- SF—Sacrifice fly: number of fly ball outs to the outfield which allow a runner already on base to score
- SH—Sacrifice hit: number of sacrifice bunts which allows another runner to advance on the basepaths or score
- SLG—Slugging average: total bases divided by at-bats
- TA—Total average: total bases, plus walks, plus hit by pitch, plus steals, minus caught stealing divided by at bats, minus hits, plus caught stealing, plus grounded into double play
- TB—Total bases: one for each single, two for each double, three for each triple, and four for each home run
- TOB—Times on base: times reaching base as a result of hits, walks, and hit-by-pitches
- BsR—Base Runs: Another run estimator, like Runs Created; a favorite of writer Tom Tango
- XR—Extrapolated Runs: A linear run estimator developed by Jim Furtado
- CS—Caught stealing: times tagged out while attempting to steal a base
- SB—Stolen base: number of bases advanced other than on batted balls, walks, or hits by pitch
- DI—Defensive Indifference: if the catcher does not attempt to throw out a runner (usually because the run would be insignificant), the runner is not awarded a steal
- R—Runs scored: times reached home base legally and safely
- BB—Base on balls (also called a "walk"): times pitching four balls, allowing the batter-runner to advance to first base
- BB/9: Base on balls times nine divided by innings pitched (Bases on balls per 9 innings pitched)
- BF—Total batters faced: opponent's total plate appearances
- BK—Balk: number of times pitcher commits an illegal pitching action or other illegal action while in contact with the pitching rubber, thus allowing baserunners to advance
- BS—Blown save: number of times entering the game in a save situation, and being charged the run (earned or not) which eliminates his team's lead
- CERA—Component ERA: an estimate of a pitcher's ERA based upon the individual components of his statistical line (K, H, 2B, 3B, HR, BB, HBP)
- CG—Complete game: number of games where player was the only pitcher for his team
- DICE—Defense-Independent Component ERA: an estimate of a pitcher's ERA based upon the defense-independent components of his statistical line (K, HR, BB, HBP)
- ER—Earned run: number of runs that did not occur as a result of errors or passed balls
- ERA—Earned run average: total number of earned runs (see "ER" above), multiplied by 9, divided by innings pitched
- ERA+—Adjusted ERA+: earned run average adjusted for the ballpark and the league average
- G—Games (AKA "appearances"): number of times a pitcher pitches in a season
- GF—Games finished: number of games pitched where player was the final pitcher for his team
- G/F—Ground ball fly ball ratio: ground balls allowed divided by fly balls allowed
- GS—Starts: number of games pitched where player was the first pitcher for his team
- H/9—Hits per nine innings: hits allowed times nine divided by innings pitched (also known as H/9IP—Hits allowed per 9 innings pitched)
- H—Hits Allowed: total hits allowed
- HB—Hit batsman: times hit a batter with pitch, allowing runner to advance to first base
- HLD (or H)—Hold: number of games entered in a save situation, recorded at least one out, did not surrender the lead, and did not complete the game
- HR—Home runs allowed: total home runs allowed
- IBB: Intentional base on balls allowed
- IP—Innings pitched: number of outs recorded while pitching divided by three
- IP/GS: Average number of innings pitched per game
- IR—Inherited runners: number of runners on base when the pitcher enters the game
- IRA—Inherited runs allowed: number of inherited runners allowed to score
- K—Strikeout: number of batters who received strike three
- K/9—Strikeouts per nine innings: strikeouts times nine divided by innings pitched (Strikeouts per 9 innings pitched)
- K/BB—Strikeout-to-walk ratio: number of strikeouts divided by number of base on balls
- L—Loss: number of games where pitcher was pitching while the opposing team took the lead, never lost the lead, and went on to win
- OBA—Opponents batting average: hits allowed divided by at-bats faced
- PIT: Pitches thrown (Pitch count)
- QS—Quality start: a game in which a starting pitcher completes at least six innings and permits no more than three runs
- RA—Run average: number of runs allowed times nine divided by innings pitched
- R.R.A—Relief Run Average: A function of how many inherited base runners a relief pitcher allowed to score.
- SHO—Shutout: number of complete games pitched with no runs allowed
- SO: Strikeout Also may be notated as "K".
- SV—Save: number of games where the pitcher enters a game led by the pitcher's team, finishes the game without surrendering the lead, is not the winning pitcher, and either (a) the lead was three runs or less when the pitcher entered the game; (b) the potential tying run was on base, at bat, or on deck; or (c) the pitcher pitched three or more innings
- W—Win: number of games where pitcher was pitching while his team took the lead and went on to win (also related: winning percentage)
- WHIP—Walks and hits per inning pitched: average number of walks and hits allowed by the pitcher per inning
- WP—Wild pitches: charged when a pitch is too high, low, or wide of home plate for the catcher to field, thereby allowing one or more runners to advance or score
- A—Assists: number of outs recorded on a play where a fielder touched the ball, except if such touching is the putout
- DP—Double plays: one for each double play during which the fielder recorded a putout or an assist.
- E—Errors: number of times a fielder fails to make a play he should have made with common effort, and the offense benefits as a result
- FP—Fielding percentage: total plays (chances minus errors) divided by the number of total chances
- INN—Innings: number of innings that a player is at one certain position
- PB—Passed ball: charged to the catcher when the ball is dropped and one or more runners advance
- PO—Putout: number of times the fielder tags, forces, or appeals a runner and he is called out as a result
- RF—Range factor: ([putouts + assists]*9)/innings played. Used to determine the amount of field that the player can cover
- TC—Total chances: assists plus putouts plus errors
- TP—Triple play: one for each triple play during which the fielder recorded a putout or an assist
- G—Games played: number of games where the player played, in whole or in part
- GB—Games behind: number of games a team is behind the division leader
- Pythagorean expectation: estimates a team's expected winning percentage based on runs scored and runs allowed.
MLB statistical standards
It is difficult to determine quantitatively what is considered to be a "good" value in a certain statistical category, and qualitative assessments may lead to arguments. It is interesting to look at recent results for some typical statistics and let the reader draw their own conclusions. Using full-season statistics available at the Official Site of Major League Baseball for the through seasons, the following tables show top ranges in various statistics, in alphabetical order. For each statistic, two values are given:
- Top5: the top five players bettered this value in all of the reported seasons
- Best: this is the best of all of the players for all of the reported seasons
Arguably, a statistic that falls within the range shown might be considered as good.
|| Best |
|| .372 |
|| 73 |
|| 150 |
|| .863 ||
|| Best |
|| 9 |
|| 1.74 |
|| 94 |
|| 36 |
|| 266 |
|| 372 |
|| 5 |
|| 55 |
|| 24 | | <urn:uuid:65b06490-6eeb-489e-ba9c-c2eda1560578> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.reference.com/browse/Assist+(baseball+statistics) | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954205 | 3,552 | 3.15625 | 3 |
Posted by R. Berg on January 09, 2004
In Reply to: Believe you me! posted by CAH on January 08, 2004
: Just wondering if anyone knew the origins of the the expression 'Believe you me...' and how it came by that form which when used today sounds slightly archaic.
: Was there once an "in" between 'you' and 'me'?
From Eric Partridge, "A Dictionary of Catch Phrases":
"'believe you me!' a vaguely emphatic, somewhat conventional catchphrase of C20. Granville notes that 'this is the [naval] Gunnery Instructor's emphasis to any statement. 'Believe you me, that is the only way to do the job.' . . ."
From me: "In" would change the meaning. "Believe you me" doesn't mean "Believe in me," it means "Believe me." | <urn:uuid:9c75bb98-3289-4afe-b184-c77bcbf40f87> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/27/messages/511.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00027-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95608 | 189 | 2.546875 | 3 |
27 March 2012 | EN | ES
Satellite imagery could be used to evaluate biomass as a 'tipping point'
[LONDON] The nine 'planetary boundaries' — environmental tipping points, beyond which the planet may not recover —– could soon be joined by a tenth one, if a proposal from a prominent scientist is accepted.
The concept of planetary boundaries was proposed in 2009 by Johan Rockström, executive director of the Stockholm Environment Institute, and Will Steffen, executive director of the Australian National University's Climate Change Institute, but has been debated ever since.
The nine original planetary boundaries are climate change, biodiversity loss, biogeochemical flow, ocean acidification, land-use change, freshwater use, ozone depletion, atmospheric aerosols and chemical pollution.
Each of these factors has a safe 'operating space', but once the boundaries are reached, "the destruction becomes largely irreversible" with dire consequences for the planet and humans, said Steffen.
The concept of tipping points is being pushed for inclusion in the Rio+20 negotiations, but there has been no agreement over the exact thresholds for the boundaries, which some scientists say are too stringent, while others say they are not stringent enough.
Steven Running, who studies global ecosystem monitoring at the University of Montana, United States, suggested during the Planet Under Pressure conference in London yesterday (26 March) that there should be a tenth boundary: the amount of available biomass.
Presenting his idea for the first time at the conference, Running, who served on the board of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, is proposing the 'global net primary production' as an additional tipping point since it gives a clear signal about the health of ecosystems and would also be an important component of global carbon measurements.
He said this would be data-driven, and satellites could help quantify data over large land areas.
The new indicator would integrate inputs from at least five of the original planetary boundaries — including freshwater use, nitrogen loading (part of the biogeochemical flow) and land-use change — to come up with a more precise measure.
"These are measurable boundaries and we have over 30 years of solid data," Running said, arguing that this would make it a solid indicator.
Katherine Richardson, one of the co-authors of the original planetary boundaries concept and a professor at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, backed Running's proposal.
"There's no reason to believe that the nine limits we found are the only ones," Richardson told SciDev.Net. "Biomass is a very critical one since unlike other resources everyone has easy access to it."
RD ( The Carbon Trap | United States of America )
27 March 2012
What about phosphorus tipping point? As I wrote in my novel, The Carbon Trap, stripping biomass to create biofuel will shift terrestrial carbon and phosphorus to oceanic sequestration. Both carbon and phosphorus are finite. Environmentalists are encouraging biofuel generation which accelerates resources stripping.
All SciDev.Net material is free to reproduce providing that the source and author are appropriately credited. For further details see Creative Commons. | <urn:uuid:78259976-d64f-44fb-a637-c0ef08a2d5a2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.scidev.net/en/agriculture-and-environment/clean-technology-and-copenhagen/news/biomass-should-be-tenth-tipping-point-researcher-says-1.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937796 | 636 | 3.609375 | 4 |
Individual differences |
Methods | Statistics | Clinical | Educational | Industrial | Professional items | World psychology |
Google Analytics (GA) is a free service offered by Google that generates detailed statistics about the visitors to a website. Its main highlight is that a webmaster can optimize his ad campaigns through GA's analysis of where the visitors came from, how long they stayed on the website, and their geographical position.
The Psychology Wiki uses this service and details on how to access these reports are available on the Google_Analytics_report page.
Google's service was modeled upon Urchin Software Corporation's analytics system, Urchin on Demand (Google acquired Urchin Software Corp. in April 2005). Google still sells the standalone installable Urchin software through a network of value-added resellers.
The Google-branded version was rolled-out in November 2005 to anyone who wished to sign up. However due to very high demand for the service, new sign-ups were suspended only a few days later. As capacity was added to the system, Google began using a lottery-type invitation-code model. Currently, Google is sending out batches of invitation codes as server availability permits.
Google has been working to improve system performance, and reports now generally update in less than 1 hour. All users can officially add up to 5 site profiles, and "pre-free" customers can add up to 50. Each profile generally corresponds to one URL.
GA's approach is to show basic dashboard-type data for the casual user, and more in-depth data further into the report set. There are currently over 80 distinct reports, each customizable to some degree. GA also offers three dashboard views of data, Executive, Marketer, and Webmaster. | <urn:uuid:4180c9cc-5ccd-4753-b4aa-ed4e0faef726> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://psychology.wikia.com/wiki/Google_analytics | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.930059 | 351 | 2.625 | 3 |
KLYUCHI, Russia, June 19 (UPI) -- A volcano spewing ash into the atmosphere in eastern Russia poses no threat to surrounding areas or to air traffic over the Pacific Ocean, scientists say.
The Shiveluch volcano on the Kamchatka Peninsula is throwing a plume of ash 3 miles into the atmosphere in the latest of a series of eruptions that began in May 2009, RIA Novosti reported Saturday.
The northernmost active volcano on the peninsula periodically emits ash to heights of 2 to 5 miles, the Kamchatka Geophysical Services said.
Scientists have registered more than 180 earthquakes in the area surrounding the volcano.
There is no significant threat to villages around the volcano -- Klyuchi, at 25 miles, is the closest -- except the possibility of moderate ash fall, experts said. | <urn:uuid:336aefbc-59f1-4a72-8ea1-c4f3c04fc8b2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.upi.com/Top_News/International/2010/06/19/Experts-no-threat-from-Russian-volcano/UPI-49131276983594/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00065-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.929549 | 171 | 2.78125 | 3 |
The start of menstruation is a momentous event in a girl's life. Some girls greet those first drops of blood with joy or relief, while others feel bewildered and scared. Whatever the reaction, the arrival of the first period holds the same meaning for every girl: It's proof that she's becoming a woman.
On average, most girls start their periods when they're 12 or 13 years old (although some begin earlier or later). But if you wait until your daughter gets her period to talk to her about menstruation, that's too late.
So, how do you discuss menstruation and offer education, as well as guidance and support, before the big day even arrives? Or, what do you tell your son? (Boys have questions, too.) Before you can discuss menstruation, it's important to have a good understanding of how the process works.
In the early 1900s, girls generally reached menarche (the medical term for the first period or the beginning of menstruation) at age 14 or 15. For a variety of reasons, including better nutrition, girls now usually start to menstruate between the ages of 10 and 16. But menstruation isn't just about having a period. It's a sign that a girl is physically capable of becoming pregnant.
During the menstrual cycle, hormones are released from different parts of the body to help control and prepare the body for pregnancy. That preparation begins when the ovaries (two oval-shaped organs that lie to the upper right and left of the uterus, or womb) produce the hormones estrogen and progesterone. These hormones trigger certain changes in the endometrium (the lining of the uterus). Then, other hormones from the pituitary gland stimulate the maturing and release of the egg, or ovum, from the ovary.
The release of the egg is called ovulation, and it occurs in the middle of the cycle — usually day 14 of a 28-day cycle, for example. From the ovary, the egg moves into one of the fallopian tubes (the two tubes that lead from the ovaries to the uterus).
If the egg is fertilized by sperm, the fertilized egg will take about 2 to 4 days to travel down the fallopian tube. It will then attach to the thick, blood-rich lining of the uterus. If it's not fertilized, the egg begins to fall apart, the estrogen and progesterone levels drop, and the uterine lining breaks down and is shed — this bleeding is what's known as a period.
A menstrual cycle lasts from the first day of one period to the first day of the next. The typical cycle of an adult female is 28 days, although some are as short as 22 days and others are as long as 45. Periods usually last about 5 days, although that can vary, too. During a period, a woman passes about 2-4 tablespoons (30-59 milliliters) of menstrual fluid.
For the first few years after menstruation begins, cycles are often irregular. They may be shorter (3 weeks) or longer (6 weeks), or a young woman may have only three or four periods a year. The absence of periods is called amenorrhea. A girl should see her doctor if she hasn't started menstruating by age 15, or 3 years after her first signs of puberty appeared.
So, how will you know when your daughter might start menstruating? You'll probably be able to see physical changes that signal she's getting close to starting. Breast development is usually the first sign that a girl has entered puberty. It's usually followed by the growth of some pubic hair.
About a year after breast development begins, most girls enter into a phase of rapid growth. They'll get taller and curvier, and their feet will grow. Then, about a year after the growth spurt begins and about 2 and a half years after breast development starts, the first period arrives.
It's probably best to avoid "The Talk" about menstruation. Instead, try to spread it out into lots of smaller conversations — education about how the human body works should be continuous. Otherwise, too much importance is placed on a single discussion and the information can be overwhelming. Kids reaching puberty should already know what's going to happen to their bodies.
Even toddlers begin asking questions about their bodies, and parents should answer them honestly. But how specific you are with the details should depend on your child's maturity and ability to understand.
Throughout childhood, kids ask many questions and each is an opportunity for parents to advance their kids' knowledge. Doing so not only gives kids the information they need when they ask for it, but also lets them know that their parents are available for and comfortable with these discussions.
But you shouldn't necessarily wait for their questions to talk about puberty and menstruation. Ideally, by the time they're close to puberty, both girls and boys should have full knowledge of the changes that will take place in their bodies. Why? Kids really want to learn about most things from their parents. And you can be sure that they'll also hear their friends discuss these changes.
By providing kids with good information, parents will know that they're well-informed and able to sort out any misinformation. Kids can often make certain aspects of puberty — menstruation, especially — sound bad and scary; and if that's the only information kids, then that's what they'll believe.
It's also important for parents to paint the process of menstruation in a positive light. If a mother refers to her period as "the curse," her daughter might get a negative impression of the whole experience. Instead, mothers can explain that monthly periods are a natural and wonderful part of being a woman. After all, without them, women couldn't become mothers.
Explaining that everyone is different is also key. For example, your daughter may be concerned that her body is changing more quickly — or more slowly — than her friends' bodies.
In addition to understanding how menstruation works, girls need to be familiar with feminine-hygiene supplies (sanitary pads and tampons) and they should know that sometimes periods may cause cramps when the muscles of the uterus contract.
Another reason kids need to know about menstruation at an early age is that sexually active girls can get pregnant even before they start menstruating. Sometimes ovulation (the release of an egg from an ovary) can happen just before a girl is about to have her first period. This means that she can be fertile and become pregnant even though she hasn't yet menstruated.
Kids — both girls and boys — often have lots of questions about menstruation, such as:
How come only girls have periods? Explain that boys change in different ways during puberty, like the deepening of their voices and the growth of facial hair. Getting her period means a girl can have a baby. Periods happen because of changes in the uterus — a body part that girls have but boys do not.
Do girls have their periods for the rest of their lives? No, a woman stops having her period usually between the ages of 45 and 51, which means she will no longer be able to become pregnant (at least without the help of some fancy reproductive technology, that is!).
How long does a period last and how much blood is there? It varies for each girl, but some have their period for 3 days and others have it for a week. Periods can be light, moderate, or heavy, and there can be a total of 2-4 tablespoons (30-59 milliliters) of blood. And this can vary from period to period in the same girl.
Are pads or tampons better? In choosing between the two, what matters is a girl's physical and emotional comfort. A tampon can be uncomfortable in the years right after menstruation starts, when the pelvis and vagina are still growing. Usually, girls are more comfortable using pads at first, but they may want to start using tampons when they get older (although they don't need to wait to use tampons until a certain age). Their friends may have started using them, and the freedom tampons can give may be appealing. Each box of tampons includes instructions, so be sure to read them with your daughter.
Although the first few times using a tampon can be frustrating, explain to your daughter that it will soon be easy with a little practice. Because the muscles of the vagina can become tense when a girl is nervous, it can be difficult to insert a tampon at first. It's important to relax as much as possible. It's a good idea to start with a slim tampon with an applicator because they can be easier to insert. It can also help to first try a tampon on a day with heavier flow, so that it is easier to put in.
Do girls have to stop playing sports or swimming while they have their periods? Girls should understand they can do everything they normally would do — as long as they're comfortable. For example, girls may choose to wear a tampon so they can continue to swim while menstruating.
What's toxic shock syndrome (TSS)? TSS is a rare but serious bacterial infection that can be associated with tampon use. Fortunately, TSS that is associated with menstruation can almost always be prevented by changing tampons regularly and by using the smallest absorbancy needed (for example, "slender regular" instead of "super plus"). A reasonable precaution is to change tampons every 4 hours or more frequently if the blood flow is heavy.
Do girls always have cramps with their periods? Concern about cramps is a big issue for some girls. While most girls eventually have some cramps, many do not for the first year or two of getting their periods. It's important to tell girls that cramps usually only last a few days. Sometimes, a hot water bottle or a hot bath can help ease discomfort. Some find that deep breathing and exercising help, too. If cramps become too uncomfortable, your daughter might want to take an over-the-counter (OTC) medicine like ibuprofen (such as Advil or Motrin).
Having cramps for a day or two each month is common, but signs of dysmenorrhea — severely painful menstruation that interferes with a girl's ability to attend school or study or sleep — or other menstrual problems should be discussed with your doctor.
What's PMS? Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) includes physical and emotional changes (mood swings and irritability, tension, bloating, and breast tenderness) that can occur during the time right before some girls get their periods. But girls usually don't develop symptoms associated with PMS until several years after menstruation starts — if ever. While not all girls experience PMS, for those who do, plenty of rest, exercise, and eating a balanced diet may help.
Do girls need to douche or use deodorant spray when they have their periods? No. In fact, douching can increase a girl's possibility of infection by disrupting the normal balance of bacteria in the vagina.
Just as parents might be slightly embarrassed to talk with their children about menstruation, kids and teens may find it difficult to let mom and dad know their questions or concerns. If talking about menstruation is awkward for you, here are some ways to make discussions a little easier and more open:
Look for good books and videos or DVDs that can help foster a more comfortable and educational conversation.
Speak to your family doctor about ways to talk about menstruation and puberty.
Brush up on the facts of menstruation and have information readily available for your child to look at or read.
If there's a question that you don’t know the answer to, let your child know you will find out the information.
Coordinate your conversations with the health lessons and sex education your child receives in school. Ask your child's teacher about his or her plans and for any advice.
To break the ice, try asking your child some questions that will help you both ease into discussions. Ask what kind of questions he or she has while you walk down the feminine-hygiene products aisle at your grocery store or while you watch a commercial for pain relievers advertised to alleviate symptoms of PMS.
If you hear your child mention something related to getting a period, spur a conversation by asking where the information came from. Questions can be a great way to set the record straight on any misconceptions kids might have.
Before you take your preteen daughter for a routine checkup, let her know that the doctor may ask if she's gotten her period yet. You can then ask if she has any concerns or questions about getting her first period.
It's important to tell kids the truth about menstruation in an age-appropriate way and to be comfortable with the accuracy of that information. Don't be put off by their questions — they're probably the same questions you had at that age, and now you can answer them. | <urn:uuid:6935562f-ad15-4a67-905b-735da2d3fe39> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://kidshealth.org/PageManager.jsp?dn=LiveAndWorkWell&lic=62&cat_id=171&article_set=22990&tracking=P_RelatedArticle | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960612 | 2,680 | 4.03125 | 4 |
Committee: Michael Cody
, Chair François Bar
, Thomas Valente
Network Influences in Health Initiatives: Multimedia Games for Youth in Peru
The spread of contagious STDs, HIV/AIDS, and unintended pregnancies in developing nations is a source of concern, especially for marginalized youth. This study examined how information and communication technologies (ICTs) could bridge gaps in their knowledge and attitudes about sexual and reproductive health. The dissertation observed the use of a technology-mediated gaming system to educate Peruvian youths. Working in collaboration with an NGO, Instituto Peruano de Paternidad Responsable, 108 boys and 111 girls living in the barrios of Lima were randomly assigned to two conditions, an interactive computer-based multimedia game and a traditional board game. The research design consisted of pre and post-intervention surveys. The study utilized social network analysis to include social influences in a mixed-influence model.
We find that technology-mediated game playing was equally effective as traditional health interventions in producing significant improvements in respondents’ knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy. Further, personal peer resistance self-efficacy was a positive influence in guarding against developing negative attitudes. Social self-efficacy was in turn positively correlated with the individuals’ position in the social network. Finally, the nature of the social link determined the extent to which one’s associates could influence self knowledge and attitudes. In this particular case, advice networks were more influential than friendship networks. A framework for the multivariate relationships, based on Rimal’s (2003) model, is proposed. This extended the health model, based on social cognitive theory, to the entire social network. ICTs can provide an advantage, in terms of innovation, interactivity, and social networking, for use in health interventions in developing countries.
Keywords: Social cognitive theory, diffusion of innovations, health, HIV, ICT, network, multimedia, games, youth, Peru | <urn:uuid:52ae1371-5042-4829-bc54-8edb97d6ae10> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.annenberg.usc.edu/Research/Student/Dissertations/Completed07/ChibA.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00071-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.92939 | 398 | 2.296875 | 2 |
How to Make a Detox Bath
Detox baths are used in order to help your skin and body be healthier. They do this by causing the toxins to be realeased from your body and off of your skin. There are many locations where you can frequent to purchase a detoxification bath. However, it is also possible to make a detox bath at home that is just as rejuvenating and healing. These baths help relax you and get rid of harmful chemicals that are ageing your skin and causing your health to decline.
A homemade detox bath can is extremely helpful in detoxifying your body and getting rid of harmful chemicals. This is a very convenient way to help enhance your body and health. However, you must make sure that you are well hydrated before and after a detoxification bath. Remember to drink plenty of water before and after the bath to ensure that you do not lose too much moisture out of your body. You can also drink a glass of water while you are relaxing in your bath to help make certain that you are hydrated well. However, you must remember that detox baths should be used by people who are in good health with no heart problems and that are not pregnant. In addition, detox baths should not be used on young children. Learn how to make a detox bath with this ebook.
The detox bath recipe consists of ingredients that you are able to find in most homes. In order to make your own detox bath you will need: Epson salts and baking soda. You may also use aromatherapy oils if you want the water to have a relaxing scent. Another technique that helps with the relaxation portion of the detox baths is candles and soft music. After you have filled the bath with hot water you will need to add two cups of Epsom salt and one or two cups of baking soda. You will need to soak in the tub for about twenty minutes. While you are in the bath you should be sweating profusely. This is what will help the chemicals leave your body. Many of your body’s toxins are released through perspiration throughout the day. However, many of these toxins are left on the skin and end up back in your pours.
You may also choose to make your own natural detox bath. This is a detox bath that only includes natural ingredients. For this type of detox bath you will need ginger and mineral bath salts. Use a cheese grater to put about ¼ cup of ginger in the water. Then you need to add one cup of the mineral bath salts. Soak in the tub for fifteen minutes before drying yourself. However, with this type of detox bath you will want to sleep with a towel wrapped around you in order to allow the ginger to continue to work, causing you to sweat all night.
Another type of detox bath that many people find relaxing and helpful is the detox foot bath. For centuries people have believed that the toxins can leave your body through your feet and this is something that is still practiced today. In order to make this detox bath you will need to mix one cup of sea salt, one cup of Epsom salt, and two cups of baking soda. When you are ready to do the detox foot bath, you will need to fill a foot tub with hot water and add ¼ cup of the detox mixture. Then soak your feet for twenty to thirty minutes. When you are done soaking scrub the bottom of your feet and then you can add aloe vera for moisture. Always remember to store the mixture in an airtight container so it will stay fresh for future uses.
Many people also enjoy a lemon detox bath. This type of detox bath consists of the same ingredients as the other homemade detox baths. However, you will use lemon slices or lemon juice in this bath. You have the option of adding lemon juice to the bath water. This will help by adding a relaxing aroma and boost the improvements that the bath will have on your skin. However, if you scrub yourself with lemon slices you will see more benefits. Rubbing yourself with the lemon slices can help the toxins move more quickly out of your body. The lemon does this by loosening the toxins within your skin.
The hcg detox bath is another detoxification bath that is extremely beneficial to your skin, body, and health. Wit
h this type of detox bath you will use one cup of Epsom salt, one cup of sea salt, and ½ cup of baking soda. Soak in the tub for twenty minutes and then take a cool shower for five minutes. This will help the toxins leave your body.
A detox bath does not only help your physical health but it can also be beneficial to your mental health. All of these different types of detoxification baths are able to relax you and release the harmful chemicals and toxins from your body. In conclusion, no matter which detox bath you choose you will find that it offers many uplifting results.
Learn everything you need to know on the Detox Bath in this 181 pages ebook : click here. | <urn:uuid:923fc1ee-73ab-4a19-8b78-c35050484501> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.detoxbath.net/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00033-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958101 | 1,015 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Picture of Dave Brubeck from the 1984 JVC Newport Jazz Festival, taken by my friend Jeff.
Chances are you know the song ‘Take Five’. You might not immediately call it to mind, but when you check out the video below you are almost certain to say ‘oh yeah, THAT song!’. Congratulations – you have absorbed a lesson on extended harmonies and advanced time signatures!
Brubeck was a major figure in jazz and music for several reasons:
- He brought jazz to academia at a time when only classical music was studied, and moreover gave students something to think about and study!
- He produced the first million-selling jazz single!
- He released the first popular song with non-standard time signature.
- He was a pioneer in using a ‘mixed race’ band and protected the rights of his musicians.
According to the Chicago Tribune:
Dave Brubeck, a jazz musician who attained pop-star acclaim with recordings such as “Take Five” and “Blue Rondo a la Turk,” died Wednesday morning at Norwalk Hospital, in Norwalk, Conn., said his longtime manager-producer-conductor Russell Gloyd.
Brubeck was one day short of his 92nd birthday. He died of heart failure, en route to “a regular treatment with his cardiologist,” said Gloyd.
I was very fortunate to have seen Brubeck twice during the 80s, and even then he was an ‘elder statesman’ but full of life and energy. The quartet I saw wasn’t up to the par of the classic quartet from the late 50s and 60s era, but Brubeck was in complete control and excellent as an artist and performer.
He is survived by his wife Iola, four sons and a daughter, as well as several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Let’s remember him by enjoying a live performance of the classic ‘Take Five’. | <urn:uuid:41f44e9e-9ffa-4f3c-9535-6a3f00b4527d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://geardiary.com/2012/12/06/rip-jazz-pianist-dave-brubeck-at-91/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00046-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.982301 | 424 | 1.890625 | 2 |
A Synergy of the One and the Many:
Governance in the Eastern Catholic Patriarchal Churches
by Chorbishop John D. Faris
In the case of a patriarchal election, if the one elected is an ordained bishop and accepts the election (c. 74), he is to make a profession of faith and promise to exercise his office faithfully (c. 76 §1). The synod of bishops proceeds with the proclamation and enthronement of the patriarch according to the liturgical books (c. 74). By virtue of enthronement, the patriarch obtains his office with the full effects of the law (qua pleno iure officium obtinet) (c. 77 §1). The synod of bishops is to notify the Roman pontiff by means of a synodal letter of the election, enthronement, profession of faith and promise to exercise his office faithfully and to notify the patriarchs of the other Eastern churches of the election (c. 76 §1).
The patriarch is then to request ecclesiastical communion from the Roman pontiff (c. 76 §2). Although the patriarch receives the fullness of his office with his enthronement, he cannot convoke a synod or ordain a bishop until he has received the letter of ecclesiastical communion. This restriction on the exercise of the patriarchal office is an apparent contradiction to the provision of canon 77 §1, which asserted that the patriarch obtained his office with the full effects of the law with enthronement. When objections were raised to this restriction, the explanation was offered that such actions can be carried out only in full communion with Roman pontiff, the head of the college of bishops. However, such an explanation is weak if the one elected is a bishop who has already made a profession of faith and a promise of obedience to the Roman pontiff (c. 187 §2). Does election to the patriarchal office result in a loss of communion?
Election of Bishops
In addition to the general canons on elections (cc. 947-957), there is a special section on the election of bishops (cc. 180-189).
The minimal qualifications for a bishop are: solid faith, good morals, piety, zeal for souls and prudence, good reputation, not bound by a marriage bond, at least 35 years old, in the order of presbyters for at least five years, academic credentials such as a doctorate, licentiate or an expertise in some sacred science (c. 180).
The election of bishops can take the form of the preparation of a list of approved candidates. The list should contain a number of candidates sufficient to fulfill the needs of the patriarchal church and can be constructed to include a list of candidates for the episcopacy in general or a list of candidates for a specific office.
It is the exclusive right of the members of the synod of bishops to propose candidates. If a bishop considers it necessary, he may consult with presbyters and other Christian faithful for their opinions. They are then to inform the patriarch of their findings. If the patriarch, after adding his own opinion, deems it appropriate, he sends the proposal to the members of the synod. With the approval of the Roman pontiff, particular law can restrict the right of presentation of candidates for election to the patriarch. The list is then transmitted to the Apostolic See for the assent of the Roman pontiff; which, if given, is valid until it is expressly revoked. (c. 182) | <urn:uuid:0bb6a42a-7ff0-453e-ab9e-c417a5ef6439> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cnewa.us/default.aspx?ID=877&pagetypeID=8&sitecode=US&pageno=8 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00058-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958829 | 722 | 1.9375 | 2 |
With the launch of Google+ community pages less than 2 days ago, we have seen many already spring up.
So, what are Google+ community pages?
A community is a group discussion forum, much like a message board. Unlike a message board though, communities are integrated with your Google+ stream depending on whether they’re public or private. A community page allows any member to post within that community. This allows for more centralized discussions on any given topic, rather than interacting on various posts in the stream that may be about a certain subject.
Content that would otherwise be hitting the Google+ streams will have a ‘home’ in that community (and even under topic categories). So no matter what you are into, you are likely to find a niche community where you can post and interact with like minded people.
I have set some up as been testing it out as well and here are a few thoughts about the overall context…
Public vs Private Communities
Firstly, what does having different types of access mean for the community page?
Public - anyone can find the community page, two options…
a) Public – no approval needed
b) Public – but an owner/moderator needs to approve membership
So, this may well be important when considering the significance of ‘not approving’ people.
Private - (can be hidden in searches, or not)
This means membership needs approval.
An owner can invite people from their list (e.g. their circles from a profile or page, public, etc)
Note: if you send out an invite as ‘owner’ or ‘moderator’ then the invited people do not need to be moderated. Other members can invite people, but it will require the owner or the moderator’s approval.
You currently cannot change the settings once you choose – so you may like to think it through!
Also note that posts made in a private community are not found in searches (by non members); public communities they are searchable i.e. people are who are not members will see the content.
I was once told by a community leader that you can only really have deep relationships with a maximum of about 120 people, so you may also like to consider the benefits of building a large community vs. a smaller select one (i.e. private/not in search will most likely lead to a smaller one). Interestingly, decisions relating to the Commoogle community noticeboard type page have prompted much of this enquiry today!
Starting a Community with a Google+ Page
A decision whether to use a profile or a page will need to be made, but ownership could be transferred later on. You could even step down as owner, pass to a moderator, and then the moderator pass back to you.
Note: if you set it up from a Page e.g. Commoogle, the content from discussions will appear on the Commoogle page, and whoever has the rights to access will see them. If you set it up from your Profile, such comments would then appear on your page, just like a limited post.
Multiple community pages
Just like a Profile, a Google+ Page can also have multiple communities – this will give the opportunity for ‘levels’ of access as well e.g. paid private membership clubs could be set up. This is something that could be very interesting if/when Google checkout becomes integrated and could be worth considering when making your decisions if setting up a commercially oriented one now.
Same as usual in terms of adding images/links etc.
You can, however choose categories and these will be critical for further differentiating the posts. Looking through several communities today, it will take a few more days yet for these to really come into play!
Posts default to ‘discussion’ – which is a bit like the ‘main stream’ for the community but it categories have been set up, then people can post/discuss within these categories. If you are looking at setting them up, it may be an idea to chat with other people and get some ideas about what they want. I did this on a UK page and it was insightful.
You can send a message the same as you do a post.
If it is a public post you can share the posts publicly, but if the group is private you cannot share the posts.
Also I read Ronnie Bincer’s post that says you can’t share publicly after choosing to share to a community: https://plus.google.com/108210288375340023376/posts/Jm7XEkttGS3
Chatting with Ivar Choi Espedalen in a hangout, it is worth noting how you can enrich Google+ experience even more hashtags as well.
For example, #starwars you can use it as a standalone hashtag or you could filter the stream for who has used this hashtag in any of the communities as well, but to do this you will have to show “everything” when filtering (I’ll work out applications on this soon.)
This could refine the nature of posts you find considerably.
If you are considering creating a community, have a think about your own personal network i.e. do the people in your circles relate to e.g. cats, business, parenting etc. If you have been building your network up on Google+, then they may well jump on a community page you create; if you set up one that people don’t relate, you may be left to ‘search’ for people to find it.
Want to set one up?
Google’s own instructions are here.
Very simple indeed. Enjoy bringing people together in even more ways! | <urn:uuid:057a594d-800f-4cd7-839f-13b4574a7b65> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.martinshervington.com/google-plus-community-pages-the-basics/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00048-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95098 | 1,195 | 1.851563 | 2 |
Cost is understandably a major--perhaps the most important--barrier for students who wish to study abroad. No matter where your child goes, he or she will most likely have to buy a plane ticket, find lodging, and consider potentially higher costs of living than in Kansas.
In truth, though, the costs of study abroad vary by program. In some cases, like some programs in Latin America, it costs less to study abroad for a semester than it would to live and study full time in Manhattan. In other cases, such as Australia or Europe, the cost of living abroad may be more expensive than staying on campus.
There are many options for funding your study abroad experience including scholarships and federal financial aid. Please see our Scholarships page for more information about the Office of International Programs scholarships as well as other university and national scholarships. For more information about federal financial aid eligibility and instructions for how to receive aid, see our Financial Aid page.
Compare a Semester at K-State to a Semester Studying Abroad
Individual program costs vary based on a variety of factors, such as program type, hours of credit, length of program, number of excursions or other group activities, and location. Study abroad program costs may look daunting at first, but remember that they often take into account all school tuition and fees as well as transportation, housing, and living costs for a whole term. Here is a chart that compares costs for full-time study and life on the Manhattan campus relative to some of our programs:
|Based on Rates for 2012-2013*|
|Tuition and Fees**||Semester|
|Tuition (15 hours - Number of hours for exchange programs)|
|Kansas Resident $243.90 per credit hour||$3,659|
|Out-of-State Resident $647.20 per credit hour||$9,709|
|Books and Supplies||$550|
|K-STATE STUDY ABROAD PROGRAM EXAMPLES|
|Exchange Program: Federal University of Santa Maria, Brazil||$7640|
|Direct Enroll Program: Central European Studies Program, Czech Republic||$8533|
|Program Provider: ISA, Cusco, Peru||$9630|
|Exchange Program: University of Economics, Prague, Czech Republic||$10,125|
|Exchange Program: Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, South Africa||$10,482| | <urn:uuid:7c6530ce-5daf-4ad6-a585-072b1fb197f4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.k-state.edu/studyabroad/parents/funding.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.908326 | 503 | 1.914063 | 2 |
This week it’s the Missouri River that’s threatening to flood large areas of the Midwest. In Iowa, helicopters are dropping thousand-pound sandbags near a threatened levee in an attempt to protect the town of Hamburg. A small break appeared Sunday in the levee, and about half the town’s population of 1,200 was ordered to evacuate. It’s expected that the sandbags will only delay, not prevent, the failure of the levee, and the Army Corps of Engineers is attempting to build a secondary wall to protect the town.
While officials can try to slow or prevent breaches—or “compromises”—as they occur, the emergency management director for Iowa’s Atchison County was quoted as saying "We anticipate these compromises rearing their ugly heads all up and down the levee system throughout this event."
Parts of Nebraska and South Dakota may also face flooding from the river, which is reaching record levels because of unusually high rainfall and snowmelt from the Rockies. | <urn:uuid:520b826a-105d-47d0-8826-e85583c2ffed> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.stormh20.com/SW/Blogs/More_Midwest_Flooding_1137.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956759 | 213 | 2.28125 | 2 |
Michigan U.P. workers at 2 taconite mines may face shut down when contracts expire Friday
United Steelworkers, ArcelorMittal negotiating nationwide contracts that effect Mich. workers
Two taconite mines in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan could shut down at midnight Friday if the plants' owners and the United Steelworkers union don't reach agreements on new contracts.
Three mines in Minnesota's Iron Range also would be effected.
The mines are owned or operated by Cliffs Natural Resources, ArcelorMittal and U.S. Steel.
The negotiations are taking place in Pittsburgh as part of a larger set of nationwide talks between the steel companies and the Steelworkers over contracts that all expire at midnight Friday.
So far, both sides are keeping quiet and refusing to even name the major unresolved issues in the Cliffs and U.S. Steel talks.
But Steelworkers say ArcelorMittal wants deep concessions.
More than 4,000 mine employees in Minnesota and Michigan are among around 29,000 Steelworkers nationwide who are covered by the talks. | <urn:uuid:e197b5e3-4451-49d8-b228-fa9514eb4905> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/Michigan-U-P-workers-at-2-taconite-mines-may-face-shut-down-when-contracts-expire-Friday/-/1719418/16433380/-/view/print/-/138s407z/-/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951715 | 219 | 1.765625 | 2 |