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Echo Press Editorial: Who is tending your lawn? Make sure they’re pros
Spring is off to a sputtering start but it is getting here, causing yards to green up and getting people to think about applying pesticides or fertilizers.
The key is to do it safely and without harming lakes, streams or other people.
If you’re not sure how to do it, hire someone who does. Minnesota law requires anyone commercially applying weed and feed products; pesticides that control weeds, insects, fungus or other unwanted pests; and/or fertilizers supplying plant nutrients to hold a license issued by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. Persons licensed by MDA have passed examinations that demonstrate that they have the needed qualifications and knowledge to use lawn and ornamental care chemicals safely and effectively.
Most professional applicators understand the importance of obeying the law, according to MDA Licensing Manager Joe Spitzmueller, and abide by state and federal regulations. “It is essential that people read and follow label directions to reduce risks for people and the environment,” said Spitzmueller. “Watch out for unqualified persons and companies promoting tree, lawn and garden care services.”
If you’re hiring a professional or doing the work yourself, these tips from the MDA will help ensure lawn, garden and tree-care services are performed correctly:
• Licensed professionals must carry a valid ID card.
• Be cautious of persons who make promises that are too good to be true, make claims that their products are completely safe, or pressure you to commit to and sign a service contract.
• Never apply lawn care chemicals in bad weather conditions, such as in excessive heat or in high wind where products can drift off-site and potentially harm people or plants.
• Notice warning flags that are posted at entry points after a treatment that alert persons to be careful around a treated area.
• Sweep up any product from sidewalks or other hard surfaces and reapply it to the intended site.
• Review the application record provided by the applicator that documents their work, including products used and amounts applied.
• Buy only what you need and store unused products safely.
Consumers can call the Better Business Bureau at 1-800-646-6222 and ask for customer satisfaction history about lawn care companies. For information about applicator licenses, call the MDA at (651) 201-6615.
To report an unlicensed person making a pesticide or fertilizer application, file a complaint online at the MDA website, www.mda.state.mn.us, click “Register a Complaint” on the homepage, and then go to “Pesticide Misuse Complaint.” | <urn:uuid:dbdcd9e1-715c-4dbf-b82c-73afd1e1fee4> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.echopress.com/content/echo-press-editorial-who-tending-your-lawn-make-sure-theyre-pros | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280900.71/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00005-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93271 | 560 | 1.875 | 2 |
Bombardier Inc.’s Toronto plant employs an efficiency system developed by Toyota Motor Corp.
At first blush, the operations Simon Roberts and Dr. Kevin Smith run could not be more different. Mr. Roberts oversees the construction of some of the most complex aircraft in the world as head of Bombardier Inc.’ s Toronto plant in Downsview; while Dr. Smith is tasked with overseeing St. Joseph’s Healthcare in Hamilton as its chief executive.
But upon closer examination, a number of similarities between the two emerge, and in particular the challenges they face on a day-to-day basis. Both are in charge of huge facilities with a highly skilled workforce while trying to manage an extremely complex and precious product.
The goal for Mr. Roberts is saving money in an extremely high-cost, low-margin business. For Dr. Smith, it’s about saving lives.
They have also both turned to a somewhat unusual source recently to help them run their operations more efficiently: Toyota Motor Corp.
The Japanese automaker has long been considered the gold standard in lean manufacturing. But in recent years, other industries outside of the auto sector have also begun to adapt Toyota’s methods to streamline and improve upon their own operations, including both Bombardier and St. Joe’s in recent months.
The “Toyota Production System” was developed in the 1950s at a time when the Japanese auto industry was suffering, and Toyota, in particular, lacked the cash it needed to fund its operations and or even keep enough inventory on hand to build its cars.
In an effort to improve its operations, Toyota’s founders travelled to the United States to see how the wildly successful system instituted by Henry Ford built cars. But they were said to be less impressed by Ford’s plants than a system being used at the local grocery store: an automatic drink resupplier, where a customer wants a drink, takes one, and then another one replaces it. It was this machine, and its ability to hold only the inventory needed, that is credited with planting the first seed for what would eventually develop into the “Toyota Way” of building cars. | <urn:uuid:546245b2-c82b-4d90-8d69-7e5451fe2243> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.game-change.com/uncategorized/490/how-toyota-builds-cars-and-what-it-teaches-aerospace-companies/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560284352.26/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095124-00189-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96866 | 452 | 2.203125 | 2 |
A new poll shows that support continues to surge for the marriage equality measure in Maryland, with more than half of African Americans, a key voting bloc in the state, in favor of upholding the law. Voters will decide the fate of the measure, known as Question 6, this November.
The Baltimore Sun poll of likely voters found support continues to grow among African-Americans, who make up about 25% of voters in Maryland, a heavily Democratic state. According to the poll, “more than half of likely black voters favor legalizing same-sex marriage, compared with a quarter who are opposed.”
Black voters are expected to turn out in high numbers to vote for President Barack Obama, which makes their position on marriage equality critical to the passage of Question 6. President Obama leads Mitt Romney 57% to 34% in the poll, and Maryland Democrats widely approve of the marriage equality referendum, with 60% in favor compared to 26% of Republicans.
The increasing support among African-American voters marks a “dramatic shift,” according to the Sun, and tracks with other recent polling. Last week, a Gonzalez poll found that while black voters opposed the referendum by 52% to 44%, support had jumped from a low of 33% in January. The Gonzalez poll found the referendum with an 8-point advantage overall, at 51% to 43%.
The change in attitudes among African-Americans is attributed in part to President Obama’s personal support for the cause and the endorsement from the national NAACP, which is headquartered in Baltimore. Following those two developments in May, a Hart poll in August found black voters about evenly split on the issue at 44% to 45%, compared to 40% in favor and 49% opposed in March.
Despite the pattern of increasing support among African-Americans, pollster Steve Raabe of OpinionWorks, which conducted the poll, warned attitudes could change once opponents of the referendum launch an anticipated media blitz. The largest group of undecided voters lives in Baltimore, a majority African-American city, where 21% of voters did not have an opinion on the issue.
Overall, the poll found strongly held beliefs among advocates and opponents of marriage equality, where 38% of respondents "strongly" supported same-sex marriage, with 35% "strongly" opposed. Raabe told the Sun that means people on both sides will be highly motivated to vote.
The telephone survey of 804 likely voters was conducted from September 25 to 27, with a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points.
Maryland could become the first state to pass marriage equality at the ballot box this November and break a long losing streak for advocates. Initiatives related to marriage are also on the ballot in Maine, Minnesota, and Washington. Last week Gov. Martin O’Malley, who signed the Maryland legislation this year, told reporters that his state still needs to raise $2 million more in order to ensure a successful campaign. | <urn:uuid:d7dd7975-62f0-4906-bed3-cfe749fc0c00> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.advocate.com/politics/marriage-equality/2012/10/01/poll-finds-support-surging-maryland-marriage-equality-measure | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280791.35/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00361-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968563 | 598 | 1.820313 | 2 |
Want to grow your own fruit trees? Today we talk about how to grow fruit trees, how to avoid costly mistakes with fruit trees, and how to know which fruits are right for your area and when to plant where you live.
I post new episodes on Friday mornings. You can subscribe via RSS and receive every episode for free. or subscribe via Itunes
It’s party time on the podcast this week as I’ve got two special co-hosts. Angie is a homesteader from Texas with an awesome tool to help you grow your own food. She’s sharing her tips on growing fruit trees today!
Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliates. They cost you no more and my family and I thank you for your support of this website.
The Gardening Notebook -If you plan on growing your own food at any level, you need this amazing tool. Seriously, save yourself the mistakes I’ve made and from this moment forward, use it!
The Day I Met Jesus– Every day is the day I want you to meet Jesus. This book will help you see Him in a whole new light. It did me.
Angie: In warmer climates the best time of year to plant fruit trees is in the fall. Ideally they go in about October and November. The winters are mild and the summers are so hot. The few cold snaps don’t hurt fruit trees but the heat burns them up. I’ve planted in March and April and only a few survive. It gets so hot they don’t have a chance to develop a good root system. Plus, I don’t always water the best in the summer months. I water the vegetable garden and don’t remember the fruit trees.
If you have mild winters and hot summers then plant in the fall. But you can still plant but know you’ll really need to water them deeply and often.
New to fruit trees, check out –> How to Plant Fruit Trees
Melissa: In the Pacific Northwest we’re typically quite rainy and wet. Two years ago I put in two new apple trees in the spring. i wasn’t that diligent about watering them and I lost one of them. When I went to replace it I made sure every Sunday I watered that new fruit tree and it did well. Be sure you establish new fruit trees with regular watering.
We had this problem when we first started planting our orchard our homestead was raw and undeveloped land. We put our orchard in ourselves and the younger bare root fruit trees are less expensive, but you have to wait to get your fruit.
When I first purchased them I didn’t do as much research as I should, I didn’t know enough about self-pollinating verses cross-pollinating on the fruit trees we bought.
Angie: Self-pollinating fruit trees are what means they can make fruit all by themselves. So you only need one. You can have more, but you don’t have to in order to get fruit. It’s really important to know for a small or urban homestead where you don’t have a lot of acreage. It’s nice to know you don’t need tons and tons of trees for fruit.
Most berries and European plums will do better if they have another variety to cross-pollinate with.
I made this mistake when we first started. We live on an acre and a half. It had a mature lemon tree and two mature pecan trees. We sat about planting other trees and berries. On a whim at the nursery I bought some blueberry bushes. Our soil isn’t acidic enough so we had to grow them in pots. I had heard you needed more than one. So I bought four of the exact same kind. I was wondering why I wasn’t getting very many berries.
My older friend said Angi, “When they say cross-pollinating you need more than one variety, not plants. But it was a good lesson.”
Cross-pollination needs different varieties that bloom at the same time. The same time is very important. If you have early blooming blueberries you need another variety that blooms early for cross-pollination.
You don’t necessarily need two of the same pears trees on your property if your neighbor has a pear tree you need to find out what variety your neighbor has and purchase a different variety. They have to be within 50 feet of one another to cross-pollinate though.
Apple (there are a few self-pollinating varieties like Golden Delicious, but they will do better if they have a cross-pollinator)
Most nut trees
Melissa: I have one self-pollinating apple. Like you said, I wasn’t getting a lot of fruit set on it. So when I purchased new fruit trees I looked deeper into cross-pollinating. We can’t grow citrus here but we grow apples quite well. We grow apples, cherries, plums, and few peach varieties. Apples were what I really wanted.
You need to pay attention to early season, mid-season, and late season on your fruit trees. A crab apple is sour and not good for table eating, but it’s a super pollinator because it has a very long bloom time and cross-pollinates with almost every type of apple variety. We ended up getting a crab apple to take care of that whole problem.
Angi: That is a great idea.
Melissa: The crab apple is also an excellent source of natural pectin so I plan on using the apples it produces for our pectin in our homemade jams and jellies.
Angie: I’m making a note to see if crab apples will grow down here.
Melissa: I don’t know what their growing zone is, but they’re very prevalent up here and stay fairly small.
It’s funny because it sounds like your soil is pretty alkaline, where ours is on the acidic side at about a 6 on the ph scale. I add a small amount of acid to our blueberries.
Do you know if fruit trees are as picky as the soil type as berries?
Angi: I don’t think they are. I’ve grown around town and asked other growers on which type of fruit trees grow well for you. I want as low fuss orchard and garden as possible. It’s hard to take something doesn’t grow well in your area and find the time to tend to it to make it grow. I’ve talked to our county extension agent at blank as to what varieties do well. Unless it’s a local nursery (Lowe’s or big box stores don’t know if that variety will do well as local nurseries do) I don’t purchase trees there unless I”m absolutely sure it grows well in our area.
We’re very diligent to make sure we keep the grass cleared around our fruit trees to help with the trees getting all of the water. We use mulch, compost, and wood chips on top of that bare area to keep the moisture in for the fruit trees.
Melissa: You guys are quite a bit drier than we are here. I try to keep the grass away from the base of our trees too. Fruit trees do like lots of sun to get your fruit ripe. You want to plant your fruit in full sun.
Angi: Even in hot summer areas you want to plant in full sun. Our fruit is ready in late July to early August before it gets too hot.
Melissa: What’s your average hot summer temps?
Angie: From the high nineties to low hundreds from July to mid-late September.
Melissa: If we hit ninety we’re dying and even in the eighties we’re thinking it’s hot.
Angie: We have a gardening break in the summer with the garden. We can only grow peppers and okra during that time. That’s why it’s so important to research, the county extension office and keeping notes on what grows well in your area.
Melissa: That’s so true. We practice crop rotation in our vegetable garden and I think I’ll remember every year for crop rotation where I put everything. I’ve been trying to take a picture so I can remember the year before where things were. It’s so key to right things down because you won’t remember.
Angi: It costs you money in the long run if you don’t write things down. We planted two apples trees last year and one made it but one didn’t it. So I had to replace it with two trees because I didn’t know which variety I had because I hadn’t kept good records. It was a reminder to write it down because I won’t remember later.
Melissa: You’re right. It can be costly to relearn or redo because you forgot or didn’t record it. I’m excited because Angi has a Gardening Notebook. I want to share it with you guys because it’s not only for record keeping it has link and articles and everything you need to get started if you’re new to gardening. Can you share about what all is in the Gardening Notebook.
Angi: I started keeping a personal gardening notebook about 15 years ago. I kept it for about 10 years and one day when we were cleaning the house and getting ready for company the notebook got put in the burn barrel. I cried. I started rebuilding the notebook. My husband said there’s a lot of good info in that, you should make it into an e-book. So I did.
In the beginning there’s info for you to find your county extension office and your frost dates. How to find out how many chill hours you have. The next section goes into plant profiles.
The notebook is a little over 120 pages long. I’ve got common vegetables and plant profiles for those that most people grow. A place to plan when to plant in your area and varieties for your specific area. We even include spaces for fruit, herbs, and ornamental.
You can right down your observations. Like notes: don’t grow this variety of tomato because it didn’t work for you.
I romanticize over the seed packets and catalogs and think I want one of everything. This helps me remember which varieties didn’t work for us and which ones did.
You can lay out your garden with graph paper. You can diagram it out and what and when you planted.
There’s a section on pest management with organic solutions. There’s pages you can make notes on certain pests for your area as well.
There’s a garden calender for things to do each month. Of course, what you’re doing in a certain month is going to be different from what I do in a month because of our climate. So I think it’s important you keep your own notes.
There’s blank plant profile pages so you can make custom ones for you.
There’s an expense area. Sometimes homesteader’s endeavors really just become expensive hobbies. And that’s okay if you’re honest about it. I had a friend who was spending almost $1,100 on feed for goats and chickens a month. She wasn’t using them like she thought or selling them at a price to break even. Until she started tracking her expenses she didn’t realize how much they were costing her.
There’s a seed and plant record purchase sheet.
My favorite part is the journal in the back by month. You can write down your observations for the month. I realized my gardening year is vastly different, even from Northern Texas. That way when everyone else is showing all their August garden pictures and mine are brown and dead, I can look back and know this will end and the green will be back. To be a successful gardener or orchard keeper it’s important to look at your own homestead in your climate and embrace what you have. Learn what will work for you in your area.
Melissa: Gardening is really customized to what you want. Sometimes we really think we’re saving money by raising it ourselves so the expense records are so important. If we don’t keep track then I don’t really know how much I’m saving or spending. The same is true with livestock as it is with your gardening.
Even if you go by your zone, your house might be slightly different. I’m in the foothills so my planting time (even though our average frost date is the same) we have a two week difference in direct sowing than the towns 40 miles west of us. Most gardeners are super willing to share their knowledge with you.
Angi: Gardeners are the most generous people with their info ever. Especially older gardeners are so excited to share their info with you. They love to see young families using those skills.
If you’re serious about making your garden work for you and growing your own food then you need to check out The Gardening Notebook. Having all of our records, notes from previous years, and expenses in one place is key and in the long run it will save you money. This notebook helps you with not just your vegetables but your fruit trees and bushes as well.
Here is where to check out –> The Gardening Notebook
It’s like a party on the podcast today. For our second part of the show we have a special guest…
I’m super excited to share with you I have Mary DeMuth on the podcast today!
We’re staring first with what I’m reading this week because what I’m reading is Mary’s book The Day I Met Jesus, co-written with Frank Viola. So welcome!
Mary: Thanks for having me.
Melissa: I wasn’t sure what to expect because the book is written a little bit differently. It’s both fiction and non-fiction, kind of a marriage between to the two. Do you want to explain that, because it’s an unusual approach?
Mary: There’s isn’t anything else like it that I’ve seen. It starts with a story of a woman from the New Testament that’s re-imagined on a lot of evidence, research and based on scripture. I imagined what might be their back story, we’ve never really known what happened before or after. Maybe the woman at the well or issue of blood. So the second half is a working it out or devotional side. I wrote the fiction side and Frank wrote the devotional side.
Melissa: I love that it has the story side. Because I had an ectopic pregnancy where I lost the baby and my aunt brought me a fictional book that God used to bring me back to them. Fiction has a unique place in my heart. I love that the fiction element is in the book. That’s the part you read first in each chapter. You guys did a lot of research on things. I think that’s fascinating. I’m a history geek so I love the facts and tidbits.
Mary: We did a lot of research to weave in those details. It was a lot of fun.
Melissa; It was funny because when I sat down to read it (I’ve read both of you guys before, I actually helped Frank with Jesus’ Favorite Place on Earth) so I knew it would be good, but I have to say I wasn’t expecting for it to be so moving. I’ve read the first 3 stories.
Each one has brought me to tears. I don’t cry a lot when I read but it’s very moving and powerful. I was reading the chapter on the dairy of a prostitute who loved to much (chapter 3). It’s the woman who washes his feet with her tears and dries them with her hair. What took hold of me was when we see Simon the Pharisee and a lot of the times I’m more judgemental that I should be. I don’t even intentionally realize it until I look back on it. So I’m working with God on that and I was reading it I was struck at how like the Pharisees I am, even when I don’t want to be. I withhold the forgiveness to myself that Jesus has given me because I get caught up in the shame of my judgement. It touched me that the woman accepted the forgiveness and she didn’t hold onto her past and shame.
Mary: It’s interesting and I love because everyone was looking on aghast because she was touching His feet. It was considered quite sexual to let you hair down back then. She was doing everything wrong. The perfume she used was bought with wages garnered from her prostitution. Yet He accepted it.
Simon created this amazing banquiet and Jesus doesn’t accept Simon’s perfect banquet but he accepts this woman’s offering. Jesus was so out of the box and defies our expectation. He wouldn’t confirm to our images or wants. He went out of his way to talk to the woman at the well which is the longest conversation recorded in the gospels in Samaria with a woman. He really messed with convention and the disciplies couldn’t do anything about it.
Melissa: I did not realize the letting down of the hair was so taboo. I didn’t know in that time that Frank said that was basically today a woman going topless. I didn’t realize that it was taken that way in the time. The things were quite outrageous and if I’m being honest and I was sitting there I probably would have thought more like the Pharisees at her actions. She was doing the taboo things but Jesus knew her heart and intentions and that’s what He does. He doesn’t look at circumstances like we do, He goes to the heart.
Mary; That’s why we wrote the book. We wanted people to see Jesus through the eyes of real woman. We begin to see things about Him we never knew. So people can violate their boundaries. Like C.S. Lewis said about Jesus, He’s not safe, but He’s good. You get to put your feet into the sandals that girded their feet along the pathways that Jesus walked. You get to understand how different He truly was.
Melissa: I’m excited to finish is with a box of tissues!
Mary: You can find out more about the book, and things like sharing your story on the day you met Jesus at TheDayIMetJesus.com
Melissa: Our biggest testament is how we met Jesus and how He changed us. I didn’t realize the website was there so now I can check it out. Can you share any verse that’s important in your life.
Mary: I keep coming back to 1 Corinthians 1:26-29 For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God.…
What I love about that is that’s my own story. I was one of those unnoticed foolish kids running around this world and God saw fit to notice me. He confounded the wise by choosing the foolish and you look at these woman in the New Testament that we show. All of them were broken and hurting and that was the very thing that caused them to reach to Jesus in the first place. The woman with the condition of blood she was outcast and that’s pretty cool because in our weird Christian culture it’s the broken, maligned and hurting that know their need for Him and experience His presence more keenly. You think if you’re in control of your life you don’t need Jesus.
Melissa: Thank you for writing this. You can also check MaryDeMuth.com and she blogs very openly and from her heart about hard issues that as Christians we need to deal with and support one another with.
Melissa K. Norris inspires people's faith and pioneer roots with her books, podcast, and blog. Melissa lives with her husband and two children in their own little house in the big woods in the foothills of the North Cascade Mountains. When she's not wrangling chickens and cattle, you can find her stuffing Mason jars with homegrown food and playing with flour and sugar in the kitchen. | <urn:uuid:be6057b3-aa67-4cde-a36e-d167ba41a098> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://melissaknorris.com/howtogrowfruittrees/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560279224.13/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095119-00483-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96588 | 4,457 | 2.234375 | 2 |
Madison, Wis. – In a criminal trial, as any fan of TV cop-and-court shows knows, the prosecution states its case first and the defense goes second. The accused can appear in deep trouble, at first blush, but the weight of evidence submitted by the defense often carries the day.
Not only does that make for appealing television drama, but it’s pretty much how the legal system works in real life. Those who file the charges speak first, the accused then get a chance to rebut.
So it goes with the challenge to three stem-cell patents held by the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, the 80-year-old group that helps UW-Madison patent and license the best ideas from researchers at UW-Madison. A preliminary decision by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office looks bad if you’re watching this drama play out at home – but Wisconsin has yet to have its day in “court.”
The Patent Office announced two weeks ago it has rejected three patents filed by Dr. James Thomson, the world-famous UW scientist who discovered how to keep human embryonic stem cells in an unchanged state. In language that is typical in such cases, the patent office said Thomson’s discoveries were “obvious to one of ordinary skill.”
For all the gleeful predictions by those who would like to see WARF’s patents overturned, the fight isn’t even half done. And, at the end, no one should be surprised if Wisconsin’s patents on stem-cell discoveries are upheld in whole or at least substantially so.
“It’s important to remember that the patent office has yet to see any of our information,” said Carl Gulbrandsen, the managing director of WARF and a lawyer with years of experience in defending challenges to intellectual property. “Our expectation is that we’ll end up with the patents intact.”
Gulbrandsen is not alone in that prediction. Private lawyers with no personal stake in the case say there’s nothing new in challengers’ arguments. In the end, about three-quarters or more of all patents retain their patent status after re-examination. The next phase begins in about 45 days when WARF must file its appeal of the preliminary decision. All in all, the process could take years. Meanwhile, the patents remain in force.
Not a charity case
What’s behind this challenge to the patents? One of the prime movers is Madison native John Simpson, stem cell project director for the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, a non-partisan, non-profit consumer advocacy organization based in Santa Monica, Calif. Even Simpson agrees that Thomson and his colleagues “are brilliant researchers who have made substantial contributions to our understanding of stem cells.”
Rather, Simpson asserts that WARF has chilled stem-cell research elsewhere.
“The problem has been the arrogant and aggressive – some have said bullying – way that WARF has chosen to assert its patents and the negative impact that has had in the United States,” Simpson wrote. “Start-up biotech firms eager to do potentially life-saving research couldn’t get funding for license fees, academic researchers chafed at unreasonable restrictions, and some stem cell research was driven overseas, where WARF patents are not recognized.”
Let’s be clear: The only thing WARF declines to do is to donate its stem cells to for-profit companies or private labs.
WARF has all but given away its stem cells to 400 academic researchers in nearly two-dozen nations, and trains those researchers in how to properly use those cells in their own labs. Because it exists to protect and commercialize UW inventions, however, WARF declines to simply hand off its intellectual property to others who might profit by their use. Private groups can buy WARF stem cells at $125,000 per batch, a fair price given how much those companies and labs stand to gain if their research leads to a billion-dollar cure. They just can’t get stem cells for free.
Even though an academic researcher can buy WARF cells for $500 – yes, $500 – and come to Madison for inexpensive training, Simpson and friends still claim WARF is blocking the schoolhouse door.
Stem cell off shoring
If anything has driven stem-cell research offshore, it’s the 2001 order by President Bush that restricts federal funding here to research on a small number of embryonic stem cell lines. About $35 million in federal dollars will be devoted to embryonic stem cell research in 2007. That’s less than what Stanford University – in Simpson’s state – will receive in California research dollars ($50 million) this year. And that’s just one of many California universities doing stem-cell work. Where’s the “negative impact”?
Wisconsin’s stem cell patents are being challenged because California and select East Coast interests (read: Harvard University) can’t have everything their own way. Let’s see what happens when Wisconsin takes the stand in its own defense.
Recent articles by Tom Still
The opinions expressed herein or statements made in the above column are solely those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Wisconsin Technology Network, LLC.
WTN accepts no legal liability or responsibility for any claims made or opinions expressed herein. | <urn:uuid:2f22e12c-436f-4325-94cd-7080e109220b> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://wtnnews.com/articles/3857/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560279650.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095119-00431-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947288 | 1,124 | 1.765625 | 2 |
A lot of people think I have a great job. My “mom,” for lack of a better word (I still remember my mom; she was furry and warm and smelly — Maria is only one of those, but I won’t tell you which one) writes a guidebook on great places to travel with dogs in California, and she often takes me along as her research assistant when checking out new places for updates.
But while we were perusing the Internet the other day, we came across a story about a dog who uses his nose for detection. Not unusual. Many working dogs do. Maria has even written about those guys in her latest book. Those soldier dogs sniff out bombs, and work in 120-degree heat with bullets flying at them. I wasn’t envious. Not of those war dogs, anyway.
This detector dog is another story, though. He uses his nose to detect something utterly delectable. Something indescribably complex with odors that are positively intoxifying. This dog, a black Labrador named Tucker, sniffs out poop. Not just any poop, but whale poop — that of orcas (killer whales), to be precise. And he does it in the name of science.
All I can say is lucky dog! He gets to hang out on boats in Washington state and British Columbia with cool people and sniff whale poop while the scent-tinged breeze makes his ears flap. And when he finds a scent, he’s praised like he’s just all that! AND he gets a ball or some mouth reward. Really? A job like this exists? They call that a working dog? I don’t know why their headhunter didn’t recommend me for it. Whatever.
Tucker was even thanked in a recent peer-reviewed study about the research. After acknowledging various humans, the authors wrote “Special thanks go to Tucker, the Conservation Canine, for his keen nose and assistance with non-invasive fecal sampling.”
I have to admit that his nose really is quite good. He can detect whale scat a mile away, which means the scientists don’t have to get too close to the whales to get samples. Because of this great distance, they can usually scoop the scat about 400 meters from the whales, leaving them relatively undisturbed. (Scat is a cool word for poop; I’m going to make Maria start using that instead of poop. “Do you have to go scat?” is so much less embarrassing if said in front of company, don’t you think?)
The scat is analyzed for levels of various stress hormones to see if environmental factors like noise or availability of food have an effect on the whales. You can read more about all this business (so to speak) in an article at MSNBC/USNews.
Tucker was chosen for the job because he was obsessive about playing with balls. It’s just like the dogs they choose for military dogs. They have to want that ball really badly in order to work hard for their paycheck. He quickly came to associate the scent of whale poop with a ball reward, and now he’s just Mr. I Have the Best Job in the World and You Don’t. I mean, look at him!
Tucker wasn’t always taken so seriously. Ha! Lead scientist Katherine Ayres has an amusing story about her first revelation of Tucker’s job.
“When I told my parents that I was going to train dogs to track whale poop from the bow of a boat for my Ph.D. dissertation, they must have laughed for a good twenty minutes straight. When the initial laughter burst had subsided into giggles, sighs and the wiping of hilarity-induced tears from their eyes, I said, ‘No really, that’s what I’m doing for my dissertation,’ “she said in an article in Companion Animal Solutions.
Okay, I have to admit Tucker is a pretty good guy. We four-leggeds have to stick together. Tucker, you pretty much rock, actually. But old buddy, old pal, if you EVER have a break in your schedule, if you ever feel like hanging out on the couch and watching TV for a week, call me and I’ll be up in a flash. My bags are packed. I’m waiting by the phone. | <urn:uuid:f7991a97-0801-4852-a9bf-6cb194c3bfa9> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.dogster.com/the-scoop/tucker-the-lab-sniffs-out-whale-poop-the-best-dog-job-ever | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280872.69/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00312-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970703 | 927 | 2.21875 | 2 |
by Mary Jane Auch
Written in English.
About the Book
Clara the duck is so impatient to discover the farm animals' secret of Christmas that she puts herself in danger and almost misses the party.
|Dewey Decimal Class||[E]|
|Library of Congress||PZ7.A898 Nu 1999|
The Physical Object
|Pagination|| p. :|
|Number of pages||32|
History Created April 1, 2008 ·
|April 26, 2011||Edited by OCLC Bot||Added OCLC numbers.|
|June 23, 2010||Edited by IdentifierBot||added LibraryThing ID|
|April 14, 2010||Edited by Open Library Bot||Linked existing covers to the edition.|
|April 1, 2010||Edited by bgimpertBot||Added goodreads ID.|
|April 1, 2008||Created by an anonymous user||Initial record created, from Scriblio MARC record.| | <urn:uuid:b9fc1fd4-1dd1-496c-8111-435c62382986> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://openlibrary.org/books/OL34415M/The_nutquacker | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280587.1/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00566-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.805793 | 210 | 1.515625 | 2 |
99 Ruellia brittonianaCommon Names: Mexican petunia Family: Acanthaceae (acanthus Family)
The Mexican petunia is a tender evergreen perennial that forms colonies of stemmy stalks standing 3 ft (0.9 m) in height and of indeterminate width. The strong semi-woody stalks are distinctly vertical in aspect and hold attractive dark green, leaves oppositely at the nodes. The lance-shaped leaves are to 6-12 in (15.2-30.5 cm) in length and 1/2-3/4 in (1.3-1.9 cm) wide. When grown under hot sunny conditions the foliage assumes a metallic bluish cast that creates the perfect backdrop for the the scores of vibrant blue flowers that appear with the onslaught of hot summer weather. The blossoms are trumpet shaped and about 1.5-2 in (3.8-5.1 cm) in diameter and are borne at the tips of the stems.
Varieties with white, pink, and many shades of blue are available, as are dwarf versions that form clumps that are about 8-12 in (20.3-25.4 cm) in height. Mexican petunia is very showy when in full bloom due to the clouds of admiring butterflies that swarm about the plants.
Mexican petunia, Ruellia brittoniana, is native to Mexico, but it has escaped cultivation and established in disturbed areas in the SE U.S., and can be found invading habitats across Florida (see Warning below).
CulturePrefers fertile soil with moisture, but is very adaptable. After flowering, cut back stems about halfway for a new crop! Mexican petunia can be grown indoors as a houseplant in bright light. It is typically free of pests and disease. Light: Sun to part shade. The quantity of blossoms is related to the amount of light the plant receives. The more direct sunlight the more flowers with fewer flowers appearing in overcast conditions or when grown in shadier conditions. Moisture: Average to moist. Mexican petunia is a water plant that becomes very aggressive with access to abundant moisture. Survives dry spells once established. When growing Mexican petunia indoors water freely when in active growth but water only when dry in winter. Hardiness: USDA Zones 8 - 10. Marginally hardy in Zone 7 if protected and mulched. Propagation: Cuttings, division, seed. Stems are very easy to root in moist soil. Over time the plant multiplies and the original stem becomes a colony.
Use Mexican petunia towards the back of a flowering border, or as the centerpiece in a container. Plant next to pentas (Pentas lanceolata) for an effective contrast in both foliage and flower color and texture, with a purple verbena (Glandularia puchella)as ground cover below to mirror the larger, purple flowers of R. britonniana (the butterflies like this combination too!). The dwarf varieties also do well (and look great) in containers - especially those situated in hot sunny situations. The dwarf Mexican petunias also make a handy perennial edging plant for flowers beds and as colorful groundcovers.
Mexican petunia is an easy to grow plant with strikingly colored flowers that is seldom bothered by disease or pests. It blooms enthusiastically throughout the hottest time of the year. It is a fast grower and is inexpensive and sold at many discount chain garden centers (which is unfortunate in places like Florida).
In the southeastern US the Mexican petunia is becoming a pest. I hope that the dwarf varieties will prove to be better mannered. After six years of observation my blue and white flowered dwarf Mexican petunias remain well behaved little clumps and I've seen no indication that they are reseeding.
Mexican petunia is listed as a Category I invasive species by the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council. This means that it is "altering native plant communities by displacing native species, changing community structures or ecological functions, or hybridizing with natives". This warning applies to all parts of the state of Florida (and other areas with similar mild climates). Where hardy, the Mexican petunia excels at invading wetlands.
Jack Scheper 9/27/97; updated 4/1/02, 4/27/02, 5/11/04 | <urn:uuid:269ed9f3-4194-4d27-8ed5-44a65cb79a36> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://floridata.com/Plants/Acanthaceae/Ruellia%20brittoniana/99 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560279915.8/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095119-00272-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.921765 | 907 | 2.875 | 3 |
|The Joule paddle wheel experiment (1843) representative of the work transformed into heat aspect of the mechanical equivalent of heat: |
which states that W can convert into Q.
| The Hero aeolipile (50AD) representative of the heat transforming into work aspect of the mechanical equivalent of heat:|
which states that Q can convert into W.
or TdS, in differential form, is called the bound energy, or transformation content energy change, or energy associated with the equivalence-value of all uncompensated transformations, of a process or reaction occurring in a system, where T is the absolute temperature of the system, and dS is the differential entropy change and ΔS is the entropy change on going from an initial state entropy to a final state entropy. In expanded form:
where Sf is the entropy measure of the system in its final state and Si is the entropy of he system in its initial state.
The function was first derived in the work of Rudolf Clausius (1850-1865) and expanded on by Willard Gibbs in 1876.
The labeling of the function TdS as "bound energy", in contrast to "free energy" (internal energy less bound energy) was done in 1882 by German physicist Hermann Helmholtz in his “On the Thermodynamics of Chemical Processes”.
1. Helmholtz, Hermann. (1882). “On the Thermodynamics of Chemical Processes”, in: Physical Memoirs Selected and Translated from Foreign Sources, 1: 43-97. Physical Society of London, Taylor and Francis, 1888. | <urn:uuid:5fc193d9-8501-4473-af24-9763a36aa4ee> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | http://humanthermodynamics.wikifoundry.com/page/T%CE%94S | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573029.81/warc/CC-MAIN-20220817153027-20220817183027-00264.warc.gz | en | 0.913559 | 369 | 3.359375 | 3 |
From the Electoral Commission:
On 20 February, the Prime Minister announced that the UK Government’s proposed date for the referendum on the UK’s membership of the European Union is 23 June 2016. Regulations will now need to be debated and approved by the UK Parliament before the date of the poll is confirmed.
The proposed referendum period is:
Start of referendum period: 15 April*
Polling day: 23 June
The proposed designation period is:
Application period starts: 4 March
Deadline for applications: 31 March
Designation decision: 14 April**…
There are restrictions on the material that the UK and devolved Government ministers, government departments, local authorities and certain bodies
receiving public funds can publish about the referendum from 27 May to 23 June 2016, polling day. The restrictions apply to any material, made available to the public, in any form and by whatever means which provides general information about the referendum as well as the issues and arguments for or against the UK remaining or leaving the EU. The restrictions also apply to material designed to encourage people to vote.
* This is therefore the date on which extra restrictions on campaign activities kick in.
** This is the date on which the appointment of the official Remain / Leave campaigns is announced.
UPDATE: See here for the full European referendum timetable. | <urn:uuid:320fdece-fd8b-4736-92f7-cd990d07f6b4> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.markpack.org.uk/137738/key-dates-european-referendum/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560279169.4/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095119-00209-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942594 | 271 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Teachers building strong STEM curriculum with corps externships [Image 20 of 21]
ASHLAND CITY, TN, UNITED STATES
Harold Cunningham (right), construction teacher, and Victor Bright (second from right), history teacher, both from Cane Ridge High School, tour a construction site, June 6, 2013, where the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District is building a new resource manager's office at Cheatham Lake in Ashland City, Tenn. Project Engineer Debbie Dowell and Construction Engineering Technician Victor Young from the Mid Cumberland Construction Office provided the tour for the teachers who are partnering with the Corps in a teacher externship that will help them develop project based learning curriculum. The Nashville District works with schools, teachers and students involved in science, technology, engineering and mathematics programs. (USACE photo by Leon Roberts)
||ASHLAND CITY, TN, US
This work, Teachers building strong STEM curriculum with corps externships [Image 1 of 21], by Leon Roberts, identified by DVIDS, is free of known copyright restrictions under U.S. copyright law. | <urn:uuid:e354b173-e8f7-44c4-a7ee-5bd840d225e0> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | https://www.dvidshub.net/image/963184/teachers-building-strong-stem-curriculum-with-corps-externships | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988718309.70/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183838-00406-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.875648 | 226 | 2.21875 | 2 |
SACE tracks carbon emissions and planned generation in its annual report entitled "Tracking Decarbonization in the Southeast" to answer the question of whether or not the power sector is decarbonizing at a rate adequate enough to mitigate the climate crisis. In this blog, we share information and context from the report related to TVA compared to other large utilities in the region.Maggie Shober and Heather Pohnan | October 9, 2020
The next electric utility in our decarbonization series is the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), which is notable for being the nation’s largest public utility. Created in 1933, TVA originally brought innovation to the Tennessee Valley by electrifying parts of the country that previously had little or no access to electricity. Unfortunately for TVA customers who want cleaner air, water, and energy, this innovation does not extend to decarbonization. TVA has not established a meaningful decarbonization goal, and carbon emission reductions will remain small beyond the early 2020s under TVA’s current plans.
TVA stands in contrast to peer utilities like Duke and Southern that have both announced net-zero goals to reduce total emissions. One of the unifying traits of many utility carbon goals is that they include long-term reductions targets by 2050, and have begun taking steps to meet them, such as researching net-zero pathways in resource planning proceedings. While TVA has publicized an expected reduction in its emissions rate (but not total emissions) of 80% from 2005 levels, its analysis is limited to the 2030 to 2035 timeframe and does not constitute a formal goal or plan.
Cities taking lead could have uphill path to decarbonization
TVA is composed of over 150 electricity distributors, also known as local power companies (LPCs). These LPCs often serve specific municipalities or cities, which is significant because many cities are taking decarbonization in their own hands. This is also true in the Tennessee Valley, where cities like Knoxville and Nashville have sent a strong message to TVA by enacting their own climate-related goals. However, TVA’s disinterest in actively formulating plans to decarbonize makes it unclear if it is unable or unwilling to hear that message.
What does this mean for Nashville?
A recent report from consulting firm David Gardiner and Associates (DGA) also found that TVA’s future plans lead to a flatlining of carbon emissions. The DGA report then compared TVA’s future emissions trajectory and proportion of renewable energy to cities that compete with Nashville for attracting new businesses: Raleigh, North Carolina; Charlotte, North Carolina; Austin, Texas; Columbus, Ohio; and Minneapolis, Minnesota. DGA found Nashville would likely have trouble attracting businesses in the future because it is a captured customer of TVA, and TVA’s decarbonization trajectory does not match with goals in the business community.
“Climate change threatens the well-being of my kids and grandkids as well as much of humanity,” Gary Garfield, a retired Bridgestone Americas CEO who is among the report’s 20 backers, told Inside Climate News. “It is my hope that this project will prompt TVA to be considerably more aggressive in reducing its greenhouse gas emissions, either of its own accord or because of pressure from those it serves.”
Michael Vandenbergh, a Vanderbilt University law professor, told Inside Climate News’ Jim Bruggers that while the report is focused on Nashville, “it has similar implications for Knoxville, Chattanooga, Memphis, and the other cities in the TVA service area.” This is something we will be watching as we engage as a member of the Mayor’s Climate Council in Knoxville.
What does this mean for Memphis?
Memphis is home to the largest utility in Tennessee by demand: Memphis Light, Gas, & Water (MLGW). MLGW is in the midst of deciding whether to switch power providers and leave TVA. MLGW completed an integrated resource plan (IRP) earlier this year that showed that the city could save money and lower emissions by increasing energy efficiency and using a combination of renewable and fossil generation instead of continuing with TVA as its sole power provider.
If Memphis decides to leave TVA for cleaner and cheaper energy options, it has the potential to significantly change the way TVA operates its generation resources to meet the needs of its remaining customers. Maybe that is the wake-up call TVA needs to set forth on a true decarbonization pathway.
Decarbonization at TVA could be an engine out of crisis
From TVA’s beginnings as a part of FDR’s New Deal, it was a proof of concept that delivery of inexpensive and clean power is possible, and is an engine for job creation and economic development during a time where government-led mobilization is needed. An aggressive decarbonization strategy by the nation’s largest public power utility would do wonders to jumpstart recovery from the conglomerate of crises we face today: the existential threat of climate catastrophe; the long-brewing crisis of energy affordability; and the recent sharp economic downturn as a result of COVID-19. | <urn:uuid:df21ff10-33fe-4840-a016-32437cf0a9c9> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://cleanenergy.org/blog/tracking-decarbonization-in-the-southeast-tvas-stalled-decarbonization-disadvantages-the-tennessee-valley/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571097.39/warc/CC-MAIN-20220810010059-20220810040059-00277.warc.gz | en | 0.949567 | 1,072 | 2.78125 | 3 |
First we should accept that there is a liability we have to pay. If anyone wants to comment saying we should just not pay our Kyoto Liability, do it somewhere else (If it makes you feel better, we will assume that the world will punish us by more than the cost of the scheme if we drop out). So given that we are looking at the situation where New Zealand has to pay for it, why is there concern around the ETS.
One concern that Queen Bee has, which is of course correct, is that rushing into an emissions trading scheme without thinking about the issues surrounding it is a mistake, but is that what we are doing. Compared to other polices the ETS has had a ton of work done around it, general equilibrium models, real options analysis of forestry stocks, all sorts of stuff. Some of the technical issues surrounding the measurement of liabilities need to be cleaned up, but in the economic sense I’m pretty happy with where we are sitting.
The feeling that we haven’t properly costed the ETS stems from the NZIER GE model on an ETS (something we discuss here). Now I didn’t completely agree with the conclusions that were glenned from the NZIER review, and if you read the review of the review you can see that others feel the same way (*).
However, even if we believed that the NZIER model gave the best representation of what is going to happen, policy is not solely a question of “growth”, it is a question of welfare. This question is important as we cannot just have “high growth” and compensate the losers in this case – as these firms are stating they can’t afford to stay in business if they have too pay the full cost of their carbon emissions.
It is fundamentally fair to make people pay the full social cost of their actions. By increasing income taxes to pay for the liability instead of using an ETS or a carbon tax we are making the result of society pay for a mess that these industries are creating.
I do agree with Queen Bee insofar as uncertainty surrounding the ETS is creating unnecessary problems for our economy, mainly by reducing investment. However, given that we have to take on the liability in the first place, I am not certain that getting the funds through an ETS is much of an additional risk – ultimately, it is the liability that is a cost to society, not the scheme.
What do you think is the major risk?
In terms of policy failure, I’m most worried about the government losing focus of when spending is appropriate and inappropriate. A terms of trade increase increases the whole countries set of resources – completely independently of any government action.
However, if the government views the growth this brings as an illustration of how good their own policies are we could end up with a loss of fiscal discipline. Such action would increase fundamental inflationary pressures and fritter away some of our wealth gains.
Now don’t get me wrong, I agree with parties shifting taxes and spending based on their belief in an equity-efficiency trade-off. However, a loss in fiscal discipline isn’t about a measured trade-off, it is about the potential for waste.
My fear is that our terms of trade boost will lead to the government taking their eye off the ball (no matter what party is in power), as although the government can do very little to influence the rate of economic growth, it still has the ability to throw resources down the toilet (a risk that is highlighted by The Standard’s view of public sector productivity – although I agree that public sector productivity measures are different, such attitudes could be used justification for throwing more an more money at a problem without even thinking about what comes out). | <urn:uuid:e4e5fd0b-54d7-4fbd-85d3-8ab208bbcbac> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | http://www.tvhe.co.nz/2008/06/20/discussion-on-how-to-screw-up-a-terms-of-trade-increase-ii/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571538.36/warc/CC-MAIN-20220812014923-20220812044923-00475.warc.gz | en | 0.970278 | 772 | 1.609375 | 2 |
tung oil, oil obtained from the seeds of a tropical tree, the tung tree ( Aleurites fordii ) of the spurge family, and from seeds of some related species, all from Indomalesia or W Pacifica. It is known also as China wood oil and nut oil. The poisonous seeds found in the heart of the tung fruit (which is the size of a small apple) contain more than 50% tung oil, readily obtained when the seeds are heated, ground, and pressed. The oil is amber-colored and contains a high proportion of eleostearic acid. Because of its wide use as a dryer in varnishes and paints, it has great commercial importance. While the bulk of the product is utilized by the paint and varnish industry, tung oil has additional uses, e.g., as a component of insulating compounds and in the manufacture of linoleum and oilcloth. China was long the chief producer of the oil, but the tree has been introduced in other areas as well. The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture experimented with tung tree growing early in the 20th cent., and afterward encouraged Southern farmers to cultivate it. In recent years, an increasing portion of the commercial supply has been obtained from trees grown in the United States, particularly in the South.
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: Organic Chemistry | <urn:uuid:a1c409c0-3323-42f6-a021-82bac3bfb817> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/science/tung-oil.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560282926.64/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095122-00402-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962102 | 305 | 2.6875 | 3 |
Back to Linux
- Amerada Hess Corporation
- Oil Exploration Supercomputing - Amerada Hess Corp is a $7.4 billion
petroleum company, but the supercomputers traditionally used to analyze oil
exploration data are rather costly even for a company of this size. No longer
a problem. Amerada Hess now uses a large Linux cluster for the job.
- BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit)
- Light Rail Metropolitan Transit System - This system tracks
the flow of electricity from the high voltage DC power lines of Pacific Gas
and Electric to the distribution of electricity via the third rail. If an
emergency required the evacuation of a train, this system would be used to
turn off the electricity to ensure the safety of passengers as they exited
- Boscov's Department Stores
- special invoicing, server consolidation, Web site, etc. - Boscov's,
America's largest family owned department store chain, has been steadily
moving it's back office operations to Linux, and will probably eventually
migrate POS (Point of Sale) systems as well.
- Article -
- Burlington Coat Factory
- Entire Systems - Burlington Coat Factory is a "Factory Outlet"
retailer with 280 stores in 42 states. Initial Linux installations at their
new distribution center and a few new stores proved highly successful, so
roll-out to existing stores began. An order for 1,250 Dell computers preloaded
with Linux was placed to support the effort.
The Linux systems are used to run warehousing and distribution, the gift
registry and back office functions such as ordering and general desktop. The
chosen office productivity suite is
Office, which allows a very high degree of customization.
- Oil Exploration Supercomputing - Conoco is one of several major
petroleum companies that have chosen to use inexpensive Linux clusters instead
of costly supercomputers to analyze oil exploration data.
- Cisco - Worldwide
Printing System - Cisco, a $21 billion maker of routers that tie the
Internet together, signed a major agreement with Microsoft regarding support
for Active Directory. As part of that deal, Cisco management declared Cisco
an "all Microsoft" company.
Unfortunately, Cisco's IT staff couldn't get
network printing services to work right through NT servers (and you can't
say Cisco engineers don't understand networking, now, can you?). Cisco's
printing services now run on Linux.
- CSK Auto (Kragan< Checker,
Schuck's) - the largest auto parts chain in the Western
U.S. (now O'Reilly Auto parts) with 1,100 stores, is adopting a SUSE
Linux based POS (Point of Sale) system for all it's stores. CSK chose
Ultimate's 2800 Series Integrated POS System which offers open architecture,
flexible configuration options, and easy serviceability combined with the
stability and reliability of Linux.
- Article -
- Digital Domain -
Visual Effects Supercomputing - Digital Domain is a major visual effects
studio. In particular, they did the visual effects for Apolo 13
and Titanic. The effects for Titanic were particularly
demanding, too demanding for their SGI Indigos, and would have normally
required a supercomputer costing millions. Digital Domain was able to
do the job on an inexpensive Linux cluster instead.
- Ernie Ball Inc.
- Entire Operation - Ernie Ball was one of those
unfortunate companies turned over to the BSA (Business Software Alliance) by
someone with a grudge. While few "infractions" .
There's hardly a small business anywhere that has all the paperwork together
for their software, and while few "infractions" were found, that was enough
to be very costly. Ernie Ball decided this would never happen again and
made a very successful migration to Linux.
- Garden Grove
California, City of - major
operations - The City of Garden Grove began moving operations to Linux
in 1995 with central data systems running Samba and the Pick database. The
initial deployment was so successful and saved so much money the city has
been gradually moving other operations to Linux, including some desktop
- Google - Search
Engine - The wildly popular Google search engine simply would not be
possible without a customized version of Linux fit exactly to its needs.
Google uses clusters of hundreds of Linux servers to deliver search
- IBM -
"Fortune 5" multinational corporation - In late 2003 IBM reversed their
position and declared Linus ready for the desktop and started deployment
across their internal systems.
- Just Sports USA
- A fast growing chain (now 50 stores) selling sports items - All
Stores, Back Office functions, Inventory and eCommerce systems run on Linux.
All functions are integrated together using a PostgreSQL database. The
eCommerce system runs on Linux / Apache Web servers and is also integrated
with the inventory database. Postgre and Apache are also Open Source
Aluminum - Manufacturing Control - Kaiser, one of the world's
largest producer of aluminum, aluminum sheet and foil, has chosen Linux for
many applications on the manufacturing floor. It works side by side with Unix,
Windows NT and specialty "real time" operating systems.
- Largo Florida, City of
- City office desktop systems. - Largo has about
400 thin client workstations running the KDE Desktop from a Linux server.
Database workloads were migrated from SCO Unix, AIX and Windows NT servers for
a multi-million dollar savings. Largo figures its IT budget is about half that
of other cities its size. Using
thin clients provides a low cost, very low
maintenance, uniform and easily administered computing environment for all
city users. At peak, there are about 230 simultaneous users. -
- Lawson Inc. (Japan)
- In-Store Consumer Web Ordering System - Lawson, a giant convenience
store chain (7,600 stores) in Japan, will be placing two Linux based computers
in each store to implement it's new Web ordering system. The over 15,000
computers will be purchased from IBM pre-configured with Linux installed.
- London Stock Exchange - Major Systems - This is
a particularly outstanding instance. Microsoft sold the Stock Exchange on
a Windows data and transaction system, and generated a lot of publicity
around it. Then, once the system was installed, they pretty much walked away
and left the Exchange to it's own devices because they knew they couldn't
make it actually work. The Exchange had no choice - they migrated to a SUSE
Linux based system. The guy who brought in Microsoft was fired. -
- Mexico City - government of - Everything! - The
government of Mexico City have concluded they can no longer justify the ever
rising cost of Microsoft Windows when the cost of Linux software is very low.
Linux has already proven itself in the city's motor vehicle licensing agency
and in the Mexican school system. Money saved will be used in social welfare
- Mobil Travel Guide - Major Consumer Web Site -
This Exxon division found
Linux ideal both from a cost/performance standpoint and for scalability as
the division grows. -
Omaha Steaks - On-Line Commerce - Advertisements for this mail
order company can be found in the back of most up-scale home oriented
magazines. They were running their internal systems on an IBM AS/400 and
outsourced their Web site, but they wanted to tie the on-line ordering
directly into the AS/400. A cluster of Linux servers now runs the Web site
and connects to the AS/400.
- Oracle -
Second largest software developer publishes leading database - Oracle's
5000 applications developers, customer support and their outsourcing business
are running on Linux. As soon as Oracle 10g database is released the database
developers will be moved to Linux, making between 8,000 and 9,000 Linux users
total. Oracle recommends Linux as a preferred platform for running the Oracle
- Panasonic -
Major Electronics Manufacturer - Panasonic's popular DBS business
telephone system included a voicemail system based on Windows NT, but it was
a bit pricey. To be more competitive in smaller businesses, Panasonic developed
a system incorporating 1CTI's Linux based
voice mail software. The Linux based system has been so well accepted by
the customers the Windows based system is being discontinued.
- Raymour &
Flanigan - Furniture Chain (50 stores in Northeast) - The
store chain has transferred most of its servers to Linux, and is replacing
Windows 98 PC with Linux based "thin client" workstations in its service
centers. Inventory and other databases are now being migrated from Microsoft
Access running on Windows servers to Oracle running on Linux.
- Royal Dutch/Shell - Oil Exploration Supercomputing
- One of the world's largest petroleum companies, Royal Dutch/Shell could
certainly afford the supercomputers traditionally used to analyze oil
exploration data, but why do that when your competitors are using
inexpensive Linux clusters to do the job. Royal Dutch/Shell has decided to
set up a bigger Linux cluster than the ones it's competitors have.
- Tommy Hilfiger -
Clothing Brand - Note: website designed by idiots won't let you in at
all without Flash plug-in. The company is installing three Linux based portals
running on IBM xSeries servers. The first provides remote access to data on
the company's IBM iSeries (AS/400) datacenter computers. The second provides
access for clothing manufacturers to designs and specifications. The third
provides B2B eCommerce access to retailers and a company store for employees.
Company officials say the Linux systems provide the required performance at
a lower cost than any other platform.
- Article -
- Toyota Motor Sales,
U.S.A. - Dealer Communications System -
Toyota is installing a Linux based system connecting all its car
dealers to it's factory. This is a Web based system from the ground up, and
will be handling 30 different functions including parts ordering, warranties,
sales transactions and repairs.
A 30 dealer pilot roll-out was highly successful, extremely reliable, and
easily maintained, so now the system will be rolled out to all 1,200 dealers.
- Travel Agency - Travelocity is the back-end system for the travel
services offered by AOL, Yahoo and US Airways. It's Web site gets 11 million
page views and 170,000 email transmissions a day. The system is being
migrated to Linux and Java.
- Article -
- U.S. Army
major military organization - The U.S. Army's Land Warrior program,
the first stage of a far reaching battlefield information and communications
system, leads a general move to Linux. The Army says that
"Evidence shows that Linux is more stable". Apparently the Army has issues
with Microsoft's "blue screen of death".
- U.S. Federal Courts -
case management, case tracking, finance and accounting, probation and pretrial
services - A support contract was awarded (Nov-03) to PEC Solutions
for migration of the Federal Judiciary to a Linux based system.
- U.S. Postal Service
- OCR Supercomputing - The Postal Service had declared itself an
"all Windows NT" house, but you can't use NT for what it simply can't do - so
they now sort all the bulk mail on
over 900 Linux clusters
scattered around the country (at less than half the cost of the next cheapest
solution (and that wasn't NT either)).
The OCR (Optical Character Recognition) system uses scanners that were
already in place. The Linux system consists of 5 rack mounted PCs, one to
handle the scanners and sorting equipment, and 4 to share the computational
tasks. Since then, the USPS has been migrating other systems to Linux as
- Wall Street - Financial Systems - Trading houses
and other entities found Linux excellent for their high speed trading systems.
It is inexpensive, highly customizable, secure and provides unmatched
computational and transaction performance. It is now the predominant
computer operating system for these applications. The New York Stock Exchange
itself runs on a Linux system that handles 1,500,000 quotes and 250,000
orders per second. -
- Oil Exploration Supercomputing - In 2001 IBM has built a Linux based
supercomputer for analysis of seismic data. This machine was built from 256
IBM eServer xSeries. This was the second largest Linux cluster IBM had built
for oil exploration by 2002, the largest being the 1024 xSeries cluster for | <urn:uuid:81035075-31a5-46b4-a751-0ce9600a308a> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.aaxnet.com/design/linux2.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280065.57/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00549-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.903905 | 2,661 | 2.09375 | 2 |
The long-term follow-up of the randomized E1912 study comparing the long-term effectiveness of ibrutinib-rituximab (IR) therapy to fludarabine, cyclophosphamide, and rituximab (FCR) therapy is presented by the researchers for a study. In addition, the tolerability of continuous ibrutinib is also described.
The E1912 study included 529 treatment-naive patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) aged ≤70 years. Patients were randomly randomized (2:1) to either IR or FCR for 6 cycles. The median progression-free survival (PFS) with a median follow-up of 5.8 years was superior for IR (hazard ratio [HR], 0.37; P<.001).
In patients with both immunoglobulin heavy chain variable region (IGHV) gene mutant and unmutated CLL, IR improved PFS compared to FCR (HR: 0.27; P<.001). Ibrutinib was continued in 214 (60.5%) of the 354 patients who were randomly assigned to IR. Among the 138 IR-treated patients who discontinued treatment, 37 (10.5% of those who started IR) did so due to disease progression or death, 77 (21.9% of those who started IR) discontinued due to adverse events (AEs)/complications, and 24 (6.8% of those who started IR) did so for other reasons. Progression was infrequent in people who could continued to take ibrutinib. Among patients who stopped using ibrutinib for reasons other than its progression, the median period from withdrawal to disease progression or death was 25 months. Patients in the IR arm had a sustained improvement in overall survival (OS) (HR, 0.47; P=.018).
In conclusion, IR treatment provided improved PFS and OS compared to FCR in patients with IGHV mutant or unmutated CLL. In addition, the majority of CLL patients tolerated continuous ibrutinib treatment for more than 5 years. | <urn:uuid:4d8281f8-43e2-463b-b525-9d7c61417f32> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.physiciansweekly.com/ibrutinib-rituximab-and-chemoimmunotherapy-in-cll/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572870.85/warc/CC-MAIN-20220817062258-20220817092258-00673.warc.gz | en | 0.957098 | 446 | 1.5625 | 2 |
Python Surpassed Perl In Popularity
Herald: Python surpasses Perl in popularity!
According to “TIOBE Programming Community Index for November 2008” at http://www.tiobe.com/content/paperinfo/tpci/index.html, it seems that Python has surpassed Perl in popularity this month!
Good for Python!
A quick search in monster.com, i find that perl returns 2673 results, and Python returns 879 results. Perlers, you still safe!
Looking at other lang popularity site: http://www.langpop.com/, it indicates that perl is still ahead by a bit.
So, i think it's not all peaches and cream for Python yet.
However, am pretty sure it'll be so in the next couple of years.
btw, for those perlers who wishes to learn Python, see: Python Tutorial.
See also: Computer Language Popularity Trend. | <urn:uuid:4ae514e4-c695-46e0-89ff-00ba79a53d21> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://xahlee.info/UnixResource_dir/writ2/Python_surpassed_Perl.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560279915.8/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095119-00283-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.901457 | 197 | 2.09375 | 2 |
Taking a drive down State Route 224 through Northeast Ohio is in many ways akin to taking a trip back through time. At one point, before the interstate highway program, US 224 was an all-important route for truckers. Small towns and farms thrived along its edges. The construction of the expressway ultimately diverted much of the economic lifeblood of 224. And though much has been said about the subsequent decline of the small communities on the route, much less talked about is the disappearance of the farms. Vast stretches of fallow farmland are a common sight, not just around 224, but also around cities and towns of all varieties in Ohio Indiana, Pennsylvania, New York, and Michigan. However, that’s likely to change-as is the position of these declining states. The exodus from the Great Lakes region, so lamented by many, will likely reverse itself in the coming decades. It won’t be smart shrinkage, tech belts, or tax incentives that will arrest the region’s decline, but the vagaries of climate change and the natural gift of fresh water.
In his monumental study of the most underappreciated resource on earth, investigative journalist Charles Fishman paints a picture of the price we will pay for our having taken water for granted: “We are entering a new age of water scarcity-not just in traditionally dry or hard-pressed places like the US Southwest and the Middle East, but in places we think of as water wealthy, like Atlanta and Melbourne. The three things we have taken to be the natural state of our water supply-abundant, cheap, and safe-will not be present together in the decades ahead.” This will hold especially true for the fastest growing regions of the United States.
California’s Central Valley today is perhaps the most agriculturally important region in the country. Four out of the top five counties in total agricultural sales are in the valley, and a good portion of America relies on produce grown in and then shipped from California. The Central Valley, however, faces a growing number of problems that threaten its future as an agricultural mainstay. Increasing sprawl and population growth in Northern California is now moving into the San Joaquin Valley, threatening water supplies in an area already suffering from problems linked to increased salinity. If salinity rates continue on their present course for the next sixteen years, California will start to lose billions of dollars a year in revenue. Combine that with an estimated 131 percent increase in population in the San Joaquin Valley by mid-century, and you have an enormous threat to one quarter of the nation’s domestic food supply.
States in the American West and Southwest exist as they do today by the grace of two things: the Bureau of Land management and irrigation. A monumental governmental effort made the semi-arid and desert regions of the country habitable. Yet the habitability of these regions rests on the shakiest of foundations. As Mark Reisner, who in 1986, authored perhaps the most important book on water and the American West, puts it “…this water, which has turned the western plains and large portions of California green, will be mostly gone in one hundred years.” In Las Vegas alone, nearly 60,000 residents arrive annually, which necessitates an extra 100 million gallons of water per week.
One of the most important rivers in America is also under siege after decades of mismanagement. The existentially threatened Colorado River is a ticking time bomb for Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, and Wyoming. Damns, diversions, aqueducts, and climate change have taken a heavy toll on a waterway that supports around 36 million people. Increased salinity is also destroying the river. With continued population growth and development in areas supported by the Colorado, the future of the river as a viable water source is questionable.
The disappearance of surface water sources like Lake Mead and the Colorado River aren’t the only major concerns for states. Water tables across America, many of them formed hundreds of thousands or millions of years ago, are being over-pumped to compensate for out of control population growth and droughts linked to climate change. One of the most crucial of these is the Ogallala Aquifer. South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Texas all rely on the Ogallala. Irrigated agriculture has long been a mainstay in these states, especially in Kansas, often known as the “Breadbasket of the World.” If drastic steps are not taken to reduce pumping of the Ogallala, it’s estimated that 70 percent of the aquifer will be gone just past mid-century.And in Texas, fracking-related industries are trying to acquire water resources even as municipal water levels plummet.
What is actually being described is what Lester Brown of the Earth Policy calls “peak water.” From now on, water supply will be outstripped by demand. Already states like Georgia and Florida are fighting over access to dwindling water supplies. But this is not the case for the Great Lakes region, home to nearly one-fifth of the planet’s surface freshwater supply. The region is now seeking to capitalize on the situation by creating something called the “Blue Economy.” Michigan has already benefited from increased tourism, especially fishing in its abundant lakes and streams. Fishing alone is worth $2.5 billion a year for the state, wildlife-related tourism accounts for another $2 billion, and the boating industry in Michigan, sure to grow, supports thousands of jobs.
Businesses and universities throughout the region are financing start-ups and water-related services. Milwaukee has already invested almost $100 million to attract and grow water-intensive businesses and industries. The Milwaukee Water Council is at the forefront of much of this type of work. Last year they opened the Global Water Center for research related to Blue Economy initiatives.
A green economy is gradually growing in the region as well. Already, fallow farmland is being revived across Michigan and now in the Buckeye State. Ohio and other states in the Great Lakes region won’t just be providing food domestically either. China, with a fast-growing population, a lack of arable farmland, and increasing desertification, is eyeing agricultural imports from the United States. China lacks the corn and feedstock necessary to nourish cattle for the country’s rapidly expanding meat-eating population. Former Ohio State agricultural economist, Dr. Allan Lines, sees Ohio in a position to take advantage of China’s issues with groundwater and arable land. Export markets to China could provide a huge boon for the state, especially as other agricultural centers in America face growing water problems.
The decline of one other scarce resource will eventually bring back even the struggling cities clinging to the banks of the Great Lakes. As we are facing peak water, so will we eventually face peak oil. America’s current fracking boom cannot and will not last. When gasoline prices eventually rise to the $16 a gallon range, America’s system of growing food far from markets will be over; an economic model dependant on over-the-road shipping will collapse. The end of cheap gas will also mean the revitalization of urban areas, as density again becomes desirable-indeed, necessary. In his book $20 Per Gallon, civil engineer Christopher Steiner outlines how the end of cheap oil will revitalize cities everywhere, but he states that especially “cities such as Detroit, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, will see their stocks rise the fastest.” The end of cheap oil will itself end the moniker “Rust Belt,” as production and manufacturing again become localized.
Texas and California in particular dominate the Sun Belt as the two most populous states with the largest economies. Much of the discussion surrounding their future trajectory of late has centered on taxes, regulation, housing, and energy, but less attention is paid to the very problematic climate future they both face. The changing climate is already disrupting (much sooner than expected) large swaths of the Sun Belt, especially in California and Texas. The amount of acreage burned every year by wildfires in the US could increase by as much as 100 percent in the next three decades. Much of this will likely occur in the ever-drier western states.
Drought, the close cousin of the wildfire, is now seemingly a permanent condition for both the Golden State and the Lone Star State. The worsening situation of the Colorado River poses enormous problems for the ballooning Texas population. Six of the lowest inflows ever recorded for the lower Colorado River basin have occurred since 2006. This is a real problem for the Highland Lakes of Texas, which were formed from the damning of the Colorado and are now well below maximum levels; they provide for recreational water activities and serve as an important buffer when drought hits. And drought has hit with a vengeful-like force.
In 2011, a dry spell of Biblical proportions descended-the worst in Texas history. Over three quarters of the state entered a period of “exceptional drought.” El Paso received only slightly more rainfall than Baghdad in 2011. By April of 2012, well over $5 billion in agricultural losses had been sustained.Hapless Governor Rick Perry even resorted to declaring prayer days dedicated to beseeching the divine for precipitation. Some communities came to close to running out of water altogether. Climatic events like the 2011-2012 drought are likely to increase as overall climate patterns shift, and studies conducted during the recent drought show that increased periods of aridity could radically impact organic matter in the soil and the ability of ecosystems to survive in the future. Prolonged dry spells will imperil important urban centers like Austin, destabilizing their ability to grow and their economic base.
In his seminal work, The Ecology of Fear: Los Angeles and the Imagination of Disaster, Mike Davis describes the grossly unsustainable landscape that is modern Southern California: For generations, market driven urbanization has transgressed environmental common sense. Historic wildfire corridors have been turned into view-lot suburbs, wetland liquefaction zones into marinas, and floodplains into industrial districts and housing tracts. Monolithic public works have been substituted for regional planning and responsible land ethic. As a result, Southern California has reaped flood, fire, and earthquake tragedies that were as avoidable, as unnatural, as the beating of Rodney King and the subsequent explosion in the streets. In failing to conserve natural ecosystems it has also squandered much of charm and beauty.
And the ever-growing urban footprint of Southern California has recently been caught in an epic drought on par with the disaster in Texas. The years 2011 and 2012 saw well-below average rainfall for the state, but 2013 marked the beginning of a record-breaking water crisis. It also saw the driest year in history in Los Angeles. By fall of 2014, the state had already witnessed over 1,000 more wildfires than average. Now, a deluge of record-breaking rain is causing extreme mudslides and erosion in areas denuded by wildfires. The state’s troubled Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta faces a myriad of extraordinary problems: levees are weakening, wetlands are drying up, and native species face extermination from habitat destruction. All of this has ominous portends for cities like Los Angeles, San Jose, and Sacramento.
The climate of the future will rearrange the fortunes of urban America. Rising temperatures will scorch most of the Sun Belt even as drought and increasing storms batter economies in the mostly poorly planned boom cities of the South and West. Depressed industrial cities like Milwaukee and Detroit will shed their rust and become sought-after metros, positioned next to the natural wealth of the Great Lakes. Environmental economics professor Matthew Kahn predicts, “millions of people will be moving to these areas.” According to Kahn, as the climate radically shifts, Detroit, in particular, will become “one of the nation’s most desirable cities.”
The Great Lakes region has come to represent failure in the eyes of many over the past fifty years, but it could easily come to represent revitalization over the next half-century. The Sun Belt’s pressing water problems, and the country’s changing climate, will turn the pendulum back to the Great Lakes, remaking it in new and unexpected ways. In the meantime, careful stewardship of the lakes, restoration projects, planning for the contingencies of global warming, and a skeptical look at natural gas drilling will be necessary. But the day will come when the fallen urban giants of old industrial belt reawaken to take their place back at the forefront of a nation undergoing the painful transition to a new environmental reality.
1. Charles Fishman, The Big Thirst: The Secret Life and Turbulent Future of Water (New York: Free Press, 2009), 9.
2. Water Education Foundation, “Salinity in the Central Valley: A Critical Problem” (Accessed December 1, 2014).
3. Marc Reisner, Cadillac Desert: The American West and its Disappearing Water (New York: Viking Penguin, 1986), 5.
4. Fishman, 55.
5. PNAS Plus – Physical Sciences – Sustainability Science: David R. Steward, Paul J. Bruss, Xiaoying Yang, Scott A. Staggenborg, Stephen M. Welch, and Michael D. Apley. Tapping unsustainable groundwater stores for agricultural production in the High Plains Aquifer of Kansas, projections to 2110, PNAS 2013 110 (37) E3477-E3486; published ahead of print August 26, 2013.
7. See Gunter Pauli, Blue Economy-10 Years, 100 Innovations, 100 Million Jobs (Boulder: Paradigm Publishers, 2010).
9. Christopher Steiner, $20 a Gallon: How the Rising Cost of Gasoline Will Radically Change Our Lives (New York: Grand Central Publishing, 2009), 55.
10. Peter Howard, Flammable Planet: Wildfires and the Social Cost of Carbon (Environmental Defense Fund, 2014).(Accessed December 3, 2014).
13. Jon Cotton, T. Gardner, Jennifer Moore Kucera, Veronica Acosta Martinez and David Wester, “Soil Enzyme Activities During the 2011 Texas Record Drought/Heatwave and Implications to Biogeochemical Cycling and Organic Matter Dynamics,” Elsevier, Applied Soil Ecology 75 (2014) 43-51.
14. Mike Davis, Ecology of Fear: Los Angeles and the Imagination of Disaster (New York: Vintage Books, 1999), 34.
15. Alexis C. Madrigal, “American Aqueduct: The Great California Water Saga,” The Atlantic, February 24, 2014.
16. Jennifer A. Kingston, “On a Warmer Planet, Which Cities will be Safest?” The New York Times, September 22, 2014. | <urn:uuid:1165f2ad-092e-4b29-9419-9d0770e2f9b5> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://truthout.org/articles/from-rust-belt-to-blue-belt-water-climate-change-and-the-reordering-of-urban-america/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572089.53/warc/CC-MAIN-20220814234405-20220815024405-00076.warc.gz | en | 0.938182 | 3,119 | 2.90625 | 3 |
Friday, January 29, 2010
Not sure where the New York Times got this idea from:
Hm? No, Japanese does just fine with the distinction. アイポッド for iPod and アイパッド for iPad.
Interlinear books are bilingual translations where the original has a translation right below each word or expression. Try them out on Interlinear Books.
For multilingual verb conjugation, try CoolJugator - a tool that can currently conjugate in dozens of different languages. It also recognizes forms and provides examples for each verb. | <urn:uuid:ddda8883-bc8d-427c-afa2-27714418cd5f> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.pagef30.com/2010/01/new-york-times-wrong-on-ipad-and.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280763.38/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00519-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.873707 | 118 | 1.710938 | 2 |
On March 9 President Bush signed into law the USA Patriot Improvement and Reauthorization Act, officially ending an extended campaign by civil liberties groups to put some limits on the expansive powers handed to the President on a silver platter six weeks after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Bush and the Justice Department’s press office touted the bill’s “safeguards for civil liberties,” and Representative James Sensenbrenner Jr. claimed to find thirty civil liberties protections in the law. But no one should be fooled: This was a bitter disappointment for civil liberties proponents. So what went wrong?
It’s not for lack of trying. The Bill of Rights Defense Committee launched an impressive grassroots campaign almost immediately after the Patriot Act was enacted; eventually eight states and nearly 400 towns, cities and counties passed resolutions condemning the act’s civil liberties abuses. The ACLU and others entered into coalitions with conservative groups in hopes of pulling a Republican Congress along. Unlike in 2001, this time Congress held multiple hearings before acting. And the disclosure in December that President Bush had authorized warrantless wiretapping of Americans for years showed once again that this is not an executive worthy of trust with open-ended powers.
But in the end, Congress voted to extend all sixteen provisions that were originally set to expire on December 31, making only minor modifications to a handful. The new law, for example, requires the FBI director or deputy director to approve requests for library and medical records, and permits recipients of such “Section 215” orders to disclose them to lawyers to challenge them in court. But the Section 215 power remains incredibly broad; it doesn’t even require the government to show that the person whose records are sought has any connection to terrorist activity.
As I have previously argued [see “The Missing Patriot Debate,” May 30, 2005], the principal problem with the reauthorization debate was that most of the act’s worst provisions were not even on the table. These include sections making it a crime to offer “expert advice” to a proscribed political group, regardless of its content; allowing the government to freeze the assets of suspected charities without any showing of wrongdoing, and based on secret evidence; and permitting foreign nationals to be locked up without charges, deported for innocent political associations and kept out of the country for endorsing any group the government labels as “terrorist”–under a definition so capacious that it could include the African National Congress and the Israeli military.
Why weren’t these issues even up for discussion? Largely because conservatives didn’t express concern, and so the liberal-conservative coalition that drove the debate wrote them off, focusing instead on the few parts of the law that conservatives found offensive. In the end, we didn’t even see much progress on those.
The hurdles to any real reform are underscored by the fate of another recent legislative effort. In December Congress passed the McCain amendment, which bars US officials from subjecting anyone, anywhere, to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. The Bush Administration had interpreted the prohibition, which originally derives from a human rights treaty, as not applying to foreigners held outside our borders–freeing it to “waterboard” suspects held at secret CIA “black sites” abroad. The human rights community attacked that position for the outrage to human dignity it was: The right to be free of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment cannot turn on the color of one’s passport.
But at the same time that it enacted the McCain amendment, Congress simultaneously adopted another one, named for Senators Lindsey Graham and Carl Levin, that restricts habeas corpus review for enemy combatants held at Guantánamo (Levin got involved to ameliorate what would have otherwise been an even more restrictive bill). The Justice Department recently argued, in a case challenging the force-feeding of a Guantánamo hunger striker, that the Graham-Levin amendment renders the McCain amendment unenforceable for Guantánamo detainees.
The real obstacle to reform, in other words, is this Republican Congress, which now threatens to give President Bush a blank check on warrantless wiretapping instead of censuring him for the criminal spying he’s authorized for four years. The only true path to reform is the midyear elections. Volunteer now! | <urn:uuid:599d1d9d-6974-4360-91c2-cc6f3fb74d72> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/patriot-act-post-mortem/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573172.64/warc/CC-MAIN-20220818063910-20220818093910-00272.warc.gz | en | 0.952036 | 891 | 2.03125 | 2 |
Ties That Bind: An Interview with Tiya Miles
by Lisa Arrastía
Tiya Miles, now age 36, came to the Program in American Culture at the University of Michigan in the fall of 2002. She is an Assistant Professor in the Program in American Culture, Center for Afroamerican and African Studies, and Native American Studies Program. Miles is the co-editor with Sharon P. Holland of Crossing Waters, Crossing Worlds: The African Diaspora in Indian Country (Duke University Press, 2006). Miles's first book, Ties That Bind: The Story of an Afro-Cherokee Family in Slavery and Freedom (University of California Press, 2005), is an historical narrative that explores complex issues of race, ideology, and hegemony in the development of capitalism and nation-state through the lens of Cherokee-Afro-Cherokee relations in early- and mid-19th-century America.
Ties That Bind crosses boundaries of cultural and racial prescriptions by arguing that, while "much of nineteenth-century Cherokee history has been written as a story about Cherokees and whites, it was an invisible third element, the presence of black people, on which the story often turned" (24). Miles accomplishes a powerful and innovative integration of scholarship, literary fiction, and her own narrative voice, constructing a strong model for historiographical creativity. The issues and dynamics of race, class, identity, and social violence Miles presents are of great consequence in terms of contemporary intercultural relationships and their possibilities.
In 2006, Ties That Bind was awarded the Frederick Jackson Turner Award from the Organization of American Historians. What follows is an interview with Miles about her educational background, academic life, scholarship, and the complex political and cultural issues immanent in Ties That Bind.
||LA: First, is Tiya pronounced with a long "i" sound or a long "e" or neither?
||TM: Long i.
First, let me pose some questions of demographics and academic background: Where were you raised? Did you go to public or independent high school? Where did you complete your undergraduate and master's work? What is your latest book project? I know that you had support for your doctoral work at the University of Minnesota from David Roediger, Carol Miller and Jeani O'Brien, et al, but before the project began, what moved you in the direction of American Indian studies? From where did this passion come, and particularly in relation to the Ties That Bind (TTB) project?
I was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, but it is amazing to me that I never fully felt the import of the Ohio River as a borderland space until I was writing the Slave Motherhood/Beloved chapter of TTB. I attended public school through junior high. Then I was accepted into the A Better Chance program, which matched me with a private school that offered me a full scholarship for three years. This was Middlesex School in Massachusetts. For college I attended Harvard-Radcliffe, where I studied African American Studies; I attended Emory for my M.A. in Women's Studies.
Before I started my doctoral degree at Minnesota, I knew that I wanted to study Native Studies in conjunction with African American Studies; I expected that my focus would be literature. My interest in this subject matter was rooted in personal relationships and family history. The particular project that became TTB began in Jean O'Brien's classroom with a reading and discussion of James Merrell's work on the Catawbas. I had never read about the history between blacks and Indians that Merrell described, and I was moved but also quite disturbed by what I was learning. I pursued this interest in a second research semester with Professor O'Brien in which I worked on the 18th-century narrative of John Marrant, a black man who described his captivity by Cherokees. (That paper, much revised, is included in the new book edited by anthropologist Ann Laura Stoler, titled Haunted by Empire.) The conceptual and theoretical ideas that would frame my telling of the history emerged for me in race and history classes with David Roediger and in Native Literature classes with Carol Miller.
There are some white American Indian historians as well as white academics who focus their scholarly work on the anthropology, history, literature, and languages of people of color who might ask, Does Miles have the right to tell this story? The question implies the notion of territory and cultural/historical ownership, of course. It's really in some ways a projection -- this may be the question they are painfully asking themselves each step of the work, because they may be uncertain of the intention or appropriateness of their own scholarly interests. What do you think about the issue of theright to tell, and for those who might ask, why do you feel you have "the right" to tell the story?
I have been asked this question before, and in my view there are several ways of answering it. First, while I do feel that knowledge is shaped and constrained by standpoint and that what I can "know" about this subject will be different from what a Cherokee woman or Afro-Cherokee man will perceive, I do feel that it takes multiple visions to create a full picture of any reality. Many people, Cherokee and non-Cherokee, have written about 19th century Cherokee history before me, and a few people have written about slavery in the Cherokee nation as well, but I hope that my addition to that body of work can help to create a richer picture that takes on greater depth due to its collective nature.
Second, my scholarly work has always centered on African American women's experience; in college and in my master's program, this focus resulted in undergraduate and master's theses on 19th century black women's literature. I followed through with the Shoeboots family project in large part because I wanted to tell Doll's story, and I must say that she has remained close to my heart (and as the work progressed, her daughter, Elizabeth, began to share that space) throughout. My next book project, which is turning into a history of the famous Vann plantation in the Cherokee Nation, began because I was drawn emotionally and intellectually to the stories of particular black women who were enslaved there: Pleasant, Patience, and Grace. Slowly, the Cherokee-Scottish mistress of the plantation, Peggy, is beginning to share space with these original three women at the center of the story, which has changed the way that I perceive the place and will change the way that I attempt to reconstruct the history.
Once, at a women's history conference, a (black) friend and I were asked why we had chosen to do research on Indians. I have to say that my friend and I were flabbergasted. We had never viewed our work as being solely about Native Americans or solely located in Native American Studies. We saw our work as being solidly rooted in African American Studies and the history of black slavery as well. Therefore we were surprised that a person who was newly encountering our work could not recognize its intersectional intention and focus.
In representing slave agency as well as Indians, Blacks, and Afro-Cherokees, was it difficult to maintain that delicate balance between the plausible aspects of their lives together that were co-constructive, encouraging, or affirmative and Cherokee-Black/Afro-Cherokee/slave discrimination and inequity? I'm so glad you did, but I think some might want to know why you felt obliged to maintain the balance?
I felt a heavy responsibility to tell both "sides" of this story as respectfully and fully as I could because I was attempting to translate the lives of two groups of subjugated people. It would not have furthered a holistic understanding on my part or on the part of readers, nor would it have restored dignity to the many people in this story who had been degraded historically, to reproduce this irreverent treatment in my own representation. To the extent that I have succeeded in maintaining a balance, I did so in large part by engaging in substantive revisions of certain sections in response to feedback by dissertation committee members and readers and in response to my own inner sense.
Interestingly, the weight of the feedback that I received in this regard was that I needed to be tougher on Cherokee slaveholders in my representation. I think that because I was a black scholar and not a native scholar, I was trying to be especially careful about respectfulness to the Cherokee experiences in the story. If anything, I think I may have struggled hardest and fallen short in my attempt to maintain balance and respect when I tried to reconstruct and interpret the stories of white figures (like Clarinda Allington) who were differently subjugated than the black, Cherokee, and Afro-Cherokee figures.
We can see from TTB that opportunities for liberatory cooperation between Blacks, Afro-Cherokees, and Indians were far fewer after the Trail of Tears. The Cherokee Nation was divided and energies were focused on meeting basic human needs and endeavoring to resurrect a traumatized and devastated Cherokee society, and the march and the complex web of Euro-American-American Indian sociocultural politics precipitating it had produced a Cherokee Nation West that battled within. Today, the American Indian and Black communities seem so politically and socially disconnected -- our histories, historical interrelationships, and common structural struggles are invisible in the Black community and I suspect in the Indian community as well. In the introduction to TTB, you discuss the idea of envisioning a "conjoined liberation" between our two communities. I believe you mean it as a historiographical emphasis, but I wonder about possibilities today. You are so skilled at seeing "how things might have been" -- can you use that ability to comment on the idea of envisioning a contemporary conjoined liberation, and how things could be between these two communities?
This is an inspiring question, and it is exactly where I am headed with one of my future essay projects. I would like to try to rely upon reconstructions of 17th, 18th, and 19th century historical social relations between blacks and native people in Southern native confederacies to build culturally viable models that may work today for mediating disputes between native people and descendants of freedmen and women. I am interested in looking further into the formational period of the Creek and Seminole confederacies, for example, and considering how and where "others" (Indians and/or blacks) were incorporated into these rather loose social/political/economic formations. And I am finding direction and encouragement in this line of thinking from Native Studies scholars in my home department who are working on deconstructing the fixed (and often imposed) notion of "nation" in Native American history. This is a place where I think and hope that the past can be effectively "usable" in the present. I must add, though, that this is a subject where your "right to speak" question really seems at issue to me. I am still trying to work that question out in this case that has so much to do with complex relationships in communities of which I am not a part.
TTB makes the argument that Euro-American attempts to force the cultural conformity of Indians were to sustain the hegemonic social ideology, capitalist ethos and practice in development. How do you see Cherokee identity/racial formation as a direct product of white demands for social and economic participation in an Euro/Anglo-American hegemony?
I think the history that I and others have reconstructed makes clear that an emerging capitalist ethos among a minority of Cherokees in the 19th century was propelled and compelled by European and Euro-American colonialism. Before Europeans arrived, Cherokees valued relationships with tribal members, land, and animals over relationships with things or the unfettered pursuit of wealth. As Europeans pushed the notion of "productive" work and wealth accumulation, relations among Cherokees began to change. Cherokees became more stratified along class lines and even began to take family members to court over the distribution of wealth (especially "property" that existed in the form of enslaved blacks). This stratification erupted into the violence of civil war for the Creeks and Cherokees both before and after Removal. Recently, anthropologist Robbie Ethridge gave a lecture here at the University of Michigan on the Indian slave trade in 16th-17th century North America. She argued that here, too, capitalist values (or lack thereof) distorted relationships among Indian tribes, leading native people to trade other native people to Europeans as slaves. Cherokee (and native) cultural beliefs about kinship, shared resources, and the common good functioned as a brake system that slowed down the engine of capitalism, but still, a partial transformation of values, relationships, and behaviors took place.
Has TTB been read by a Black audience (i.e., a course in an African American Studies department or a predominantly Black high school)? Not that you can speak for all African Americans, and I wouldn't want you to, but how do you think the book would be received in southern Black communities? In urban Black communities? What do you foresee as potential hurdles and/or fluid associations? In your preface, you discuss resistance to your project by a Great Plains elder. Within this context, do you know what the response has been in Indian/Cherokee communities and among American Indian scholars since TTB's publication?
For the most part I am still waiting to see responses from readers across the board, including Indian/Cherokee readers, so I cannot answer the last lines of the question at length. I can say that a Cherokee activist who learned of my subject matter asked for a copy of the book while it was still in draft form. He thought the model of Shoe Boots and Doll could potentially be helpful in his crafting of an argument in the Cherokee Court to support a lesbian couple's marriage in the Cherokee Nation. He wanted to refer to Doll and Shoe Boots's partnership to indicate that, historically, Cherokees have had a flexible view of who could be married, even in the context of a larger American rigidity regarding marriage across certain racial lines. These are the moments that I, and I'm sure many other historical researchers and writers, live for -- an opportunity for our work to matter in the present by shedding light on the past.
In terms of reception by black readers: before the book was published, I gave a public presentation before a black/Black Indian audience in Oklahoma. Audience members seemed to listen attentively while I spoke, but after the presentation I noticed that the listeners seemed to have misunderstood (possibly deliberately) my meaning. They were resistant to the idea that the story of Shoe Boots and Doll indicated the enslavement and oppression of black people among Cherokees, as well as the presence of kinship alliances. Perhaps they extrapolated from the story what they had expected or hoped to hear: evidence that close interracial relationships existed between blacks and native people, rather than a detailed and often disturbing description of how those relationships actually played out. Last summer I was interviewed by Black Issues Book Review for an article on Afro-Native genealogy research; there again the focus was on discovering ancestral kinship links to Indians that would be inspiring and self-shaping for black people today. This approach of affirming self and community certainly has some value, but in addition to the negative potential for objectifying and appropriating Native people and cultures, the search for an over-simplified "red-washed" history for African Americans is problematic. This kind of approach minimizes the hardships and conflicts that our ancestors and cultural forebears faced, and I think we need to know the whole picture of the past in order to fully respect the experiences of our predecessors and in order to learn how to face the challenges of the present. This is an aspect of the African American experience that Sharon Holland and I are trying to elucidate in our forthcoming edited collection -- the meaning, potential, and problems of black Americans' desire for connections with Native Americans.
If you could ask one question of your readers that causes them to self-reflect before they begin the book, what would it be? One question while reading TTB? One question after?
I think the questions I would offer at any stage of someone's reading would be: What has race really meant in the history of what we now call the United States? How has it shaped and misshaped (to borrow language from Paula Giddings in "The Last Taboo") identities, relationships, and communities? What is the price we have all paid, as a collectivity, for an ideology and related practices that were designed to exploit the many on behalf of the few? And finally, can we imagine another and better way that confronts our racial past head-on, but does not continue to imprison us in historically constructed and destructive modes of relating in the present?
Any final thoughts, ideas, questions for your reading audience, general comments -- is there anything you think we should know, remember, challenge ourselves to think or do?
Recently, we all heard the stunning news that the Cherokee Court overturned their previous ruling and voted (in a split decision) to make it possible for descendants of freedmen and women to receive Cherokee citizenship. This decision evidences the long-term, dedicated work of Cherokee, Afro-Cherokee, and black freedmen/women activists. The ruling goes far in restoring faith in the ability for communities to reach out to one another in a spirit of restoration. I think it is important for students of Afro-Native relations and for people who care deeply about the rebuilding of relationships between black and native people (and between other divided, subjugated groups) to inform themselves about this case, to celebrate its outcome with cautious optimism, to think about how the outcome can serve as a model for mediating similar conflicts, and to be prepared to serve as advocates of reconnection and healing in the future. For more information on the case, readers can refer to the official notice on the Cherokee Nation website.
Lisa Arrastía, founder and former director of a progressive charter high school in Chicago, has been teaching and leading creative educational programs in independent and public schools for the last fifteen years. She holds an MA in Education and a Certificate of Advanced Study in Educational Leadership (her work with youth is the focus of a 1999 Emmy-nominated public television documentary Making the Grade). Originally from New York City, Lisa currently teaches critical white studies and essay writing at the College of St. Catherine. Her essay, “Should I Stay or Should I Go Now?,” was included in Pearl Kane's book The Colors of Excellence (Teacher's College Press, 2003). Lisa’s non-fiction work examines postcolonial social formations in youth that derive from the intensification of whiteness under neoliberalism. | <urn:uuid:41ce5ea5-0c65-4bdb-8766-ae5e41d0e346> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2007/arrastia050307.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560283008.19/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095123-00079-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972629 | 3,850 | 1.648438 | 2 |
A tank containing crude oil or asphalt exploded at a large refinery in Wisconsin on Thursday, injuring several people and prompting fire officials to urge people living near the still-burning plant to evacuate their homes.
No fatalities have been reported, but at least 11 people were being treated at hospitals in Superior, where the blast happened, and nearby Duluth, Minnesota.
The explosion at the Husky Energy oil refinery happened at about 10 a.m., Superior Fire Chief Steve Panger told The Associated Press.
Panger said the fire was out by 11:20 a.m., although smoke could still be seen rising from the plant. Superior police later tweeted that the fire had reignited and urged residents living within a one-mile radius of the refinery to leave. Police blocked roads around the refinery in Superior, which is home to about 27,000 people and borders Minnesota to the north and the tip of Lake Superior.
Essentia Health spokeswoman Maureen Talarico said five people injured in the explosion are being treated at St. Mary's Medical Center, a Level II trauma center in Duluth. She said emergency room physicians described those patients as awake and alert. Another five are being treated at St. Mary's Hospital in Superior, Talarico said. She said the extent of injuries is unknown.
In Duluth, St. Luke's Hospital was treating one person and did not expect to receive any more, spokeswoman Jessica Stauber said. She did not have a condition for that person.
Panger said a small tank containing either crude oil or asphalt exploded in the refinery. A contractor who was inside the building told WDIO television that the explosion sounded like "a sonic boom" and that it happened when crews were working on shutting the plant down for repairs.
No damage estimate was available.
Calgary-Alberta-based Husky Energy refinery bought the refinery from Indianapolis-based Calumet Specialty Products Partners last year for over $490 million. It's Wisconsin's only refinery, and it produces gasoline, asphalt and other products.
The refinery, which dates back to the early 1950s, has a processing capacity of around 50,000 barrels per day and a storage capacity of 3.6 million barrels of crude and products. It processes both heavy crude from the Canadian tar sands in Alberta and lighter North Dakota Bakken crude. | <urn:uuid:e1e1f72e-468a-422c-98ca-cc9e1f857002> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.manufacturing.net/home/news/13122372/explosion-rocks-wisconsin-refinery-at-least-11-hurt | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571909.51/warc/CC-MAIN-20220813051311-20220813081311-00271.warc.gz | en | 0.972148 | 476 | 1.9375 | 2 |
Plastic Free Felixstowe’s objective is to reduce the use of plastics in and around the town in response to the damage it causes to oceans and marine life through events, education and business engagement.
Founded in February 2018, Plastic Free Felixstowe have quickly grown their membership to over 1000 members, have gained charity (CIC) status, gained financial support from the local councils and forged close links with the Port of Felixstowe.
Plastic Free Felixstowe are encouraging local shops and supermarkets to conduct business differently, engaging with local primary school children in school assemblies to raise awareness of the catastrophe which is imminent unless we change attitudes towards plastic consumption. The group also organised a fun awareness day aimed at children, local councillors and press.
Find out more: www.plastic-free-felixstowe.co.uk | <urn:uuid:7b176197-4ea0-412e-a1cd-955f59429def> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://groundworkawards.org.uk/plastic-free-felixstowe/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571056.58/warc/CC-MAIN-20220809155137-20220809185137-00666.warc.gz | en | 0.950015 | 180 | 1.703125 | 2 |
As part of Operation Overlord, Utah Beach was the code name given to the westernmost landing beach for the invasion of Normandy in 1944. The allied forces had planned to use it as the evacuation point if the invasion had failed.
Utah Beach - the wrong beach!
Due to strong tidal currents, the allies landed approximately 2kms off course. This error proved to work in the favour of the Americans as German resistance was considerably weaker in this part of the coastal defences. The landing at the Utah landing points were considered an almost perfect success as the Americans suffered very little casualties (less than 200 killed); in complete contrast to the horrific losses on Omaha Beach.
Once the beach head was secured, it was used as a port to unload hundreds of thousands of men and approximately 800,000 tonnes of equipment. The land between our house and the sand dunes of Utah Beach was utilised as a make shift prisoner of war camp to hold captured German soldiers until their deportation to England.
Ivy House and Utah Beach
Our property stands directly behind the area of the allied landings in the village of La Madeleine. Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt Jr., assistant commander of the 4th Infantry Division and his men landed in this area before making their way further in land. In the background of this photo, you can see the twin chimneys of our farmhouse; American soldiers passing it on their way towards Sainte Marie Du Mont and Carentan.
All these years since the invasion, Utah Beach attracts thousands of tourists; the month of June is especially busy due to the D-Day celebrations.
On the 6th June 2001, Tom Hanks, the cast of Band of Brothers and the veterans of Easy Company came here for the world premiere of the hit television series. The area welcomed these important visitors and there were a number of events to pay tribute to the brave men of the Airbourne Divisions. A special ceremony was organised at the war memorial.
2014 marks the 70th anniversary of the D-Day battle for Normandy and there will be numerous events to celebrate this momentus day. For the 65th anniversary, Barrack Obama came to Normandy to pay his respects to the achievements of those great men who lost their lives on the five beaches that fateful day.
The remaining World War 2 veterans still visit the D-Day landing sites and the many parachute drop zones in this area. Over the years, some veterans have chosen to stay with us and this has been a real honour for us.
Visiting Utah Beach
Our location is perfect for exploring the D-Day beaches as well as the many beautiful areas in the magnificent part of Normandy. For those who plan to come to Normandy for the D-Day commerations, we strongly advise you book early. Most B&B's and gite rentals are booked well in advance.
Our bed and breakfast and self catering gites can be booked securely online. A hastle free way to start your vacations in this wonderful part of France. A week in one of our gites starts from as little as 300 euros so there has never been a better time to visit France.
Related pages: Sainte Marie Du Mont Omaha Beach American Cemetery Sainte Mere Eglise Dead Man's Corner Museum Bayeux Brecourt Manor Assault Bed & Self Catering Breakfast Carentan Pointe Du Hoc D-day Beach Holiday Cottages | <urn:uuid:71f84dd9-c8c7-4052-b024-6f723945ff83> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.utahbeachnormandy.com/utah-beach.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560279650.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095119-00440-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954486 | 702 | 2.15625 | 2 |
PATRIMOINE RELIGIEUX DE SAINTE LUCIE DE TALLANO
Sainte Lucie de Tallano has a church named San Giovanni Battista from the 12th century.
The monastery of St François was built in the 15th century by the Della Rocca family, who was a powerful feudal war lord full of devotion. It’s composed of a church with a Baroque bell tower and buildings where the Franciscan monks used to stay. Inside the church, we can see polychrome marble altar (white, red and black) and stalls of the wooden choir from the XVI th century.
The Chapel of St Roch is built on a antique oratory. It was the painful memory of plague disease who killed the entire village of Sant Andrea di u Cusciolu in 1354 and 1678.
Roman Chapel of Jean Baptiste de Poggio : The particular and meticulous composition of well cut stones, its immense door, its nave and the central axe make this chapel a masterpiece of the Roman architecture .You can access by taking the hiking path in direction of Loreto. You can also visit monumental churches of Saint André de Tallano and Bisè, the chapels of Saint Roch, Chialza and Orriu
Theme sites and monuments
You @*will like also*@ | <urn:uuid:91eff520-b568-4c4d-8bcd-c3961c38f846> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://en.alta-rocca-tourisme.com/patrimoine-religieux-de-sainte-lucie-de-tallano/sainte-lucie-de-tallano/pcucor2av5000rh | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573760.75/warc/CC-MAIN-20220819191655-20220819221655-00675.warc.gz | en | 0.920419 | 302 | 2.296875 | 2 |
This item from Tapestry Collectibles, Books & Jewelry is now SOLD.
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1945 'Barbara Lamb' by CAM Illustrations, Wartime, Out-of-Print 1st American Edition, WWII, Land Army
COLLECTOR'S out-of-print story and signature art by CAM. She wrote this charming gem during wartime while serving in Great Britain's Land Army!!
Rare 1945 first American edition hardcover book – Barbara Lamb by CAM. This is her hard-to-find wartime production first children's picture book. Publisher: John Lane, The Bodley Head Ltd, Great Britain, Copyright, 1944, reprinted 1945, TRUE first American edition.
CAM's signature drawings in brilliant color; highly sought after illustrations and very collectible. Each watercolor painting is superb; wish we had room for more. Photos do not fully capture exact color hues; wait until you see. WOW!!
Cam also known as Barbara Mary Campbell, during World War II worked in the Land Army and inspired by her surroundings began to write and illustrate a series of picture books. There were only seven titles ever published. "Barbara Lamb" was the first children's story published, and is still the most collected and prized of all her stories. Later books: Buttercup Fairy, Three Jolly Mountaineers & Bill Frog.
Charming story of Barbara Lamb who dreamed of being singer. Shows lambs at market while Barbara sings to try and cheer them up; then she is crying & ashamed at being only lamb not bought by the farmers. Mr Robinson heard her sing and took her to city. Barbara Lamb finds success in London theaters, loses her voice; goes on to find happiness back home in meadows.
Hardcover, yellow pictorial boards. Pages VIBRANT, bright and clean. Unpaginated, 9.5" x 7.5". Hard-to-find so nice!! Pages near fine/bright/crisp/clean/text block tight and square/tight binding. Minimal wear-2pp tiny crease-few tiny spots-light fbep wear. Ep at spine light wear.
Cover good/bright-shelfwear-light edgewear-chipping/corners-small board showing/some scuffing-rubbing-light spotting-few creases/few small paper peel. Back few tiny surface punctures-2 small tape pieces. Spine intact-more shelfwear includes upper 2" paper missing-2" tape pieces/wear tips. Can provide extra photos.
Priced to SELL; this collector's gem will make a fabulous gift!!
If you were the pending buyer of this item, go to My Account to view, track and check payment for this item.
Beth, New England, MA
Antiquarian & Vintage Books, Artisan Jewelry, Fine Art & Quality Collectibles
EXTRAORDINARY Vintage & Antiques. Check often to see our fabulous new items!! | <urn:uuid:b1d9cd96-fb17-4f04-8923-f7d85190150c> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://www.rubylane.com/item/440186-BK2074/1945-Barbara-Lamb-CAM-Illustrations | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280929.91/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00422-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933377 | 626 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Pierre Mouchot, best known under his pseudonym Chott, was head of one of the biggest French publishing houses and art studios of pocket comic books, or so-called "Pétits Formats".
He started out creating comics in 1940 for publications of the Sagédition, such as Aventures, L'Aventure Réunis and Jumbo, Jumbo. From 1944, he did cover illustrations for the collections Jeunesse Nouvelle and Victoire. During the War, Chott worked for the S.E.T.L., contributing to Cendrillon and Pic et Nic, while also creating short stories for Sélection le Corsaire, Récit Complet des Sélections le Corsaire, Récit Complet des Sélections Pic et Nic, Cow-Boy and Texas Bill. Chott was also present in the collections Les Aventures Fantastiques (Ed. Sprint, 1945) and Les Héros de l'Aventure (Ed. Léo, 1947).
Between 1947 and 1949, he made the comics 'L'Or des Omahan', 'Mowg Fils de la Brousse' and 'Buffalo-Bill' for the Belgian magazine Wrill. At this time, Chott often made things easier for himself by simply copying pages of American artists, like Harold Foster or Alex Raymond.
In 1946, he founded his own publishing house, called Éditions Pierre Mouchot and from 1951, the Société d'Éditions Rhodaniennes. There, he continued the 'Fantax' series, which previously appeared in Le Monde, and created 'Big Bill le Casseur' and 'Robin des Bois'. He also took on 'Gus et Gaëtan' again, which he had created for Pic et Nic in 1946. Besides his own comics, Chott published a great many titles, like Cap'tain Louf (featuring 'The Katzenjammer Kid' by Rudolph Dirks), Reportages Sensationnels, Les Nouvelles Aventures de Lord Horace Neighbour, Old Boy, Cap'tain Paf, P'tit Gars, Les Beaux Albums pour la Jeunesse, Humo, Rancho, Big Horn, Fantasia, Rangers, Bip Fiction, Punch, Kiki-Sprint and West Romance.
While Chott remained a productive illustrator of covers for his publications, he assembled a team of artists around him to do most of the interior art. Among the co-workers of the Atelier Chott were the artists Bob Roc, Bertrand Charlas, Rémy Bordelet, Claude Bordet, André Rey, Maurice Besseyrias, Guy Lebrun, and the scriptwriter J.K. Melwyn-Nash (Marcel Navarro).
The comics that were produced by Chott and his studio were characterized by their extreme realism and violence, which was very unusual at the time. This led to several confrontations with the Law. Pierre Mouchot left the comics field in the early 1960s and died a couple of years later. | <urn:uuid:23ab83b8-5b1a-45ca-ae5a-b9d94eb758f6> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://www.lambiek.net/artists/c/chott.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560281450.93/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095121-00176-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.92595 | 646 | 1.75 | 2 |
This chapter provides an overview of the physiological mechanisms integrating metabolism and reproduction. The reproductive system of some mammals is more sensitive than others to reductions in energy availability. Of the various factors that dictate an animal's sensitivity to energetic challenges, three are significant-sex, body size, and domestication. The reproductive function is influenced by short-term alterations in metabolic status. The rapidity with which the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis responds to an improved metabolic state is illustrated by multiple observations that pulsatile luteinizing hormone (LH) secretion commences or resumes within minutes to hours after food-restricted prepubertal or adult animals are given unlimited access to food. In addition to the metabolic factors, a variety of other hormones has been implicated in relaying metabolic cues to the neuroendocrine reproductive axis, including growth hormone, insulin-like growth factor I, and glucocorticoids. Based on their anatomical distribution pattern, gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons appear to be ideally situated to directly detect metabolic fuels and hormones that enter the brain from the systemic circulation.
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all) | <urn:uuid:9bd211a6-0ea0-4f11-8ef1-c99c0420f254> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://ohsu.pure.elsevier.com/en/publications/physiological-mechanisms-integrating-metabolism-and-reproduction | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572870.85/warc/CC-MAIN-20220817062258-20220817092258-00674.warc.gz | en | 0.881912 | 251 | 3.171875 | 3 |
At Dyker Heights Family Chiropractic in Brooklyn, NY, we have treated scoliosis for many years. If left untreated, scoliosis can lead to long-term pain and immobility. Read on to learn more about this condition and how it is treated.
What Is Scoliosis?
Scoliosis is a condition that causes the spine to curve, twist, or both. While scoliosis can impact anybody at any age, it commonly begins between the ages of ten and fifteen years old. This is why scoliosis screenings are important, as treatment is best started as soon as possible.
If your hips or shoulders are uneven, you likely have scoliosis. You might have some back pain, though this isn’t always the case. Since the spine is curved, it might be difficult to stand upright, resulting in a slouching posture. You might also feel tired and short of breath. If you notice any of these signs in yourself or your child, it is time to get checked for scoliosis.
How Can Chiropractic Care Help with Scoliosis?
If you have scoliosis, a chiropractor can help you find relief from your symptoms and prevent it from getting worse. Spinal adjustments can help. While they won’t fix the entire problem, they can help parts of the spine and vertebrae get back into position, relieving pain and improving your range of motion. Problems with the vertebrae can also impact the muscles around the spine, leaving them sore and tight. Massage therapy is a good way to ease the pain and make the muscles more flexible, further reducing discomfort and improving mobility.
Schedule an Appointment with Our Chiropractor for Scoliosis Treatment in Brooklyn, NY
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George Mackay Brown
The late George Mackay Brown was a seminal figure in Scottish letters from mid-century until his death in 1996. Brown wrote of life and nature in his native Orkney Islands, his fertile imagination encompassing poetry, novels, children's stories, essays, plays, and media pieces. In an essay in the Dictionary of Literary Biography, David S. Robb declared Brown "unique among modern British writers in the scope, nature, and integrity of his achievements. A major part of his distinctiveness lies in the way he has created an entire oeuvre centered on a sparsely populated region, the Orkney Islands. . . . Another dimension that sets him apart . . . is the vision that informs his work, a vision made up of values drawn from his religion, his sense of history, his literary allegiances, and his devotion to Orkney." In another essay in the Dictionary of Literary Biography, Joseph Reino observed of Brown: "His successes in poetry and the prose narrative are considerable, and the really surprising thing about him is not so much his extensive talents, but rather that he is not more widely known as one of Britain's outstanding contemporary authors." Similarly, poet Seamus Heaney maintained in the Listener: "Mackay Brown's imagination is heraldic and formal; it is stirred by legends of Viking warrior and Christian saint; it solemnises the necessary labour of life into a seasonal liturgy; it consecrates the visible survivals of history, and ruins of time, into altars that are decked with the writings themselves. I have never seen his poetry sufficiently praised."
Brown attempted to capture and re-create the reality of his homeland through his prose and verse, through religious, ritualistic themes, especially relating to Orkney living and his fictional Orkney town, Hamnavoe. "George Mackay Brown is a writer in love with the past and with the Orkney Islands where he finds it still precariously lingering," wrote Julia O'Faolain in the New Review. A Times Literary Supplement reviewer commented that Brown "is a uniquely observant and skilful chronicler of life in his native Orkneys, past and present." Harold Massingham concurred in Phoenix, seeing the same approach in Brown's poetry: "His local colour, in fact his total effect, is of a mature distillation and blend by an excellent and unmistakable poet patiently subdued by, and to, the demands of his terrain." Reviewing Voyages for the Times Literary Supplement, Douglas Dunn maintained that "Brown's idealism is retrospective, fictionalizing a place and its meaning through an affectionate exploration of history which he holds up like a cupped treasure in the hands, and as an offering to the residual innocence of his native Orkney Islands."
According to Reino, "Two aspects of Brown's personal convictions are important to keep in mind: his rejection of nineteenth-and twentieth-century concepts of progress and his personal belief that Scotland . . . is a 'Knox-ruined nation,' that is destroyed by the Calvinist reformer John Knox." Neil Roberts, in a Cambridge Quarterly assessment of Brown's work, noted that the author was "interested in art, religion and ritual, their relations to each other and to the agricultural basis of civilisation. He is interested in the relation of pagan to Christian religion, and of the World of Christ to the word of the poet."
Robb offered his own elaboration on Brown's sensibilities. "In Brown's eyes the immense materialism of the current age and its craving for novelty are directly opposed to all his favorite values, which are, at base, religious," the essayist wrote. "Brown's values stress at least three equally important strands. He holds to the age-old religious rejection of material things as distracting, irrelevant novelties; his ideal of human life is of simplicity and, indeed, poverty. At both the personal and communal levels, furthermore, he sees human life in the present as requiring a rootedness in knowledge of the past and in the traditions deriving from the past."
Brown's work concentrates on traditional values and time-honored ethics. Dunn observed in Poetry Nation that "Brown, as a poet of remote island communities and unindustrial, non-urban landscapes, is at odds with the tradition of modern poetry." Dunn continued: "Brown's best poems are . . . full of names and characters, their typical vulnerabilities, and the virtues of the way of life their personalities prove. He celebrates an ideal of community." Robb also remarked upon this aspect of Brown's work when he wrote: "Brown is one of the least confessional of contemporary poets; almost all his poems are about a place, a way of life, and the truths and values that he believes inhere in that place and life. His gaze is directed outward to people and their environments rather than inward to his own situation. His poems are essentially and obviously fictional, and his general structural method in them is to build the verse from tiny fragments of what can only be called narrative."
In the Times Literary Supplement, Dunn remarked upon Brown's traditional qualities in prose as well: "Brown has perfected a narrative style of great simplicity, its virtues drawn more from the ancient art of telling tales than from new-fangled methodologies of fiction." Cleaving to "a collective tradition which rests on the work of old oral tale-tellers," said O'Faolain, "his stories make no concession to contemporary taste." And yet, according to Robb, to read a Brown story "is to experience life as an endless sequence of fresh starts. He communicates a sense of the limitless possibilities of human life. Interest, wonder, and even miracle lie around the next corner, be it ever so familiar and prosaic."
About Brown's efforts in Andrina, and Other Stories, Stuart Evans claimed in the London Times that "this superb teller of tales who, whether he is writing in prose or verse, is always the poet, offers in this book a magical selection." Evans added that the stories' "common strength, apart from George Mackay Brown's exquisite and unerring way with words, is in their humanity." Dunn also applauded Brown's work in the book, stating in the Times Literary Supplement: "In writing so controlled, . . . by a poet perfectly at ease with his imagination and a language natural to it, the effect of that apparent collision of old and new can only be fruitful and challenging, as well as, in this case, profoundly enjoyable."
Calling Brown a "portent," Jo Grimond suggested in the Spectator that "there are not so many poets and some have only a little poetry in them. We should be thankful for Mr. Brown and grateful to Orkney that has fed him." Considering Fishermen with Ploughs: A Poem Cycle to be "Brown's most impressive poetic effort," Reino described the work as "a sequence of obscurely connected lyrics based on island 'history' as the author reconceives it." Massingham called the work "a task indeed . . . which is vividly and quietly accomplished with an interesting range of verse-forms and a marvelous prose chorus at the end." Dunn agreed, stating in Poetry Nation that "much of Brown's best writing is to be found in Fishermen with Ploughs." Massingham concluded that "all his work to date has been a persistent devotion, not because he is running in runic circles but digging, rooting deeper."
Noting the affinity between Brown's prose and poetry styles, Thomas J. Starr called him "a prose stylist with a poetic vision" in the Dictionary of Literary Biography. Starr found Greenvoe, Brown's novel of an imaginary island town, to be a superb example of his artistry. The novel "describes the destruction of a village by progress in the form of a secret military establishment," wrote Neil Roberts in the Cambridge Quarterly. "Most of the novel is devoted to an evocation of the life of the village." Starr declared that Brown "successfully weaves all of [his recurring themes] into his own seamless garment." Calling it "the culmination of all of George Mackay Brown's fictional concerns," Starr thought that Greenvoe "ranks with The Great Gatsby, Mrs. Dalloway, and The Spire as among the great prose poems of this century." Although Roberts found the novel somewhat "disappointing," suggesting it was overwritten, Ruth Farwell praised Brown for the "beauty and precision of his style," and remarked in the Washington Post Book World: "Novels like this don't come along very often."
According to Robb, Brown's entire body of work has been enriched by the author's deep immersion in Orkney's history, from its Celtic and Viking roots to its role in the larger history of Scotland. "Brown's enthusiasm for the historical, the timeless, and the parabolic is one of his major strengths, and a prime element in his distinctiveness," Robb suggested. "It is possible to regret that he has not written even more about contemporary Orkney, but in the nevertheless considerable amount he has written on that subject the present-day life of the islands is richly assimilated into a larger context of history and the marvelous."
Brown suffered from severe tuberculosis throughout the early part of his life. Long hospital stays and enforced idleness encouraged him to read and write, and in the periods when he was healthy he studied literature and poetry in educational settings. As an adult he rarely strayed far from Orkney, but his collaborations in play, opera, and musical form teamed him notably with British composer Peter Maxwell Davies. Among the Brown-Davies collaborations are operas based on Brown's stories, including The Martyrdom of St. Magnus and The Two Fiddlers, as well as a sampling of shorter choral works. These and a variety of other projects, from children's literature to Orkney travel guides, rounded out Brown's busy and productive writing career.
Garnering literary reviews might have made Brown well-known in academic circles, but the power of his work also brought him a significant popular audience. David S. Robb deemed Brown "one of those rare writers who combines wide accessibility and popularity with a totally uncompromised reputation as an artist of the utmost seriousness and integrity." The critic added: "Direct contact with [Brown's] work . . . reveals him as an author of inexhaustible invention, great humanity, and unfailing commitment to the techniques of writing." In Contemporary Novelists, Trevor Royle likewise cited Brown for having woven "a seamless literature, deceptively simple but universal in its appeal." And in the London Times, Peter Tinniswood concluded: "If an aspiring writer came to me and asked how to tell a story, plot a book, round a character, make dialogue sing and whisper and bellow, I would say: 'Read George Mackay Brown.'"
In a brief commentary on his own writing, Brown once told Contemporary Authors: "Since it seems to me that our civilization will possibly destroy itself before too long, I am interested in the labour and lives of the most primitive people of our civilization, the food-getters (crofters and fishermen) since it is those people living close to the sources of life who are most likely to survive and continue the human story; and since even their lives would be meaningless otherwise, I see religion as an illuminating and stabilising force in the life of a community. Out of these things I make my poems, stories, and plays."
Brown also told Contemporary Authors he considered the following "a kind of basic credo": "I believe in dedicated work rather than in 'inspiration'; of course on some days, one writes better than on others. I believe writing to be a craft like carpentry, plumbing, or baking; one does the best one can. Much mischief has been caused by a loose word like 'culture,' which separates the crafts into the higher arts like music, writing, sculpture, and the lowlier workaday arts (those, and the many others like them, that I have mentioned above). In 'culture circles,' there is a tendency to look upon artists as the new priesthood of some esoteric religion. Nonsense—and dangerous nonsense moreover—we are all hewers of wood and drawers of water; only let us do it as thoroughly and joyously as we can."
- The Storm, and Other Poems, Orkney Herald Press (Scotland), 1954.
- Loaves and Fishes, Hogarth (London), 1959.
- The Year of the Whale, Hogarth, 1965.
- The Five Voyages of Arnor, K. D. Duval (Falkland Fife), 1966.
- Twelve Poems, Belfast Festival Publications (Belfast, Northern Ireland), 1968.
- Fishermen with Ploughs: A Poem Cycle, Hogarth, 1971.
- Lifeboat, and Other Poems, Gilbertson (Crediton, Devon, England), 1971.
- Poems New and Selected, Hogarth, 1971, Harcourt (New York City), 1973, enlarged edition published as Selected Poems, Hogarth, 1977.
- (With Iain Crichton Smith and Norman MacCaig) Penguin Modern Poets 21, Penguin (London), 1972.
- Winterfold, Chatto & Windus (London), 1976.
- Selected Poems, Hogarth, 1977.
- Voyages, Hogarth, 1983.
- Christmas Poems, illustrations by John Lawrence, Perpetua Press (Oxford, England), 1984.
- Stone, photographs by Gunnie Moberg, Duval & Hamilton, 1987.
- Tryst on Egilsay, Celtic Cross Press (Wetherby, Yorkshire, England), 1988.
- Selected Poems, 1954-1983, J. Murray (London), 1991, reprinted as Selected Poems, 1954-1992, University of Iowa Press (Iowa City, IA), 1996.
- The Lost Village: Poems, Celtic Cross Press, 1992.
- Foresterhill, Babel Press (Schoandorf, Germany), 1992.
- Brodgar, Perpetua Press, 1992.
- The Sea and the Tower, Bayeux Arts (Calgary, Alberta, Canada), 1994.
- The Wreck of the Archangel, Bayeux Arts, 1995.
- Following a Lark: Poems, J. Murray, 1996.
Contributor with Ted Hughes, Seamus Heaney, and Christopher Fry, to Four Poets for St. Magnus, Brockness Press, 1987.
- Greenvoe, Harcourt (New York City), 1972.
- Magnus, Hogarth, 1973.
- Time in a Red Coat, Chatto & Windus, 1984, Vanguard Press (New York City), 1985.
- Vinland, J. Murray, 1992.
- Beside the Ocean of Time, J. Murray, 1994.
- A Calendar of Love (also see below), Hogarth, 1967, published as A Calendar of Love, and Other Stories, Harcourt, 1968.
- A Time to Keep, and Other Stories, Hogarth, 1969, Harcourt, 1987.
- Hawkfall, and Other Stories, Hogarth, 1974.
- The Sun's Net, Hogarth, 1976.
- Witch, and Other Stories, Longman (London), 1977.
- Andrina, and Other Stories, Chatto & Windus, 1982.
- Christmas Stories, illustrations by John Lawrence, Perpetua Press, 1985.
- The Hooded Fisherman: A Story, illustrations by Charles Shearer, Duval & Hamilton, 1985.
- Selected Stories, Vanguard Press, 1986.
- The Golden Bird: Two Orkney Stories, Vanguard Press, 1987.
- The Masked Fisherman and Other Stories, J. Murray, 1989.
- The Two Fiddlers: Tales from Orkney (also see below), illustrations by Ian MacInnes, Hogarth, 1974.
- Pictures in the Cave, illustrations by MacInnes, Chatto & Windus, 1977.
- Six Lives of Fankle the Cat, Chatto & Windus, 1980.
- Keepers of the House, illustrations by Gillian Martin, Old Stile Press (London), 1986.
- Witch, first produced in Edinburgh, Scotland, 1969, published in A Calendar of Love, 1967.
- A Time to Keep (television play based on three stories by Brown), telecast, 1969.
- A Spell for Green Corn (radio play; broadcast, 1967; produced in Edinburgh, 1970; adaptation produced at Perth Theatre, 1972), Hogarth, 1970.
- Orkney (television play), telecast, 1971.
- The Loom of Light (produced in Kirkwall, 1972; also see below), photographs by Gunnie Moberg, illustrations by Simon Fraser, Balnain Books, 1986.
- The Storm Watchers, produced in Edinburgh, 1976.
- The Martyrdom of St. Magnus (opera libretto; music by Peter Maxwell Davies; adaptation of novel Magnus by Brown; produced in Kirkwall, Vienna, and London, 1977 ; produced in Santa Fe, 1979), Boosey and Hawkes (London), 1977.
- Miss Barraclough (television play), telecast, 1977.
- Four Orkney Plays for Schools (television play), telecast, 1978.
- The Two Fiddlers (opera libretto; music by Davies; adaptation of story by Brown; produced in London, 1978), Boosey and Hawkes, 1978.
- The Well (also see below), produced at St. Magnus Festival, 1981.
- The Voyage of Saint Brandon (radio play; also see below), broadcast, 1984.
- Andrina (teleplay), telecast, 1984.
- Three Plays (contains The Loom of Light, The Well, and The Voyage of Saint Brandon), Chatto & Windus, 1984.
- The Road to Colonus, broadcast by PTE-Dublin, 1989.
- A Celebration for Magnus (son et Lumiere text by Brown, music by Davies; produced in Kirkwall, Orkney, 1988), Nairn, Balnain, 1987.
- Edwin Muir and the Labyrinth, produced in Edinburgh, 1987.
- Let's See the Orkney Islands, Thomson (Inverness, Scotland), 1948.
- Stromness Official Guide, Burrow (London), 1956.
- An Orkney Tapestry (essays), Gollancz (London), 1969.
- Letters from Hamnavoe (essays), Gordon Wright Publishing (Edinburgh, Scotland), 1975.
- Edwin Muir: A Brief Memoir, Castlelaw Press (West Linton, Peebleshire, England), 1975.
- From Stone to Thorn, Abingdon (Nashville, TN), 1975.
- George Mackay Brown (sound recording), Claddagh, 1977.
- Under Brinkie's Brae (essays), photographs by Gordon Wright, Gordon Wright Publishing (Edinburgh, Scotland), 1979.
- Portrait of Orkney, photographs by Werner Forman, Hogarth, 1981, revised edition with photographs by Gunnie Moberg, drawings by Erlend Brown, J. Murray, 1989.
- The Scottish Bestiary, illustrations by John Bellany, Steven Campbell, Peter Howson, Jack Knox, Bruce McLean, June Redfern, and Adrian Wiszniewski, Paragon Press, 1986.
- (Editor) Selected Prose of Edwin Muir, J. Murray, 1987.
- (Editor with Neil Miller Gunn and Aonghas MacNeacail), A Writers Celidh for Neil Gunn, Balnain Books (Nairn, Scotland), 1991.
- (With Llewellyn Thomas, Old Stile Press, and Press Collection), In the Margins of a Shakespeare, Old Stile Press, 1991.
- Rockpools and Daffodils: An Orcadian Diary, 1979-1991, G. Wright (Edinburgh), 1992.
- (With Peter Maxwell Davies) Apple-Basket, Apple-Blossom: For Unaccompanied Choir SATB (musical score), Chester Music (London), 1992.
- Scottish Writers Talking: George Mackay Brown, Jessie Kesson, Norman MacCaig, William McIlvanney, David Toulmin, edited by Isobel Murray, Tuckwell Press (East Linton, England), 1996.
- For the Islands I Sing: An Autobiography, J. Murray, 1997.
Also author of television poem The Winter Islands, broadcast in 1966. Also collaborator, with composer Peter Maxwell Davies, of musical works, including a cantata, Solstice of Light. Brown's manuscripts are collected at the Scottish National Library at the University of Edinburgh.
- Bold, Alan, George Mackay Brown, Oliver & Boyd (London), 1978.
- Contemporary Authors Autobiography Series, Volume 6, Gale (Detroit, MI), 1988.
- Contemporary Literary Criticism, Gale, Volume 5, 1976, Volume 48, 1988, Volume 100, 1997.
- Contemporary Novelists, sixth edition, St. James Press (Detroit, MI), 1996.
- Contemporary Poets, sixth edition, St. James Press, 1996, pp. 120-22.
- Dictionary of Literary Biography, Gale, Volume 14: British Novelists since 1960, 1983, Volume 27: Poets of Great Britain and Ireland, 1945-1960, 1984; Volume 139: British Short-Fiction Writers, 1945-1980, 1994, pp. 29-39.
- Hart, Francis Russell, The Scottish Novel: From Smollett to Spark, Harvard University Press, 1978.
- Murray, Isobel, editor, Scottish Writers Talking: George Mackay Brown, Jessie Kesson, Norman MacCaig, William McIlvanney, David Toulmin, Tuckwell Press (East Linton, England), 1996.
- Schoene, Berthold, The Making of Orcadia: Narrative Identity in the Prose Work of George MacKay Brown, P. Lang (New York City), 1995.
- Smith, Iain Chrichton, Iain Chrichton Smith, Norman MacCaig, George Mackay Brown, Penguin Books (London), 1972.
- Yamada, Osamu, Hilda D. Spear, and David S. Robb, The Contribution to Literature of Orcadian Writer George MacKay Brown: An Introduction and a Bibliography, E. Mellen Press (Lewiston), 1991.
- America, August 3, 1996, p. 24.
- Cambridge Quarterly, Volume 6, number 2, 1973.
- Chapman (Edinburgh), 1990.
- Economist, April 20, 1996, p. 78.
- Hudson Review, Volume 26, number 4, 1973-74.
- Listener, April 17, 1967; August 21, 1969; January 9, 1975.
- London Magazine, December, 1959.
- London Review of Books, September 17, 1987; March 22, 1990.
- New Review, June, 1976.
- New Statesman & Society, June 24, 1994, p. 39.
- New York Times Book Review, April 28, 1968; July 19, 1970; September 9, 1984, pp. 9, 32; March 22, 1987, p. 9; March 31, 1996, p. 18.
- Observer (London), October 11, 1989.
- Phoenix, winter, 1971.
- Poetry Australia, October, 1978.
- Poetry Nation, number 2, 1974.
- Publishers Weekly, August 29, 1994, p. 63; June 26, 1995, p. 103.
- Spectator, August 23, 1969.
- Stand Magazine, Volume 13, number 1, 1972.
- Times (London), February 13, 1983; July 23, 1987; December 31, 1987; June 8, 1989.
- Times Literary Supplement, February 16, 1967; April 27, 1967; September 28, 1973; September 27, 1974; August 13, 1976; February 22, 1980; November 21, 1980; April 10, 1981; April 1, 1983; January 20, 1984; June 15, 1984; October 30, 1987; June 30, 1989; May 11-17, 1990.
- Washington Post Book World, November 26, 1972.
- Economist, April 20, 1996, p. 78.
- Facts on File, April 18, 1996, p. 272.
- New York Times, April 16, 1996, p. 11.
- Times (London), April 15, 1996, p. 21.
- Washington Post, April 16, 1996, p. C4.
George Mackay Brown
The late George Mackay Brown was a seminal figure in Scottish letters from mid-century until his death in 1996. Brown wrote of life and nature in his native Orkney Islands, his fertile imagination encompassing poetry, novels, children's stories, essays, plays, and media pieces. In an essay in the Dictionary of Literary Biography, David S. Robb declared Brown "unique among modern British writers in the scope, nature, and integrity of his achievements. A major part of his distinctiveness lies in the way he has created an entire oeuvre centered on a sparsely populated region, the Orkney Islands. . . . Another dimension that sets him apart . . . is the vision that informs his work, a vision made up of values drawn from his religion, his sense of history, his literary allegiances, and his devotion to Orkney." In another essay in the Dictionary of Literary Biography, Joseph Reino observed... | <urn:uuid:7322798d-aa17-48cb-88b9-40e76aa7a322> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems-and-poets/poets/detail/george-mackay-brown | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280872.69/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00316-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.929131 | 5,385 | 2.609375 | 3 |
IMO marine pollution rules get first signatory
Denmark has become the first country to sign an updated convention governing shipowners' liability for pollution and accidents caused by hazardous and noxious substances (HNS). The move was announced in London last week.
The full text of this article is only available to subscribers and free trialists. To login,please enter your email address and subscriber access code below. | <urn:uuid:4215011b-ee35-4fa6-bfe9-4e5b99b65145> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.endseurope.com/article/26096/imo-marine-pollution-rules-get-first-signatory | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560284352.26/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095124-00193-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.929665 | 82 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Queens institution Belfast supplies capital as a founding companion associated with discussion UK.
The Conversation UNITED KINGDOM obtains money because of these companies
Payday loan providers happen the main topic of trenchant complaints since her appeal erupted following the financial meltdown. A current documentary, “Cash in Hand: Payday Loans”, needed to counter this by giving an insider go through the sector. The show moved behind-the-scenes at payday loan provider Uncle money, which have a 2percent market share behind behemoths such as Wonga and QuickQuid, and adopted the day to day activities of the customer care and stuff operation.
The payday financing market has changed significantly since legislation got launched just last year – it would appear that a is generating genuine efforts to wash right up its operate. This being the actual situation and also in an age of alternative financing types such as for example peer-to-peer financing and crowdfunding, we should be wary about instantly dismissing the application of payday advance loan.
With high interest rates, payday advances include short-term financial loans that are frequently paid back regarding debtor’s next payment date. A became significantly from inside the aftermath of economic crisis nowadays over 1.2m financing include released in the UK yearly. Just like the business has flourished, therefore contains the appetite https://samedaycashloans.org/payday-loans-in/ with their abolition by buyers groups and others, including labor deputy chief hopeful Stella Creasy.
It is true that markets have until not too long ago used unsavoury ways particularly opaque terms and conditions and unlawful range methods. But since these methods became considerably obvious the lured the look of buyers groups and it also was not well before regulating input got your order of the day.
The industry ended up being struck with a raft of regulatory variations at the beginning of 2015 after public outcry about lending and debt collection techniques. In a vintage instance of public force leading to regulating action, the Investment make expert (FCA) released a few actions to protect consumers including:
An everyday interest and cost limit of 0.8per cent for each and every ?100 lent.
An overall cap throughout the optimum any customer can pay in interest and standard costs comparable to double the amount advanced level.
a limit on belated payment charge of ?15.
The legislation triggered lots of modest business professionals shutting right up store and motivated most of the sector leaders to revise her business model as well as their method of customer support and commercial collection agency.
In certain US shows, payday advance loan have already been abolished, and interest hats released in other people. It is mostly as a result of predatory financing methods targeted at ex-military personnel and single mothers.
But the buyers visibility with the pay day loan visitors in the united kingdom was considerably dissimilar to people in the US. Per IRN analysis, UNITED KINGDOM payday loan borrowers are most likely becoming young adults with unhealthy earnings, using payday advances with additional smart than is actually commonly represented.
Within the UK, 67per cent have children money of below ?25,000 compared to the US in which it is closer to 75per cent. More over, while payday individuals in the usa commonly adults without bank accounts in accordance with poor, “sub-prime” credit records. This is not the scenario in britain.
The IRN data also demonstrates that 33per cent of payday loan consumers have actually a family group money exceeding the national medium – 6percent of consumers at significantly more than ?50,000 per year. The fact is that pay day loans are a money-saving method for most young workers.
Eg, a ?100 payday loan, running at 0.8percent everyday interest, paid back in thirty day period will cost significantly less than going ?100 into an unauthorised overdraft. That is something Steve huntsman at Uncle dollar said in present tv show:
If you were to remove that loan for ?300 you might pay back about ?458 over 90 days. The audience is high priced nevertheless’s extremely, really brief. Perhaps far more should you decide went to your overdraft in an unauthorised ways.
It is hard to disagree because of this reasoning. An unauthorised overdraft, with Santander for example, can cost anything to ?95-a-month in costs. Choosing a payday loan throughout these circumstances try a rational buying decision wise of the cost of both selection.
Rules doing his thing
Obviously, many people that use payday loans bring household incomes underneath the national medium. The FCA estimates that as it grabbed over regulation in the field, the number of financing and levels borrowed have paid off by 35per cent. Up to 70,000 clients have already been refuted entry to the business. This is exactly a confident step forward.
With newer emphasis on affordability monitors, it is best that those exactly who do not want to repay a short-term mortgage include refused from getting it originally. However it is essential that those that are refused access try not to turn to unregulated cash loan providers or other unsavoury fund channels. To the effects, effort must consistently improve people’s monetary literacy and consumer support groups require funding to appeal to those people that fall into monetary problems.
The fresh new regulatory surface in this markets signals a new start for payday lenders. They already have an opportunity to restore their particular character and function more sensibly. Provided that they abide by the latest rules and adhere to the laws and regulations associated with field, there’s absolutely no good reason why payday financing are not a helpful financial means for most. | <urn:uuid:b2984139-4c58-4386-a49b-144c267b9a26> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://landind.id/2021/11/02/in-defence-of-payday-loans-christopher-mallon-get-2/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572221.38/warc/CC-MAIN-20220816060335-20220816090335-00076.warc.gz | en | 0.965689 | 1,152 | 1.671875 | 2 |
Saturday evening, folks across several states reported seeing a fireball cross the southern sky around 7:30 p.m.
At the American Meteor Society's website, nearly 100 people who said they saw it explained where they were standing, which direction the fireball was going and in some cases, what it was like.
Angelique F., a poster from Millbrook, Ala., wrote, "This fireball resembled the size and altitude of a crop duster just over tall pine tree level but was made entirely of fire."
She said the fireball moved left to right as she was facing northeast.
A Gallatin, Tenn., poster said, "It was the largest and brighest fireball I have ever seen."
A flurry of Times Free Press readers responded to Facebook query Saturday to whether they had seen anything.
Conner Meredith wrote, "I saw it very clearly shoot all the way across the sky near Cherokee Blvd at Spring St. It looked like a small object on fire and moving very fast."
Ruth Kotouc saw the light in Hixson while at Starbucks.
Anne Hendrix wrote in, "My daughter and I saw it. It was going west to east, was greenish, and appeared to be low in the sky."
Sophia Ensley wrote that she saw it in East Brainerd.
Britni Brown wrote that her whole family saw the light.
Chris Naugle wrote, "My coworkers and I at the lifeguard ambulance station seen it. Kind of resembled a firework."
Lisa Glenfield-Miller wrote, "My 3 boys and I saw it....it was AMAZING!!!! [...] It was low, fast, heading west to east, directly over our road in Chickamauga about 7:30 p.m. [...] We were speechless...."
An unnamed writer said in Athens, Tenn., the fireball looked like "it was a jet on fire fallin."
Dr. Bill Cooke, a NASA meteor scientist, said in an email Saturday evening that preliminary information indicated a bit of space debris entered the Earth's atmosphere above northern Alabama, igniting a fiery trail through the sky.
He believed the meteoroid moved southeast, "finally burning up over Atlanta."
He said the only video available Saturday night was from a mobile phone, but based on that, he estimated the brightness of the meteor "to be similar to the crescent moon, which means the meteoroid was a few inches in diameter."
James Spann, a TV meteorologist in Birmingham, Ala., tweeted around 9 p.m., "Bill Cooke of NASA reports tonight's fireball is the 15th significant one this month - 'very unusual' in his words." | <urn:uuid:cb9fe4f8-6166-4b6b-97e5-ddc08b9190e4> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2013/sep/28/fireball-streaks-across-sky/120023/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988725475.41/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183845-00509-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978085 | 550 | 2.171875 | 2 |
from the FAS Project on Government Secrecy
Volume 2007, Issue No. 125
December 20, 2007
Secrecy News Blog: http://www.fas.org/blog/secrecy/
Support Secrecy News
- "FOREIGN RELATIONS OF THE U.S" NOT PUBLISHED IN 2007
- CONGRESS APPROVES FOIA REFORM BILL
- CLASSIFICATION REFORM BILL INTRODUCED IN HOUSE
- GOLDSMITH: "EXTREME SECRECY... LED TO A LOT OF MISTAKES"
- NEW ARMY DOCTRINE ON WMD CIVIL SUPPORT TEAMS
- CHINA'S SPACE PROGRAM, AND MORE FROM CRS
"FOREIGN RELATIONS OF THE U.S." NOT PUBLISHED IN 2007
This week marks one full year since publication of the latest print volume of the Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS) series, the official documentary record of U.S. foreign policy which dates back to the Abraham Lincoln Administration.
Publication of FRUS is required by law (Public Law 102-138) and is supposed to occur "not more than 30 years after the events recorded."
But while FRUS has long lagged behind its 30 year deadline, the failure to publish even a single print volume all year is extraordinary and unprecedented in living memory.
"Let's just say that it didn't happen on my watch that a year would pass without a volume published," said one former State Department official. (Two electronic document collections were posted on the State Department web site earlier this year.)
As recently as June 2007, the State Department was still indicating that "10, possibly 11, volumes were scheduled for publication by the end of the year." But that didn't happen.
In September, FRUS General Editor Edward C. Keefer "expressed regret that this number [of published FRUS volumes] fell short of earlier projections of 2007 volume production due to a series of problems and in spite of the best efforts of the staff to solve them," according to the minutes of a September 2007 meeting of the State Department Advisory Committee on Historical Diplomatic Documentation.
According to one outside source, the situation has been complicated by staff turnover, "indifferent management," and even a pending Inspector General complaint.
In response to an email inquiry from Secrecy News, however, FRUS Editor Keefer wrote that "It is not quite as bad as you think."
"We have two print volumes ready to go," Dr. Keefer said. "The books are overdue from the printer, but we will try to release them before the end of the year."
Dr. Keefer said he would provide a fuller response after the holidays.
An online collection of many of the FRUS volumes dating from 1861 to 1960 has been established at the University of Wisconsin here:
More recent volumes are here:
Update: On December 21, the State Department published two new print volumes of FRUS, along with another electronic document collection.
CONGRESS APPROVES FOIA REFORM BILL
Open government advocates hailed the passage of procedural amendments to the Freedom of Information Act that are intended to improve government responsiveness to FOIA requests and to strengthen the hand of requesters.
The OPEN Government Act, which cleared both the Senate and the House over the past week, "becomes the first major reform to the Freedom of Information Act in more than a decade," said Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), the bill's leading co-sponsor in the Senate along with Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX). Rep. William Lacy Clay (D-MO), Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA) and Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) led passage in the House.
http://www.fas.org/sgp/congress/2007/oga121407.html [Senate approval]Among other things, Senator Leahy explained, "This legislation will improve transparency in the Federal Government's FOIA process by: restoring meaningful deadlines for agency action under FOIA; imposing real consequences on Federal agencies for missing FOIA's 20-day statutory deadline; clarifying that FOIA applies to government records held by outside private contractors; establishing a FOIA hotline service for all Federal agencies; and creating a FOIA Ombudsman to provide FOIA requestors and Federal agencies with a meaningful alternative to costly litigation."
http://www.fas.org/sgp/congress/2007/oga121807.html [House approval]
For all of its procedural virtues, the OPEN Government Act does not touch the root of government secrecy, namely the decision to withhold information. The Act does not repeal or modify any of the more than one hundred statutory exemptions from disclosure under the FOIA. And it does not address the proper scope or application of the classification system. That is a task for another day.
Coincidentally, the Department of Defense this week issued a proposed new FOIA regulation for public comment. It will presumably have to be revised again to be made consistent with the new Open Government Act.
CLASSIFICATION REFORM BILL INTRODUCED IN HOUSE
Speaking of classification reform, Rep. Jane Harman and 13 Democratic colleagues this week introduced "The Reducing Over-Classification Act of 2007."
The legislation focuses on the Department of Homeland Security and aims to make the Department a model of judicious information policy by curtailing classification and other restrictions on disclosure.
"The goal is simple: make the Department of Homeland Security the 'gold standard' when it comes to preventing over-classification and to limiting the use of sensitive but unclassified markings," Rep. Harman said in a news release.
"DHS is an excellent place to start and -- if it gets a handle on its own burgeoning over- and pseudo-classification addiction-- can become a 'best practices' center and the test bed for the rest of the Federal Government," she said.
The legislation's incremental approach has much to recommend it, though some of the details of the proposed strategy are questionable, obscure or remain to be determined.
It is probably unworkable, for example, to insist on "allow[ing] the classification of documents only after unclassified, shareable versions of intelligence have been produced." Some classified intelligence documents will have no unclassified counterpart, though the use of unclassified "tear sheets" should be encouraged whenever possible.
Other proposed steps, such as establishment of "an independent Department declassification review board to expedite the declassification of documents," could help create new impetus for disclosure.
GOLDSMITH: "EXTREME SECRECY... LED TO A LOT OF MISTAKES"
In October, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a riveting hearing with Jack Goldsmith, the former head of the Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel. The record of that hearing has just been published.
As was widely reported at the time, Mr. Goldsmith challenged the legality of certain aspects of the President's warrantless surveillance program and raised questions about other policies and procedures in the "war on terrorism."
"There's no doubt that the extreme secrecy [surrounding the Terrorist Surveillance Program] -- not getting feedback from experts, and not showing it to experts, and not getting a variety of views, even inside the executive branch -- led to a lot of mistakes," he said.
The PDF version of the hearing record includes Mr. Goldsmith's answers to questions for the record from the Senate Committee members (pp. 38-49). In most cases, he deflected the Senators' pointed questions. But several of the exchanges are interesting nevertheless.
Asked about the Administration's refusal to disclose to Congress the legal memoranda justifying its interrogation program, Mr. Goldsmith stated:
"I believe it is the President's prerogative not to disclose these opinions. And I believe it is the Congress's prerogative to use political pressure to try to force the Executive to disclose the opinions."
See "Preserving the Rule of Law in the Fight Against Terrorism," hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, October 2, 2007:
NEW ARMY DOCTRINE ON WMD CIVIL SUPPORT TEAMS
The U.S. Army has issued a new field manual on the use of National Guard units known as "civil support teams" (CST) to respond to domestic terrorist or other incidents involving weapons of mass destruction.
"The mission of the WMD-CST is to support civil authorities at domestic CBRNE [chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and high-yield explosive] incident sites by identifying CBRNE agents and substances, assessing current and projected consequences, advising on response measures, and assisting with appropriate requests for additional support."
The new manual describes the origins, capabilities, organization, and operations of the civil support teams. The Army approved the document for public release.
See "Weapons of Mass Destruction - Civil Support Team Operations," U.S. Army Field Manual FM 3-11.22, December 10, 2007:
CHINA'S SPACE PROGRAM, AND MORE FROM CRS
Noteworthy new reports from the Congressional Research Service obtained by Secrecy News include the following.
"China's Space Program: Options for U.S.-China Cooperation," December 14, 2007:
"U.S.-China Military Contacts: Issues for Congress," updated December 12, 2007:
"Iran: U.S. Concerns and Policy Responses," updated December 5, 2007:
"Iraq and Al Qaeda," updated December 7, 2007:
"Venezuela: Political Conditions and U.S. Policy," updated November 26, 2007:
"The U.N. Law of the Sea Convention and the United States: Developments Since October 2003," updated October 31, 2007:
"Entering the Executive Branch of Government: Potential Conflicts of Interest With Previous Employments and Affiliations," updated December 11, 2007:
Secrecy News is written by Steven Aftergood and published by the Federation of American Scientists.
The Secrecy News blog is at:
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SUPPORT Secrecy News with a donation here: | <urn:uuid:61cf34b8-cbae-4287-9a0a-91d5ac1ba2aa> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://fas.org/sgp/news/secrecy/2007/12/122007.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560283301.73/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095123-00506-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934857 | 2,137 | 1.65625 | 2 |
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Clinton Meneely was the proprietor of a bellfoundry in Troy, in New York state in the US. There was a second Meneely foundry run by a relative of Clinton's close by in Watervliet, West Troy. I am grateful to David Cawley for the following information: "It's significant that it was Clinton Meneely (Troy Bell Foundry NY) who gave this interesting peroration. The policy of the Troy Foundry was not to tune bells, but it has to be remembered that there were two Meneely bell foundries in Troy - the other, the older and larger of the two being MENEELY & Co (Watervliet - West Troy - NY). It was established in 1826 by Clinton Meneely's great-grandfather, Andrew Meneely Sr; he was also the grandfather of Andrew R Meneely who introduced bell tuning at Watervliet, and of Andrew E and Alfred C Meneely who developed it and produced the first American-cast carillons as a result."
Instead of tuning his bells, Clinton Meneely relied on exact profiles and if necessary cast again and again until he achieved the desired result. The two foundries are supposed to have produced between them 65,000 bells in their life. They are no longer in production; to quote David Cawley again: "There was a family reconciliation in the late 1940's; but it didn't save the foundries which both closed in 1952, the Troy buildings being demolished soon after and the Watervliet Foundry in 1975."
More details on these prolific founders can be found at the Meneely Bell Online Museum. This website is run by Dan Meneely, Clinton's grandson, to whom I am grateful for permission to republish this most interesting (and sometimes polemical) talk.
In the talk, Clinton refers to a number of chimes or carillons of bells. The carillon in the City Hall at Albany was, at the time Meneely was speaking, a 47 bell instrument provided by Taylors in 1928. The bells at Lowell House in Cambridge are a 17-bell Zvon imported from Russia in 1930, originally part of a bigger instrument in the Danailov Monastery in Moscow. The Dorothy Carlisle chime in Northampton was a 12-bell chime provided by Clinton's branch of the Meneelys in 1912. All of these details were taken from the excellent site of The Guild of Carillonneurs in North America. Without more introduction, on with the paper.
THE MUSICAL QUALITY OF BELL TONES
Presented at Schenectady, N. Y., to the combined societies of American Mechanical and Electrical Engineers on the evening of February 28, 1935, by Clinton Meneely of the Meneely Bell Co., Troy, N. Y.
My original intention, tonight, was to preface my remarks with a short resume of the history of bells, bringing out the more prominent facts that have been handed down to us by the old writers, and collected into several interesting volumes by various modern authorities. But, on consulting one of these, the first thing I read was that the Emperor Hoang-Ti of China commissioned one of his subjects to cast a set of tuned bells, which would become the official standard of pitch, in the year Two Thousand Six Hundred Ninety-Seven, B. C. I immediately decided that it would be too much to ask you gentlemen to bear with me through more than forty-six centuries of history and mythology, although I can recommend such a study to anyone who has the time and the leisure to give to it.
One thing that he will learn from this is quite surprising; that in spite of their age very little is known even today about the science of bells. Perhaps this can be explained by the aura of mysticism and religious exaltation that has tended to set bells aside from the ordinary run of phenomena. It is believed that the first bell was discovered when some primitive man struck a hollow trunk or a certain shaped stone and heard his gods speaking to him. That such a belief was carried through to the present is shown by the fact that in the Roman Catholic Church, the sound of a bell is the voice of God calling His people to worship. But whatever the reason, the science of bell tones is a subject that offers practically a virgin field to an investigator.
For convenience, we can divide the evolution of the modern bell into three general parts: The development of the metal used, the development of the general shape, and finally the applications of refinements to that general shape with a view toward producing definite qualities of musical tone.
The development of the alloy was concluded many years ago. Some of the oldest bells that we have records of were made from a mixture of copper and tin such as is used today. And in spite of certain statements that one hears as to the use of silver, the “bell metal” that is defined in texts is a definite alloy that is used by practically all the modern founders.
Similarly, the general shape of bells is quite universal. The evolution of this shape seems to have varied in different countries, depending on the state of the arts, but the sequence of changes seems to have been the same in each case. The first metallic bells were small ones, hammered out from sheet metal into shapes similar to that of the modern cowbell. With the development of casting, it was found that bells could be molded and poured to produce larger and more uniform results. But these early cast bells were really hand made, for the bell pattern was built up of some material such as wax around an inner core, and then the outer case of the mold was built up around this wax. By melting the bell form out of its molds, the founders could then reproduce it in the metal.
It was not until the modern method of making the molds with sweeps was developed that any real progress could be made in regard to the development of the tonal qualities of the bells, for this method allows the founder to keep definite control over the various dimensions of his bells and also assures him that his bell will be absolutely concentric in all its parts on the axis. Such development proceeded slowly by the trial and error method, and the first attempt at standardization did not come until the early part of the seventeenth century when two brothers, named Hemony, declared that the bells cast in their foundry in the Netherlands gave out seven tones: three octaves, two fifths, one minor third and one major third.
However, such standardization was probably not actually carried out to a very close degree. Many of the bells that are now hanging in European towers were made during the past two centuries. These bells, even when they were all made in the same foundry, are found to be entirely lacking in uniformity, and in fact take on such definite individualities that the ringers are accustomed to personify them with names suggested by the individual qualities of tone.
In the nineteenth century we find the first evidence of study of the tones of bells. One of the earliest articles written on the subject is that of Mr. Henry P. Monroe, published as an advertising pamphlet by the now defunct William Blake and Company of Boston in 1882. Although he gave no reason for his theory, Monroe said that a bell should contain from five to seven tones: the tonic, a hum note a sixth below, a third, a principle an octave above the tonic, a twelfth, a fifteenth and a seventeenth. These notes would produce a major chord. In further elaboration of this theme, Monroe claimed that this chord should be varied slightly according to the position of the bell in the scale of the complete chime, as none of the notes used should be ones that were not of the key in which the chime was supposedly tuned.
The theory is interesting only in that it shows a recognition of the tones of bells. But it is scientifically useless, as Monroe offered no proof that the tones he selected were correct, and the Blake foundry does not seem to have had nay means of applying the theory to its products as an inspection of one of its chimes will quickly show.
In 1890, the first real study of bell tones was published in the English Philosophical Magazine by Lord Rayleigh. Rayleigh conducted experiments with eight or nine bells cast by different English founders and he made several important discoveries. He used Helmholtz resonators and located the nodal meridians and circles of five of the bells’ partial tones. He also found that these tones were considerably out of tune with one another within each bell, but remarked on this point: “The dissonant effect of the inharmonious intervals actually met with is less than one would have expected from a musical point of view.” He then introduced some theories suggested by the general shape of bells which we are not interested in here.
Rayleigh wrote for the scientist and his discoveries did not reach many of the general public. But he was followed by Canon Simpson of the English clergy who published two articles in the popular Pall Mall Magazine in 1895 and 1896. Simpson’s first article was an attempt to call the attention of the public to the fact that the bells they were forced to listen to were imperfect. He declared that there was not a single bell in England which was in tune, even with itself, and went on to say: “Many of us, also, have been struck by the apparent want of harmony in the famous carillons of Bruges and other Belgian towns and some few have been at great expense to set up carillons of their own, and have been reluctantly driven to the vexatious conclusion that they are ‘painfully out of tune’”.
According to Simpson, the theory behind the minds of the original designers of the bells he was studying was that a perfect bell should have the following tones: the fundamental or tonic, the third, fifth and octave above, and the octave below. His analyses had shown him that these notes were present in the bells, but no attempt was made to bring them into their proper relations. In fact, the founder disregarded all but one of these when tuning a bell to its place in a peal or carillon, using only the tone which was supposed to give the bell its pitch. And most surprising of all, he found that there was even confusion among the founders as to which tone was the most prominent, as the English tuned the nominals, or high octaves, and the Continental founders tuned the fundamentals or tonics, although they both cast the same type of bell.
The obvious conclusion to be made was that if these notes were placed in tune the intolerable sounds that were produced by playing chords on bells would be eliminated. But first he had to show that it was possible to make such bells. In his second paper, he showed very graphically how the grinding off of metal at various circles within the bell would raise or lower some of the partial tones enough to bring them to their proper levels. Having proven that his theoretically proper bell could be made, he challenged the founders to cast their bells to his specifications.
One or two English founders accepted this challenge in part, and they proceeded to carry out and add to Simpson’s experiments in tuning, though they used the minor third of the Hemony brothers rather than Simpson’s major third, and claimed to have “rediscovered” the old art of 5-point tuning that was practiced by those famous carillon founders. But they found it decidedly less expensive to correct their bells after they were cast, using the clergyman’s method, than to cast the bells with the corrections already made on the patterns. For this reason, their method cannot be termed a “rediscovery of a long forgotten secret” as it has been claimed.
From this method of 5-point tuning we have the modern carillon bell such as you gentlemen may have heard in the tower of the City Hall at Albany. As far as I can learn, this bell is the only proof of the correctness of the theory of 5-point tuning. Does it prove its point?
You may remember that about a year ago President Roosevelt was made the victim of a hoax, perpetrated by some Harvard students who circulated the story that the carillon of bells in Lowell House, Cambridge, was to be named after him. When investigation proved the story false, Roosevelt wrote: “I am not in the least perturbed about the chime of bells because, strictly between ourselves, I should much prefer to have a puppy dog or a baby named after me than one of these carillon effects which is never quite in tune and that goes off at all hours of the day and night. At least one can give paregoric to a puppy or baby.”
Roosevelt can certainly be said to know what he was criticizing, for the governor’s office at Albany, in which he spent a number of years, is within a block of the municipal carillon tower. And further proof that the 5-point tuned bell is not satisfactory is given by the flood of letters and editorials that were published commenting on and elaborating the President’s statement. In answer to this criticism, the only explanation offered by those interested in carillons was a statement of Mr. Frederick Rocke, a New York City organist, that it is necessary to accustom ourselves to carillons; to fall under their spell. “Even musicians have to listen long and often to carillon playing.” But accustoming oneself to the defects of an instrument does not eliminate those defects. There are bells in some of our churches which are considered wonderful by the people who have grown up within sound of them, but which a modern foundry would break up rather than offer for sale.
If we wish to learn what the fault is with five point tuning, we must look to some of our modern researchers in the field of sound. Remember that this method is not the one suggested by Simpson but is a cheaper one that it was hoped would produce the same theoretically perfect results. Now it is well known that cutting or grinding on certain parts of a vibrating body will change the frequency of some of its vibrations. What is also well known, but overlooked by the ones who have followed this method, is that this same cutting and grinding considerably changes the relative amplitudes of those same partial tones. One experimenter on bells found that continuous grinding on the sound bow of a bell, for example, makes the strike note grow fainter and fainter and finally disappear altogether.
Perhaps some of you gentlemen are more familiar with the work of Mr. Harvery Fletcher of the Bell Telephone Laboratories than I am. I have read one or two of his articles, and one thing stands out very clearly from his experiments: that the relative intensities of the partial tones of a musical instrument is a very important factor in determining the quality of that tone. In fact, the elimination of a few partials was enough to change the quality of a tone from what a committee of musicians judged to be highly musical to what they could only classify as “noise”. This is a factor that “5-point tuning” has entirely disregarded, and as a result, the carillon bells produced by this method are not uniform in quality.
When a number of similar instruments are to be played together, the main consideration is given to matching the qualities of the different tones. For example, a quartette of voices selected from a men’s chorus will not contain the best voices from each part except under most unusual circumstances. Yet the maker of a “5-point tuned” bell assumed that by merely tuning notes he produces bells of a quality that will blend best. As a matter of fact, the indications are that the emphasis should be placed entirely on the obtaining of bells whose qualities are shown to be most uniform by actual test, and secondarily contain no notes which are strongly inharmonious. Lord Rayleigh found that the musical effect of the dissonance of the partial tones of a bell was far less than one would expect. Simpson remarked: “For reasons which satisfy the leaned in acoustics, the differences in quality (“quality” here being applied in a general sense to each partial tone) of those sets of tones is such that they do not interfere with one another so as to give the sense of discord which we would expect.” It is a mistake to insist upon the rigid correction of an error that is admittedly small in its effect when to do so produces another error whose effect appears to be very far-reaching. In our own foundry, we have found that the best results are obtained by placing the emphasis on uniformity of quality both in the design and the finished product, and selecting the bells for one set on the basis of the qualities that they actually show rather than those which an unproven theory attempts to predetermine. On the other hand, such a method of manufacture and selection takes considerably more time and investment.
There is another point that Simpson himself missed. It must be remembered that he was not a founder and that his laboratories were towers where bells were already in place. It was not likely that it would have occurred to him that the arrangement of the partial tones in a theoretically perfect bell would not necessarily be the same as the arrangement that he found. Similarly, the founders would not be apt to feel that the bells they were making were not based on the best ideal. In the light of modern scientific advancement, it is unwise to rely on precedent alone, yet the specifications for the pitches of the partial tones of the 5-point tuned bell were laid down three hundred years ago. If Simpson had known what we know now he would have recognized that Belgian carillon bells which he declared to be “painfully out of tune” were really close approximations to the bell that he advocated. Actually, there is no one who can arbitrarily say what partial tones the best bell will contain, or how strong these different tones should be, although it seems reasonable to guess that a bell with less prominent overtones than the carillon bell will be better suited for use in attuned sets. At least, one should expect better results from a bell whose strike note stands out so clearly as to be unmistakably the tone which gives its pitch to the bell.
The most modern discoveries that have been made about bells tend to bring out so many complications that any such theory as that on which 5-point tuning is based becomes puerile in its simplicity. By far the most extensive researches in the past few years have been made by Professor A. T. Jones of Smith College, Northampton, Mass. Professor Jones’ interest was first aroused by the remarks of some of his predecessors which led him to believe that there was some mystery in regard to the strike note of a bell. Rayleigh had found that the fifth partial, the nominal of Simpson, was the only tone which approximated the note which the bell was supposed to give, if the interval of octave was disregarded. Similarly, Simpson wrote: “While a tuner always gave the nominal as the note of the bell, he invariably gave the pitch an octave lower than it was.”
Even more remarkable phenomena were noted by a German Scientist named Blessing, who found that while the various partials of a bell could be picked up by resonators, and could be made to sound in the bell through resonance, the strike note would not respond to either of these experiments.
In his studies, Jones first analyzed the partial tones of the bells in the Dorothy Carlisle Chime at Smith College, using Helmholtz resonators and a calibrated sonometer. He classified these tones as to pitch, and also explored the bells to determine the number and positions of the nodal meridians and nodal circles. After tabulating his results, he found that there was definitely no partial tone which even approximated the pitch of the strike note in each bell.
The first explanation that suggested itself was that this tone is a combination tone. However, calculation of the difference tones from the observed frequencies of the various partials showed that this was not the case. Furthermore, one would expect a combination tone to be very faint if heard at all, whereas the strike note stands out very clearly, even when a bell is tapped gently.
Jones then considered the possibility that the strike note is given by a compressional wave which spreads through the material of a bell, returning periodically to the point of striking. But an experiment with a bar of bell metal which we cast for him showed that this, too, was impossible.
On the other hand, there is every reason to believe that the strike note is really determined by the fifth partial tone, subjectively lowered one octave in pitch by the hearer. To make an error of an octave in pitch is not uncommon, even among musicians. The fifth partial vibrates most heavily in the sound bow of a bell and, as explained, before, removal of metal from the sound bow makes the strike note grow fainter and disappear. Third, experiments to determine the amount and succession of amplitudes of the different partials of a bell, struck in the normal manner, proved that both the fifth partial and the strike note were the most prominent immediately after the bell was struck, dying away quickly afterward in relation to the rest of the overtones.
Finally, the length of time during which the clapper remains in contact with the bell is one half of a period of the vibrating frequency of the fifth partial, showing that this tone is the favored one when the bell is struck.
We can only speculate, now, as to why the ear misjudges this tone one octave. Perhaps, as Jones suggests, it is because the prominent fifth and seventh partials correspond to the harmonic second and third partials of the more familiar musical instruments and help to suggest the fundamental first partial that we are accustomed to hear. Or it may arise from some effect caused by the fact that the different partial tones do not all reach their maximum amplitudes at the same time, and die away at entirely different rates.
Until we know this reason, it will be impossible for a founder to tune the partial tones and declare that all of the notes of his bell are in tune. That something more than the influence of the fifth partial enters into the determination of the strike note is shown by the following experiment made by Professor Jones. He wished to have an accurate determination of the pitches of the strike notes of three bells. Since these notes will not beat with a fork, it is impossible to tune forks to them by counting the number of beats, and vice-versa. Jones took seven qualified musicians separately into the tower and asked them to help him tune pitchforks to the strike notes of the bells. When he compared the results obtained, he found that these men varied by as much as half a tone in their determinations. One of the men remarked to Jones that when the pitch of the fork was close, it was impossible for him to tell whether it was sharp or flat. This offers a ready explanation for the fact that the bells of a carillon or other set of 5-point tuned bells frequently sound out of tune. Even though the partial tones can be tuned accurately, the strike notes cannot, and there is not any basis for an assumption that the pitch of the strike note is determined solely by the pitches of the various partial notes.
Within the past few years, more careful studies of the partial tones of bells have been made. In a paper published in 1933, Jones describes one of the latest methods used. A variable vacuum-tube oscillator is fed into a telephone receiver, the diaphragm of which is replaced by a rubber coated armature of soft iron. When this is rested against a bell and made to vibrate in the frequency of one of the partial tones, the bell gives a resonant response; and while it is thus vibrating in a single partial mode, its surface is explored with a stethoscope which picks up the movements though a light pin. Jones detected and mapped sixteen different partials in his bells by this method. All of these tones were contained in one octave.
By touching on these points, I hope that I have given you an idea of the complexities which confront the student of this subject. You can readily see that there can be no theory worthy of the name which does not take all of these points into consideration; and since we do not yet know what all the factors are that have to be considered, it is impossible to set any definite specifications and hope to produce a perfect bell.
Suppose that one of you gentlemen were to be asked, tomorrow, to act as a member of a committee to select a set of bells for some tower. What criterion can you use to base your selection on? There is only one: your musical judgment. Forget all the facts and theories I have talked about, or which may be brought up. Listen to bells that have been placed in towers by different manufacturers, and listen to them from the places where they are intended to be heard. Judge them solely from the musical impression that they make upon you, and thus make your selection from the finished product rather than from some theoretical process of manufacture which has the same scientific background as some of the expressions found in modern advertisements.
When considering musical qualifications, there is one last point that I wish to bring up. Strictly speaking, no bell is a musical instrument. The standards that are set upon any musical instrument before it can be admitted to a symphony orchestra, except to produce a momentary effect, are very exacting. No bell can ever be made which will satisfy these standards. As a result, no true musician can ever admit that any set of bells will be perfect. It will approach such an ideal only when used for the simple, familiar melodies; and to allow the playing of the more complicated works on a set of bells is a feature of sensationalism that belongs on the vaudeville stage.
On this point, I take the liberty of quoting one of our greatest authorities on sound, Helmholtz, who was speaking of all percussion instruments whose partial tones do not follow the harmonic order:
“Only such of these as have not very strong secondary tones of this (nature) can be singly and occasionally employed in connection with musical instruments proper.”
“A very striking example of this was furnished by a company of bell ringers, said to be Scotch, that lately travelled about Germany, and performed all kinds of musical pieces, some of which had an artistic character. The accuracy and skill of the performance was undeniable, but the musical effect was detestable, on account of the heap of false overtones which accompanied the music, although care was taken to damp each bell as soon as the proper duration of its note had expired, by placing it on a table covered with cloth.”
When I was a student at Princeton, one of my preceptors was Dean Christian Gauss, a man whom I greatly admire. I remember his once telling us that a student of any subject does not really begin to acquire knowledge until he reaches the point where he realizes that the number of things he does not and will never know far outweighs the number of things that he does know.
On that basis, I feel that I can qualify myself as an expert on the subject of bells, and on that same basis, I will try to answer any of your questions.
Last updated May 2, 2001. Site created by Bill Hibbert, Great Bookham, Surrey | <urn:uuid:42d1a776-d7dc-403d-a829-0a2740841ac8> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.hibberts.co.uk/meneely.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988718296.19/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183838-00540-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980984 | 5,681 | 1.882813 | 2 |
We are gearing up for Toy Fair 2016 and are blown away at all the new toys and games we are going to see. If your kids are into animals, then you are going to want to check out Silver Dolphin Books‘ Animal Adventures.
My boys both received these books for Christmas and were a definitely a highlight. The Animal Adventures series offers a fun learning experience as readers meet wild and exotic animals face-to-face.
New to the series is Animal Adventures: Sharks ($21.95; March 2016; 40 pages). Animal Adventures: Sharks takes young readers beneath the ocean’s surface to meet the sharks that lurk in the depths.
Animal Adventures from Silver Dolphin Books
These book sets includes a guidebook full of colorful illustrations, intriguing facts, 3-D animal models, and a diorama with reusable stickers. The Animal Adventures series offers a fun learning experience as readers meet wild and exotic animals face-to-face. Other titles in the Animal Adventures series include:
Wanna see what’s new at Toy Fair? Make sure you follow me on Instagram for all the new hottest games and toys! | <urn:uuid:2ecbc868-43d7-4ca0-a4f3-b335c6cd552c> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://agrandelife.net/animal-adventures-with-silver-dolphin-books/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560283689.98/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095123-00353-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.932151 | 231 | 1.609375 | 2 |
Edison & Ford Winter Estates
Open to the public since 1947, Edison Ford is a National Register Historic Site and is one of the most visited historic home sites in America. Take an inspiring journey back in time and explore the historic winter homes, the Edison Botanical Research Lab and the Edison Ford Museum on more than 20 acres of botanic gardens. Choose between guided and self-guided tours with audio wands. For the ultimate experience, pair your visit with a river cruise to discover the flora and fauna of the Caloosahatchee.
Whether you are interested in learning more about the foundation of our city, our art and architecture, or experience the hauntings of our unrest souls, True Tours’ Fort Myers walking, ghost and sightseeing tours are a must-do! The narratives of our history are the perfect mix of entertaining and informative, documented by professional historians. A special thanks to Gina Taylor, founder and owner of True Tours, for her insight on Forty Myers’ history, much of which inspired the brand story of Luminary!
Shell Factory & Nature Park
For more than 80 years, the Shell Factory has been entertaining visitors with a dizzying and constantly changing array of diversions and amusements reminiscent of Florida roadside attractions of yesteryear. Featuring museums, the year ’round Christmas House, a Fun Park, game room, a thrilling zip line and 400 critters, birds, reptiles and fish that are staged in aviaries, a gator slough ecological laboratory, petting farm and all manner of habitats and dwellings. Something for everyone!
J.N. “Ding” National Wildlife Refuge
This 7,600-acre wildlife refuge is home to 51 types of reptiles and amphibians, 32 mammal species, more than 230 species of birds. Paddling, hiking/biking trails, observation towers and a four-mile scenic drive all create a perfect opportunity to commune with the area’s natural inhabitants. The free visitor and education center features interactive exhibits, the work of J.N. “Ding” Darling, migratory flyways, a hands-on area for children and gift shop.
Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve
The Six Mile Cypress Slough (pronounced “sloo”) is over 3,500 acres of wetland ecosystem with a Boardwalk trail and Interpretive Center. The cypress slough catches and slowly filters rainwater on its way towards Estero Bay. A myriad of animals like otters, alligators, turtles, wading birds, and more live at the Slough year-round. Others, like migrating birds and butterflies, use the Slough as a feeding area or a winter home.
An educational facility that hand raises every single butterfly while providing educational tours, classes and outreach programs. The Florida Native Butterfly Society is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the protection and preservation of Florida’s native butterfly species. Their Southwest Florida location features a 3,600 sq, ft. glass butterfly conservatory and focuses on helping butterfly populations flourish throughout our state.
The Great Calusa Blueway
The Great Calusa Blueway Paddling Trail is a 190-mile marked canoe and kayak trail that meanders through the coastal waters and inland tributaries of Lee County, Florida. It attracts everyone from first-time kayakers to advanced paddlers and is home to abundant marine life, shore birds and crustaceans. Paddlers from around the world gather to explore the fabled bays, rivers, backwaters and shorelines of Southwest Florida – located right in our very own backyard!
America’s Favorite Pastime is alive and well with two major franchises calling Fort Myers their Spring Training headquarters. Boston Red Sox fans can visit JetBlue Park at Fenway South, while The CenturyLink Sports Complex is home to Hammond Stadium where the Minnesota Twins and their two minor league affiliates play. Tours of the facilities can be arranged in advance, while the 7th Inning Stretch is included free with every ticket purchased!
So many beaches and so little time! No need to worry as finding your perfect beach is easy. While sun and surf will be sure to relax and renew the soul, you can also stay active by playing volleyball, cycling, kayaking, paddleboarding and shelling. Shell collecting is one of our most popular beach activities, and aficionados travel from all over the world to explore our shell selection.
Craft beer culture hounds will rejoice with a wonderful selection of local breweries and even a rum distillery to boot. All offer events, tours, tastings and passionate owners who create immersive experiences to keep visiting aficionados enthralled, engaged and asking for more. So pull up a barstool and let’s get this party started! | <urn:uuid:3c97ee7c-83e2-4370-80cc-5ebd4ea80a74> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.luminaryhotel.com/explore/attractions/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572581.94/warc/CC-MAIN-20220816211628-20220817001628-00077.warc.gz | en | 0.911803 | 998 | 1.835938 | 2 |
From the print edition
Baby sea turtles can’t get a break.
Poachers and wild animals snatch up their eggs before they can hatch, and when they do break out of their shells they have to dig through 80 centimeters of sand and crawl to the water to face the toothy, hungry horrors of the oceans all alone.
Now, a recently published study shows that successful hatches of baby turtles in Playa Grande, on the northwestern coast of Costa Rica, are likely to decline by as much as 50 to 60 percent as temperatures rise and rainfall diminishes in crucial nesting areas.
“This is very bad news for the leatherback sea turtle, at least in this area,” said Pilar Santidrián Tomillo, science director for The Leatherback Trust, a sea turtle conservation group. “Unless climatic conditions are reverted we may have to move eggs to climate-controlled hatcheries; we may have to shade nests or water nests [to ensure successful hatchings].”
Leatherback sea turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) are the largest marine turtles, growing as large as 500 kilograms. They are critically endangered with an estimated global population of about 30,000. Pacific leatherbacks are the most threatened of the leatherbacks with only about 2,000 turtles nesting at the most important nesting areas in Costa Rica and Mexico.
Baby sea turtles that survive egg poachers, make it to the sea and don’t get eaten by crocodiles or sharks face a lifelong threat of being caught up in industrial fishing nets or longlines, which stretch out with studded with baited hooks across tens of kilometers.
The study, “Climate-Driven Egg and Hatchling Mortality Threatens Survival of Eastern Pacific Leatherback Turtles,” examined hatching success rates in leatherback nests at Playa Grande near Las Baulas National Marine Park, and used climate-change predictions from the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to project egg and hatchling survival rates through the end of the century. IPCC climate predictions indicate that the effects of climate change will cause hotter, drier weather in the northwestern part of Costa Rica while other parts, particularly the Caribbean coast, will see increases in rainfall as the century progresses.
But how hot is too hot for the baby leatherbacks?
“Within the nest, clutches with average temperatures above 33-34 degrees Celsius don’t seem to hatch,” said Santidrián. “For air temperatures, it’s different, since rainfall is the most important factor affecting hatching success, and it has a cooling effect in the nest. In general, it seems that our model predicted approximately 0 percent hatching success for air temperatures above 32 degrees [C], … [depending] on precipitation.”
The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) released a report in San José this past March, which predicts a minimum average temperature increase in Central America of 2.4 C by 2100. That projection is based on a worldwide best-case scenario. The upper end of the ECLAC projections, which are also based on IPCC data, indicate a potential 4 C average temperature increase in the region (TT, March 2).
Current average temperatures at Tamarindo, near Las Baulas, vacillate between lows of about 22 C and highs of 29 C in the cooler months of the year, and lows of 24 C and highs of 34 C in warmer months.
Leatherbacks nest at Playa Grande from October to February, and the eggs take approximately 60 days to hatch, meaning many clutches hatch during the warmest months of the year.
The projections don’t look good for the future of leatherback eggs and hatchlings – the ECLAC report predicts hatchling survival will “rapidly decline in the region over the next 100 years by 50-60 percent, due to warming and drying in northwestern Costa Rica, threatening the survival of leatherback turtles.”
More heat means more females
Temperature also affects the sex of hatching sea turtles. Santidrián said the middle point for sex determination in leatherback turtles at Playa Grande is 29.4 C. Temperatures warmer than that churn out lots of baby girl turtles and temperatures below that mean it will be mostly boys charging for the oceans upon hatching.
According to the report, Playa Grande leatherback females nest on average seven times per season. They lay clutches of approximately 50-120 eggs that incubate at a depth of 80 centimeters beneath the sand, according to the conservation group WWF.
Leatherback nesting and hatching cycles depend on periodic El Niño and La Niña weather patterns to stagger “boom and bust” hatches of male and female turtles – El Niño years are warmer and drier resulting in more females, and La Niña years are cooler and wetter, resulting in more males. As annual average temperatures rise steadily over the course of the next 88 years, though, the trend predicts many more booming seasons for females and a paucity of male-heavy hatches with obvious, negative implications for the species as a whole.
Why do they matter?
Besides being the world’s largest sea turtles, the oldest living reptiles, and their ability to dive to depths of 1,200 meters, what’s the big deal about leatherback sea turtles?
“They feed mainly on jellyfish,” Santidrián said. “So, for example, in places like the Mediterranean where turtles are disappearing, there are jellyfish blooms every year reaching very developed beaches, where there are a lot of swimmers in the water.”
Besides being a painful end to a day of surf and sun, jellyfish stings can lead to anaphylactic shock and death.
Jellyfish sometimes feed on fish larvae, which can have big impacts on commercially viable fish species when jellyfish populations are out of equilibrium.
“Jellyfish sometimes compete with fish, so when you see jellyfish increase other fish species may decrease,” Santidrián said. “Everything about a species is very tied to their ecosystem, and when you remove them there are always consequences.”
In Playa Grande, local residents – some of them reformed poachers – work as guides for tourists who visit Costa Rica specifically to see nesting or hatching turtles. The tourists bring economic opportunities with them.
“For a country that has a reputation as a conservationist country, to let a species go extinct is not a good thing,” Santidrián warned.
Santidrián said she remains optimistic that the leatherback sea turtle can be saved, but the fact remains that there’s not much Costa Rica can do to offset this particular threat to its turtles. Central American countries produce only 0.3 percent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions, but due to high poverty, poor infrastructure and long stretches of low-lying coastal areas, the region will bear a disproportionate amount of the negative effects of rising global temperatures and sea levels (TT, March 2).
As temperatures continue to rise throughout the rest of the century, Santidrián said, some short-term actions like manually watering or shading nests or moving eggs to climate-controlled incubators might give leatherbacks a better shot at survival.
But, she admits, these are stopgap measures.
“I think that this is sort of a final warning,” Santidrián said. “There is still a way out, but we have to start taking this very seriously.” | <urn:uuid:bfe78ec1-2cbd-45de-83c0-ff66167afda7> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.ticotimes.net/2012/06/28/losing-the-leatherback | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988721008.78/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183841-00116-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.921306 | 1,580 | 3.6875 | 4 |
Why are fish oil supplements so important to us
It is estimated that 85% or more of people in the Western world are deficient in omega-3 fatty acids and most get far too much of the omega-6 fatty acids. Vegetarian diets, for example, tend to be very high in omega-6.
Seemingly minor differences in their molecular structure make the two EFA families act very differently in the body. Although we do need both omega-3s and omega-6s it is becoming increasingly clear that an excess of omega-6 fatty acids can have dire consequences. Our ancestors evolved on a diet with a ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 of about 1:1. (most of the omega 3 came from consuming fish ) A massive change in dietary habits over the last few centuries has changed this ratio to something closer to 20:1 and this spells trouble.
FISH OIL SUPPLEMENT – QUALTIY
fish oil supplements tend to vary alot. It is very important to read all of the information that is presented to you, these days every fish oil supplement makes claims of the purest and strongest omega 3 fish oil on the market, you only need to look on the internet to see that https://www.glenerinpharmacy.com/buy-cipro-online/ this is the case. When choosing your fish oil supplement there are two very important factors to watch out for, these are the strength – concentration of the oil and the quantity. This is better explained in the know your oil article.
Fish oil supplements Cod liver oil and fish oils are not the same. Cod liver oil is extracted from cod liver and is an excellent source of vitamins A and D. Fish oils are extracted from the tissues (flesh) of fatty fish like salmon and herring and are good sources of EPA. Fish oils contain very little vitamin A and D, but cod liver oil does contain EPA and DHA. However, the concentration and amounts of essential fatty acids that are found in fish oil supplements like cod liver oil are very very low. You would probably exceed the recommended daily intake of vitamins A and D if you were to try to obtain therapeutic amounts of EPA from cod liver oil.
Supplementing with a fish oil supplement has been found to be entirely safe even for periods as long as 7 years and no significant adverse effects have been reported.
Pure EPA Essential Oil Blend
(Box of 60 capsules)
*Pure EPA is a powerful pharmaceutical grade omega 3 fish oil
*A unique product containing the purest form of ethyl EPA fish oil in the UK
|Qty||Normal price||Discounted price|
|Free delivery on 6 bottles or more|
Retail Price £11.90 SALE Only £9.99
Essential oil Pure EPA is available exclusively from mind 1st. Mind1st Information Line: 01772 877925 | <urn:uuid:49231176-f1ae-4aae-b449-9d159a867b3e> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.mind1st.co.uk/fish-oil-supplement/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570767.11/warc/CC-MAIN-20220808061828-20220808091828-00466.warc.gz | en | 0.95012 | 684 | 2.125 | 2 |
Trautson Palace (Museumstraße, 7th district of Vienna)
Trautson, noble family originally from the Tyrol. They became barons (von Sprechenstein) in 1541, counts (von Falkenstein) in 1598 and imperial princes in 1711. The male line of the family died out in 1780; their estates fell to the Auersperg family. Prominent members of the T. family included Prince Johann Joseph Trautson, Prince Johann Leopold Donat Trautson, Count Paul Sixt I Trautson and Count Paul Sixt II Trautson.
T. Palace in the 7th district of Vienna was built by J. B. Fischer von Erlach and from 1760-1918 it housed the Hungarian guard; since 1961 it has housed the Federal Ministry of Justice).
Literature: F. Hadriga, Die T. Paladine Habsburgs, 1996. | <urn:uuid:de9066d0-fc03-48a3-be7f-685a5eb095ac> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.aeiou.at/aeiou.encyclop.t/t721973.htm;internal&action=_setlanguage.action?LANGUAGE=en | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560282140.72/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095122-00129-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.916329 | 199 | 2.734375 | 3 |
Sales Have Ended
Sales Have Ended
Give and Get: making good ideas happen is a house event for people with projects. It’s a place to eat together, seek and offer ideas, support and new connections in a fun and friendly environment.
Want some help moving forward? Yours could be a business project. Could be a personal project. An art project. Could be a community project. It's something you want to accomplish. It just has to be something you’re PASSIONATE about.
It’s free. No membership required. And it’s facilitated by a leadership and career coach, mentors and a facilitator who want to help make your great ideas happen!
Here's what we believe:
1. An unexpected mix of great people can propel your project forward.
2. Everyone has something to offer.
You will have an opportunity to tell us about your project and your 'ask' of the group when you register. Here, then, are some examples of good 'asks'. Be sure to consider these examples when you register:
Ask: “Who here knows anyone who wants to buy lampshades?”
Better Ask: “Does anyone know any places I can go to find people who are decorating their houses?”
Ask: “I’m looking for someone to be on my board of directors?”
Better Ask: “Does anyone know of someone on a board that I can talk with to learn how they were recruited and what they were hoping to gain?”
Ask: “How can I take my project to the next level?”
Better Ask: “How can I get my project to have a greater impact by having more participants at my events?”
Here are a few Frequently Asked Questions:
What is the cost?
It is free. Please bring a small and easy-to-eat food to share with others.
What kind of project?
One that inspires you. It could be a business, hobby, community, philanthropic or some other project.
When do we tell you about our project and our 'ask' of the group?
When you register. The questions will pop up.
What’s the time commitment?
3 hours, 6-9pm
Isn't that dinner time?
Yes, we ask that everyone bring easy finger food for the group to eat. We will be eating and socializing first and then getting down to a facilitated experience.
You start at 6, can I come late?
We start by getting to know each other and eating together so you don't want to miss the time we dedicate for this.
Is this an ongoing monthly gathering that I can attend?
We hold events monthly with new participants every month.
Does that mean I can only come once?
Not exactly. We want to give many people the opportunity to participate. You are invited to register again with a new ask every 3 months.
How many people from my project can come?
Only one at a time, but tell your project partners to register for an upcoming event. We always have more than 1 Give and Get open for registration at a time.
Can I bring all my friends?
Actually, this works best when you don't know more than 1 person in the gathering so you can get NEW insights and connections from the people who are here.
Where does it take place?
In the neighbourhood of Pape and Danforth in Toronto. We will give you the address once you are registered.
What is the setting?
Indoors of a house; a fabulous shaded backyard when it’s warm.
A few recent Asks:
What events can we organize so that the new name of our hospital sticks in the community?
What influencers do you know to make my Riverdale urban project happen?
Where can I get more volunteers for my project in Nicaragua?
What do I need to consider when I recruit and select a researcher for my civic engagement project?
We love our guests, and they love Giving and Getting. Here are some of the comments from past Give and Getters:
"Cool ideas from cool people."
"I got far more than I thought I would."
"It's great to be able to meet people outside my own circles and get their suggestions."
"My workplace is a bubble, and I wanted to hear new opinions and views."
"My own project community was thrilled with the new contacts I brought back to them."
"I got a fresh perspective!"
"Loved, loved, loved it!"
Note: We have the right to reject a project that we consider to be harmful or offensive. | <urn:uuid:3f91f487-78f3-4038-8ab5-f18aa87cd27d> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/give-and-get-making-good-ideas-happen-tickets-27214364898 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988718285.69/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183838-00107-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954305 | 978 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Slow rates of coal-to-methane conversion limit biogenic methane production from coalbeds. This study demonstrates that rates of coal-to-methane conversion can be increased by the addition of small amounts of organic amendments. Algae, cyanobacteria, yeast cells, and granulated yeast extract were tested at two concentrations (0.1 and 0.5 g/L), and similar increases in total methane produced and methane production rates were observed for all amendments at a given concentration. In 0.1 g/L amended systems, the amount of carbon converted to methane minus the amount produced in coal only systems exceeded the amount of carbon added in the form of amendment, suggesting enhanced coal-to-methane conversion through amendment addition. The amount of methane produced in the 0.5 g/L amended systems did not exceed the amount of carbon added. While the archaeal communities did not vary significantly, the bacterial populations appeared to be strongly influenced by the presence of coal when 0.1 g/L of amendment was added; at an amendment concentration of 0.5 g/L the bacterial community composition appeared to be affected most strongly by the amendment type. Overall, the results suggest that small amounts of amendment are not only sufficient but possibly advantageous if faster in situcoal-to-methane production is to be promoted.
|Publication Subtype||Journal Article|
|Title||Type and amount of organic amendments affect enhanced biogenic methane production from coal and microbial community structure|
|Contributing office(s)||WY-MT Water Science Center|
|Google Analytic Metrics||Metrics page| | <urn:uuid:526465d8-8b79-4d8e-b822-8c5bb0445e44> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/70195967 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573172.64/warc/CC-MAIN-20220818063910-20220818093910-00277.warc.gz | en | 0.921074 | 421 | 2.515625 | 3 |
The ESTER project has been designed to meet the needs of European skills trainers and VET organisations. Recent European statistics highlight an unacceptable workplace fatality rate associated with skilled operations undertaken in the agriculture and forestry sectors of industry. The ESTER project will focus on key high-risk activities within those sectors.
For example, falls from a height and machinery crush injuries are well-known risks which can be better prevented through quality training provision. Partners aim to build upon the successful work of previous projects which developed, for example the European Chainsaw Certificate (ECC), with an aim to provide a recognised European skills trainer qualification.
In order to enhance training delivery, the ESTER project aims to facilitate best practice & high-quality instruction standards & techniques amongst VET providers and skills trainers of courses across Europe and beyond, exchanging knowledge, training innovations and expertise in the process leading to safer trainers and trainees.
The ultimate project goal and key needs are as follows:
1. Develop an innovative formal standardised European skills trainer qualification, registration and CPD process
2. Develop innovative training materials for the benefit of trainers and trainees
3. Reduce workplace fatality, incident rates and associated economic and personal costs within specific sectors of agriculture and forestry
Achieving the key needs requires the following objectives to be met:
1. Develop innovative European occupational standards for skills trainers in train the trainer (TTT)
2. Improve transparency and recognition of trainer skills via innovative European qualifications accredited by ABA International
3. Enhance trainer mobility and employability throughout Europe
4. Encourage and promote life-long learning and continuous professional development of registered European trainers
The project team is a highly experienced and motivated partnership of industry and training specialists with a desire to improve training standards for the benefit of skilled operator safety in the sectors outlined.
The project life-cycle includes a number of tasks required to achieve the needs and objectives. These include for example:
• Industry consultations
• Seminar presentations
• Training the trainer events
• Trainer upskilling and best practice events
• Development of a European Trainer Skills Register-ESTER
• Continuous project dissemination
• International certification events
• Production of new European training guidance materials
The project will be undertaken in the following 3 stages:
Stage 1: (Start-Up)
Project management meetings: task lists, dissemination plans etc.
Train the trainer meetings: upskilling, sharing best practice etc.
Develop training standards
Undertake project promotional activities
Stage 2: (Implementation)
Follow-up project management meetings:
Train the trainer meetings: skills consolidation, practice new techniques, pilot test new qualifications etc.
Develop new VET training materials
Stage 3: (Certification)
Live test new European certifications in partner countries
Finalise new VET trainer and trainee training materials
Continued analysis, dissemination and enhancement of project products and goals
Project Impact and Long Term Benefits:
The project will achieve its objectives including new training innovations in the sectors identified in VET skills safety at the European level. The key results will include:
1. Establishment of new European skills register and trainer qualifications
2. Development of innovative training materials and resources
3. Facilitating EU trainer continuing professional development and mobility
4. High quality training provision supporting a reduction of EU accidents and fatalities in agricultural and forestry activities with the support of ABA International | <urn:uuid:f35ca837-a21b-409a-a0c1-5277e5e39df2> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | http://ester.project.iccesal.com/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571745.28/warc/CC-MAIN-20220812170436-20220812200436-00475.warc.gz | en | 0.892812 | 699 | 2.0625 | 2 |
Chinese state media once again floated the prospect of international lawsuits against the United States for supposedly being responsible for the HIV/AIDS epidemic in a column Thursday, adding the 2008 financial crisis and the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic to the list.
The Global Times and People’s Daily, two of the most prominent Chinese Communist Party English-language mouthpieces, have repeatedly responded to lawsuits against Beijing for actions it took that exacerbated the Chinese coronavirus pandemic with threats of similar lawsuits against the United States. Two American states, Missouri and Mississippi, have filed lawsuits against the Chinese Communist Party in U.S. court for its attempts to hide the outbreak when it began in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.
In the early days of the outbreak in January, Chinese officials arrested doctors and others sharing information on containing infectious diseases, claimed the virus was not transmissible from human to human, and pressured other countries not to limit travel across their borders from China, directly contributing to the severity of the pandemic.
Calling global outrage over the Communist Party’s behavior “bald-faced political blackmail,” the Global Times asserted that “China is never the one to be blamed” over any global woes related to the Chinese coronavirus. Instead, it identified the “arrogance of some American politicians” as the true source of humanity’s misfortune. Noting that several American states have sued the Communist Party for its role in the pandemic, the column – signed by Zhong Sheng, a pseudonym for the staff of the People’s Daily – warned that the collapse of sovereign immunity that such lawsuits would represent could result in a tidal wave of litigation against America:
Under the logic of some American politicians, the U.S. is the one to be held accountable and it should compensate the international society, for the Spanish Flu, AIDS and other epidemics, the 2008 international financial crisis which led to the collapse of countless enterprises and individuals, and the wars launched against other countries the over the years which have caused millions of innocent civilian casualties and numerous property losses.
Sovereign immunity is an international law policy that largely exempts states from litigation in domestic court systems. States can sue each other in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) – where individual persons cannot lodge complains – to prevent state actors from avoiding justice. There are exemptions to sovereign immunity, however. Most recently, the U.S. Congress passed a law in 2016 allowing American individuals to sue the government of Saudi Arabia in court for damages related to the jihadist attacks on September 11, 2001.
Lawmakers in Congress, led by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), are reportedly working on similar legislation to allow lawsuits against China.
“There is overwhelming evidence that the Chinese Communist Party’s lies, deceit, and incompetence caused COVID-19 to transform from a local disease outbreak into a global pandemic,” Hawley said in a statement announcing his Justice for Victims of COVID-19 Act, which would carve out a sovereign immunity exception for China. “We need an international investigation to learn the full extent of the damage the CCP has inflicted on the world and then we need to empower Americans and other victims around the world to recover damages. The CCP unleashed this pandemic. They must be held accountable to their victims.”
While the bill moves through Congress, prosecutors in Missouri are suing the Communist Party itself and arguing that it is a separate entity from the state of the People’s Republic of China.
“On information and belief, the Communist Party is not an organ or political subdivision of the PRC, nor is it owned by the PRC or a political subdivision of the PRC, and thus it is not protected by sovereign immunity,” the lawsuit stated.
The Zhong Sheng opinion piece published Thursday is not the first time that Chinese state media made the bizarre claim that America was responsible for the HIV/AIDS outbreak of the 1980s.
“If the U.S. really acts that way, it would open a Pandora’s box and result in the collapse of the world’s sovereignty immunity system. It would mean anyone could sue the U.S. government in their own countries – an AIDS patient could sue it for compensation, for example,” the Global Times suggested in April. “The execution of such a ruling could only be carried out by forcibly depriving the defendant countries of their overseas property, which would lead to tit-for-tat retaliation and drag the world into chaos.”
Elsewhere, the People’s Daily railed against the United States to begin listening to the “civilized world,” by which it meant China and its communist allies, and stop pointing out facts about the Wuhan outbreak that are inconvenient for the Party. The newspaper called the lawsuits in America against China a “shame for human civilization” and “an affront to international law and justice.”
The People’s Daily did not mention similar lawsuits all around the world, in countries such as Egypt, Nigeria, and Italy. | <urn:uuid:9fadac6b-af0b-4336-8cec-b90b936c30f7> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.254breakingnews.com/china-if-we-have-to-pay-for-coronavirus-u-s-has-to-pay-for-aids-2008-financial-crisis/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571222.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20220810222056-20220811012056-00676.warc.gz | en | 0.952949 | 1,055 | 2.078125 | 2 |
Книгу можно купить в интернет-магазинах:
· OZON.ru 7702р. [Проверить наличие]
ISBN: 3540009787Издательство: Springer
Год издания: 2003
Book Description"Provides an excellent introduction for physicists interested in the statistical properties of financial markets... basic financial terms such as shorts, limit orders, puts, calls, and other terms are clearly defined... an excellent starting point for the interested physicist." PHYSICS TODAYThis introductory treatment describes parallels between statistical physics and finance, both long established and new research results on capital markets. Forming the core of Voit's treatment are the concepts of random walks, scaling of data, and risk control. Voit discusses the underlying assumptions using empirical financial data and analogies to physical models such as fluid flows and turbulence. He formulates theories of derivative pricing and risk control, and shows how computer simulations of markets provide insights into price fluctuations and how crashes are modelled in ways analogous to phase transitions. This corrected edition has been updated with several new... | <urn:uuid:97a40db5-2d30-43f4-82a0-90f1b0a33ad4> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.libring.ru/books/78746 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280504.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00138-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.814443 | 287 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Since 2010 I’ve been using the Stanford YouTube channel as way to share exceptional student work to a wider audience. All the videos you find here are the work of our GSB students who have agreed to have their work shared at no cost. I’ve curated two libraries (or playlists) which I hope you will enjoy!
Make Body Language Your Superpower
LOWKeynotes provides students the opportunity to develop and practice a nine-minute ‘keynote-style’ presentation on an idea they believe is inline with the school’s mission – to change lives, organizations and the world (L.O.W).
Students have the chance to grapple with some of the challenges that leaders face as communicators, as well as what it takes to go from being a good presenter to an effective leader. They deliver their final presentation to an audience of their peers, faculty and staff.
GSB Communication Lessons Collection
GSB Communication Lessons Collection includes team presentations on a specific communication topic from the Strategic Communication course at Stanford Graduate School of Business. Students present topics to help others develop their own communication skills. | <urn:uuid:2f33db26-a6a6-48b7-b984-e042db853bce> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://jdschramm.com/resource-hub/student-videos-2/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571993.68/warc/CC-MAIN-20220814022847-20220814052847-00678.warc.gz | en | 0.94493 | 242 | 1.5 | 2 |
Study finds male adolescents label girls who sext and girls who don't
If you’re asking an adolescent boy, a teenage girl is “insecure” or “slutty” if she sexts and “stuck up” or “a prude” if she doesn’t.
A study published on Jun. 6 in the Journal of Children and Media, appropriately titled “Damned If You Do, Damned If You Don’t … If You’re a Girl,” found that although both male and female adolescents send sexts, teenage girls’ behavior is labeled regardless of whether they sext or not. The discovery was made after University of Michigan researchers Julia Lippman and Scott Campbell distributed open-ended questonnaires to 51 adolescents aged 12-18 inquiring about participants’ sexting practices and thoughts on their peers who engage in sexting.
The study defined sexting as “the transmission via electronic means of sexually provocative or explicit images or videos featuring someone known to the sender and/or receiver.”
“The most striking finding with regard to gender was the extent to which girls, but not boys, were judged for their sexting practices,” the study says. “According to these accounts, then, girls who send sexts are—to use some of our male participants’ words—crazy, insecure, attention-seeking sluts with poor judgment.”
Lippman and Campbell ultimately sorted judgments on girls’ sexting practices into three groups: negative opinions of girls who sext, negative opinions of girls who don’t sext, and opinions that only certain “types” of girls sext.
Most participants who made negative judgments were male, the study says. One 18-year-old male participant wrote: “This is common only for girls with ‘slut’ reputations. They do it to attract attention … [it’s inappropriate, but] it’s the fault of the girl who sent them. That she is being seen like that.”
The researchers emphasized that the boys were quick to pass negative judgments on girls who sext, failing to understand that a variety of factors, such as the boys themselves, influence a teenage girl’s decision of whether to sext or not. Girls, on the other hand, explained that they are sometimes pressured into sexting. A 16-year-old wrote: “My boyfriend or someone I really liked asked for them. And I felt like if I didn’t do it, they wouldn’t continue to talk to me.” | <urn:uuid:bdfb1db0-7e6e-4825-b884-ec2a2ed7003f> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://time.com/2897003/teenage-girls-sexting/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280292.50/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00339-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951586 | 569 | 1.914063 | 2 |
When Palm Beach County voters cast their ballots today for president and a bevy of other offices and issues, a majority will walk by schoolchildren, preachers, card players or firefighters.
But for a few, a trip to vote could lead them down a slightly different path.
For example, residents of Boca Raton might see turtles, native plants and trees by casting a ballot at Gumbo Limbo Nature Center along State Road A1A.
In Lake Worth some voters will slide by shuffleboard courts, although they should not fear being struck by a player`s disk. ``None of the shufflers will be permitted,`` said a recreation worker.
Other offbeat polling locations include dockside in West Palm Beach; a Riviera Beach couple`s neighborhood garage; and shopping malls, including Cross County, Delray Beach and Boca Raton.
Just how does the elections office go about picking a voting site?
``Preferably it should be in the precinct,`` said Betty Carr, polling location coordinator for the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office.
``It should have sufficient space, adequate parking, handicapped accessibility, access to a telephone and normally good lighting and ventilation,`` Carr said. ``Air conditioning, if possible.``
Some site are requested but not always available because of other activities, Carr said.
``But we are always on the lookout for good polling sites and entertain suggestions voters may have -- after the election,`` Carr said on Monday.
``We are still a growing county, so this is an ongoing task to find polling locations,`` she said. There are 295 precincts at about 250 sites. Ten years ago, there were 165 precincts. | <urn:uuid:12fb965d-8c06-459e-9520-93023a683e41> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1988-11-08/news/8803050327_1_polling-sites-polling-locations-precinct | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280483.83/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00291-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93947 | 347 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Go with the flow
Typeworkshop on liquid typography
In the one of the rainiest cities on earth, you can be the master of liquids. Show the impossible. Make letters out of liquid. Liquid can be anything, rainwater, oil, milk, paint or whatever. But liquid is fluctuating. So your letters will have to move as well. Impossible? Not at all, you just have to surrender for 5 hours, set yourself free, and make the most amazing lettering you ever did.
ps. If you have a digital camera and a tripod, bring it along. If you have a laptop, take it as well. | <urn:uuid:45e68c8f-a097-407d-9f62-6328c7d68ce4> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.typeworkshop.com/index.php?id1=Bergen_09_2008&id2=assignment | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560283689.98/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095123-00348-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.941927 | 132 | 1.585938 | 2 |
I have been teaching English to the Japanese people for three years. My approach to teaching is focus on developing conversation skill, grammar, pronunciation, reading, writing and building confidence. I provide customize approach to teaching as per student's requirement. I use following books to teach depending on the need of students.
1. Cambridge Interchange
2. Essential Grammar in use
3. Talk, Talk, Talk Speaking Practice Text Book
4. American Start with English Work Book
5. English Time Work Book
I provide lesson notes via LINE, email or Skype.
I have also worked for European organizations where I had to use English extensively for conversation, writing reports, emails, presentations etc. So lets start learning English!! Please do contact me. | <urn:uuid:c5e884ba-6219-4cf3-9a21-6bfc40da6999> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.my-sensei.com/student/main/show_profile_ja.php?id=t0014841258 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280483.83/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00291-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.941568 | 151 | 1.625 | 2 |
Catastrophic and erosive infections may threaten flock health
The Annual Southern Conference of Avian Diseases, a component of the
International Poultry Scientific Forum in Atlanta, presented items of interest
to producers worldwide. Research workers from land grant universities, federal
laboratories and biologics manufacturers discussed aspects of both catastrophic
and erosive infections that either occur or threaten the health of
This article can also be found at World Poultry Volume 18 number 3. To view the article online simply click on the link below.
Keywords: poultry health, conference, infections, research
To comment, login here
Or register to be able to comment. | <urn:uuid:9dc1d7d7-9184-45d6-a3f9-a08b4cb56387> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.worldpoultry.net/Broilers/Health/2002/3/Catastrophic-and-erosive-infections-may-threaten-flock-health-WP006268W/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988718285.69/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183838-00107-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.81192 | 135 | 1.773438 | 2 |
Can you keep a pine snake as a pet?
Can you keep a pine snake as a pet?
Over all, the pine snake will make an excellent, easily maintained captive, but pine snakes are not for everyone. These large animals have a serious appetite and require a lot of room to move around. They can be rather aggressive and extremely messy.
How long do northern pine snake live?
There is very little information available regarding the lifespan of northern pine snakes. Pine snakes, in general, have a long lifespan and can live for up to 20 years in captivity.
What does a pine snake eat?
Pine snakes eat rodents, other small mammals, birds and bird eggs. Young snakes eat small mammals, lizards and insects. Pine snakes reach sexual maturity at about 3 years old and will then breed once per year.
Are northern pine snakes poisonous?
The pine snake or pinesnake (Pituophis melanoleucus) is a fairly large non-venomous and harmless colubrid species found mainly in the southeastern part of the U.S., although their range is not continuous.
How many pine snakes are left?
With around 200 individuals estimated to be left in the wild, Louisiana pine snakes (Pituophis ruthveni) are classified as endangered by the IUCN.
Are Bullsnakes good pets?
Bull snakes (also called bullsnake) are large powerful constrictors that can overcome several prey items simultaneously. They make fine pets once they are accustomed to being handled, but they can and will bite. Bull snakes have lived for nearly 30 years as captives. …
Why is it called a pine snake?
Northern Pinesnake Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus
|Common Name:||Northern Pinesnake|
|Genus:||Pituophis is derived from the Greek words pitys which means “pine” and ophios meaning “serpent”.|
|Species:||melanoleucus is derived from the Greek words melanos which means “black” and leukos meaning “white”.|
What is the rarest snake in North America?
Restricted to longleaf pine habitat in just a few isolated locations in western Louisiana and eastern Texas, the Louisiana pine snake has experienced widespread population declines over the past century and is now considered to be the rarest snake in the United States.
What type snake lays eggs?
The most popular pet snakes that lay eggs are: Ball Pythons. Corn Snakes. Kingsnakes….Viviparous and Ovoviviparous Snakes.
|Viviparous snakes||Ovoviviparous snakes|
Do bull snakes like to be held?
Bullsnakes (Pituophis catenifer sayi) are very easy to keep in captivity, especially if they are from captive-bred stock. If you follow a few simple husbandry techniques, these large members of the colubrid family can be rewarding and enjoyable to keep.
Do bull snakes stink?
General Snake Smell Clean snakes have very little — if any — odor. Lacking hair, feathers or dander, and shedding their skin in a punctuated, periodic manner, snakes do not produce smelly detritus like mammals and birds do.
Is it OK to feed a snake pine shavings?
Your Corn Snake can ingest these while eating and wind up with an intestinal blockage. Pine or cedar shavings are found in many pet stores but should not be used as their oils are toxic to snakes. Whatever substrate you choose, make sure it is kept clean.
What kind of snakes live in Pine Barrens?
In the New Jersey Pine Barrens Corn Snakes supplement their mouse diet with Eastern Fence Lizards. In the wild Corn Snakes have brown, orange, golden yellow, red and black patterns on their back and sides. In the pet trade Corn Snakes come in several hundred different pattern and color variations. Corn Snake pattern morphs include:
What should I do with my corn snake?
Corn Snakes will soak while in shed or for relaxation. Make sure your Corn Snake always has clean water – especially since they sometimes use their water dish as a toilet! Unless you are breeding your Corn Snakes, they should each be kept in individual cages.
How long can a corn snake live in a cage?
Corn Snakes don’t have a lot of specialized requirements. You don’t need expensive reptile foggers, UV lights or anything fancier than a clean cage and a steady supply of mice. With good care and a proper diet, your Corn Snake can live over 20 years in captivity. This article introduces you to one of America’s most beautiful snakes.
Can you keep a pine snake as a pet? Over all, the pine snake will make an excellent, easily maintained captive, but pine snakes are not for everyone. These large animals have a serious appetite and require a lot of room to move around. They can be rather aggressive and extremely messy. How long do… | <urn:uuid:2964cb3b-f35d-4f6a-8bd3-d08d23eb3f6a> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://bridgitmendlermusic.com/can-you-keep-a-pine-snake-as-a-pet/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572908.71/warc/CC-MAIN-20220817122626-20220817152626-00075.warc.gz | en | 0.932551 | 1,091 | 2.875 | 3 |
The Ombudsman's Role in a dispute Resolution System
Among the alternative dispute resolution procedures in the American legal system stands Institute of the Ombudsman. This institution is well known and has its own niche in the international legal theory. It is a generalized notion of a special service, or position of the person who deals with complaints of citizens and resolves conflicts in public administration system. Traditionally the Ombudsman deals with constitutional and administrative law, but in the USA the institution is also considered to be an element not only of public but also a private law now. According to public relations, the Ombudsman is one of the non-judicial forms of democratic control over the executive authorities in order to protect the rights of citizens from arbitrary action by officials. In private law sense, the Ombudsman is understood as a special form of settlement of disputes in various spheres.
The term "ombudsman" (ombuds or omdudsperson) came from Scandinavia and was originally translated as "parliamentary commissioner". But later, due to inadequacy of translation, has been borrowed totally (Rowat. p.2). The official founder of the Ombudsman is Sweden (1809), but later the idea of an ombudsman was spread throughout the world.
The borrowed Scandinavian model, took its own way of further development and differentiation in the U.S. The establishment of an ombudsman in the United States got an active public support.
To ensure interaction between ombudsmen offices around the country, sharing experiences, in educational and scientific purposes there was formed The United States Association of Ombudsman in 1977. The first result of its work was the creation of standards of the classical Ombudsman. According to them, the Ombudsman is an office or service or an independent person authorized to review citizens' complaints against governmental agencies or officials, to investigate, publish the results and make recommendations as to elimination of violations (Guillot. P. 177).
The introduction of the classical ombudsman in the U.S. was accompanied by its gradual transformation. Nowadays, the classical idea of an ombudsman has lost its popularity in the United States, but there are appearing new services which are called kvaziombudsmen. They to some extent remain similar to the classical Ombudsman, but at the same time have their own characteristics.
The closest to the classical type is an executive ombudsman. His duties are to monitor the activities of the administration of state, district or city in general or of some specific spheres of its activity: correctional institutions, health care, education, business, etc.
In addition to public-law relations, kvaziombudsmen is spread in the private sphere of legal regulation. Its varieties are so-called corporate or organizational ombudsmen.
Organizational ombudsmen are created in various institutions, corporations. They represent the internal structural unit installed in order to settlement organizational conflicts, particularly between the employer and employees, between administrators and subordinates, between employees.
The concept of corporate ombudsman has developed in parallel with the U.S. private system of alternative dispute resolution and under the influence of the increasing bureaucratization of management within corporations. The organizational ombudsman is understood as a mean of alternative dispute resolution with substantial specificity.
The specific feature of corporate ombudsman is that it should balance between independence and cooperation, take into account the interests of both parties and, therefore, to know the essence and not only the nature of individual conflicts, but also be well aware of the specifics and dynamics of organizational data management structures. Thus, the ombudsman at the company operates as a professional in conflict resolution and as a specialist in organizational management (Waxman. p.22).
The advantages of such a transformed institution of the Ombudsman consist in the fact that it represents a certain compromise, corresponding to the interests of the corporation and its employees. For the company it means: the possibility of self-regulation, self-correction of internal activities; identification of those areas that produce more conflicts, problems, complaints; recommendations for resolving and preventing the conflicts. The role of ombudsman is significant, because his activities eliminate the possible lawsuits, "does not wash dirty linen in public" and save the business reputation of a company. For employees the institute of ombudsman is also important, because it provides an opportunity to make complaints, statements, offers not the administration, but to an independent, neutral person who has the power to investigate and give recommendations to the appropriate officials to resolve conflicts.
Due to the advantages the corporate office of the Ombudsman now operates approximately 500 major American corporations. Among them: General Electric, Control Data, Federal Express, IBM, American Ortical Company, AT & T, Information Systems, Bank of America, Washington Post and many others (Rowe. p.53).
Usually, the corporate ombudsman is established in two main forms: to resolve internal conflicts, with the participation of workers and managerial staff of the organization and to resolve external disputes involving consumers (customers or clients).
Thus, the institution of ombudsman has a rather broad scope. With the help of it, all disputes arising out of administrative, civil, labor and other legal relations are resolved. The main task of the Ombudsman is to prevent lawsuits. According to statistics, on average, the Ombudsman solves 200-300 cases per year (Marty. p.2).
There are a number of common features that characterize the internal system for resolving differences with the help of ombudsmena. So, the office of the Ombudsman is a formal structure that occupies a definite place and is accepted by all members of the organization, because it is supported by senior management. Ombudsman serves as a source of information for the management of emerging problems and conflicts at all levels of organizational management. It provides the necessary evidence for correcting deficiencies and irregularities in the work. It also promotes the experience of the world conflict resolution among members of the organization. The ombudsman service is accessible for any member of the organization, regardless of the nature of the work or the level of the position, because it is suitable for solving problems of any kind. The service is an alternative and does not preclude the use of judicial or other forms of non-judicial dispute settlement procedures. It provides a solution of the conflict through a neutral third person who has the right entry into the structure of any level and has an experience of negotiating. One of the main qualities of ombudsman is that his work guarantees the individual a confidential settlement of the conflict.
The peculiarity of the Ombudsman in organizations is the informality of his activities. Settlement of the dispute is determined by the Ombudsman in each case and has no procedural rules. It is specific for each case.
An appeal to the Ombudsman should be based on the application. After that the ombudsman starts an investigation. According to the results of the investigation the Ombudsman makes recommendations to resolve the dispute, or lobbying for a definite decision to change the overall policies of the firm management.
One another kind of American ombudsman service deserves attention. This service is created in universities and is called The University of Campus Ombudsman.
The university ombudsmen were established in late 1960 in response to the massive student unrest and protests against the bureaucratization of the university administration and weaknesses in higher education. Originally the offices of ombudsmen intended to work with complaints of students, protecting their rights and improve conditions for obtaining higher education. It serves for resolving the misunderstanding conflicts not only with students but also with the participation of faculty and staff. Such a big system as the university has an infinite number of internal conflicts. Ombudsman in the system is a safe mechanism to combat the problems (Rowat. p. 156).
This position of ombudsman is well paid and occupied by a specialist who is knowledgeable in university affairs and focused on the peaceful settlement of conflicts.
The specificity of the development of Ombudsman services in the United States, the existence of its various forms, the diversity of practices have led to the need of uniformity of this institution, a common understanding of its essence. In 1999, the American Bar Association has formed subcommittees to develop national scale parameters for the Ombudsman. As a result of its work the ombudsman was defined as an independent, impartial person who holds a senior position, who is authorized to receive and confidentially investigate complaints and statements that are related to rights violations or misconduct by the Administration, officials or others. Based on received complaints, statements or own initiative, the Ombudsman investigates and studies the case and takes action to resolve specific differences or makes recommendations for solving the broader issues (Gadlin. pp. 45-48).
American Experience of the Ombudsman shows that ombudsman plays a significant role in modern society and that this institution can be used not only as a democratic form of non-judicial control over the activities of government organizations, but also as an alternative mean of conflict resolution, that helps to prevent legal conflicts, reduce the number of appeals to the courts, as well as to solving intra-corporate non-legal issues: the institutional, technical, social, psychological.
Gadlin, H. The Ombudsman: What's in a Name // Negotiation Journal. January 2000. Vol. 16. № 1. pp. 45—48.
Guillot, B. The United States Association of Ombudsman // International Handbook of the Ombudsman: Country Surveys. Greenwood Press. V. 1. 1983. p. 177.
1 Rowat, D. The Ombudsman Plan. McClelland and Stewart Limited. 1973. p.2.
Marty, C., Carman, V. McDonell Douglas Corporation // Ohio State Journal on Dispute Resolution. 1997. Westlaw. Law Reviews. Bar Journals and Legal Periodicals. p. 2.
Rowe, M. The Ombudsman's Role in a Dispute Resolution System // Negotiation Journal. October. 1991. № 7. P. 353; Stieber C. 57 Varieties: Has the Ombudsman Concept Become Diluted? // Negotiation Journal. January 2000. Vol. 16. № 1. p. 53.
Rowat, D., Wallace, G. The Campus Ombudsman in North America / International Handbook of the Ombudsman: Country Surveys. Greenwood Press. V. 1. 1983. p. 156.
Waxman, E., Gadlin, H. An Ombudsman Serveys as a Buffer Between and Among Individuals and Large Institutions // Dispute Resolution Magazine. Summer 1998. p. 22. | <urn:uuid:e128cbdd-17c3-4d9e-b3a4-3676a63a1b98> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.ukessays.co.uk/essays/law/dispute-resolution-system.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280483.83/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00294-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942756 | 2,149 | 3.328125 | 3 |
Peach Iced tea from Olive Kitchen and bar. It was an Instagram event where I gone.
I am more of a coffee person but I absolutely love Iced Teas and Tisanes. I am sure you know the difference between Tisane and tea. Tisanes are fruits or herbs steeped in boiling water (no actual tea leaves, Camellia sinensis, are included).
These Iced tea here are made with either Darjeeling Tea or CTC Assam black tea. These aren’t Tisanes. Have I confused you ? :p
Maybe it is time to have some delicious Iced Teas. The good thing about making Iced Teas at home is the freshness and the purity. No artificial flavors, coloring or high sugar content. They are better than the soft drinks and packaged commercial beverages. So infuse your teas with whatever seasonal herbs/spice or fruit you like and drink it fresh.
These recipes have a Indian touch to them. I have tried to create some unique tastes so feel free to change the measures as per your taste.
First the basic Iced tea – You can either make a cold brew or a hot brew and chill it. I prefer to chill a hot brew for it is quicker.
Always add boiling water to the tea leaves and not the opposite, that is the thumb rule. Always prefer more leaves to make the tea stronger than to let it seep for long time. This will make the tea bitter. Cool the tea on counter before refrigerating otherwise it will cloud and won’t look so presentable. Always use double the quantity of tea leaves for iced teas from what you would use for hot tea. Darjeeling tea needs to be cooled quickly or else the flavor substances in the tea will get oxidized. Loose tea leaves are the best. Most of the teabags are synthetic. Tea leaves also makes a full flavor brew so go for them, invest in good tea. Use minimum sugar/honey etc. but that is personal. I don’t like my teas taste like a sugar syrup. 😛 Talking of sugar syrup, you can make some and use that instead of granules as it will dissolve nicely. Use honey for the best result and if you like it. Iced Tea brew can be kept in the fridge for two three days or frozen for using while travelling.
Basic tea recipe – Keeping the points above in mind, put the tea leaves of your choice in a heat resistance jug or kettle, pour boiling water over them and let them seep for the time required for that particular tea. Once the color and flavor is achieved, strain and cool it on the counter and chill in the fridge. Now you are ready to make any of your favorite Iced Teas.
1. Refreshing Fruity Tart Kokum Infused Iced tea
Kokum/ amsul or fruit of Garcinia indica plant is sour in taste but full of health benefits. Kokum sharbat is part of my childhood and one of my favorites. Here we give a twist to classic Iced green tea with this lovely sun dried fruit.
To make this you will need:
- Sun Dried Kokum/Amsul Fruit Petals – 4-8 pieces
- Sugar – 1/2 Cup
- Water – 3 Cups
- Green Tea Loose – 8 teaspoons Or Green Tea Bags – 8
- Finely Chopped Fresh mint – 2 teaspoon
- Ginger Juice – 1 Teaspoon
- Lemon Wedges – 6-8
- Honey – As per taste and If not using Sugar
Properly rinse sun dried kokum and soak it in a cup of boiling hot water for 30 minutes.
Once the fruit is pulpy and soft mash and rub it with your fingers to release all the juice and strain it from a strainer. Press the pulp nicely so all the juice releases.
While the kokum is soaking finely chop washed fresh mint leaves, take out juice from fresh ginger and cut small lemon wedges.
In an ice cube tray place these three things in small amount and add water.
Freeze till ice cubes are formed. You can make these ice cubes in advance too or just mix the three ingredients in the Iced tea once made.
In a pot boil the water. In a pitcher place the tea bags or loose green tea leaves and pour the boiling water over it.
Cover and let it seep for 3-5 minutes.
Always use twice the amount of tea leaves when makes Iced Tea than you would for hot tea. Don’t seep it longer or the tea will taste bitter.
Remove the bags or strain the tea leaves once you get the desire color and flavor.
Add the sugar and stir well so it dissolves completely.
Let it sit on the counter till it cools then refrigerate, It will become cloudy if you keep warm tea in the fridge.
In a jug add the cold tea brew and kokum juice and mix. Check for sweetness and add more if you prefer sweet tea. I keep it mildly sweet.
Add the mint, ginger juice and lemon wedges if using directly and mix.
Fill the serving glasses with lemony gingery minty ice cubes and pour the kokum infused iced green tea.
Serve it fresh and chilled.
You can alternately Add some kokum pieces to the strained hot tea and let the fruity tart flavor get infused in the tea. Remove it before pouring in the Jug. 2. Add honey instead of sugar if you so desire. You can also use sugar syrup instead of granular sugar. It dissolves better. Use ready-made kokum sharbat concentrate if you do not have fresh or dried fruit. One teaspoon per glass is good enough.
2. Tangy Sweet Amm Panna or Raw Mango Panna Iced Tea
I love the mango nectar iced tea made with ripe mangoes but this one with raw mangoes is unique in taste. I made it with a mix of Darjeeling and CTC Assam black tea. Usually I leave a few chunks of slightly crushed raw mango slices in the jug and dont use lemon. Slightly ripe raw mango gives it another twist. Equally good. Needs little honey/sugar too.
- Tender Raw Mangoes – 2 small or 1 big
- Sugar – 1/2 cup or Honey as per taste
- Lemon wedges – 4-5 ( Optional)
- Raw mango slices – 4-5 ( Optional)
- Fresh Mint Leaves – 8-10 crushed
- Darjeeling Tea leaves + CTC Assam Tea – 6 Heaped Teaspoon + 3 Flat Teaspoons
- Water – 3 Cups
- Ice Cubes | Crushed Ice – Made from 3 cups of water
Make ice from the three cups of water in advance.
Wash the mango and boil or roast it till soft. Cool and take out the pulp in a ceramic or glass bowl. Let it cool.
Once cool, put the pulp in blender and add sugar to it. Blend till a smooth texture is obtained. Take it out in a bowl. Mix crushed mint leaves and Refrigerate.
In a pot boil 3 cups of water. Once it begins to boil add CTC tea leaves and then turn off the flame to add the Darjeeling tea leaves. Cover and let it seep for 3-4 minutes.
Take out the ice and crush it properly. Place it in a pitcher and pour the thick tea brew to quicken the cooling process as Darjeeling tea changes in flavor and taste if allowed to cool on its own for a longer time.
Once the tea is cool put it in the fridge.
In a serving jug add the aam panna and top it with cold tea brew. Check for sweetness and add honey or sugar syrup if required. Tea should taste tangy so do not sweeten it too much.
Add more ice cubes to the glasses when ready to serve.
Garnish with lemon wedges/ raw mango slices and mint springs.
You can also roast the mango on direct flame of stove or preheated oven at 200 degree for 30 min depending on the size of the mango. Wrap it in aluminium foil and place on the rack. to get gorgeous roasted mangoes. You can use organic jaggery instead of sugar or honey. Just ensure that it dissolves nicely. You can make the aam panna concentrate beforehand and use when required. 6. A little ripe green raw mango will give a different flavor and it tastes awesome too.
3. Tipsy Fruit Infused Spiced Tea
Fruit infused spiced ice tea with cinnamon, Clove, ginger, lemon, mint, apple, orange, pomegranate, honey and almost frozen Darjeeling tea. This is a vodka Iced Tea cocktail for those who love a dash of alcohol. A match made in heaven.
- Darjeeling Tea Leaves – 12 Teaspoons
- Honey – To Taste
- Cloves – 5-6
- Cinnamon Stick – 2-3 inch broken in half
- Ginger – minced and peeled 1 tablespoon
- Lemon / Lime – cut in wheels/ wedges – 1 each
- Lemon juice – 2 tablespoon
- Orange – 1 medium cut in wedges or wheels
- Apple – 1 cut in wedges or wheels
- Mint – 1 teaspoon crushed
- Honey | Sugar – to taste or Sugar
- Pomegranate pearls – 1/2 cup slightly crushed
- Water – 4 cups + 2 Cup
- Vodka / Gin – 60ml
Add lemon juice and a little sugar ( two tablespoons) to 2 cups of water and freeze as ice cubes.
Wash and cut all the fruits and squeeze some lime juice over them. Refrigerate wrapped in a cling wrap.
Mince ginger and collect all the spices and tea leaves.
Boil the remaining water along with ginger and spices.
Once water comes to a boil add the Darjeeling tea leaves or any other tea leaves of your choice and seep according to the tea leaves. Darjeeling will take 3-4 minutes. Add more leaves to make a strong brew. Do not seep longer.
Once you get the desired flavor and color, strain the tea leaves, spices and ginger. Add sugar and stir to mix well. If using honey add it in the pitcher when ready to serve.
Immediately pour the tea on a cupful of crushed ice to hasten the cooling process so the flavor doesn’t get oxidized. Chill it for a while in the fridge.
Before serving, throw in the cold fruits and half of the lemony ice cubes in a pitcher and add the chilled tea
Add vodka / Gin ( you can increase the quantity if you desire but 60 – 90 ml is good enough) . Stir properly.
Now throw in the lemony ice cubes and some chilled fruits from the pitched in the glasses and pour the chilled Iced tea vodka brew.
Garnish with lemon wheels and mint springs.
You can use Green tea also for this recipe. Use any fruits or spices you like. Same with the alcohol. Omit Alcohol if you are not in a mood for a tipsy drink. Keep it simple and flavorful. Too many flavors will ruin the taste.
(This won the first prize in the Better Butter Summer Drinks Contest)
4. Iced Pomegranate Green Tea
With dash of ginger juice, lemon wedges and cold press fresh pom juice frozen as ice cubes to add some drama. Slightly sweetened with honey this is sheer bliss.
I often make ice cubes by placing, crushed mint or fruit pieces or lemon pieces in the ice tray and pour water to make ice cubes. They look pretty in the drinks. One can freeze juices too in the similar way. Maybe a separate post for that sometime.
Green Tea Bags – 8
Water – 6 cups
Honey – to taste
Pomegranate pearls – for ice cubes and garnish
Cold Press homemade Pom Juice – 1/2 cup
Fresh Ginger Juice – 2 tablespoon
Lemon Wedges – a few
- In a heat resistance jug or kettle place the teabags. Boil water and pour over the teabags. Cover the lid and Let it seep for 3-4 mintues or till the desired strength and color is achieved. Remove the Teabags and let it cool. You can alternately use Green tea leaves.
- Once the tea is cool, add honey and stir nicely then put the tea in the fridge to chill.
- Take a good ripe pomegranate, peal and take out the pearls in a bowl. Transfer the pearls to a zip lock bag and squeeze and press till the pearls release the juice. You can use the cold press juicer. Do not use the commercial poem juice.
- Strain the juice into a small jug or glass.
- Take out the chilled tea, mix ginger juice, lemon wedges and pom juice and stir well.
- In the glasses add lots of ice cubes or crushed ice and pour the Pomegranate Iced Tea over them and garnish with lemon wheel or wedge.
- Serve Chilled.
You can be more adventurous and make your own Iced Tea combinations using different things. Let me know if you make any of these. | <urn:uuid:60f4e645-ce77-4d40-8776-5d21954f3842> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://tikulicious.wordpress.com/tag/fruity-iced-tea/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573540.20/warc/CC-MAIN-20220819005802-20220819035802-00470.warc.gz | en | 0.869898 | 2,894 | 1.695313 | 2 |
(Medical Xpress)—An international team of bio-researchers has found that a mutant strain of the H5N1 influenza virus (created in a lab) has a 200-fold preference for binding with receptors in human cells, over those found in birds. In describing their research and conclusions in their paper published in the journal Nature, the researchers suggest that the mutant variant is much more like the strains of viruses that caused pandemics in 1918, 1957 and 2009, than it was in its native state.
In its native state, according to the CDC, the H5N1 flu virus is highly contagious and is especially deadly to birds. Fortunately, few people have contracted this strain of flu as it's quite deadly in people as well. Luckily, there have been very few cases of transmission of the virus between people, indicating that the protein the virus variant uses to bind to human cells is quite weak. That does not appear to be the case, however, for a mutant version of the virus created by Japanese scientists last year.
In that effort, the Japanese team mutated the hemagglutinin gene in a sample of H5N1 and then mixed it with genes from the H1N1 flu variant (the virus behind the 2009 swine flu pandemic). The hemagglutinin gene is responsible for causing the virus to create the proteins that allow for bonding to host cells. The purpose of the experiment was to create a virus that would be both deadly and highly contagious in humans, so that a means could be developed to defeat such a threat before it arose in the natural world.
In this new effort, the research team found that the proteins produced by the mutated version of the H5N1 held a 200-fold preference to bind with human cells over avian cells. This suggests, the researchers claim, that the mutated virus is much more like the viruses that caused earlier pandemics, and is thus much more of a threat to humans than the natural variant. The inference is that if H5N1 mixed (by having a single host become infected with both viruses at once) with other influenza viruses naturally, than there exists the possibility of a natural version of the mutant virus coming to exist and a very real threat to the health of humans across the globe.
The researchers are taking what they've learned about the H5N1 mutant and applying it to H7N9—a new flu variant that has to date killed over a hundred people in China.
Explore further: UN agency warns on mutant bird flu in China, Vietnam
More information: Receptor binding by a ferret-transmissible H5 avian influenza virus, Nature (2013) doi:10.1038/nature12144
Cell-surface-receptor binding by influenza viruses is a key determinant of their transmissibility, both from avian and animal species to humans as well as from human to human. Highly pathogenic avian H5N1 viruses that are a threat to public health have been observed to acquire affinity for human receptors, and transmissible-mutant-selection experiments have identified a virus that is transmissible in ferrets1, 2, 3, the generally accepted experimental model for influenza in humans. Here, our quantitative biophysical measurements of the receptor-binding properties of haemagglutinin (HA) from the transmissible mutant indicate a small increase in affinity for human receptor and a marked decrease in affinity for avian receptor. From analysis of virus and HA binding data we have derived an algorithm that predicts virus avidity from the affinity of individual HA–receptor interactions. It reveals that the transmissible-mutant virus has a 200-fold preference for binding human over avian receptors. The crystal structure of the transmissible-mutant HA in complex with receptor analogues shows that it has acquired the ability to bind human receptor in the same folded-back conformation as seen for HA from the 1918, 1957 (ref. 4), 1968 (ref. 5) and 2009 (ref. 6) pandemic viruses. This binding mode is substantially different from that by which non-transmissible wild-type H5 virus HA binds human receptor. The structure of the complex also explains how the change in preference from avian to human receptors arises from the Gln226Leu substitution, which facilitates binding to human receptor but restricts binding to avian receptor. Both features probably contribute to the acquisition of transmissibility by this mutant virus. | <urn:uuid:f46f2ab0-70f8-4c0b-8780-87c05aa020f0> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-mutant-version-h5n1-flu-virus.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280128.70/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00384-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958992 | 913 | 3.3125 | 3 |
Update 6 Jan 10: They've been released! Our four activists endured 20 days in a Copenhagen jail following a peaceful protest at the State Banquet for world leaders attending the UN climate summit. The four activists still face trial in the Danish courts, and possible prison sentences. You sent over 12,000 letters to the Danish Embassy in London during their detention - thank you so much for your support ensuring their release.
Four of our activists face the prospect of Christmas in jail this year over charges relating to a protest at the Heads of State dinner at the Copenhagen climate summit. But the leaders who did practically nothing about the greatest threat to our planet got away.
We're calling for the immediate release of our people, please help us by writing to the Danish Ambassador today.
The activists joined Heads of State from over 120 countries en route to the banquet at the Danish Parliament. Arriving in a three-vehicle convoy they stepped out onto the red carpet as representatives of the millions of people around the world who wanted a fair, ambitious and legally binding treaty to head-off climate catastrophe.
Holding up banners reading: "Politicians Talk, Leaders Act", the activists demanded action and not merely words from Presidents and Prime Ministers during their Friday session of the climate summit.
While the perpetrators of the real crime fled the country on private jets, it is shocking that the Danish authorities have decided to detain, without trial, four peaceful protesters over Christmas.
Their families will spend a bleak festive season knowing that their loved ones will be languishing in isolation for acting to save the climate. For standing up in defense of the hundreds of millions of people and countless species which will be severely affected by catastrophic climate change.
Three of the activists have children at home who will be missing a parent this Christmas. The activists - Juan Lopez de Uralde, Nora Christiansen and Chrigi - are the climate heroes who brought home to world leaders attending last Thursday's banquet with Queen Margrethe the message that leaders were failing the climate.
Yesterday, police also arrested Joris Thijssen, a climate campaigner for Greenpeace. He is being held under the same conditions as the other three activists.
Noted British legal expert Richard Harvey has issued the following statement in support of the four being released from custody:
When I heard this morning that the Danish authorities plan to keep three Greenpeace activisits in isolation until 7 January, my immediate response was to recall the Trial Scene from Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland where Alice has this memorable dialogue with the Queen of Hearts:
Queen of Hearts: Now then, are you ready for your sentence?
Alice: But there has to be a verdict first.
Queen of Hearts: Sentence first! Verdict afterwards.
In any civilized society, of which I had always taken Denmark to be a leading example, the right to bail (provisional release) pending trial, particularly for an offence which does not involve the use or threat of violence, is guaranteed.
Article 9(3) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights provides in material part that: "... It shall not be the general rule that persons awaiting trial shall be detained in custody, but release may be subject to guarantees to appear for trial, at any other stage of the judicial proceedings, and, should occasion arise, for execution of the judgement."
Article 5(3) of the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms provides in material part that: "Everyone arrested or detained in accordance with ... this article shall be brought promptly before a judge or other officer authorised by law to exercise judicial power and shall be entitled to trial within a reasonable time or to release pending trial. Release may be conditioned by guarantees to appear for trial."
By determining that the four shall be detained throughout the holiday period and by further by placing them in conditions of virtual isolation (as I understand matters), the authorities appear to be acting in violation of European and International norms of human rights in a manner which only the Queen of Hearts and not the Queen of Denmark could approve.
Greenpeace is a non-violent organisation. Greenpeace activists never try to avoid the legal consequences of their actions. The activists look forward to presenting their arguments in court. But keeping them apart from their families and loved ones over Christmas and New Year is both inhumane and out of all proportion to what they did.
Juantxo, Joris, Nora, and Christian were willing to risk jail time to do something about climate change. Now they need your help. Please take a few minutes to send a letter to the Danish Justice Minster requesting their release on bail. | <urn:uuid:5461f73c-2381-43b6-b501-c3934edf44d2> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/blog/climate/real-leaders-face-christmas-jail-time-while-politicians-flee-climate-crime-scene-20091221 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988720468.71/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183840-00489-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947261 | 936 | 1.515625 | 2 |
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Learn how to grow potatoes in your garden to enjoy the best tasting, organic potatoes you can get!
Growing your own potatoes is so rewarding
You may not think it’s worthwhile because potatoes are a pretty cheap vegetable to buy
We’ve been enjoying growing organic potatoes for 20 years and anytime we’ve bought potatoes in the summer before our harvest is ready, well let’s just say we avoid doing that because we’ve been spoiled by our own homegrown spuds.
If you are a new gardener then potatoes are one of the best vegetables for you to start growing. They are so easy to care for and can be grown in the ground, in containers, in rows, or by the square foot.
When To Plant Potatoes
Potatoes can be planted in the fall, but are most commonly planted in the spring. You can start planting seed potatoes as soon as the ground can be worked in the early spring.
Potatoes will not start growing until the soil temperature has reached 45 F (7 C).
Potato plants can tolerate a light frost, but a hard frost will kill the foliage. If you are expecting a hard, late-season frost make sure to cover the plants to protect them.
If your potatoes do get hit by a late frost and look like they’ve been killed, don’t worry they will normally start growing back from the original seed potato within a few weeks.
Selecting Seed Potatoes
Before you start growing your own potatoes first you need to decide what type of potatoes you would like to grow. Start by deciding when you want the potatoes to be ready to harvest.
Potatoes are broken down into 3 groups, early season, mid-season, and late season.
- Early season potatoes are ready to harvest in 70 to 90 days.
- Mid-season potatoes are ready to harvest in 90 to 110 days.
- Late season potatoes are ready to harvest in 110 to 130 days.
Once you know whether you want early, mid, or late season potatoes decide what color you’d like to grow.
The two most common potato colors are whites and red.
The red potatoes are normally only red on the skin, the flesh inside is still white. But potatoes come in many colors from ones that are red/pink inside to blue, like the Russian Blue Potatoes!
Once you’ve decided what type of potatoes you want to grow, make sure to buy good quality seed potatoes.
You can find seed potatoes for sale in local garden centers and farm stores in the mid-spring. But the varieties available are often limited to about 5 types.
If you want a better selection check out seed catalogs and online sites.
How Many Seed Potatoes Do You Need To Buy?
On average you can expect to get back 10 pounds of potatoes for every 1 pound that you plant.
So if you plant 5 pounds of seed potatoes you can expect to harvest at least 50 pounds of potatoes. Yields can be higher in good weather and with proper care.
To figure out how many seed potatoes you need to plant a row in your garden, measure the length and divide it by 10.
For example, if you have 1 row that is 20 feet long, it will take about 2 pounds of seed potato to plant it.
Cutting Potatoes Before Planting
When you are ready to start planting potatoes it’s time to start cutting up the seed potatoes.
If you’re wondering if you can plant the whole potato, the answer is yes!
In fact potato plants grown from whole, uncut potatoes are often more vigorous and produce larger potatoes than ones that have been cut.
However, this does take a lot more seed potatoes to plant your garden, especially if you are growing a lot of potatoes.
To get the most out of your seed potatoes you need to cut them. Each piece should be about 2 inches (5 cm), ruffly the size of an egg or golf ball.
Make sure that each piece has 1 to 2 eyes (buds) when you’re cutting them.
Potatoes smaller then an egg should be planted whole or they won’t have enough energy to grow a healthy plant if cut.
Do Seed Potatoes Need To Sit After Cutting?
Many times it’s recommended to let seed potatoes sit exposed to the air after cutting for a few days. This lets the cut area dry and forms a thick callous, to help prevent them from rotting.
Honestly though, in all the years we’ve grown potatoes we have never done this and always have great success.
It may be practical to have a tray of seed potatoes sitting in your home to dry but we plant hundreds of pounds of seed potatoes each year and just don’t have room to let them sit out.
They have always grown just fine, but if you live where you get a lot of spring rain it may be a good idea to try this.
How To Plant Potatoes
If you are planting potatoes in rows start by digging a trench 6 to 8 inches deep. You can do this with a hoe or shovel, or make a homemade row maker like this one that makes the job really fast.
Place each piece of seed potato, cut side down, 6 inches (15 cm) apart in the trench.
We’ve experimented with different spacings and found that 6 inches worked the best for giving us both large yields and fitting as many plants as possible into our garden, as long as the soil was very fertile.
If you prefer you can use the more common spacing of 12 to 15 inches (30 to 38 cm) apart. This will give you larger sized potatoes overall.
Cover the potatoes with 4 inches (10 cm) of soil or compost. As the plants start to grow, continue to fill in the trench.
How To Grow Potatoes
When growing potatoes it’s very important to hill them. As the potato tubers grow and swell under the soil the dirt is lifted up around the plant.
Soil being fairly heavy will fall away from the tops of the potatoes exposing them to sunlight.
This causes the potatoes to turn green. You can prevent this from happening by hilling your potato plants.
At least twice during the summer, you’ll need to pull up soil or mulch around the sides of the plants. Start doing this when the plants reach 1 foot high.
The easiest way to hill your potatoes is too till between the rows and then use a hoe to pull the loose soil up alongside the plants.
If you have a lot of potatoes to hill try our homemade potato hiller, it saves us so much time!
How To Water Potatoes
Potatoes love growing in moist soil but take care not to leave the soil soggy as that can cause root rot. 1 to 2 inches (2.54 to 5.08 cm) of water per week is good for potatoes in normal growing conditions.
Keep your potato plants well watered during the summer, but especially when they start to flower and a few weeks after they stop.
During the flowering growth stage, the plants are creating the potato tubers and having a steady supply of moisture will help increase your crop.
Once the plants start to turn yellow and die back in the later summer stop watering them. It will help the potatoes start to cure for harvest.
When To Harvest Potatoes
If you want baby or “new” potatoes you can start harvesting these 2 to 3 weeks after the plants have flowered.
You can either dig up the whole plant or gently dig through the dirt to pull off the larger tubers. Then recover them so the smaller ones can keep growing.
To harvest storage potatoes you’ll want to wait 2 to 3 weeks after the foliage has died back. This helps the potato skins to dry and thicken for storage.
Use a garden fork to carefully dig up the potatoes being careful not to pierce any. Then root through the soil to pick up all the potatoes you can find.
Be thorough there are often large potatoes hiding near the bottom and edges of the planting hole.
We try to time our potato harvest to follow a week of dry weather so the potatoes come up nice and clean.
If you fall weather has been wet, then it’s best to let the potatoes dry a bit before packing them up.
If it’s a warm and cloudy day you can let the potatoes sit on top of the garden soil for a few hours to air dry. If it’s sunny then place them in a shady area instead.
If it’s raining than spread them out in a covered porch or garage, just keep them out of the sunlight.
Storing Home Grown Potatoes
It’s very important that you do not wash your newly harvested potatoes! Washed potatoes will not last long in storage and will quickly rot.
You can brush off any large dirt clumps with your hands but that’s it.
Place the potatoes into storage sakes, bushels baskets or boxes, and place in a cool dark place. The ideal storage temperature is 40 F (4 C) and 85 to 95 percent humidity.
We use our root cellar to store potatoes, but a basement or garage can work too.
Saving Your Own Seed Potatoes
You might be wondering if you can save your own seed potatoes and the answer is yes you can!
We’ve saved our own potato seed for years with success.
Potatoes are very susceptible to viruses and fungus problems though, so take care to only save good potatoes from disease-free seed.
To save your own seed potatoes pick out good quality potatoes from your storage crop. Don’t use any that have cuts, dings, or bites taken out of them.
The most common advice is to save your smaller potatoes the size of an egg for seed potatoes. This certainly works well
Potato Pests And Diseases
Potato plant’s don’t have many pests but the few they do have are common and can cause a lot of damage quickly.
Scab on potatoes can be a common problem that makes the skin of the potato look like it has scales or scabs all over it. It’s caused by the bacteria Streptomyces scabies.
These bacteria prefer to live in alkaline soils so raising the soil pH can help eliminate this problem
Colorado Potato Beetles
Colorado potato beetles are one of the most common potato pests
Aphids are small, soft-bodied insects that can quickly multiply on your garden plants. They suck the sap out of the leaves, stems, flowers and sometimes the fruit and roots of plants.
Use these natural ways of controlling aphids in your garden.
Flea beetles are tiny black beetles that jump like fleas when disturbed. The larva feeds around the roots of plants while the adults eat the leaves, leaving many small round holes.
They can cause a lot of damage but controlling flea beetles isn’t hard.
Early And Late Blight
Blight is a fungus problem that gardeners growing potatoes and other nightshades dread. But there are natural ways to prevent and control blight.
Recommended Potato Varieties To Try
Norland: This is an early season red potato that is resistant to scab. It’s been one of our favorites to grow for new summer potatoes.
Irish Cobler: This is an early season white potato. It yields well and makes great mashed potatoes. The tubers are round in shape but irregular.
Chiften: This is a red variety with bright red skin. It produces high yields of oval to oblong potatoes. It stores well and is resistant to scab and late blight. A great choice for french fries or mashed potatoes.
Red Pontiac: Is a high yielding red potato that makes tubers oblong to round in shape. It’s normally smoothed skin but can sometimes have slight netting.
It’s one of the most popular grown potatoes and adapts well to most soil types. It’s especially good to grow if you have muck soil (heavy peat and spongy).
Kennebec: This potato variety is sometimes classed as a mid-season but more often a later variety. It produces high yields of white potatoes oval to oblong shaped.
This variety actually grows better when planted 6 inches apart because it keeps the tubers from growing too large or getting rough skin. Kennebec is a great storage potato and also resistant to late blight.
Russet Burbank: These are a great choice for baking and boiling potatoes.
This variety stores very well and produces medium to high yields of long cylindrical shaped potatoes that are sometimes slightly flattened and have a netted pattern on the skins.
If you want extra large potatoes from this variety space the plants 12 to 18 inches (30 to 45 cm) apart. They are moderately resistant to scab.
This might seem like a lot of information but growing your own potatoes is really very easy! Just keep these simple tips in mind.
- Use good quality seed potatoes that are disease free.
- Plant them whole or cut into 2-inch sized pieces with 1-2 eyes on each piece.
- Plant them in a trench that is 6-8 inches deep, 6 inches apart. Increase the spacing to 12-15 inches apart for extra large potatoes or soil that isn’t fertile.
- Cover the seed potatoes with 4 inches of soil, continue filling in the trench as they grow.
- Hill the potatoes to keep them from turning green.
- Keep the potatoes watered with 1-2 inches of water per week.
- Harvest 2 weeks after the leaves and stems have died back.
Kim Mills is a homeschooling mom of 6 and lives on an urban homestead in Ontario, Canada. Blogging at Homestead Acres she enjoys sharing tips to help you save money, grow and preserve your own food. | <urn:uuid:7c7c01e9-2fc5-460e-9815-c39102837df0> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.homestead-acres.com/how-to-grow-potatoes/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571987.60/warc/CC-MAIN-20220813202507-20220813232507-00267.warc.gz | en | 0.938497 | 2,964 | 2.859375 | 3 |
When I set out to write this blog piece I thought it would be a simple matter of writing about sound enclosures, construction materials and noise reduction. However, when I started researching these areas I quickly realized there is too much material for a single blog to be meaningful. This is therefore the first in a series of blogs on the topic of noise reduction for generators.
Part 1 – Noise
With the continued and expanding use of diesel generator sets there has come an increased focus on controlling the noise these generators create. Whether generator sets are located in enclosures outside a facility or home, inside, on the roof or even on a yacht, designers are making more efforts to control generator set noise and vibration in order to reduce the effects on neighbours and building occupants alike. Whether generator sets run continuously in prime-power applications, intermittently in demand response applications, or occasionally in emergency standby situations or testing, their operating sound levels nearly always require remediation due to market requirements.
In order to understand the solutions to reducing noise from generators, it is first necessary to understand noise. Therefore this blog provides a simple summary of noise and its characteristics, and the sources of noise created by generators.
What is Noise?
Vibrating objects induce pressure waves that travel through the air, reaching our ears as sound. Noise, by definition, is simply undesirable sound. When the amplitude of the pressure waves becomes too high, the amount of sound becomes uncomfortable. In addition to being annoying, excessive sound can cause permanent hearing damage. The following diagram explains the physiology of what happens when sound reaches the human ear.
The human ear has such a wide dynamic range that the logarithmic decibel scale (dB) was devised to express sound levels in a convenient way. The ratio between the softest sound the ear can hear and the loudest sound it can experience without damage is approximately a million to one. By using a base-10 logarithmic scale, the whole range of human hearing can be described by a more convenient number that ranges from 0 dB (threshold of normal hearing) to 140 dB (the threshold of pain).
There are two dB scales used to describe sound: A and L.
- The dB(L) scale is linear and treats all audible frequencies as having equal value. However, the human ear does not experience all frequencies the same way. Our ears are particularly sensitive to frequencies in the range of 1,000 to 4,000 Hz, and they are less sensitive to sounds in lower or higher frequencies. (This is why dogs often start barking for reasons humans don’t understand – dogs have the ability to hear sounds of a much higher frequency than humans)
- To adjust the sound pressure levels to more accurately reflect what the human ear perceives, the frequency-weighted dB(A) scale has been adopted as the official regulated sound level unit.
It is also worth noting that the db(A) scale represents an “absolute” value. For example, stating that a generator produces 98 db(A) of noise isn’t particularly meaningful – remember by definition it can only be noise if it is undesirable to the recipient. Standing alongside a generator generating 98 db(A) of noise is completely different to standing 500 meters away (where it probably couldn’t be heard).
More useful therefore is to state at what distance from the generator the noise level is experienced. As a result most generator manufacturers state sound levels in terms of db(A) @ x meters, for example 85 db(A) at 1 meter. This in turn presents challenges in terms of measurement, but that is a topic for a later blog.
Sound produced by generator sets
The principal sources of noise from generators are described below.
1 Engine mechanical noise
With the advent of high-pressure common rail fuel injection, advanced turbocharging and better combustion control, manufacturers have significantly reduced overall mechanical noise from diesel engines. The amount of sound varies with the size of the engine and its load, and can be as high as 110 dB(A) measured at one meter. Engines with more cylinders have more power strokes per revolution and therefore deliver a smoother flow of power with less vibration. Smaller engines tend to be harsher in operation and produce more noise and vibration for their size.
2 Exhaust noise
Engine exhaust is a major contributor to overall sound levels. When measured without an exhaust silencer noise can be 120 dB(A) or more depending on the size of the engine. The sound level can be reduced by up to 40 dB(A) depending on the silencer employed.
3 Cooling fan noise
Sound emanates from turbulent air as the cooling fan moves air across the engine and through the radiator. The amount of sound varies with the speed and volume of air being moved as well as with the design and distortion of the fan blades. The amount of sound can be as high as 95 dB(A) at one meter.
4 Alternator noise
The alternator has an internal cooling fan, and the combination of cooling air movement and brush friction produces noise. However, the sound level is always small compared to the driving engine.
5 Induction noise
Current fluctuations in the alternator windings create mechanical noises that add to total noise when load demand changes.
6 Structural/mechanical noise
This is caused by mechanical vibration of various structural parts and components that is radiated as sound. Isolators between the engine, alternator, controls and other components help to reduce the amount of vibration that gets converted to noise. Anti-vibration mounts can also be employed to reduce noise propagation through the ground or hull where the generator is located.
In this first blog we have introduced the definition of noise, described its impact on human beings and highlighted the sources of noise from generators. In the next blog we will discuss methods for attenuating these noise levels.
Images courtesy of http://conocimientosamplifiersfr.blogspot.com. | <urn:uuid:2d5cf6f8-6c3d-4279-b9e9-e4307ffcb335> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | http://www.caribbeannorthernlights.com/index.php/author/jdowling/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571987.60/warc/CC-MAIN-20220813202507-20220813232507-00276.warc.gz | en | 0.941843 | 1,221 | 3.53125 | 4 |
The year 2012 marks the 147th Anniversary of the end of the Civil War. As part of North Carolina's observance of the Civil War Sesquicentennial, the Fort Fisher State Historic Site at Kure Beach, North Carolina, will host "The Lights of the Great Armada: The 147th Anniversary of the Battle of Fort Fisher" on January 21 and 22.
The event also commemorates the Second Battle of Fort Fisher, the largest land-sea battle of the Civil War.
Saturday’s events begin at 10am until 4pm and continue on Sunday from 11am until 4pm. The event will highlight the war's largest amphibious assault with a Navy and Marine living history program that includes small arms and artillery demonstrations, a period torpedo/steam engine exhibit, as well as special presentations focusing on the Union and Confederate sailors and marines who fought at Fort Fisher in January 1865.
There are a number of guest speakers. Re-enactors in period costume will bring history to life throughout the day with Confederate artillery demonstrations, cannon and small arms firings. The program is free and open to the public. “The Lights of the Great Armada” affords visitors a wonderful opportunity to learn more about local history and Fort Fisher's role in the Civil War. Visitors, residents, and motorists are advised of loud explosions during cannon firings and artillery demonstrations. Contact Fort Fisher State Historic Site for more details: 910-458-5538 or visit www.fortfisher.nchistoricsites.org.
For a free Official Visitors Guide to Wilmington, North Carolina and the island beaches of Carolina Beach, Kure Beach, and Wrightsville Beach, please call 1-866-266-9690. For a complete event calendar, attraction listings, featured experiences and specials, visit www.gowilmingtonandbeaches.com.
For more information about top events in North Carolina take a look at the Top Events USA selection of the annual main festivals and events in North Carolina. | <urn:uuid:33ba1d3c-9f62-4fc8-a743-28288ddf44a6> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://topeventsusanews.blogspot.ca/2011_12_01_archive.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280292.50/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00340-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.896613 | 411 | 2.28125 | 2 |
Whenever I am asked how I can improve my horrible garden soil, I patiently say you need to add three things. The first is organic matter the second is organic matter and the third is also organic matter.
Over the years, as a general category, I have probably had more questions about soil improvement than any other gardening topic.
The reason is that without good soil, people could not grow healthy trees, green lawns, luscious vegetables, sweet and juicy fruit, or beautiful ornamental flowers.
Virtually all Utah soils need improvement. They have either too much clay or too much sand. Correcting the problem on paper is very simple. Getting it done in the garden requires a great deal of effort. A good place to start is a soil test from Utah State University Extension Service soil testing.
Organic matter basically comes from two sources: animal products or compost. Composted animal products can be high in salt. Those that are not properly composted also tend to have high amounts of weed seeds that will infest your garden.
The other source of organic matter comes from plant materials. These include composted urban green waste such as bark chips, tree prunings, grass clippings and other landscaping materials.
While these do not have the salt problems found in animal products, they tend to be low in nitrogen. Add additional nitrogen in the form of 1 pound of nitrogen per 100 pounds of garden waste to allow plants to get sufficient nutrients.
The next question is, "What is good organic matter?" This is one of my favorite times of the year because products are available for free in abundant quantities. I'm talking about the free organic matter that rains down from the sky each fall.
Tree leaves are one of the great materials to recycle in your garden. The price is right because they're free. The quantities available are almost endless if you live in the right neighborhood and are not afraid to ask around.
A great way to help some aging neighbors is to just offer to rake their leaves and dispose of them. Very few people will turn you down on that offer unless they are looking for the same materials for their garden.
The third thing that is great is that leaves come with almost no seeds in the fall. While many seeds drop earlier, those that are dropping now are not likely to have many viable seeds in them.
The nitrogen problem is easy to solve. Spread a 1-inch layer of shredded leaves onto your garden and 1 pound of ammonium sulfate. If you want to be more scientific, add 5 pounds of ammonium sulfate per 100 pounds of shredded organic matter.
The next question is, "Where do I get the organic matter that I want?" There are many different sources ranging from picking it up yourself in the neighborhood or the landfill, to having it delivered in a giant blower truck and having it placed exactly where you want it in your landscape.
Most of the major cities along the Wasatch Front participate in some sort of composting project. They take the green waste that comes from the garden areas and recycle that into some sort of landscape product.
Most of these are not animal-based materials so the risk from salt is quite low. However, that means there are a few, if any, nutrients available in these products. Add the appropriate amount of fertilizers to supplement these when growing plants.
Animal-based products come from many sources, including turkey manure, feedlot and dairy waste, chicken manure and a few others. These are more likely sold in bags unless you go to where they are "manufactured" and haul them in bulk.
Check the sources, check the prices, and check the salt and/or the weed seed problems. Make your decision and then get at least a couple of inches onto your garden area each season.
The final question is, "Why do it now rather than later?" As a gardener, think in terms of doing garden jobs early when you possibly can. Spring is a very busy time for gardeners, and this warm, dry weather is a blessing for getting a few additional garden tasks completed.
Red Butte Garden is sponsoring "Barking Up the Right Trees," Nov. 10, 10-11:30 a.m. The workshop will teach participants about rough, slick, papery and peeling surfaces of different trees in the gardens and how to make bark rubbings. For more information, contact Maddie Keyes, 801-581-8454.
Larry A. Sagers is a horticulture specialist for the Utah State University Extension Service at Thanksgiving Point.
Copyright 2017, Deseret News Publishing Company | <urn:uuid:a52703bb-0175-4dfb-b3dd-c033758e0084> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.deseretnews.com/article/print/765614570/Organic-matter-key-to-improving-your-soil.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280835.22/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00050-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953258 | 946 | 2.703125 | 3 |
Advice to a King
1These are the solemn words which King Lemuel's mother said to him:
2“You are my own dear son, the answer to my prayers. What shall I tell you? 3Don't spend all your energy on sex and all your money on women; they have destroyed kings. 4Listen, Lemuel. Kings should not drink wine or have a craving for alcohol. 5When they drink, they forget the laws and ignore the rights of people in need. 6Alcohol is for people who are dying, for those who are in misery. 7Let them drink and forget their poverty and unhappiness.
8“Speak up for people who cannot speak for themselves. Protect the rights of all who are helpless. 9Speak for them and be a righteous judge. Protect the rights of the poor and needy.”
The Capable Wife
10How hard it is to find a capable wife! She is worth far more than jewels!
11Her husband puts his confidence in her, and he will never be poor.
12As long as she lives, she does him good and never harm.
13She keeps herself busy making wool and linen cloth.
14She brings home food from out-of-the-way places, as merchant ships do.
15She gets up before daylight to prepare food for her family and to tell her servant women what to do.
16She looks at land and buys it, and with money she has earned she plants a vineyard.
17She is a hard worker, strong and industrious.
18She knows the value of everything she makes, and works late into the night.
19She spins her own thread and weaves her own cloth.
20She is generous to the poor and needy.
21She doesn't worry when it snows, because her family has warm clothing.
22She makes bedspreads and wears clothes of fine purple linen.
23Her husband is well known, one of the leading citizens.
24She makes clothes and belts, and sells them to merchants.
25She is strong and respected and not afraid of the future.
26She speaks with a gentle wisdom.
27She is always busy and looks after her family's needs.
28Her children show their appreciation, and her husband praises her.
29He says, “Many women are good wives, but you are the best of them all.”
30Charm is deceptive and beauty disappears, but a woman who honors the Lord should be praised.
31Give her credit for all she does. She deserves the respect of everyone. | <urn:uuid:4f438db1-9bd0-4bb1-83a7-c313ce0c5cf1> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://www.bible.com/bible/69/pro.31.gntd | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560279224.13/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095119-00482-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.979593 | 543 | 2.9375 | 3 |
27th January 2022
A compilation of videos used for the themes of love, dating, marriage and wedding traditions. Links to previous blogs will be listed at the end.
First, some Listening practice: How did these couples meet ?
This video was shot (filmed) in New York, so you will hear American English: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6rYRyoqpeI
Some people try blind dating which is arranging a date with someone that you don’t know. Maybe a friend suggests someone for you, or you go on television:
Blind date TV show (this is from UK 1994)
Do you have game shows like this is your country ?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dj_ewz53Frk
There are different UK accents here, so it is useful listening practice.
If the dates are successful, they could lead to weddings, married life and children.
Wedding vocabulary and listening exercise: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPsrWWyTRz8
The lady speaks slowly and clearly; try to understand without subtitles.
Here’s some clips of when the big day doesn’t go to plan. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCkcU9h5ggc
Weddings can be a nerve-wracking time. Do you recognise anybody famous in this clip ?
Every wedding needs a good party. We start with a Jewish tradition, before moving on to Mexico.
Now back to life, back to reality. Let’s look at some grammar:
Phrasal verbs and family situations: http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/grammar-vocabulary/phrasal-verb-videos/family
More in-depth blogs on the subject maybe be found here:
Please Note: All photos are taken from Google Images or free photo sites, and are used for educational purposes only. No copyright infringement or offense is intended. If I have used your photo or image, and you wish me to remove it, just ask. This site is not monetized, I run it on my own dollar. Thank you. | <urn:uuid:9b0da6e8-dfc8-4a67-a193-37ee74a631cb> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://thaypaulsnotes.com/category/adult-speaking-class-level-3/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573197.34/warc/CC-MAIN-20220818124424-20220818154424-00669.warc.gz | en | 0.894506 | 469 | 1.546875 | 2 |
How are ideas about betrayal and loyalty explored through the structure of the play- within-a-play? The most obvious structural feature is the ‘play-within-a-play, which highlights the parallels between the characters and themes in Mozart opera, and those in Anorak’s play. Both the opera and play revolve around issues of loyalty, fidelity and betrayal. The backdrop of war is also a significant feature of both texts: the Vietnam War In the sass (In Coos) and the Albanian battle for Independence from the Ottoman Empire ;n 1790 on coos Fan Tutee).
Wars also involve loyalties and betrayals, and their chaos on a grand scale underscores the chaos in the lives of the characters in the opera and the play. (Sue Sherman : English for Year 12) ;According to Mozart Coos Fan Tutee, the issue of fidelity is depicted to be an ideal that is never achieved. ;Since Women are like that’ – the interpretation of ‘coos fan tutee’, Mozart encouraged the belief that men should simply accept women are indeed disloyal In relationships. Narrow illustrates this same idea about women and infidelity through Lewis and Lully’s relationship.
While Lucy is Sleeping’ with Lewis, she is also ‘having sex; with Nick. When Lewis discovers Lully’s betrayal, she waves aside his shock. Defending that ‘it is not as if we’re married. ‘ The revelation does indeed prove that Coos Fan Tutee is correct In stating that, Woman’s constancy Is like the Arabian Phoenix. Everyone swears It exists, but no one has seen It. ‘ ;Although the women in both Coos Fan Tutee and Coos are shown to be unfaithful, so are the men. While the men in Coos Fan Tutee do not actively participate in adultery, they do fabricate their departure to the war and also disguise themselves as ‘Albanians. Their deception is also a betrayal to their wives. Meanwhile, Don Alfonse manipulates everyone. As seen In Coos, Lewis Is unfaithful to Lucy as he kisses Julie during rehearsals. ;Julie later reveals that she has a girlfriend who she would prefer to be with, confirming that both men and women are unfaithful in relationships. (source: VICE Study Guides) Women are never true. ” Women like to pretend they don’t play around, but they’re Just more secretive about it. They don’t brag about it like men. ” Women are flesh and blood too. ” l don’t like men’s double standards. ” “Women’s constancy is like the Phoenix of Arabia.
Everyone swears it exists, but no one has seen it. ” Irony in the fact that Henry plays the part of Don Alfonse in Coos Fan Tutee as Henry firmly believes in truth and fidelity whereas Don Alfonse is cynical about it. “This Coos condones the corruption of innocence. Omen are told to be tramps. Free love. ” “Whether women can remain true is a tragedy. ” ‘Don’t insult those pure men. They”re models of fidelity and perfect love. ” (Coos Fan Tutee) “Only mad people in this day and age would do a Nor about love and infidelity. ” Lewis and Julie kiss demonstrating that men too can be unfaithful.
In a way, Nick is also unfaithful in his friendship with Lewis. Mimi have enemies for life, but never lovers. ” “Everyone blames women, but I forgive them. If they change their love a thousand times a day, some call it sin, others a drug, but I think it’s the necessity of women’s hearts. ” “That’s how men want us to be – even though they’re not true and faithful themselves. ” Wagner “foreshadows what is going to happen to the couples in the future. A life of torment and adultery. ” Nick Justifies his infidelity with “we’re mates, aren’t we? ” Nick and Lucy didn’t last long as both were not into love and fidelity. ” | <urn:uuid:597ddad0-a439-4caa-934e-af4145165707> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://directcurrentmusic.com/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart-essays/cosi-lewis-changes-by-directing-the-play-3443/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571869.23/warc/CC-MAIN-20220813021048-20220813051048-00067.warc.gz | en | 0.947791 | 923 | 2.875 | 3 |
STK Research and Development Innovation Center
The Stockton Group’s Research and Development Innovation Center is devoted to creating and developing scientifically proven eco-friendly solutions that cater to the innumerable needs of modern agricultural and today’s food consumer markets. Over the past several years, our team of professionals, in our state-of-the-art laboratories, have established significant experience and expertise in developing natural crop protection solutions that are both effective and environmentally friendly. For us in Stockton Group, achieving those goals means the ability to prevent and cure the harmful effects of pests, weeds and plant diseases in a manner that is compatible with conventional IPM agriculture.
As part of our commitment to innovation, quality and the ensured safety and effectiveness of our solutions, our products are tested on a regular basis at the world’s leading laboratories and agricultural research centers around the world.
Our natural pesticides have the added value of leaving no residues, reducing overall chemical load and risks to the environment (including beneficial insects and bees), and practically removing limitations on pre-harvest-intervals (PHI) and re-entry. Equally important, we have been successful in providing farmers with scientifically-proven and effective tools for resistance management such as the integration of our products via alternation and mixtures with prevailing common conventional products. Hence, our innovative products, are making a significant contribution to IPM strategies and modern agricultural practices.
New Generation of Biopesticides
As a natural outcome of our efforts, STK is creating a portfolio of new generation proprietary biopesticides . The flagship of our fleet is Timorex Gold, which has proven to be an effective product in the prevention and cure broad spectrum of diseases. In addition, we have succeeded with natural products that control various other plant diseases such as powdery mildew and downy mildew, early and late blight, alternaria, cercospora and other diseases in a variety of crops, such as tomatoes, cucurbits, peppers, potatoes, carrots, and grapes. We are continuously expanding the range of our solutions for additional target pathogens and crops that enable farmers to grow high quality crops and maximize profit.
Commitment to Innovation Leadership
Long-term and lasting relationships with our customers entails on-going support and a high degree of trust. Stockton is committed to be the first to keep you informed about new technologies, emerging trends, regulatory changes and innovations, as part of our continues efforts to share our knowledge with you. In the dynamic world of crop protection technologies – we must be ahead of the pests and diseases that plague our produce. For this reason the STK Group invest substantial and unprecedented amount of resources in Research and Business Development.
Our research and development work draws upon both our own in-house development and innovative activity as well as through collaborations with academia, research institutions and other companies. We welcome new relationships and invite you to contact us and further explore potential collaboration in: identification, assessment, development, and commercialization of innovative compatible products for modern, environmentally-friendly agriculture. | <urn:uuid:69ca6a09-7fb6-4fa4-8ab4-13d27af0a9a9> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.stockton-ag.com/quality-services/rd-center/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280364.67/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00026-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937084 | 615 | 1.554688 | 2 |
Citizen acceptance of new fossil fuel infrastructure: Value theory and Canada’s Northern Gateway Pipeline Jonn Axsena* Submission to Global Environmental Change Date: October 2, 2013 a Affiliations: School of Resource and Environmental Management, Simon Fraser University, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, B.C. Canada V5A 1S6. * Corresponding author. Tel.: 778-239-1169, E-mail address: firstname.lastname@example.org Acknowledgements This study was funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). Special thanks to George Kamiya and Harry (Joe) Bailey for excellent work in helping to design and implement this web-based survey instrument. Paulus Mau programmed the web-based survey instrument. 1 ABSTRACT Proposals to build infrastructure for unconventional fossil fuels are increasingly generating controversy among citizens. This study explores the case of Canada’s proposed Northern Gateway Pipeline (NGP), which would transport unconventional oil (bitumen) 1,172 km from Alberta’s oil sands to British Columbia’s northern coast for export. The NGP has received extensive media coverage in the two most affected provinces (Alberta and BC). I implemented a web-based survey (n = 2,628) in 2013 to collect data on citizen acceptance, values and beliefs related to two common frames of the NGP: economic benefits and environmental risks. I draw from value theory to explain variations in citizen acceptance within and between the two regions, constructing value-based clusters of respondents based on survey data. NGP acceptance varies considerably among clusters in each region; the highest acceptance is among citizens with strong traditional (conservative) values and acceptance is lowest among citizens with strong biosphericaltruistic values. Contextual or regional effects are also substantial; NGP acceptance is higher in every one of Alberta’s value-based clusters relative to BC. Differences in media and stakeholder framing between the regions may help to explain why citizens with the same core values hold different perceptions of the NGP. Keywords: citizen acceptance; values; fossil fuels; climate change. 2 1. Introduction 1.1 Background: The Northern Gateway Pipeline Unconventional fossil fuels are becoming more cost-competitive and their unbridled development risks undermining climate abatement efforts. In North America, proposals for new infrastructure relating to unconventional fossil fuels are generating public controversy that is influencing political decisions. One example is the Keystone XL pipeline in the U.S. (one proposed expansion phase for the overall Keystone Pipeline system) which would transport oil from Canada and the northern U.S. (including oil sands bitumen and Bakken shale oil) to the Texas Gulf coast for refinement. This study explores citizen acceptance of a second and related pipeline proposal: Canada’s Northern Gateway Project (NGP). The NGP is proposed to transport unconventional oil (bitumen) 1,172 km from Alberta’s oil sands to British Columbia’s northern coast for export. The 36-inch pipeline would transport approximately 525,000 barrels of oil (in bitumen form) per day for export, which is equivalent to about one-quarter of the total oil that Canada exported in 2011. The NGP has generated polarized debate since it was first proposed in the mid-2000s. Supporters claims that the project would generate $9.2 billion of Canadian GDP per year and create 907,000 person years of employment across Canada (Eglington et al., 2012). Critics argue that such claims overstate the economic benefits and understate environmental risks such as the potential for oil spills in sensitive ecosystems (Gunton and Broadbent, 2012). Another criticism is that the NGP’s facilitation of the expansion of Alberta oil sands counters Canada’s greenhouse gas emission goals—analysis suggests that oil sands operations will have to inevitably decrease if Canada or oil sands importing countries enact stringent climate policy (Chan et al., 2012). NGP controversy seems to also exist among citizens in the region; one poll shows that the vast majority of western Canadian citizens are aware of the pipeline, but opinions vary widely between the two affected provinces (BC and Alberta) (Insights West, 2013). This study uses the NGP as a case to explore how citizen acceptance and perceptions can vary by region, personal values, beliefs and lifestyle. Citizen resistance to large energy projects is often explained simply as “NIMBYism”—citizens protesting any developments that produce a local impact. However, the motives and dynamics of citizen acceptance are more varied and complex (West et al., 2010). Evaluation of large energy projects involves tradeoffs among a number of benefits, costs and risks (Shum, 2013), each of which involves a high degree of uncertainty. Such tradeoffs are difficult for energy experts to evaluate, let alone the general public whose perceptions are often skewed by media framing effects (Aklin and Urpelainen, In Press; Druckman, 2004; Luhmann, 1989; Stephens et al., 2009b). This study explores citizen acceptance of the Northern Gateway Project (NGP) proposal. An interesting aspect of the NGP is that it impacts two distinct regions in Canada, the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia, where citizens of each are likely to be presented with different benefits and risks from different media sources. I collected survey data from citizens in both regions to assess NGP acceptance, beliefs, and the relation to individual values. Analysis seeks answers to the following questions: 1. How do citizen perceptions of the NGP vary by region? 2. How does citizen acceptance within each region, and between regions, vary according to personal values, beliefs and lifestyle? 3 1.2. Explaining citizen acceptance of energy projects There has been little peer-reviewed study of citizen acceptance of new fossil fuel infrastructure—acceptance research has focused more on renewable and low-carbon energy projects (Poumadère et al., 2011). In general, citizen perceptions of energy projects can be highly unstable (Mercer et al., 2011; Poumadère et al., 2011; Sharp et al., 2009), and have been shown to change with exposure to different types of information (Stephens et al., 2009a; Wallquist et al., 2010) as well as public consultation (Bradbury et al., 2009; Terwel et al., 2010). It is thus useful to understand motives behind citizen acceptance, drawing from behavioral theory. Theoretical frameworks provide guidance regarding citizen perceptions and motivations. Such frameworks can range in focus from the individual citizen to the broader social system. Huijts et al. (2012) present one individual-based framework that summarizes the influences of several context-specific factors on citizen acceptance of energy projects, combining elements of the theory of planned behaviour (Ajzen, 1991) and Schwartz’s norm activation model (Schwartz, 1977; Steg and de Groot, 2010). Huijts et al.’s integrative framework proposes several explanatory variables, including: experience and knowledge relating to the project, trust in the actors relating to the project, perceptions of fairness in the project’s implementation, beliefs about the benefits, costs and risks of the project, perceptions of equitable distribution of costs, benefits and risks, and personal and social norms about taking action regarding the project. West et al. (2010) instead focus on explaining differences in citizen support based on relatively stable aspects of the individual—what they call worldviews. The authors identify four citizen categories (or ideal types) from grid-group cultural theory (Aaron, 1987), which they apply to qualitative interviews eliciting citizen perceptions of renewable energy technology. “Egalitarian” citizens were most likely to support renewable energy projects, provided that local environmental impacts were minimized. In contrast, “individualist” citizens only supported projects with clear economic benefits and no impact on lifestyle. The implication is that citizen acceptance of energy projets can be constructed from a variety of viewpoints, beliefs and processes. Other frameworks and studies look even more broadly at the socio-political context of energy projects, focusing on the influence and power of different institutions and stakeholders. For example, Stephens et al. (2008) propose the socio-political evaluation of energy deployment (SPEED) framework to assess and compare regional readiness for and deployment of alternative energy technologies according to technical, institutional, and social factors. Applications of SPEED can use methods such as policy review, media analysis, focus groups and stakeholder interviews to assess and anticipate the deployment of energy technology in a given region. 1.3. Value theory as a conceptual framework I presently focus on the role of citizen values in the construction of citizen beliefs and acceptance. Values are a relatively durable characteristic of individuals, and of the three frameworks summarized above value theory is closest to West et al.’s application of cultural theory (focusing less on context-specific factors or broader institutional dynamics). There has been little application of values theory to the acceptance of large energy projects. I presently draw from Stern et al.’s (1995a) application of value theory to pro-environmental behavior. Stern et al. would describe the NGP as an “attitude object”—in this case a proposed object that citizens evaluate as they gain exposure through experience, media, social interaction and other sources. Citizen evaluation of the NGP is in part guided or motivated by their pre-existing core values. To 4 further explain this framework, I first provide more specific definitions of the concepts of acceptance, values, beliefs, and framing. Regarding citizen acceptance, Huijts et al. (Huijts et al., 2012) provide a useful discussion. I presently define citizen acceptance as a measure of how the general public (not necessarily “citizens” by an immigration definition) evaluates the energy project. Huijts et al. distinguish between four levels of citizen acceptance: i) support is positive evaluation that is paired with action (e.g. advocating for the technology), ii) tolerance is positive evaluation without action, iii) connivance is negative evaluation without action, and iv) resistance is negative evaluation with action (e.g. protesting the technology). Although citizen acceptance can be measured in terms of specific actions relating to the energy technology (e.g, protesting or putting up supportive posters) (Huijts et al., 2012), I presently refer to acceptance more generally as a continuous scale ranging from strongly resist to strongly support—neglecting a measure of specific actions. Value theory assumes that citizen acceptance is shaped in part by the citizen’s values. I follow Schwartz and Bilsky’s (Schwartz and Bilsky, 1987) general definition of values as “a) concepts or beliefs, (b) about desirable end states or behaviors, (c) that transcend specific situations, (d) guide selection or evaluation of behavior and events, and (e) are ordered by relative importance” (p551) (Schwartz and Bilsky, 1987). Values are thus more stable and general than specific attitudes or beliefs, and core values can be conceptualized as components of an individual’s self-concept or identity (Axsen and Kurani, 2013b; Hitlin, 2003). Schwartz (1994) identifies ten motivational categories that fit along two broad dimensions: selfenhancement (egoistic) versus self-transcendence and conservation (or tradition) versus openness to change. Pro-environmental behaviour is positively predicted by high biospheric and altruistic values (higher self-transcendence), and negatively predicted by high egoistic values (higher selfenhancement) (Stern et al., 1995a). Value theory has not been previously applied to energy project acceptance. I define citizen beliefs as perceptions and evaluations of specific aspects or attributes of the energy project, e.g. perceptions that the NGP will benefit the economy or harm the environment. Following Stern et al. (1995a), I posit that an individual’s core values shape their formation of beliefs regarding the energy project as well as their overall evaluation. An individual will likely be exposed to media, social interactions and other experiences that are consistent with their core values (due to self-selection regarding media exposure and social network membership). Further, within that exposure, the individual likely filters information they receive to focus on messages consistent with their core values. Of course, the citizen only has access to a finite set of messages and information sources relating to the energy project. Each message will be consistent with one or more “frame”—where information about the energy project is presented according to a particular argument (Druckman, 2004; Luhmann, 1989; Stephens et al., 2009b; Stephens et al., 2008). Media, industry, and other stakeholders can present the NGP according to a number of frames, for example as a source of economic benefit and development, or as an unacceptable environmental risk—typical frames for energy projects (Shelby, 2011; Stephens et al., 2009b). Framing effects can influence individual perceptions in a variety of contexts (Tversky and Kahneman, 1981), including, in some cases, the formation of political preferences (Druckman, 2004). One experimental study indicates that the issuing of multiple competing frames for clean energy, both positive and negative, can effectively cancel out and have little overall effect on consumer acceptance (Aklin and 5 Urpelainen, In Press). However, research has not explored how such competing “frames” may be selectively perceived by individuals with different core values. Drawing from the above discussion, I apply value theory to the case of NGP acceptance according to the following conceptual framework: 1. Citizen acceptance of a large energy infrastructure project is, in part, a function of the citizen’s core values. Four particular “core value” types are likely to be particularly important: altruisim, biospheric, egoistic (self-enhancement), and traditional (conservative) values. 2. Media and other institutions may present multiple, competing frames of the energy project (Aklin and Urpelainen, In Press). In the case of the NGP, two important frames emphasize economic benefits or environmental risks. 3. Citizen values shape belief formation. Higher altruistic and biospheric values correspond with beliefs relating to the environmental risk frame (e.g. oil spill and climate change). Higher egoistic or traditional values correspond with the economic benefits frame (e.g. creating jobs and supporting economic growth). 4. Energy project acceptance and beliefs may also vary with contextual variables independent of values, such as region. For the NGP case, Alberta and BC citizens may perceive different benefits and risks and may be subject to different sets of media frames. 5. Citizens that subscribe to multiple, conflicting core values (e.g. biospheric and egoistic, which combines self-enhancement and self-transcendence) will encounter competing frames of the energy project, and thus tend to construct less polarized beliefs about the project relative to citizens with more consistent core values (e.g. biospheric and altruistic—both are self-transcendent) 2. Method 2.1 Data collection: A survey of Canadian citizens I collected citizen data through a web-based survey of adults residing in Canada. The survey instrument was designed for another research objective (assessing consumer demand for electric vehicles), but several questions relating to the NGP were included. The target population for this alternate objective was new vehicle buying households in Canada, which is only a subset of the full population of Canadian citizens. The large sample size includes a wide distribution of citizens by various socio-demographic variables and values. Because this present study is more concerned with exploring causal links between variables than with attaining representative distributions of individual variables, the slightly constrained sampling frame should not be a large concern. The sample includes respondents from all Canadian provinces (except Quebec), including intentional oversamples of British Columbia and Alberta to permit regional comparison of the two provinces directly affected by the NGP. The survey includes questions relating to NGP acceptance and belief, as well as values, attitudes, lifestyle and socio-demographic variables. The NGP-specific questions present seven statements relating to the NGP, each with a five-point likert-type response scale (strongly disagree to strongly agree). Following a brief explanation of the project, the general acceptance statement is “I support the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline.” The other six statements relate to specific beliefs about whether the NGP will “create jobs,” “provide benefits to my province,” “provide economic benefits to Canadians,” “has unacceptable environmental risks,” “will increase overall greenhouse gas emissions,” and “should instead be built to eastern Canada or the United States.” The survey also elicits respondents’ opinions related to the future of the Alberta 6 oil sands (“expand,” “keep at the same size,” “decrease” or “shut down”) and the environmental impacts of the oil sands (“none,” “minor,” or” major”). All NGP and oil sand survey questions include an “I don’t know” response category. Core values are elicited using Stern et al.’s “brief” values inventory (Stern et al., 1998), which is a shorter, more environmentally relevant version of Schwartz’s original 56-item value scale (Schwartz, 1992). The survey includes 12 value statements asking respondents to “indicate how important each value is as a guiding principle in your life.” The four response categories range from “not important” to “very important.” The 12 statements relate to four “core” value categories (three statements per category): biospheric, altruistic, egoistic and traditional values. The survey does not include questions from Stern et al.’s “openness to change” value category because it does not seem to be strongly related to pro-environmental behavior (Stern et al., 1995a). Although a related measure of respondent “liminality” (transitional lifestyle) has recently been found to be related to consumer interest in new pro-environmental technologies (Axsen and Kurani, 2013a; Axsen et al., 2012), there is no strong theoretical reason why liminality would relate to citizen acceptance of fossil fuel projects. The survey also includes a brief, eight-item version of the New Environmental Paradigm (NEP) scale (Cordano et al., 2003). The NEP scale is widely applied as a measure of respondent acceptance of a pro-environmental worldview, attitudes or values. However, Stern et al. (1995b) find that the NEP scale is better described as a scale of general awareness of environmental impacts or consequences from human behavior. Thus, I presently use the NEP scale as a measure of general awareness and concern regarding environmental impacts. The survey also elicits engagement in different lifestyles by asking respondents about their frequency of engagement in 47 different activities. Axsen et al. (2012) demonstrated that lifestyle is linked to consumer identify and values, and is a measure that can predict interest in pro-environmental technology—in particular, engagement in pro-environmental and technologyoriented lifestyles were important explanatory variables. In the present case of citizen acceptance, I focus on the measure of pro-environmental lifestyle, whereas a technology-oriented lifestyle does not relate to the present conceptual framework. 2.2. Data analysis The survey data are analyzed through several statistical methods. NGP acceptance and beliefs are compared between Canadian regions, then compared according to value-based “clusters.” To set up the cluster analysis, the more established multi-item scales (values and NEP) are first confirmed using Cronbach’s alpha as a test of internal reliability for each scale. The lifestyle responses are examined using exploratory factor analysis to identify one (or more) scales relating to pro-environmental activities. Standardized data from the above six scales (four value scales, the NEP scale, and the pro-environmental lifestyle scale), are then used to perform a K-means cluster analysis in SPSS. The clusters are intended to categorize respondents by values and lifestyle that are expected to relate to NGP acceptance. I then compare the clusters, by region, according to demographic variables, NGP acceptance and beliefs, and other variables that may lend insight into the present research objectives—assessing the relationship between citizen values, the framing of NGP beliefs, and overall acceptance of the NGP. 7 3. Results 3.1 Canada survey sample The web-based survey collected respondent data from February to May of 2013. A total of 2,628 useable responses were collected, including intentional oversamples of BC (n = 813) and Alberta (n = 508). For an initial Canada-wide comparison, I group respondents from Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario in to the “Central Canada” region (n = 1111), and respondents from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland into the “Atlantic Canada” region (n = 196). Quebec was omitted from the survey’s sampling frame. Because the survey was conducted as part of a larger project targeting new-vehicle buying households, the realized sample was expected to be biased relative to the general Canada population. Indeed, these regional samples are of generally higher income and education than the general population as indicated by Canadian 2006 and 2011 census data. These regional samples are also slightly younger than the Canada census data, with slightly more respondents aged 25-34 year olds and less respondents aged 65 or older. However, these demographic differences are not severe, and are not expected to substantially impact the present exploration of how values relate to NGP acceptance. As noted above, the focus of these results is on causal links between variables, not on attaining representative distributions of individual variables (e.g. NGP acceptance or a given core value). Sample responses are highly diverse on all scales relating to demographics, values, attitudes, beliefs and NGP acceptance, indicating that causal relationships can be explored. 3.2. Regional comparison Figure 1 depicts respondent support for the NGP across the four sampled regions. BC is the only region to have more respondents that disagree with the statement of NGP support (34%) than agree with it (28%). Alberta respondents are most likely to indicate support for the NGP (49%) and least likely to indicate disagreement (12%). These general regional differences in NGP acceptance are fairly similar to the findings of the Insights West poll conducted at about the same time, though the latter poll elicited slightly more extreme views in both provinces (Insights West, 2013). The Central and Atlantic regions of Canada are likely to have less familiarity with the NGP, and are less likely to have formulated opinions and beliefs regarding the NGP—49 and 57 percent, respectively, indicated that they are neutral or “don’t know” about the NGP. The remainder of this analysis excludes these two regions. 8 Figure 1: Regional acceptance of the Northern Gateway pipeline. (Agreement with the statement: “I support the Northern Gateway Project.”) Figure 2 portrays sample differences (BC versus Alberta) in respondent beliefs regarding the NGP. Alberta respondents are less likely to believe that Alberta oil sands cause “major environmental impacts,” and are more likely to believe that oil sands operations should be maintained or expanded in Alberta. Alberta respondents are also more likely to believe that the NGP will create jobs, provide general benefits to the province, and provide economic benefits to Canada, and are less likely to belief that the NGP will have unacceptable environmental risks, or will result in an overall increase in greenhouse gas emissions. Thus, Alberta respondents’ beliefs are slightly more consistent with the economic benefit frame (though a majority of BC respondents still “agree” with each response), while BC respondents’ beliefs correspond more with the environmental risk frame. Note that BC respondents are more likely to believe in general “environmental risks” than in the specific global impact of increasing greenhouse gas emission. 9 Figure 2: Regional comparison of beliefs relating to Alberta oil sands and NGP. 3.3 Identifying citizen segments The primary objective of this study is to explore and explain these variations in NGP acceptance and beliefs. I construct respondent segments using six scales from standardized survey data—four values scales from Stern et al. (1998), one attitudinal/belief scale (Dunlap et al., 2000), and one lifestyle scale. Each of the four value scales has a reasonable degree of internal reliability for this survey data (Cronbach’s alpha values between 0.7 and 0.9). The biospheric and altruistic value scales have alpha values of 0.90 and 0.81, respectively (and as found by Stern et al. the two scales could be combined into a single biospheric-altruistic scale, with a 0.88 alpha). The self-enhancement (egoistic) and conservative (traditional) value scales have alpha values of 0.73 and 0.75, respectively. The New Environmental Paradigm (NEP) or “general awareness impact” scale has an alpha of 0.82 (once negative statements are reverse coded). To establish a lifestyle scale for “pro-environmental” activities, I conducted a factor analysis on respondent engagement in 47 activities (principal axis factoring with varimax rotation in SPSS). The most interpretable solution including a total of 10 factors, with one “proenvironmental activities” factor; the following variables loaded strongly onto that factor “thinking about protecting the environment,” “trying to help the environment through daily actions,” “engaging in environmental conservation activities,” and “promoting environmental conservation (talking to people about the environment).” Taken on their own, responses to these four activity variables have a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.85. The BC and Alberta samples show no significant differences in scoring on the four core values scales. On average, BC respondents have a slightly higher NEP score and slightly higher stated engagement in pro-environmental lifestyle than Albert respondents. Because these 10 differences are only slight, I have constructed value-based clusters based on the entire Canada sample, rather than specifying different clusters within each regional sample—I do not suspect that that clustering solutions will substantially differ by regional sample, so I prefer to use the largest, pooled sample to construct value-based clusters. Table 1 depicts the six-cluster solution from the full Canada sample (K-means clustering of the six standardized variables, using SPSS). In my judgment, this solution is the most interpretable, and also has between-cluster variability greater than within-cluster variability as indicated by SPSS outputs (which is a desirable trait, indicating a reasonable degree of homogeneity within each cluster so that clustering accounts for a substantial portion of overall sample variation). This solution is also fairly balanced in distributing the samples (Table 1), with substantial sample sizes in each of the six clusters (the smallest cluster includes 246 respondents from the full Canada sample, or 52 in the Alberta sample). I split the six clusters into two general categories, where the first three clusters exhibit some degree of pro-environmental orientation. The “strong environmental” cluster is the most dedicated to environmental issues, with relatively high cluster centers (average standardized scores) for biospheric and altruistic values, pro-environmental lifestyle, and NEP. The “mildly aware” cluster exhibits no such strong pro-environmental value or lifestyle centers, but does have a relatively high NEP center. The “multi-valued” cluster is perhaps most interesting, where there are high biospheric and altruistic values centers, but also a high traditional value center, and no strong pro-environmental lifestyle centers. The non-environmental clusters include respondents that score highly only on egoistic values (“self-oriented”), and on traditional values (“traditionoriented”), and finally an “unengaged” cluster with negative centers for all tested variables. The proportion of respondents within each cluster are not significantly different between regions, e.g. BC has about the same proportion of “strong environmental” respondents as does Alberta. TABLE 1 Value-based Cluster descriptions and center values. Some environmental orientation Strong Mildly Multienviro. aware valued Values Traditional (conservative) Self-enhancement (egoistic) Biospheric Altruistic Pro-environmental lifestyle Belief in consequences (NEP) Number of respondents % of total Canada sample (2,628) % of BC sample (813)* % of AB sample (508)* 0.44 -0.38 0.95 0.66 0.97 1.07 515 19.6% 21.4% 17.5% -0.88 -0.29 -0.15 0.79 0.16 0.85 0.80 0.29 546 20.8% 21.7% 21.9% 538 20.5% 18.1% 20.9% No environmental orientation SelfTraditionUnengaged oriented oriented -0.79 0.46 -0.27 -0.52 0.16 -0.33 416 15.8% 17.3% 15.4% 0.33 -1.07 -1.00 -1.64 -0.52 -1.49 -1.81 -0.71 -1.00 368 14.0% 13.2% 14.2% 246 9.4% 8.4% 10.2% -0.83 *No significant differences in cluster proportions between regions Note: Cluster analysis used the k-means clustering procedure in SPSS software. Clusters are constructed using standardized variables, so the depicted cluster centers are also standardized. This table only depicts cluster centers that are substantially different from zero, either greater than 0.15 or less than -0.15. There are no statistically significant differences in cluster proportions between Alberta and British Columbia (at a 95% confidence level). 11 Table 2 compares the six clusters according to a variety of socio-demographic factors. The six clusters exhibit no statistically significant differences in education or income. Respondents in the three environment-oriented clusters are more likely to be female, and are more likely to be older than the other clusters. Overall, the socio-demographic variables do not substantially vary across the clusters (other than gender)–indicating that the main differences between clusters are the value, attitudinal and lifestyle variables used to construct the clusters. Table 2: Comparing value-based clusters by socio-demographic factors (percentage, total Canada sample, n = 2268) Some environmental orientation Strong Mildly Multienviro. aware valued No environmental orientation SelfTraditionUngengaged oriented oriented Respondent gender** Female 66.5 63.2 59.5 44.5 49.5 35.4 Respondent age** <35 years old 35-54 years old 55 years and older 25.7 40.7 33.5 24.2 41.0 34.8 32.2 41.9 25.9 47.4 32.2 20.4 32.1 36.1 31.8 43.9 37.8 18.3 Respondent education level (ns) College diploma or trade degree Bachelor’s degree Graduate degree 35.4 20.6 10.7 32.0 26.7 10.7 33.8 22.3 9.2 28.5 25.5 12.9 31.9 23.9 9.3 26.3 30.0 11.7 Household income (ns) <$70k/year $70-99k/year $100k/year or more Not reported 44.9 25.7 20.6 8.8 38.6 26.2 25.8 9.3 45.9 25.7 20.8 7.6 39.4 25.7 25.2 9.6 36.7 24.5 28.5 10.3 41.5 21.1 26.0 11.4 Household size* 1 person 2 people 3 or more 14.0 38.7 47.3 13.0 43.2 43.8 11.5 35.6 52.9 14.4 35.1 50.5 10.3 41.6 48.1 18.3 35.0 46.7 (ns) = no significant association with value cluster *Significant association at 95% confidence level (chi-square) **Significant association at 99% confidence level (chi-square) 3.4 Linking support to consumer values Figure 3 depicts how NGP acceptance varies among these value-based clusters within each region (BC and Alberta). Within-region comparisons of value-based clusters are largely consistent with the conceptual framework. The highest levels of “resistance” (as indicated by disagreement with the statement of support), and lowest levels of “support” are observed in the strong-environmental cluster. The mildly aware clusters exhibit higher acceptance, and the multivalued clusters have even higher acceptance. The highest proportion of NGP support is observed in the traditional-oriented clusters, followed by the self-oriented and unengaged clusters. The highest level of extreme resistance (“strongly disagree”) is in BC’s strong environmental cluster, 12 while the highest level of extreme support (“strongly agree”) is in Alberta’s tradition-oriented cluster. Figure 3: Acceptance of the Northern Gateway pipeline by value-based cluster. (Agreement with the statement: “I support the Northern Gateway Project.”) The between-region comparison of value-based clusters is striking in its consistency in differences. In the Alberta sample, every single value-based cluster has higher levels of NGP support, and lower levels of NGP resistance. In particular, there is a consistent absence of resistance among all of the Alberta clusters (less than 11 percent) except the strongenvironmental cluster (30.3 percent). To further explore the perceptions and motivations of respondents by value-based cluster and by region, Table 3 compares responses to a number of NGP-related beliefs. There are statistically significant variations among clusters for nearly every belief, for both regions. Again, these belief differences match frames that are consistent with each cluster’s values. The strongenvironmental cluster is the mostly likely to perceive that the NGP presents environmental risks, that the Alberta oil sands have major environmental impacts and should be decreased in size, and that climate change is a serious problem. In contrast, the tradition-oriented cluster is most likely to associate the NGP with economic benefits (particularly in the Alberta cluster), to support maintaining or expanding the scale of oil sands, and to believe that climate change is not a serious problem. 13 TABLE 3 Comparing value-based clusters by respondent beliefs relating to NGP (percentage, BC and AB regions only) Beliefs about NGP: The pipeline project… (% “agree” or “very agree”) …will create jobs. …will provide benefits to my province. …will provide economic benefits to Canadians. …has unacceptable environmental risks. …will increase overall greenhouse gas emissions. …should instead be built to eastern Canada or US. Beliefs about Alberta Oil Sands (% selecting a given response) There are major environmental impacts from oil sands. Canada should decrease or shut down the oil sands. Canada should keep or expand the size of the oil sands. Beliefs about Climate Change (% selecting 1 of the 5 responses) A serious problem, immediate action is necessary. Could be a serious problem, should take some action. More research is needed before deciding. It is not a problem and does not require any action. I don't know enough about the issue. Self‐assessment: I see my overall lifestyle as… (% selecting 1 of the 4 responses) Dark green = environ. activities a main priority Medium green = environ. activities general priority Light green = environ. activities sometimes a priority Not green = environ. activities not a priority. Region Some environmental orientation Strong Mildly Multienviro. aware valued BC* AB** BC (ns) AB** BC (ns) AB** BC** AB** BC** AB** BC* AB (ns) 73.6 85.4 49.4 68.5 58.6 64.0 72.4 56.2 55.7 47.2 15.5 18.0 BC** AB** BC** AB** BC** AB** BC** AB** BC** AB** BC** AB** BC** AB** BC** AB** BC** AB** BC** AB** BC** AB** BC** AB** 76.7 76.9 75.2 83.2 89.2 81.1 85.9 94.4 53.4 59.9 56.0 67.3 81.1 73.6 75.6 93.1 64.2 65.3 58.9 72.9 78.4 72.6 73.1 88.9 56.3 51.0 53.9 34.6 29.7 30.2 37.2 15.3 40.9 41.5 46.1 20.6 28.8 31.1 39.7 18.1 18.2 19.7 29.1 11.2 14.4 24.5 23.1 15.3 69.0 65.2 37.4 28.1 36.8 49.4 48.3 37.8 18.2 10.8 55.1 73.9 (ns) = no significant association with value cluster *Significant association at 95% confidence level (chi-square) **Significant association at 99% confidence level (chi-square) 0.6 0.0 39.8 32.4 58.5 63.1 1.1 4.5 5.6 4.2 40.2 30.6 36.4 37.5 8.4 15.3 9.3 12.5 5.4 4.7 51.7 43.4 42.2 48.1 0.7 3.8 13.2 5.8 35.3 28.8 29.4 34.6 10.3 17.3 11.8 13.5 3.5 1.3 35.5 32.1 57.4 62.8 3.5 3.8 25.0 19.2 5.9 1.9 73.5 80.8 26.2 11.5 50.4 56.4 18.4 24.4 0.0 2.6 5.0 5.1 57.4 69.2 57.4 59.6 55.9 65.4 38.2 11.5 20.6 9.6 22.1 15.4 19.6 12.5 2.8 0.0 67.3 87.5 42.9 33.0 30.6 34.9 19.0 17.0 1.4 1.9 6.1 13.2 48.2 38.5 19.9 10.3 55.3 75.6 29.0 17.1 41.5 56.8 21.0 17.1 3.4 3.6 5.1 5.4 9.8 7.9 67.2 56.2 23.0 32.6 0.0 3.4 45.6 37.7 17.7 10.4 51.7 66.0 60.9 51.7 29.9 32.6 5.7 9.0 1.7 1.1 1.7 5.6 No environmental orientation SelfTraditionUnoriented oriented engaged 0.0 0.0 9.3 6.9 72.0 76.4 18.7 16.7 2.9 1.9 19.1 5.8 60.3 57.7 17.6 34.6 14 4. Discussion and conclusions 4.1 Value-based clusters I explore the role of citizen values in citizen acceptance of large-scale fossil fuel infrastructure proposals, using the case of the Northern Gateway Project (NGP) proposed to transport bitumen across western Canada. I develop a conceptual framework based on value theory, and compare citizen acceptance and beliefs using a web-based survey of 2,628 Canadians. Although the present sample is of slightly higher income and education and lower age than Canadian census data, the general patterns of NGP acceptance by region (BC and Alberta) are similar to marketing poll results conducted around the same time (Insights West, 2013). Regional comparisons reveal different beliefs by region, where BC respondents are more likely to believe in environmental risks associated with the NGP, and Alberta respondents are more likely to believe in economic benefits. The primary objective of this study is to explore how citizens’ core values relate to acceptance of the NGP. By clustering respondents based on values, awareness and lifestyle, I find general support for the conceptual framework I detail in the introduction. Within both regions (Alberta and BC), the “strong environmental” value cluster exhibits the least NGP acceptance, and is more likely to associate the NGP with environmental risks. Higher NGP acceptance is observed among clusters with strong egoistic (self-enhancement) or traditional (conservative) values—such clusters are also more likely to perceive economic benefits from the NGP. The differences in beliefs by cluster support the idea that citizens tend to subscribe to different “frames” and construct beliefs that are consistent with their values. Stern et al. (1995a) suggest that citizens tend to receive, filter and process information from sources (media, institutions, and social interactions) that frame issues to align with their existing values, which is consistent with qualitative research exploring how citizens’ formulate opinions on renewable energy related to their larger worldview (West et al., 2010). My findings further support this notion—but a more media-focused research project is required to explore the details of how information is perceived by citizens with different core values. A second insight involves conflict in a citizen’s core values—which seems to affect citizen support. Two of the value-based clusters have nearly identical levels of biosphericaltruistic values: the strong-environmental and multi-valued clusters. However, the strongenvironmental cluster exhibits much lower acceptance of the NGP. A major difference is that the multi-valued cluster also has stronger traditional values—a core value that is highly consistent with NGP support. Thus, respondents in the multi-value cluster may be more likely to experience value conflict—subscribing to core values consistent with opposing frames of the NGP. Seemingly, this conflict results in NGP acceptance levels that are less extreme than clusters with only strong traditional values or only strong biospheric-altruistic values. Third, awareness and concern regarding general environmental impacts (as indicated by the New Environmental Paradigm scale) does not translate into strong NGP resistance in the absence of strong altruistic-biospheric values, as seen in the mildly aware cluster (particularly in Alberta). One explanation is that if environmental concern exists but does not resonate with a citizen’s core values, then the concern is not likely to translate into negative evaluation of the NGP (or to focus on the environmental frame). Somewhat surprising is that NGP acceptance was highest among the tradition-oriented cluster in both regions, particularly in the Alberta sample (with 75 percent supporting, and less than 3 percent resisting). The traditional values scale is based on statements relating to family security, respecting elders, and self-discipline. On the other hand, Schwartz (1994) and Stern et 15 al. (1995a) consider egoistic values as aligned with self-enhancement and thus diametrically opposed to self-transcendence values (e.g. biospheric-altruistic values). Indeed, egoistic values were associated with NGP support and with beliefs in the economic benefit frame. However, the tradition-oriented clusters yielded even higher NGP support. One explanation may be that the specific values of family security and respecting elders are more consistent with maintaining the status quo of a society, which in this case translates into supporting an energy project that expands the present fossil-fuel based economy (as opposed to a renewable energy project that would disrupt the status quo). 4.2 Regional differences in support The regional differences in citizen support for the NGP are substantial and strikingly consistent across value-based clusters. Every single cluster from the Alberta sample exhibits higher NGP support and less resistance than its counterpart cluster in BC. Otherwise, Alberta and BC sample are not very different: there were no statistically significant differences in any of the four core values or the proportions of respondents in each value-based cluster; there were differences in environmental awareness and lifestyle but these were slight. Clearly, there are important regional or contextual factors that are not directly measured in this study. Two potential explanations for these regional differences are consistent with my conceptual framework. First, the NGP has likely been framed very differently in each region by media, institutions and stakeholders—with Alberta media more likely to focus on the economic benefit frame, and BC media more likely to focus on the environmental risk frame. Potentially, respondents in each region have exposure to a different “pool” of information. Even if a respondent tends to select information that is consistent with their core values, the respondent may be constrained by the extent of their regional pool of information. Thus, for example, strong-environmental respondents in AB end up constructing beliefs that are more supportive of the NGP than their BC counterparts. Further exploration of this explanation could utilize a comparative media analysis. A second explanation (which does not necessarily contradict the first) is that NGP beliefs differ because benefits and risks actually do vary by region, and that respondents tend to think about these benefits and risks from a regional perspective (rather than a national or global perspective). Any economic benefits are likely to be greater in Alberta due to the provincial economy’s reliance on the fossil fuel industry. Incremental environmental risks are greater in BC because the region would contain most of the pipeline, the marine terminal, and all of the increased oil tanker traffic. Thus, if respondents are identifying with their region, then BC respondents would tend to emphasize the environmental risk frame of the NGP, and Alberta respondents would emphasize the economic benefits frame. This explanation could be confirmed through qualitative interviews with citizens in both regions. There may be additional explanations for regional differences that are beyond the scope of this study. Perhaps there are differences in values, attitudes, culture, worldview or other factors that were not tested here 4.3 Policy insights regarding citizen acceptance Citizen acceptance of large fossil fuel projects can shape political decisions. Clearly, citizen acceptance and resistance to proposed fossil fuel energy projects is not just a matter of NIMBYism—such projects can resonate with a variety of citizen values in ways that can differ substantially by context, such as region and distribution of benefits and risks. The competition 16 between frames of economic benefits and environmental risks (and how those frames resonate with values) is a particularly strong theme in this and other energy project proposals. Governments seeking to navigate public opinion will need to carefully frame political decisions to propose, accept or reject such large-scale energy projects. Potentially, such controversy can be alleviated by the provision of a strong, consistent vision by political leaders—where integrated national energy development plans (including fossil fuel development) could be actively framed in a way that aligns with stated environmental and climate goals. This study also suggests that citizen values are not necessarily a “hard constraint” to acceptance (or resistance) of new fossil fuel infrastructure proposals. Clearly, the subgroup of citizens with strong biospheric-altruistic values and commitments to pro-environmental lifestyles are most likely to actively resist such projects. But within all identified clusters, resistance is higher for citizens that perceive negative local impacts (in their own region). Potentially, framing the broader climate change impacts of such fossil fuel projects to emphasize specific local impacts (rather than more general, global impacts) could better connect with a broader set of values. Also, the strong support exhibited by citizens with traditional values may be subject to change—if the negative impacts of climate change are perceived as disrupting to the economy, or threatening with family security, then traditional values could more clearly align with the environmental risks frame. Such possibilities should be further explored in future research. When considering citizens’ stated acceptance of such energy projects, policymakers should also consider how well this stated acceptance reflects citizen’s core values versus reflecting the frames put forth and propagated by media and stakeholders. 4.4. Limitations and directions for future research There are several limitations of this study that can be explored in future research on citizen acceptance of the NGP and other large fossil fuel infrastructure proposals. Specifically, this study did not explore: Beliefs and frames relating to fairness of the NGP to First Nations (aboriginal) communities that would be affected by the pipeline (or oil sands expansion), including revenue sharing, and land impacts. The potential frame of energy security benefits, which is likely to be important in cases where the infrastructure would increase domestic access as with the Keystone XL pipeline proposed for the U.S. (whereas the NGP would export oil.) Citizen trust in NGP-related actors, including federal and provincial governments, Enbridge (the proposed builder and operator), oil companies, and oil spill clean-up agencies. Perceptions of trust may affect acceptance (Huijts et al., 2012; Kamishiro and Sato, 2009; Midden and Huijts, 2009; Terwel et al., 2009), though core values may also shape perceptions of trust. Citizen perceptions of and trust in technology, including the potential to substantially reduce the probability of land- or marine-based oil spills through improved pipeline and oil tanker technology. Citizen perceptions of their regions’ dependence on different industries that would be affect by the NGP, say the oil industry, fisheries or eco-tourism. Regional and sub-regional differences in NGP framing by media, advertising, governments, organizations and NGOs (as noted above). The relative influence of different stakeholders and information sources in the formation of citizen beliefs and acceptance. 17 The potential influence of environmental risk frames that emphasize global impacts (increasing greenhouse gas emission) rather than local impacts (pipeline construction and oil spill risks). Drawing from the present findings, I suspect that beliefs regarding First Nations are consistent with the environmental risk frame (aligning with the altruistic-biospheric dimension), while energy security beliefs might align with the economic benefits frame. I also suspect that citizens’ perceived trust in actors and technology is likely to be constructed based on core values—as with the other beliefs explored in the present study. Also, there are likely to be important differences in citizen concerns regarding fossil fuel energy projects versus renewable energy projects—the latter of which is often perceived to have tradeoffs within the general category of environmental benefits, such as disrupting local river flows (for run-of-river hydro) or impacting local landscape visual (for wind turbines) for the sake of reducing carbon emission from electricity generation. The present NGP case study does not seem to invoke such environmental tradeoffs—instead, reducing local oil spill risks and carbon emissions from oil sands growth, for example, seem to be complementary pro-environmental outcomes. As noted above, confirmation of this study’s findings and exploration of many of these omitted factors could be accomplished through complementary qualitative research methods, such as semi-structured interviews and focus groups with citizens and stakeholders, media analysis and stakeholder analysis, and even time-series analysis of media, beliefs and acceptance over time. 18 References Aaron, W. (1987) Choosing Preferences by Constructing Institutions: A Cultural Theory of Preference Formation. The American Political Science Review 81, 4-21. Ajzen, I. (1991) The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes 50, 179-211. Aklin, M., Urpelainen, J. (In Press) Debating clean energy: Frames, counter frames, and audiences. Global Environmental Change. Axsen, J., Kurani, K.S. (2013a) Connecting plug-in vehicles with green electricity through consumer demand. Environmental Research Letters 8, 1-8. Axsen, J., Kurani, K.S. (2013b) Developing sustainability-oriented values: Insights from households in a trial of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. Global Environmental Change 23, 70-80. Axsen, J., TyreeHageman, J., Lentz, A. (2012) Lifestyle practices and pro-environmental technology. Ecological Economics 82, 64-74. Bradbury, J., Ray, I., Peterson, T., Wade, S., Wong-Parodi, G., Feldpausch, A. (2009) The Role of Social Factors in Shaping Public Perceptions of CCS: Results of Multi-State Focus Group Interviews in the U.S. Energy Procedia 1, 4665-4672. Chan, G., Reilly, J.M., Paltsev, S., Chen, Y.H.H. (2012) The Canadian oil sands industry under carbon constraints. Energy Policy 50, 540-550. Cordano, M., Welcomer, S., Scherer, R. (2003) An analysis of the predictive validity of the New Ecological Paradigm. The Journal of Environmental Education 34, 22-28. Druckman, J.N. (2004) Political Preference Formation: Competition, Deliberation, and the (Ir)relevance of Framing Effects. The American Political Science Review 98, 671-686. Dunlap, R., Van Liere, K., Mertig, A., Jones, R. (2000) Measuing endorsement of the New Ecological Paradigm: A revised NEP scale. Journal of Social Issues 56, 425-442. Eglington, P., Mansell, R., Ruitenbeek, J., Schlenker, R., (2012) Public Interest Benefit Evaluation of the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline Project: Update and Reply Evidence. Wright Mansell Research Ltd. . Gunton, T., Broadbent, S., (2012) A Public Interest Assessment of the Enbridge Northern Gateway Project. Prepared for: Coastal First Nations. Hitlin, S. (2003) Values as the core of personal identity: Drawing links between two theories of self. Social Psychology Quarterly 66, 118-137. Huijts, N., Molin, E., Steg, L. (2012) Psychological factors influencing sustainable energy technology acceptance: A review-based comprehensive framework. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 16, 525-531. Insights West, (2013) Your Insights on the Northern Gateway Pipeline, Insights West Press Release. Kamishiro, N., Sato, T. (2009) Public acceptance of the oceanic carbon sequestration. Marine Policy 33, 466-471. Luhmann, N. (1989) Ecological communication. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL, U.S.A. Mercer, A., Keith, D.W., Sharp, J.D. (2011) Public understanding of solar radiation management. Environmental Research Letters 6. Midden, C.J.H., Huijts, N.M.A. (2009) The Role of Trust in the Affective Evaluation of Novel Risks: The Case of CO<sub>2</sub> Storage. Risk Analysis: An International Journal 29, 743-751. 19 Poumadère, M., Bertoldo, R., Samadi, J. (2011) Public perceptions and governance of controversial technologies to tackle climate change: nuclear power, carbon capture and storage, wind, and geoengineering. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change 2, 712-727. Schwartz, S.H., (1977) Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, in: Berkowitz, L. (Ed.), Normative influences on altruism. Academic Press, New York, NY, pp. 221-279. Schwartz, S.H. (1992) Universals in the context and structure of values: Theoretical advances and empircal tests in 20 countries. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology 25, 1-65. Schwartz, S.H. (1994) Are there universal aspects in the structure and content of human values? Journal of Social Issues 50, 19-45. Schwartz, S.H., Bilsky, W. (1987) Toward a universal psychological structure of human values. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 53, 550-562. Sharp, J.D., Jaccard, M.K., Keith, D.W. (2009) Anticipating public attitudes toward underground CO2 storage. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control 3, 641-651. Shelby, L.B. (2011) Beyond Cronbach's Alpha: Considering Confirmatory Factor Analysis and Segmentation. Human Dimensions of Wildlife 16, 142-148. Shum, R.Y. (2013) Social construction and physical nihilation of the Keystone XL pipeline: Lessons from international relations theory. Energy Policy 59, 82-85. Steg, L., de Groot, J. (2010) Explaining prosocial intentions: Testing causal relationships in the norm activation model. British Journal of Social Psychology 49, 725-743. Stephens, J.C., Bielicki, J., Rand, G.M. (2009a) Learning about carbon capture and storage: Changing stakeholder perceptions with expert information. Energy Procedia 1, 46554663. Stephens, J.C., Rand, G.M., Melnick, L.L. (2009b) Wind Energy in US Media: A Comparative State-Level Analysis of a Critical Climate Change Mitigation Technology. Environmental Communication 3, 168-190. Stephens, J.C., Wilson, E.J., Peterson, T.R. (2008) Socio-Political Evaluation of Energy Deployment (SPEED): An integrated research framework analyzing energy technology deployment. Technological Forecasting and Social Change 75, 1224-1246. Stern, P., Dietz, T., Kalof, L., Guagnano, G. (1995a) Values, beliefs, and proenvironmental action: Attitude formation toward emergent attitude objects. Journal of Applied Social Psychology 25, 1611-1636. Stern, P.C., Dietz, T., Guagnano, G.A. (1995b) The New Ecological Paradigm in SocialPsychological Context. Environment and Behavior 27, 723-743. Stern, P.C., Dietz, T., Guagnano, G.A. (1998) A Brief Inventory of Values. Educational and Psychological Measurement 58, 984-1001. Terwel, B.W., Harinck, F., Ellemers, N., Daamen, D.D.L. (2009) Competence-Based and Integrity-Based Trust as Predictors of Acceptance of Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage (CCS). Risk Analysis: An International Journal 29, 1129-1140. Terwel, B.W., Harinck, F., Ellemers, N., Daamen, D.D.L. (2010) Voice in political decisionmaking: The effect of group voice on perceived trustworthiness of decision makers and subsequent acceptance of decisions. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied 16, 173-186. Tversky, A., Kahneman, D. (1981) The Framing of Decisions and the Psychology of Choice. Science 211, 453-458. 20 Wallquist, L., Visschers, V., Siegrist, M. (2010) Impact of knowledge and misconceptions on benefit and risk perception of CCS. Environmental Science & Technology 44, 6557-6562. West, J., Bailey, I., Winter, M. (2010) Renewable energy policy and public perceptions of renewable energy: A cultural theory approach. Energy Policy 38, 5739-5748. | <urn:uuid:01ad54ca-6d17-44fb-98fe-a0434e2bda4c> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://studylib.net/doc/11010235/citizen-acceptance-of-new-fossil-fuel-infrastructure- | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570879.37/warc/CC-MAIN-20220809003642-20220809033642-00675.warc.gz | en | 0.898646 | 12,467 | 1.78125 | 2 |
People Who Help Us Day
On ‘People who Help Us’ day the children will meet lots of different professionals. Policemen, traffic wardens, cooks, vicars. They may meet a Health Worker and be told that this is the person who is always there to help Mum when babies are tiny. They are there just in case, to make sure that everything is OK.
Sadly in Africa there are children dying because there are not enough Health Workers to make sure that things don’t go wrong and lots of things do. Things like no water, no real hygienic spaces and miles of walking. We CAN help!
These 100 words are my contribution to the blogging community’s response to the Save the Children campaign. At the UN on Tuesday 20th September Chris Mosler will be adding her voice to those thousands who have signed the petition to pressure David Cameron and other world leaders to reverse this dreadful situation and provide the funds to get the Health Workers in those areas that desperately need it. You can HELP!
ACTION LIST (from @michelletwinmum)
- So first off – Let’s all sign the petition, 30 seconds work and a step closer.
- Then the challenge set by @HelloItsGemma is that we want (need) to see 100 posts of 100 words linked up here by Tuesday. If 100 bloggers each write a post about this and encourage more signatures that could make a massive dent in the 20,000 signature shortfall that we sit with right now!
- Write your 100 words about a great health professional you have encountered in your life. Add a link to the petition and either link or add in some information from Save the Children about the #Healthworkers campaign
- Link to a number of other bloggers/ vloggers and ask them to do the same
- Tweet about this, facebook mention it, remark on google plus, talk to your Mum on the phone, whatever you can do to spread this to just a few more people, please do it. | <urn:uuid:f18fe810-8aac-4f9a-b383-2a21a9d7ddff> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://juliasplace.org.uk/uncategorized/3900/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570741.21/warc/CC-MAIN-20220808001418-20220808031418-00078.warc.gz | en | 0.946694 | 416 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Hymn writer (lyrics): James Rowe
Music composer: Harold E. Smith
Love in the Bible
The English word "love" is found 131 times in the King James Bible translation of the Old Testament. It is found 180 times in the New Testament. Its first appearance in God's word is in the book of Genesis, where an aged Isaac asks his firstborn son Esau to catch the kind of meat he likes so that he can bless him.
2. And he (Isaac) said (to Esau), "Behold now, I am old and I do not know the day of my death. 3. And now please take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me. 4. And make savory meat for me, such as I love, and bring it to me so that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die." (Genesis 27:2 - 4, HBFV)
The New Testament, written in Greek, uses as least three different words that are translated as our English word 'love.' The first of these words is Agape, which is an unconditional love that flows out of a character built on loving. The second is Phileo, which is a brotherly or friendship type of love. The third word, Storgay, found only as a compound word, refers to loving one's relatives or loving someone in a familial-type of way.
Hate stirs up trouble, but love forgives all offenses. (Proverbs 10:12)
1 See how much the Father has loved us! His love is so great that we are called God’s children - and so, in fact, we are. This is why the world does not know us: it has not known God. 2 My dear friends, we are now God’s children . . . (1John 3:1 - 3)
7. Beloved, we should love one another (especially among brethren) because love is from God . . . 8. The one who does not love does not know God because God is love. (1John 4:7 - 8)
15. Do not love the world, nor the things that are in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. (1John 2:15) | <urn:uuid:d0395e84-7a86-4c76-a3d2-b720e2dbc5c5> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.biblestudy.org/free-music/love-lifted-me.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988721405.66/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183841-00314-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958574 | 494 | 2.40625 | 2 |
Black magic is an illegal practice in many parts of India. Several states like Maharashtra, Kerala and Karnataka already have anti-superstition bill / law in place.
Governments there are aware about the dangers of black magic and therefore look to use right measures to protect the society and common people against this evil custom.
So, any form of superstitious practice done with the purpose to harm others is a punishable offence in those states. If anyone is caught using supernatural powers for wicked and selfish purposes he/she might land behind the bar.
Clearly, good days are not ahead for crooked black magicians and sorcerers who claim paranormal powers and offer dubious services to help people gain by inflicting pain on others.
The law will take its course if anybody attempts to inflict an evil eye on people, or on their prosperity, or intend to cause mortal injury.
What is Actually Black Magic?
Black magic is basically a type of magic but with an evil design. Unlike any other magic, it is practiced with bad intentions, often with the purpose to put someone in harm’s way, either physically, emotionally, financially or otherwise.
In many parts of the world, it exists for millennia albeit in different forms and shapes -- it may take the form of religious activities or inhuman practices to exploit people, cause harm to others or cause injury, or inflict pain on people with malicious intent.
Any of these can be an example of black magic -
- Rituals that may cause physical or emotional injuries, intended or otherwise
- Invocation of ghosts or mantras for malevolent gains over others
- Performance of any evil act to harm others
When to Contact Sleuths India for Help?
Sleuths India is an award-winning private detective agency with a clear understanding of the risks black magic can cause to any society and its people. We are also familiar with the fact that how some people can go to any extent with their evil designs and harmful practices.
More so, our offices across the country regularly get black magic cases of different nature, failing in either regular category or those from the psychological ones. You can always rely on our over two-decades of experience in cracking most complex of cases with ease.
You can contact us for help in situations like –
- You want to catch someone has done black magic upon you with a mala fide intention
- You want to know about the tantric, aghori the offender may have met to harm you physically, financially, emotionally
- You fear someone is watching you, or keeping a tab of you activities all the time
- You’re suspicious about someone, or doubt someone is controlling your brain through satellite
- You think someone has installed a camera in your house to track and monitor your movement
- You see someone around all the time but others can’t see them and you want to catch that person
If you do face any of these challenges, Sleuths India can help. We have the experience, experts and technology to solve cases related to black magic.
How Can Sleuths India Help?
At Sleuths India, we rely on scientific methods and logical approach to handle black magic cases of any type. Our record is impeccable in delivering success against people using unnatural methods and employ unlawful tactics to gain over others. We also consult people about how to catch people who have done black magic against them. Our method is helpful and it can help you know the culprit and socially ridicule them.
We can help you in many ways -
- Meticulous planning with the use of cutting-edge tools, cameras and gadgets
- Employment of counter surveillance & debugging techniques
- Tracking movements of people you have doubts against
- Gathering evidence for any act that falls under black magic
- Carrying out sting operation against babas (godmen) to expose their shenanigans
- Finding out if someone is listening to you, or if someone is spreading negativity against you
In overall, we can reach to the root causes of those cases and help clients easily by relying on the scientific methods and new-age approach.
So, hire Sleuths India to strike a blow against the evil design of black magic! | <urn:uuid:d2da9ab1-c4a5-4ca9-8e05-0e143a60f9af> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://m.sleuthsindiadetectives.com/detecting-and-curing-black-magic.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572304.13/warc/CC-MAIN-20220816120802-20220816150802-00469.warc.gz | en | 0.932647 | 857 | 1.71875 | 2 |
- Widespread, and spreading. Present in Asia, but not Indonesia, the Philippines, Oceania. Hosts: maize, millets, rice, sorghum, sugarcane, and many others of economic importance.
- Damage: larvae eat leaves and bore into fruits, e.g., maize cobs. Crops losses across Africa since 2016 have cost billions of dollars.
- Eggs masses (up to 200) on underside of leaves. Young larvae green, feed together, later brown with three whitish lines along back, dark spots with spines, and upside-down Y on head. Larger larvae cannibalistic and nocturnal. Adults, brown forewings and white hindwings, up to 40 mm wingspan.
- Spread is rapid on the wing, and on air currents. Highly invasive.
- Natural enemies: many parasitoids and predators known, and pathogens.
- Cultural control: avoid overlapping crops; avoid planting new crops next to old; plant napier or Brachicaria grass (attracts moths) around crops, and Desmodium (repels moths) between crops; monitor; crush egg masses; bird perches; attract ants; ash for maize whorls; collect and burn debris after harvest,
- Chemical control: biorational pesticides: (i) botanicals (chillies, neem, derris, pyrethrum); (ii) microbials e.g., Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis subspecies kurstaki) against young caterpillars, spinosad, Beauveria; (iii) avoid other kinds of pesticides as moths have resistance to them, or will develop it, and (iv) will kill natural enemies.
Pacific Pests, Pathogens, Weeds & Pesticides
Fall armyworm (401)
Photo 1. Mature larva of the fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda. Note the inverted Y on the head, and the bristles from black spots. Another distinguishing characteristic is the four black dots (in a square) on the last abdominal segment.
Fall armyworm. Named after its flight into North America where it lays eggs, and the larvae develop in the Fall or Autumn.
AUTHOR Grahame Jackson
Information from John Wightman (2019) Fall armyworm update. Natural Resource Development Maleny Queensland. (https://api.pestnet.org/media_store/submissions/2019/4/8855f10f-95cc-4b1c-8d78-1ed14562de1a/Fall%20armyworm%20note.pdf); and CABI (2019). Spodoptera frugiperda (fall armyworm) Crop Protection Compendium. (https://www.cabi.org/cpc/restricted/?target=%2fcpc%2fdatasheet%2f29810); and Fall armyworm. Wikipedia. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fall_armyworm); and FAO FAMEWS V3 app; and FAO Fall Armyworm Guidance Notes 1-5. (http://www.fao.org/fall-armyworm/faw-management/pesticide-guidance/en/); and from Kris Wyckhuys. Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo 1 Russ Ottens, University of Georgia, Bugwood.org. Photo 2 Frank Peairs, Colorado State University, Bugwood.org. Photo 3 John C. French Sr., Retired, Universities:Auburn, GA, Clemson and U of MO, Bugwood.org. Photo 4 Lyle Buss, University of Florida, Bugwood.org. Diagram from FAO FAW Guidance Note 2 Fall Armyworm Scouting. (http://www.fao.org/3/I8321EN/i8321en.pdf).
Produced with support from the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research under project HORT/2016/18: Responding to emerging pest and disease threats to horticulture in the Pacific islands, implemented by the University of Queensland and the Pacific Community | <urn:uuid:e8ac7d90-2134-40ed-ba42-e2ec70b5ff56> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://apps.lucidcentral.org/pppw_v11/text/web_mini/entities/fall_armyworm_401.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571989.67/warc/CC-MAIN-20220813232744-20220814022744-00478.warc.gz | en | 0.812917 | 883 | 3.53125 | 4 |
Joyeuses (Happy) Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day!
June 24th is the official holiday for St. John the Baptist, known in French as Fête de la Saint-Jean-Baptiste. This day is celebrated in several countries, and it may be on its way to becoming more popular in the United States. The holiday was initially celebrated in North America during the 1600's, featuring bonfires, cannon shots, and feasting. Today, there are still bonfires and feasting, along with parades, fireworks, music, and lots of parties!
Samuel Champlain is the explorer credited with establishing Québec in the 1600's. One wonders if festivities took place at his home, seen in the sketch above and found at the Bibliothèque et Archives Nationales. (Just note that the Bibliothèque et Archives Nationales du Québec reconfigured its online catalog around the time of this article, so the link may only work on a laptop or desktop. Cell phones seem to have issues with retrieving the map.) As noted in the sketch, the gardens were neatly arranged at the base of his dwelling. It is known that Champlain eventually planted roses, and he was hopeful for the future of agriculture in Québec. During his explorations, he noted wild fruit such as plums, raspberries, strawberries, currants, and cherries. If they did celebrate at this dwelling, then they did not have to rely on the garden for feasting. Like others, he also noticed grapevines growing in profusion. Like the rest of North America, viticulture was a challenge surmounted much later than most other crops.
Here at Floramont, celebrations will be quite tame compared to our Québecois counterparts north of the border, but there will still be a celebration in little ways. For example, some people in Québec and parts of New England still enjoy tapping maple syrup from trees, just like their ancestors. There may not be a rowdy party at Floramont, but there will be some maple syrup on waffles, perhaps topped with a few wild berries. Like Champlain's Québec in the early 1600's, any potential wine will have to be imported for now! | <urn:uuid:a35b8f90-ed3e-4af8-bdee-2437b047407a> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.floramont.com/post/joyeuses-happy-saint-jean-baptiste-day | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571745.28/warc/CC-MAIN-20220812170436-20220812200436-00469.warc.gz | en | 0.969034 | 460 | 2.96875 | 3 |
Musculoskeletal (MSK) pain conditions are the biggest cause of disability internationally and a major societal burden.1 However, there is little guidance to assist primary care providers in implementing non-pharmacological treatments such as manual therapy in addition to, or as an alternative for, pharmacological treatment. This tool is designed to increase primary care provider confidence in implementing an evidence-based multimodal program of patient education, exercise and manual therapy for MSK pain.1–10 It will guide providers in the referral for manual therapy by a chiropractor, physiotherapist or registered massage therapist (RMT), and the evaluation of patient outcomes.
When discussing non-pharmacological treatment options with patients, use motivational interviewing techniques, as appropriate. If patients are reluctant to try something new, try the Elicit-Provide-Elicit technique:
Elicit the patient’s thoughts/feelings:
“How do you feel about trying some exercise or manual therapies for your pain?”
Provide information (a common patient concern is that these therapies will increase pain):
“If I understand correctly, you are concerned that these therapies will increase your pain. However, they can actually help decrease pain over time.”
Elicit the patient’s opinion:
“What do you think about this?” | <urn:uuid:4860e41d-6965-4392-afde-315d4c7e82be> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://tools.cep.health/tool/manual-therapy-as-an-evidence-based-referral-for-musculoskeletal-pain/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571284.54/warc/CC-MAIN-20220811103305-20220811133305-00472.warc.gz | en | 0.903631 | 284 | 2.453125 | 2 |
The Mister Rogers Effect: 7 Secrets to Bringing Out the Best in Yourself and Others from America's Beloved Neighbor
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5 Hours 2 Minutes
Audio Book Summary
In a world increasingly divided by politics and social issues, we need Mister Rogers more than ever. For three decades, his presence was a healing balm to children of all ages. And though he is no longer with us, we can all adopt his attitudes and actions as models for our own lives.
In this uplifting and informative book, Dr. Anita Knight Kuhnley shows us how to use the transformative psychological principles that Mister Rogers masterfully employed to make a difference in our own neighborhoods. Principles such as listening for discovery, validating feelings, preserving white space, expressing gratitude, exercising empathy, practicing radical acceptance, and using expressions of care.
Imagine a world where these seven principles guide our interactions with each other. Sound heavenly? Neighborly? It all starts with you. | <urn:uuid:2a93ebd4-150c-46da-8817-2df8e2270edf> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.audiobooks.net/audiobook/the-mister-rogers-effect-7-secrets-to-bringing-out-the-best-in-yourself-and-others-from-americas-beloved-neighbor/432245 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573533.87/warc/CC-MAIN-20220818215509-20220819005509-00274.warc.gz | en | 0.907851 | 295 | 1.929688 | 2 |
Many tech professionals may very well – and with just cause – eschew politics and its compromises, dark arts, and dubious practices. But they are canny enough to know that good or bad governance affects everyone.
Like every part of the UK economy, the tech sector has had to adapt rapidly to the short-term challenges of Covid-19. This has meant protecting staff, nurturing clients, securing funding and cashflow, meeting potential partners and customers in a period of unique and unprecedented economic uncertainty. In some ways, it’s been ahead of the curve – anticipating the need for more home working, new digital strategies and online shopping, the move away from city centre working, and remote ergonomic hubs.
The basics aren’t going to change any time soon. New startups and scaleups, whether they’re in cyber security, artificial intelligence, augmented reality, robotics, biotech or digital payments, are still going to need to focus on the bread and butter realities of a competitive and fast-growing market. – That includes their unique selling point, branding, recruiting key people, product development and, of course, money. Investors need courting and private equity and venture capitalists are front and centre of UK tech. Pretty logical, as it’s a high-growth area with bags of potential and increasingly seen as a safe and secure asset class.
Digital tech services accounted for a £23bn contribution to the UK economy in 2019, this country is the fifth-biggest tech exporter in the world, and tech exports are expected to expand by more than 35 per cent in the next ten years, according to the Department of International Trade.
It’s a given that successful tech businesses need vision, flexibility, clear values, and realistic but ambitious growth objectives focused on the bottom line – and an agency like FieldHouse has the track record and expertise to help deliver demonstrable competitive advantage.
That said, the sector cannot rest on its laurels. A year ago, institutional investors lauded commercial office space and shopping centres as reliable asset classes for their pension fund clients and just look what happened then. In short, rapid change comes at you very fast. Apple is the first company in global history to be valued at $2tn but, even as I write, the big four tech giants are under attack in the United States Congress for competition abuse, which may lead to their break-up in a sustained attack on corporate power in the technology industry.
The zeitgeist means that tech is going to be at the heart of everything we do pretty much forever – especially in areas like payment systems, on-demand platforms, virtual reality, data ownership, management and security.
So what’s that extra element that might give your business a long-term competitive advantage? In the post-Covid era, as the reach, power and influence of government at all levels, in all parts of society and commercial sectors expands, – understanding the policy, regulatory and legislative ecosystem might make all the difference. How so? Government awards procurement contracts to the value of £49.6bn each year. That’s a big pie to share out, and tech companies have been favoured by politicians of all stripes in recent years, as the government has sought to make itself more responsive, efficient, accountable and cheaper.
Those tech players who understand how government works, how politicians and civil servants think, who makes decisions and why, who influences them, and how advocates get results, are most likely to prosper in a complex and confusing intersection between business and politics.
Many tech professionals may very well – and with just cause – eschew politics and its compromises, dark arts and dubious practices. But they are canny enough to know that good or bad governance affects everyone – and that to be at the table with your voice getting heard is not ignoble but in fact a key imperative. That is where government relations, public affairs, and political intelligence comes into play. A good lawyer and accountant and PR firm – is foundational and transformational in the success of your business, but it might not be the whole story.
Political lobbying has delivered the Future Fund, the Enterprise Investment Scheme and Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme and Innovate UK loans and grants. It will influence, for instance, the UK’s new National Cyber Security Strategy from 2021 and, among other things, policies on IR35, Time to Pay arrangements for VAT and corporation tax, intellectual property law, VAT deferment schemes, new tax reliefs, share option schemes and investor rights’ regulations.
Covid-19 has thrown the business models of so much of British industry out of the window and has accelerated demographic and commercial trends to warp speed. Whenever the whirlwind subsides, you’re still going to need to know about the business of government and politics, which – whoever is in charge – impacts your company, workforce, investors, shareholders, and customers.
Stewart Jackson is a former MP and special advisor and is founder and director of Political Insight UK | <urn:uuid:a44e1f4e-8190-4bc7-892a-ab689c464e5e> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.fieldhouseassociates.com/2020/10/23/prospering-in-a-complex-and-confusing-intersection-between-business-and-politics/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571692.3/warc/CC-MAIN-20220812105810-20220812135810-00075.warc.gz | en | 0.954714 | 1,022 | 1.695313 | 2 |
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has identified geothermal heat pumps as a technology that significantly reduces greenhouse gas and other air emissions associated with heating, cooling and water heating residential buildings, while saving consumers money, compared to conventional technologies.
For every 100,000 units of typically sized residential geothermal heat pumps installed, more than 37.5 trillion BTU’s of energy used for space conditioning and water heating can be saved. This corresponds to an emissions reduction of about 2.18 million metric tons of carbon equivalents and a cost savings to consumers of about $750 million over the 20-year-life of the equipment.
WHAT IS GEOTHERMAL HEATING AND COOLING?
Geothermal heating and cooling relies on an energy exchange between ambient air and the ground. The earth absorbs nearly half of all solar energy, producing more than 500 times the energy mankind needs in a year. As a result, the Earth remains at a consistent 50 F.
During the summer, geothermal heating and cooling systems absorb heat from your home and transfer it to the underground loop where it is then absorbed by the cooler earth. The geothermal heat pump uses the cool water returning from the ground to create the cool, dehumidified air conditioning for your home.
GEOTHERMAL HEAT PUMPS
Geothermal heat pumps use the earth as a heat source in the winter and as a heat storage source in the summer. The ground loop components of a geothermal heating and cooling system can last up to 50 years! This is how How Geothermal Heat Pumps use the Earth to Heat and Cool Your Home.
GROUND AND WATER TEMPERATURES
Ground and water temperatures, 6 feet below the earth’s surface, stay relatively constant throughout the year. This allows the system to provide extremely efficient heating or cooling all year long in virtually any climate. Sometimes the term “environmental comfort system” is used to describe a geothermal heat pump. This happens because a heat pump absorbs or rejects heat from the earth and has absolutely no impact on the environment.
HOW DOES GEOTHERMAL HEATING WORK?
During the day, the Sun naturally heats up the Earth. The surface and underneath becomes heated directly from the solar heat. A geothermal system can harness the Earth’s temperature and distribute heat and air conditioning throughout your home. Geothermal heating systems have their pros and cons, but in the end, becomes one of the most ideal heating systems of the lot. So how does geothermal heating work?
HOW ENERGY EFFICIENT IS IT?
A geothermal system is, on average, about 4 times as efficient as a traditional HVAC system. Depending on whether or not your home is insulated, you may notice a significant difference in your energy bill in the first month of use. If your home is not insulated, then the geothermal system will only reduce your bill by a little bit; however, if your home is insulated, then you’ll notice a significant drop. Some homeowners see about $50 less on their bill in the first few months. As one would expect, this means that the geothermal system actually pays for itself over the course of about 5-10 years in most cases. The life expectancy can go upwards of 25-30 years, making your investment costs nearly insignificant.
While geothermal installations can be costly, once the system is installed, homeowners see a 40-60 percent reduction in their annual energy/utility bill on average. In fact, a geothermal HVAC system typically pays for itself in two to ten years. | <urn:uuid:d41b80ee-3671-4129-8899-db90e891f3e8> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://eegac.com/geothermal-heating-cooling/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573029.81/warc/CC-MAIN-20220817153027-20220817183027-00277.warc.gz | en | 0.920224 | 739 | 3.53125 | 4 |
Middleton Lakes RSPB reserve
The reserve as seen today was created and is run by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and was opened in 2011.
Much of the site was, until its acquisition by the RSPB in 2007, a gravel quarry, operated by Hanson Aggregates. The site was formerly referred to, in birding literature, as Fishers Mill- (Warwickshire), Drayton Bassett- (Staffordshire) and Dosthill- (to the East) -Lakes, -Pools, -Pits or -Gravel Pits.
- Location map: 52°35’19"N, 1°42’14"W
The reserve lies to the rear of Middleton Hall, whose catering and toilet facilities are available to reserve visitors. The River Tame flows northwards through the reserve, some miles downstream from RSPB Sandwell Valley and not far from the West Midland Bird Club's Ladywalk Reserve and Kingsbury Water Park.
The Birmingham and Fazeley Canal cuts through the reserve, west of the river and roughly parallel to it. It separates the flooded and re-modelled former gravel pits to the East from an area of ancient woodland and former agricultural fields. The canal is crossed by Fishers Mill Bridge, on the county border. A public bridleway also runs through the western half of the reserve, roughly east–west, as does a stream, Langley Brook, which rises in Sutton Coldfield and flows into the Tame on the reserve.
To the south of the main pools, is an area of meadowland. A smaller meadow near the visitor carpark is set aside for children's play.
Some pools east of the river (sometimes known as Dosthill North) are also part of the reserve, and a public right of way to them and the nearby village of Dosthill, in Staffordshire, also exists, although the public bridge over the river collapsed and is awaiting replacement.
There are four established walking trails, varying from 500 yards to two miles in length, with three purpose-built viewing platforms and a viewing screen. The RSPB plans to erect a bird hide at the northern end of the reserve, and later to provide a visitor centre.
Vehicular access for visitors is from Bodymoor Heath Lane, alongside Aston Villa's Bodymoor Heath Training Ground, some distance south of the reserve.
The quarry was redeveloped as a reserve in conjunction with Hanson. Islands and spits were created in the former gravel pits. 25 acres hectares of Willow were removed and the edges of pools re-profiled to a gentle slope to provide greater areas of mud and thus appeal to wading birds. The large meadow is grazed by a herd of English Longhorn cattle, ensuring ideal conditions for nesting skylarks and wild flowers.
The area is regionally important for overwintering wildfowl such as common pochard, tufted duck and smew. Other notable bird species include lesser spotted woodpecker, bittern, barn owl, short-eared owl, little egret, marsh harrier and Cetti's warbler. Grey herons breed in a heronry near the play meadow, with up to 100 individuals present.
Even before the establishment of the reserve, the gravel pits were known for their attraction to breeding, passage migrant and vagrant birds. In the latter category, a least sandpiper and a pectoral sandpiper visited for overlapping periods in May 2002. More recently, the reserve has been visited by rarities including glossy ibis, cattle egret, and great white egret.
Otters are also present, as are a total of over 1,000 other animal plant and fungus species.
The RSPB's targets include attracting bearded reedling, northern lapwing, common redshank and common snipe to breed, or to do so in greater numbers.
- Fishers Mill Bridge: 52°35’15"N, 1°42’20"W; GB-WAR (Staffordshire/Warwickshire border)
- Main pools: 52°35’33"N, 1°42’11"W; GB-STS (Staffordshire/Warwickshire)
- Dosthill North pools: 52°35’35"N, 1°41’46"W; GB-STS (Staffordshire)
- Meadow: 52°34’56"N, 1°42’7"W; GB-WAR (Warwickshire)
- Play meadow: 52°34’55"N, 1°42’51"W; GB-WAR (Warwickshire)
- Access from Bodymoor Heath Lane: 52°34’3"N, 1°43’5"W; GB-WAR (Warwickshire)
- Vewpoint; planned bird-hide: 52°35’49"N, 1°42’4"W; GB-STS (Staffordshire)
- Middleton Lakes: RSPB
- Middleton Lakes: RSPB
- Harrison, Graham (2007). Where to Watch Birds in the West Midlands (3rd ed.). Helm. ISBN 978-0-7136-6419-5.
- "The RSPB: Middleton Lakes: Facilities". RSPB. http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/m/middletonlakes/facilities.aspx. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
- "Star species". RSPB. http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/m/middletonlakes/star_species.aspx. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
- "Seasonal highlights". RSPB. http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/m/middletonlakes/seasonal_highlights.aspx. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
- Harrison, Graham; Harrison, Janet (2005). The New Birds of the West Midlands. West Midland Bird Club. ISBN 0-9507881-2-0. Archived from the original on 2009-01-23. https://web.archive.org/web/20090123234058/http://www.westmidlandbirdclub.com/bibliography/NBotWM. | <urn:uuid:fd61ebfb-d88d-4c09-894a-d4bd7da65d3a> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://wikishire.co.uk/w/index.php?title=Middleton_Lakes_RSPB_reserve&redirect=no | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571584.72/warc/CC-MAIN-20220812045352-20220812075352-00678.warc.gz | en | 0.919922 | 1,393 | 2.609375 | 3 |
The apparent 'economic recovery' of the UK of May 2015, can be seen in the extremely dubious terms set by the formerly incumbent Conservative-led coalition government, and none more so than in the widespread use of food banks and payday loans by the unemployed, and 'working poor' alike.
Food banks existed before they became an everyday feature of life in the UK, but it does not take a Sociology Professor to be able to make the very obvious 'cause-effect' bit of deduction involved. Political decisions purposely made for ideological purposes such as mass workfare, and mass sanctioning of claimants, not to mention the steep decline in living standards for the working majority are both cause and effect of 'austerity' and the Tory zeal with which it has been imposed on the country.
Indeed in spite of the disingenuous and unconvincing spin attempted that 'more people are using food banks because more know about them', such ridiculous party political homilies deliberately ignore the harsh reality they themselves contribute to.
The 'recovery' of Austerity Britain is certainly not felt by all, and the harshness and difficulty of life for very many if not in fact the majority, can be seen in the bare fact of a million people relying on food banks as a result of being rendered destitute courtesy of the Job Centre and 'sanctioning', or made to work unpaid through workfare as a condition of not facing it.
Additionally, there is the big Tory wheeze of 'moving the goalposts' for what is counted as 'employed' and 'unemployed' and indeed 'economic activity', meaning that there has also really been no 'increase' in 'the numbers in work', or 'fall' in the unemployment or claimant total merely that those without any secure or guaranteed income have been're-classified' so as to appear as if they have one.
Perhaps the biggest part of the said 'big Tory wheeze' has been to 'encourage' formerly unemployed claimants of Job Seeker's Allowance (JSA) to sign off and become claimants of Tax Credits to top up their severely strained incomes from 'self-employment' doing piece work of some kind. If the numbers for the 'newly self-employed' outlined are not removed from the unemployment or JSA total but added to it, the overall total of both is far far higher than is ever officially claimed, in fact something approaching early-80s levels, so around 3 million.
So 'the recovery' is essentially anathema. Besides the bogus classification of 'self-employment', there is also the tawdry reality of the numbers chronically underemployed, a number which can easily more than double the three million or so who are to all intents and purposes unemployed, most notoriously among those being employees on zero-hours contracts in which no definite hours of work or number of hours are even 'guaranteed' from week to week.
Besides all those under 'sanction' for missing a Job Centre appointment because they were attending a job interview, or the many other equally absurd reasons, and all those 'being helped' by the self-help mantras and material compulsion of workfare, we come back to the beginning of this article: food banks. Amidst the day-to-day harshness of Thatcherism Redux which has animated polices implemented in the last 5 years, there are other visible signs as to the true nature of 'the recovery'.
The unemployed, and claimants of other 'benefits' of some kind - such as Tax Credits - not simply those 'sanctioned' or forced onto workfare, are of course easy pickings for legal loan sharks aka 'payday lenders', who have not so much 'increased in number' as snowballed far and wide in the UK in the course of the last 5-6 years.
Payday lenders offer credit - at jaw-droppingly high rates of interest: 4000% as a sample - and of course, put brutally cash, when those denied both have nothing and nowhere else to go, as such, they are now a feature of high streets and local shopping centres specifically in poor areas of cities, and towns with limited and meagre employment prospects. Underwritten by hundreds of millions in private equity, behind the 'accessible' and 'everyday' face of payday loans their substance is and always was predatory and cynical in the extreme, that being they 'are better' than illegal door step lenders - and of course 'investors' don't have to get their hands dirty in seeing a substantial return on their 'investment'.
And so back to 'the recovery': noticeable by its indefinite absence, because there really is no such thing. The economic reality of life in contemporary Britain is one of an increasingly harsh and burdensome existence for the majority, and directly as a result of political decisions made to try to facilitate an increasingly easy one for the top 3-5% of the population, the top 1% in particular. However, the social reckoning for such class-oriented political decisions remains to be seen and really cannot be underestimated now or in the future. | <urn:uuid:5c74b1ea-d3d1-4f74-9315-8a6535a9897c> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/christian-garland-512/uk-economy_b_7221720.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573104.24/warc/CC-MAIN-20220817183340-20220817213340-00476.warc.gz | en | 0.964861 | 1,047 | 1.695313 | 2 |
Bids are open for £5million in funding for innovative projects and cutting-edge technology to improve veterans’ healthcare
The Veterans Health Innovation Fund will support the development of new treatments, techniques and interventions, including through the use of AI, virtual reality and regenerative engineering
Tenders sought for initiatives to improve health care for female Veterans in particular
A new £5million fund has been opened today for projects that will deliver innovative health treatments to veterans.
The funding will support organizations looking to research and test cutting-edge technologies that could help veterans with complex healthcare needs.
Veterans sometimes face unique health issues as a result of their military service, and the Veterans Health Innovation Fund will spur innovation in techniques that will ultimately help treat former service members who were injured while they served the country.
The fund is now open for a number of areas, including:
- Digital, data and technology, including through artificial intelligence, virtual reality and the use of data to predict long-term health outcomes
- Improvements in Innovative Surgical Techniques, Rehabilitation for Blast Injuries, and Interventional Technologies for Medium Head Injuries
- Trial interventions and treatments for the impact of pain, hearing loss and visual impairment
- Initiatives to help identify and provide solutions to disparities in the health and health care of female Veterans
Veterans Affairs Minister Johnny Mercer said:
Our military veterans deserve the best physical and mental health care available. That’s why it’s only right that we invest money in exploring how the latest innovations and technologies can be used to achieve this.
I want to make the UK the best place in the world to be a veteran. This means ensuring that we are doing all we can to help ensure better health and employment outcomes for those who have sacrificed so much on our behalf.
The £5million Veterans Health Innovation Fund, announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Autumn Budget, is designed to fund a range of projects aimed at improving understanding of how innovative medical treatments or new clinical pathways can be used to better meet the health needs of veterans. .
Organizations will receive grants or contracts to research or test cutting-edge treatments, techniques and interventions for physical and mental health issues to help veterans fully enjoy civilian life.
The bidding process was supported by the Defense and Security Accelerator (DASA). The bidding process is open until August 31, 2022.
The funding will also help the government meet its commitment in the Strategy for our Veterans to ensure that all veterans enjoy positive physical and mental health and well-being,
Interested candidates can attend an engagement session to learn more about the bidding process. Details on how to apply for part of the fund can be found here. | <urn:uuid:de3b1bb6-e85b-4f2a-93a1-894a6a836ccd> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://veteransdays2018.com/new-5million-innovation-fund-for-cutting-edge-veterans-healthcare/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572021.17/warc/CC-MAIN-20220814083156-20220814113156-00075.warc.gz | en | 0.939964 | 556 | 1.5625 | 2 |
The History of The Devil As A Comic Book Supervillain
Lucifer. Mephistopheles. Beelzebub. Auld Hornie. Satan. Nick. Clootie. Whatever you choose to call him, the devil has a long and storied (pun intended) history, from his humble beginnings as a nameless adversary in the book of Job to a tempter in the desert to the spokesmodel for canned ham. The prince of the power of the air has been at the center of stories for thousands of years, canonical, deuterocanonical, and extracanonical alike. His status as an instantly recognizable symbol and a royalty-free denizen of the public domain have made him an irresistible go-to in stories where an ultimate evil is needed, including in comics. | <urn:uuid:bf770987-489b-439e-af50-f113c16ccc4e> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://comicsalliance.com/tags/son-of-satan/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573760.75/warc/CC-MAIN-20220819191655-20220819221655-00670.warc.gz | en | 0.935217 | 164 | 2.09375 | 2 |
The “stall” is widely known among serious barbecuers. Well into cooking, the temperature of uncovered meat stops rising and may even fall slightly before it climbs again. Most barbecue experts say this stall occurs when connective tissue in the meat softens and fat starts to render, which does occur, but it doesn’t cause the stall.
The stall is quite real, but it is not due to softening collagen as the graph below shows. We cooked two briskets side-by-side in a convection oven, which mimicked the air temperature in a smoker, but was much more consistent and thus better suited for the experiment. We left one brisket uncovered (blue curve) and vacuum sealed the other (green curve). Sensors measured the core temperature of each brisket as well as the dry-bulb (black curve) and wet-bulb (red curve) air temperatures in the oven.
The stall clearly occurred in the uncovered brisket 24 hours into cooking as the wet-bulb temperature in the oven fell. The stall ended after about four hours because the surface of the brisket had dried out enough that it was above the wet-bulb temperature. The temperature of the vacuum-sealed brisket, in contrast, rose steadily to the ovens set point in about three hours. Any effect due to collagen or fat rendering would occur in both briskets, but we see the stall only in the uncovered one.
Early in the cooking, the wet-bulb temperature rose as the uncovered brisket evaporated, increasing the relative oven humidity to about 72%. But the humidity then began to drop as evaporation could no longer keep pace with the air venting out of the oven. By the eight-hour mark, the humidity was below 50%, and the wet-bulb temperature was down almost 10 °C / 18 °F from its peak.
The core of the uncovered brisket stalled. In this test, we left the brisket dry, but if we had slathered it with sauce periodically as many barbecue chefs do, we could prolong the stall by keeping the surface wet.
Sous vide cooking is, in our opinion, by far the best way to achieve the perfect cooking rate necessary for great barbecue. We barbecued in two distinct steps: smoking to impart the smoke flavor, followed by sous vide cooking to achieve the optimum texture and doneness.
Smoking before a long sous vide cooking step has the advantage of proteins remaining intact and able to react readily with smoke. Smoked food continues to change while being cooked sous vide: its pellicle darkens, the rind becomes firmer, and the smoky flavor mellows.
The alternative, of course, is to smoke the food after cooking it sous vide. This also works well, but a longer smoking time is required to develop a robust smoked flavor and appearance. This is because precooking denatures a large fraction of the proteins in a cut of meat or a piece of seafood, which leaves the flesh less reactive to the smoke.
Whichever approach you choose to takeand you should try both ways to judge the differences yourselfthe remarkable texture that is the hallmark of sous vide cooking, and the consistency it brings to smoking, makes it the best way to smoke meats and seafood. Alternatively, you could substitute for the sous vide step a combi oven, CVap oven, or low-temperature steamer.
You can find our recipe for Smoked Dry-Rub Pork Ribs here.
–This post was adapted from Modernist Cuisine. Too see what others think of our pastrami, see the Steven Colbert clip below, and click here to read about what Steven Raichlen has to say on The Barbecue Bible.
|The Colbert Report||Mon – Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c| | <urn:uuid:29c1128d-6d9b-4cfd-afdc-cbfc55705272> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://modernistcuisine.com/2012/08/barbecue-stall/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560285289.45/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095125-00152-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950222 | 796 | 2.46875 | 2 |
Accessible, succinct, and including numerous student-friendly features, this introductory textbook offers an exceptional foundation to the field for those who are coming to it for the first time.
- Provides an ideal first course book in phonology, written by a renowned phonologist
- Developed and tested in the classroom through years of experience and use
- Emphasizes analysis of phonological data, placing this in its scientific context, and explains the relevant methodology
- Guides students through the larger questions of what phonological patterns reveal about language
- Includes numerous course-friendly features, including multi-part exercises and annotated suggestions for further reading at the end of each chapter | <urn:uuid:48fc5012-4b57-4f62-a772-6142bcc1e597> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://audiaturbok.no/forlag/blackwell-publishing/introductory-phonology | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571150.88/warc/CC-MAIN-20220810070501-20220810100501-00675.warc.gz | en | 0.926122 | 140 | 3.265625 | 3 |
Light and water take center stage in nearly every Lynn Abbott composition.
Actually, that isn’t surprising.
As the only daughter of an internationally known geologist-oceanographer, Abbott lived in coastal and sunny communities for most of her growing up years.
Light and water take center stage in Abbott’s work.
You might even say that sun and sea are part of Abbott’s DNA. Born in Miami, Florida, and later moving to San Francisco before finally setting in San Diego, Abbott spent her childhood beach-combing.
Some of her fondest memories include sitting on her father’s lap in the captain’s chair of the USGS oceanographic yacht.
And she remembers her parents’ home as a tribute to the vast power of the world’s seas.
“My father’s home office didn’t just provide a practical work space for him. He surrounded himself with treasures from the sea: glass fishing net floats, model replicas of the great clippers, sea shells from exotic and tropical destinations and photographs of his oceanographic expeditions,” she says.
And there was art. The son of a Polish immigrant and professional artist, Abbott’s father had a profound love and appreciation for fine art.
“Mom and Dad collected art from all their travels. And their taste was rather eclectic. I remember being fascinated by a Picasso print that hung in our home’s primary passageway. But Dad’s favorite compositions were those that featured the ocean, classic sailing vessels and the sunny, desert climate of the Wild West.”
Soon, Abbott began exploring art for herself.
“I suspect that my father’s adventurous spirit influenced my early love of landscape paintings. That, and an idea planted by Dick Van Dyke’s character, Bert, in Disney’s classic, Mary Poppins. You see, the idea of popping in and out of sidewalk paintings always appealed to me. And so, from an early age, I began sketching the places I wished to visit. I created my own visual holidays,” she explains.
And in fact, Abbott’s ability to transport viewers through her art to another time and place has captivated many of her collectors. While attending an Abbott exhibit, guests will frequently announce, “I feel like I could step into her paintings. I wish I could live there.”
“From an early age, I began sketching the places I wished to visit. I created my own visual holidays,” Abbott explains.
Abbott recalls being inspired at age nine to paint the Swiss Alps after reading Johanna Spyri’s Heidi. Since she could not live in Switzerland, she created her own “jolly holiday.” No passport needed.
Abbott’s mother, a cartographer, helped her daughter hone the early drawing and drafting skills that would later serve her so well.
“As scientists, however, Mom and Dad were infinitely practical. Dad had seen the life of a struggling artist up close and personal. That’s probably why both my parents discouraged me from pursuing an art degree at University. They viewed it as a beautiful past-time, but without any financial future. I adored my parents and so, in my wish to earn their respect, I pursued journalism in college,” she says.
Yet, whenever she had opportunity, Abbott designed, sketched and painted.
“Sometimes, I feel a little like Hans Christian Anderson’s girl in the red shoes. Once I donned those ‘red slippers’—my creativity—I could not stop dancing. The drive to create art overwhelmed me. I found myself painting three and four pieces each week in addition to all my other responsibilities. Canvas and paint were my sirens.”
As she followed her unrelenting and demanding muse, Abbott continued to look for opportunities to further challenge her creative vision and skill.
“When I was given the opportunity to study under Scott Christensen, I jumped at the chance,” she says.
She credits Christensen with inspiring her pursuit of bold simplicity in both brush stroke and composition. Abbott also names Dave Santillanes, Christine Lashley and Hai-Ou Hou as contemporary artists who have strongly influenced her work.
But with a twinkle in her eye reminiscent of Robin Williams in his acclaimed film “Dead Poets’ Society,” Abbott lists J.M.W. Turner, John Constable, John Singer-Sargent and Rembrandt as her favorite “dead artists.”
“My personal delight in exploring light in land and seascapes is reflected in my favorite artists. The dance of light, particularly upon the sea, captivates me. I have never grown weary of it. Light ever changes, and the sea powerfully sculpts the coastline. Both light and water, in their moment-by-moment transformation, provides new inspiration for both life and art,” Abbott says.
“Sometimes, I feel a little like Hans Christian Anderson’s girl in the red shoes. Once I donned those ‘red slippers’—my creativity—I could not stop dancing,” Abbott says.
And quite frankly, if anyone understands the power of sudden and powerful life transformation, Abbott does. After successfully overcoming cancer, Abbott knew that she wanted art to occupy first place in her occupational life.
Her life transformed.
“Cancer served as my wake up call. I realized that I didn’t want to put off my life-long dreams any longer. And so, ten years ago, I finally made a leap of faith and pursued my passion full-time,” she explains.
“As a cancer survivor, I find myself even more devoted to compositions featuring water and light. After all, light reflects hope and water signifies abundant life. I’m convinced that both celebrate the power to overcome life’s shadows.”
Abbott’s work inspires overcomers around the world. Her hope-filled compositions can be found in national and international collections. In addition, her work is exhibited in Congressional offices on Capitol Hill.
An award-winning artist, Abbott has been recognized both locally and nationally. Her professional recognition includes first prize awards in both Regional and National shows at the Fredericksburg Center for Center for Creative Arts, a non-profit arts organization affiliated with the Virginia Museum of Fine Art. She has also been regularly juried as one of the top 15% favorites in Fine Art Studio Online’s Bold Brush Competition.
Abbott is a member of the Oil Painters of America. She is currently represented by The Cabell Gallery of Virginia Fine Art in Lexington, Virginia; Brush Strokes Gallery in Fredericksburg, Virginia and the 810 Weekend Gallery also in Fredericksburg, Virginia. In addition, she is a member of the Professional Artists-Artisans Association of Stafford (PAAAS) and the Fredericksburg Center for the Creative Arts.
“Cancer served as my wake up call. I realized that I didn’t want to put off my life-long dreams any longer. And so, ten years ago, I finally made a leap of faith and pursued my passion full-time.”
She spends most of her days creating in her 700 square foot, light-filled studio in Fredericksburg, Virginia.
When she isn’t painting, you are likely to find her wandering along the Rappahannock and Potomac Rivers or throughout the halls of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Fine Art, a mere 40 minute drive from her studio.
Her parents’ legacy—a love for adventure—however, clearly shapes her time away from the studio. Abbott most enjoys exploring the world with her husband and son. Her dog— a LabraDoodle that answers to the name of Bentley Rembrandt—accompanies her for local quests. | <urn:uuid:05286350-8d3d-40b4-ac6c-1c780b0ec973> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.lynnabbottstudios.com/profile/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571472.69/warc/CC-MAIN-20220811133823-20220811163823-00679.warc.gz | en | 0.958078 | 1,675 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Introduction: Origami Golden Slipper Orchid
The Golden Slipper Orchid is a beautiful species of Orchid. But for those times you can't have a real Golden Slipper Orchid, you can have a vase full of origami Orchids for your table. One of the benefits of origami flowers over real ones is that they stay nice for forever - they never stink! They make great centerpieces for your own home and great gifts for your many friends, no matter the occasion.
Note: This is an advanced model - not recommended for beginners, but I'll explain the steps as best as I can.
If you are an advanced folder, start with a bird base and skip to step 4. If not, just follow the logical progression of steps!
A few terms you will need to know (but I'll explain them again when you need them):
Mountain fold: A mountain fold creates a mountain. Fold the paper backwards on itself so that it creates a mountain.
Valley fold: A valley fold creates a valley. Fold the paper forwards so that it creates a valley.
Inside-reverse fold: This is difficult to describe without pictures. You can either follow along with the steps, or, if you are still confused, go here: inside-reverse fold
Squash Fold: Again, it'll be easiest to see an example with pictures or just follow along with the steps. If you still can't get it, go here: squash fold
If there is any step or part of a step that is unclear, or you follow the steps and yours just won't look like mine, drop me a comment an let me know. I'll clear it up as best as I can.
Step 1: Preliminary Base
The first step is to fold your paper into a colored preliminary base.
If you don't know what a preliminary base is:
Turn your paper white side up. Mountain fold the top to the bottom and the left to the right. Valley fold on the diagonal. Fold together and flatten into a square.
If you don't know what mountain and valley folds are (you really don't have any business folding the orchid):
Fold the bottom of the page to the top. Unfold. Fold right side to left. Unfold.
Flip the paper so the colored side is up. Fold diagonally both ways. Unfold.
Pick up the paper and fold in half. Pull both sides down and toward each other. Press the back flap and the right flap together. Press the front flap and the left flap together. You should now have a flat square with three layers. This is the preliminary (or square) base.
Step 2: Side Folds
Turn the paper so that the closed corner is pointing away from you. Fold the right side to the center line (see picture). Unfold. Repeat on the left side. Flip the paper and repeat on both right and left.
Step 3: Inside Reverse Fold the Creases in Step 2
Fold the preliminary base into a bird base.
If you don't know what a bird base is:
The title is pretty self-explanatory. You want to preform an inside-reverse fold along the folds you just created in step 2 - on both sides.
If you don't know what an inside-reverse fold is, please follow the pictures, watch the video, or google it. It's really hard to describe if you don't use the notes on the pictures. But basically, you're turning your valley folds into mountain folds by folding them backwards. (Yes, I know I've only confused you further. Please, just look at the pictures.)
You should now have a bird base.
Step 4: Squash It!
Now squash fold the side corners. Fold the side corners to the center line (see picture) and crease. Unfold. Squash along the creases. Repeat on the other three sides.
If you don't know what a squash fold is:
Basically, you're just lifting up the side of the paper and squashing it so that the point is now in the middle.
In one diagram that I found, this is referred to as "the lily base with the small points tucked to the inside." This helped me exactly none, but it might help you to know what it is supposed to look like.
Now fold a one layer on the from to the right. Turn the paper over and fold one layer to the left. The model should now fully enclose two full points on the right side. In other words, there should be two flaps on the left and six on the right.
Step 5: Valley Forge... Uh, I Mean, Fold
Valley fold the entire top point down.
If you don't know what a valley fold is, remember this:
Valley folds create valleys.
Mountain folds create mountains.
Fold the top down so that it creates a valley.
Step 6: Open Sesame
Open the points so that the model lies flat. You should basically have a star shape with four points.
Step 7: Squash It 2!
See all the little triangles? Squash fold all four of them so that they lay flat.
If you don't know what a squash fold is:
Basically, just lift the triangle and then squash the point so that it is now in the middle. I like to use a chopstick to make sure that I get the top of the triangle to squash, too.
Step 8: Petal Fold
Petal fold all four points.
If you don't know what a petal fold is:
Follow along with the pictures. Pick up the bottom edge of the triangle and make it the top edge. The sides should start to meet in the middle. Crease the right and left so that they meet in the middle. Fold the top triangle down.
Step 9: Tuck It!
Tuck the small points on the petal folds inside the model (see pictures).
Pull on either side of the triangle. Fold backwards (mountain, remember?) along the creases you already made. Fold the sides back under the triangle. Repeat on the other four triangles.
Step 10: Rabbit Ear
Now rabbit ear one of the long points.
If you don't know what a rabbit ear is:
(you're going to need the pictures for this one) Crease along the pink lines. Unfold. Bring the sides together to create a triangle pointing away from the rest of the model. Fold to the right.
Step 11: Time for the Details
1. Pull the paper out of the left side of the triangle.
2. Fold the flap so that it lies flat on top of the diamond.
3. Valley fold the right flap on top of the left.
Repeat 1 and 2 on the right side.
Step 12: Squash It 3!
Squash fold the remaining flap.
Lift up the right side of the squash. Squash fold on this side. Petal fold the flap. Valley fold the small point down. Valley fold over to the right.
Lift the left side. Squash fold. Petal fold the flap. Valley fold the small point down. Valley fold over to the left.
Step 13: STRETCH
Stretch the point all the way up. Flatten the small enclosed points.
Open the stretched fold outward and valley fold down.
Mountain fold the point twice and tuck inside.
Step 14: Collapse!
Collapse the whole model back into the lily base.
Turn over so the free points are at the top (pointing away from you).
Step 15: Valley Forge (oops, I Mean Fold) 2
Fold the points so that the front and back match and you have the same amount of enclosed points on both left and right. Valley fold the side corners to the center line (see picture). Repeat on back.
Valley fold two flaps to the left on top and two flaps to the right on the back. (This is called a Minor Miracle fold)
Valley fold the side corners to the center line (see picture). Valley fold the point down (this is the point that has all the details).
Step 16: Inside Becomes Out
Inside-reverse fold the left and right points.
Valley fold the front and back layers of the left petal. Repeat on the right (valley fold on this side, too).
Step 17: Lower Petal Lift
Lift the lower petal up.
Open up the slipper by pulling out the small flap that we tucked inside earlier by mountain folding on this petal.
Pinch the sides to give a box appearance.
Step 18: Spiraling
Twist the two side petals into a spiral.
Mountain fold the base point in half. This should make the top petal fall forward.
Step 19: Rabbit Ear 2
Rabbit ear the large point. Twist the new point made by the rabbit ear. Open up the petal.
Step 20: We're Finally Done, YAY!
Yay, now we're done with the flower!
For a stem, there are several different options. You can simply stick a chenille stem in the base of the flower. Or you can take a stiff piece of wire and wrap it with green paper and attach it to the flower. Or you can just leave a pile of flowers lying around. Pretty! | <urn:uuid:e7d52f29-949e-47ea-831b-b2cdb8755671> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.instructables.com/Origami-Golden-Slipper-Orchid/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571719.48/warc/CC-MAIN-20220812140019-20220812170019-00269.warc.gz | en | 0.917723 | 1,974 | 2.390625 | 2 |
Francis Campbell Boileau Cadell is one of the four artists known as the Scottish Colourists, along with JD Fergusson, GL Hunter and SJ Peploe. They all spent time in France early on in their careers and had direct contact with French painting from Manet and the Impressionists to Matisse and the Fauves. They shared a preference for bright colour and pronounced brushwork and are recognised as being amongst the most important modern Scottish artists.
Exhibitions of the work of Peploe and Fergusson will be held at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art in autumn 2012 and 2013 respectively.
This is the first solo exhibition of Cadell’s work to be held in a public gallery in seventy years, following the retrospective held at the National Gallery of Scotland in 1942. Cadell is perhaps the most elegant of the Colourists. He is renowned for his stylish portrayals of Edinburgh New Town interiors and the sophisticated society that occupied them; equally celebrated are his vibrantly coloured, daringly simplified still lifes and figure studies of the 1920s and his evocative depictions of his beloved island of Iona. | <urn:uuid:d8e7820c-ddd0-4d70-8f27-bc60597c7ef1> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://www.nationalgalleries.org/whatson/exhibitions/the-scottish-colourist-series-fcb-cadell/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560285315.77/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095125-00565-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977722 | 238 | 2.140625 | 2 |
The green-jobs revolution may be going up in smoke.
Despite billions of dollars in federal investment and cheerleading from President Obama, even the most ardent supporters of a transformed, job-generating energy sector based largely on wind, solar and other renewable sources acknowledge that their dreams have not translated into reality. The records for other countries chasing green employment opportunities have been equally unimpressive.
Rep. Maxine Waters, California Democrat, told MSNBC last month that, despite impassioned support from liberal Democrats and environmentalists, “green jobs” initiatives “have been about a lot of talk, and not a lot has been happening on that.”
The absence of a promised boom in environmental jobs has become a talking point among Republicans who are campaigning to unseat Mr. Obama in the 2012 election.
Mr. Obama “keeps talking about green jobs,” former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney said during the GOP candidates debate Wednesday night. “Where are they? Let’s have real jobs.”
Talk of green jobs was conspicuous by its absence from Mr. Obama’s jobs speech to a joint session of Congress on Thursday night. He gave the address on the same day that the FBI raided California solar-energy company Solyndra, which filed for bankruptcy and laid off at least 900 full-time employees.
Two years ago, Solyndra was awarded a $535 million federal government loan as part of Mr. Obama’s stimulus package. It is unclear how – or whether – the company will repay its debt or whether it will leave American taxpayers holding the bag. A House committee has scheduled a hearing this week to look into the investment.
Solyndra was the latest in a string of solar bankruptcies this year. Others are New York-based SpectraWatt and Michigan’s Evergreen Solar.
Critics aren’t surprised. Spain and other European countries have embraced green-jobs programs only to see higher-than-expected costs and little payoff. A 2009 study by Madrid’s King Juan Carlos University found that the creation of every green job eliminated at least 2.2 jobs in other industries, the result of a government push toward wind and solar power at the expense of other fuels.
Some traditional-fuel companies left the country in favor of more level playing fields elsewhere, the report says.
“But amazingly enough, this debate is not over,” said Daniel Kish, senior vice president for policy at the Institute for Energy Research, a nonprofit energy-research organization. Mr. Kish also served more than 25 years on various congressional committees that deal with energy, including six years as chief of staff for Republicans on the House Natural Resources Committee.
Mr. Kish and many others think large-scale wind and solar projects are inherently unprofitable, largely as a result of the unpredictability of when the sun will shine brightly enough and when the wind will blow. Without government subsidies, he said, such projects would have no chance of competing with oil, natural gas, nuclear power or coal.
“This is a government-created bubble. I don’t blame the companies trying to rip off the government. What I blame are politicians who refuse to look at the facts,” he said.
Those facts, however, aren’t always easy to discern. Both sides of the argument point to a dizzying array of numbers, charts, graphs and price figures to support their points of view. Environmental groups and wind and solar proponents strongly dispute the King Juan Carlos study and have accused its author, Dr. Gabriel Calzada, of distorting the truth.
Seth Masia, deputy editor of Solar Today, a publication of the American Solar Energy Society, told The Washington Times that solar-panel installations grew 113 percent last year and the industry expects to expand 5.7 percent to 40 percent each year through 2020. The wind industry has grown more than 10 percent annually for the past five years, according to the American Wind Energy Association. It now has manufacturing facilities in 43 states, and the U.S. has gone from producing 25 percent of turbines used domestically to 60 percent in the past several years, said Robert Gramlich, the association’s senior vice president of public policy.
Proponents laud the number of jobs created.
Complicating the debate is that there is no universally accepted definition of a “green job.” While most consider green jobs to be those in the wind or solar industry, Mr. Kish said, some estimates include garbage collectors, pollution-control engineers and water and sewer workers in the equation.
“I’m not aware of any formal definition,” said Anastasia V. Shcherbakova, assistant professor of energy economics, risk and policy at Penn State University.
Renewable-energy proponents say their industries produce benefits beyond job creation. Mr. Gramlich pointed to the local property-tax revenue generated by wind farms, along with royalty payments to owners who lease land for the giant windmills.
In that regard, wind energy has something in common with the booming natural-gas industry, a sector that some decry as the antithesis of clean, renewable fuels. Mr. Gramlich, however, said he doesn’t view oil, gas or coal as the enemy.
“It’s clear that some view us as the threatening, disruptive competition, and they’re fighting us for that reason,” he said. “But we have a very large electricity portfolio with plenty of room for conventional and renewable sources. I don’t see why people are so scared.”
Solar and wind proponents deny that they are entirely dependent on federal investment – such as the $80 billion provided by the administration’s stimulus package – to make their products competitive in the marketplace.
“Our position is that if all subsidies for all forms of energy were eliminated this evening, solar and wind would do very well. Our fuel is free,” Mr. Masia said.
Given the nation’s fiscal crisis, those subsidies are likely to end sooner rather than later. Congress already voted to cut some federal aid to ethanol, and Republicans are eager to do the same with support for wind and solar power.
As with any other industry, Mr. Gramlich said, some companies will prosper and others, such as Solyndra, will end in failure. That will happen with or without federal subsidies, proponents say.
Critics, however, argue that many firms are well aware they can’t make a profit without government help and serve as little more than black holes for taxpayer money in the name of reducing carbon emissions.
Solar and wind “are not cheap,” Mr. Kish said. “They’re not reliable. And over the long run, frankly, they’re a drag on our economy and our way of life. By the time this is done, I would be very surprised if some people don’t end up behind bars.”
|Wind Watch relies entirely
on User Funding | <urn:uuid:0dc6f71d-3962-49be-a74e-28959e1bb734> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2011/09/12/promises-of-green-jobs-start-withering-on-vine/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570913.16/warc/CC-MAIN-20220809064307-20220809094307-00071.warc.gz | en | 0.953765 | 1,471 | 1.851563 | 2 |
Near Atlee in Hanover County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
Erected by Battlefield Markers Association. (Marker Number 51.)
Marker series. This marker is included in the D.S. Freeman (Richmond Battlefields) marker series.
Location. 37° 39.673′ N, 77° 20.926′ W. Marker is near Atlee, Virginia, in Hanover County. Marker can be reached from Studley Road 0.8 miles east of Avondale Drive, on the right when traveling east. Click for map. Located alongside a steep pullover. Use extreme caution when leaving or entering Studley Road. Marker is in this post office area: Mechanicsville VA 23116, United States of America.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Shelton House Under Fire (about 600 feet away, measured in a direct line); Totopotomoi (about 700 feet away); Rural Plains (about 700 feet away); Totopotomoy Creek (about 700 feet away); a different marker also named Totopotomoy Line Attacking the High Ground (approx. 0.6 miles away); Fighting at the Totopotomoy (approx. 0.6 miles away); Pine Slash (approx. 0.8 miles away).
Also see . . .
1. Totopotomoy Creek Battlefield at Rural Plains. Richmond National Battlefield Park (Submitted on November 29, 2014.)
2. The Battle of Totopotomoy Creek, May 29-31, 1864. Richmond National Battlefield Park (Submitted on November 29, 2014.)
Additional keywords. Freeman Markers, Richmond Battlefield Parks Corporation, Douglas Southall Freeman
Categories. • War, US Civil •
Credits. This page originally submitted on , by Bernard Fisher of Mechanicsville, Virginia. This page has been viewed 1,163 times since then and 4 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on , by Bernard Fisher of Mechanicsville, Virginia. 3. submitted on , by Bernard Fisher of Mechanicsville, Virginia. • Craig Swain was the editor who published this page. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. | <urn:uuid:4847130d-803e-4090-ab57-277688d6fff7> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=14261 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560281162.88/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095121-00540-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.890793 | 462 | 1.828125 | 2 |
If you take part in a beta test for an iPhone app, the app developer will likely ask you to send him the UDID of your iPhone. If you’ve been asking yourself “what’s this number, and where do I find it?”, read on!
The Unique Device IDentifier (UDID) is a 40-digit number that uniquely identifies your iPhone or iPad. It’s tied to your device, not to a SIM card you might (or might not, depending on the type of device) have inserted.
Here’s how you can find this number and send it to your developer:
- Connect your iPhone / iPad to your computer using the white USB connection cable.
- Wait for iTunes to start up. If it doesn’t start automatically, start it manually (Windows users will find it in the depths of the Start Menu, Mac users can use Spotlight to search for it).
- Click on the name of your iPhone / iPad on the left-hand side of the iTunes Window:
- Details about your device will be displayed in the main area of the iTunes window.
- Find the label titled Serial Number. The serial number IS NOT the UDID!
- Holding down the CMD (on the Mac) or the CTRL (on Windows) key, click on the label Serial Number
- The label’s title will change to Identifier (UDID):
- Press CMD+C (on Mac) or CTRL+C (on Windows) to copy the UDID to your clipboard
- Open a new mail, insert the UDID and a friendly message and send it to your developer.
Easy, isn’t it?
Oh, and please do NOT send a screenshot of the UDID. You should know better now. | <urn:uuid:da6e720c-6e69-41d8-8aac-6ac7ce6db63b> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.peterfriese.de/whats-your-number/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560281353.56/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095121-00068-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.828242 | 377 | 2.03125 | 2 |
Common Name: MUSTARD FAMILY
Habit: Annual to shrub; sap pungent, watery. Leaf: generally simple, alternate; generally both basal, cauline; stipules 0. Inflorescence: generally raceme, generally not bracted. Flower: bisexual, generally radial; sepals 4, generally free; petals (0)4, forming a cross, generally white or yellow to purple; stamens generally 6 (2 or 4), 4 long, 2 short (3 pairs of unequal length); ovary 1, superior, generally 2-chambered with septum connecting 2 parietal placentas; style 1, stigma entire or 2-lobed. Fruit: capsule, generally 2-valved, "silique" (length >= 3 × width) or "silicle" (length < 3 × width), dehiscent by 2 valves or indehiscent, cylindric or flat parallel or perpendicular to septum, segmented or not. Seed: 1--many, in 1 or 2 rows per chamber, winged or wingless; embryo strongly curved.
Genera In Family: +- 330 genera, 3780 species: worldwide, especially temperate. Note: Highest diversity in Mediterranean area, mountains of southwestern Asia, adjacent central Asia, western North America; some Brassica species are oil or vegetable crops; Arabidopsis thaliana used in experimental molecular biology; many species are ornamentals, weeds. Aurinia saxatilis (L.) Desvaux in cultivation only. Aubrieta occasional waif in central NCoR, Carrichtera annua (L.) DC. in SCo, Iberis sempervirens L., Iberis umbellata L. in PR, Teesdalia coronopifolia (Bergeret) Thell., Teesdalia nudicaulis (L.) W.T. Aiton in southern NCoRO, CCo. Cardaria, Coronopus moved to Lepidium; Caulostramina to Hesperidanthus; Guillenia to Caulanthus; Heterodraba to Athysanus; California taxa of Lesquerella to Physaria; Malcolmia africana to Strigosella.
eFlora Treatment Author: Ihsan A. Al-Shehbaz, except as noted
Scientific Editor: Douglas H. Goldman, Bruce G. Baldwin.
Common Name: LACEPOD, FRINGEPOD
Habit: Annual; hairs 0 or simple. Leaf: simple, sessile, entire, dentate, or pinnately lobed; middle, distal cauline clasping, lobed or not. Inflorescence: open (dense). Flower: sepals ascending, base not sac-like; petals +- >= sepals, white or +- purple-tinged, not clawed; fertile anthers yellow or generally purple (flowers occasionally with whitish or yellowish infertile anthers). Fruit: indehiscent, pendent, elliptic to ovate or round, unsegmented, over-seed (i.e., excluding wing) generally plano-convex; septum 0; wing generally not incurved toward over-seed flat side, entire, wavy-margined, crenate, perforated, or divided into spoon-shaped lobes, rays (radiating veins) present or not, generally +- indistinct; stigma entire. Seed: 1, elliptic to round, wingless.
Species In Genus: 6 species: western North America. Etymology: (Greek: fringe fruit)
eFlora Treatment Author: Ihsan A. Al-Shehbaz & Thomas J. Rosatti
Habit: Plant hairy at least proximally (glabrous). Stem: 1--6(8) dm. Leaf: basal 1--6(13) cm, oblanceolate to obovate, subentire to wavy-dentate; cauline lanceolate, bases lobed, clasping. Inflorescence: raceme open. Flower: fertile anthers purple, rarely some flowers with whitish or yellowish infertile anthers. Fruit: 3--6(9) mm wide, obovate to +- round, hairs 0 or 0.2--0.4 mm, club-shaped; wing flat or +- incurved toward over-seed convex side, entire, crenate, with spoon-shaped lobes, or perforated, rays 0.2--0.5 mm wide (0); proximal pedicels recurved in a continuous arc, 3--7(12) mm. Chromosomes: 2n=28.
Note: Intermediates between subspecies common. | <urn:uuid:39093ab4-41b8-437b-b303-aa6bfd337691> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=95356 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280791.35/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00366-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.752272 | 1,021 | 2.5625 | 3 |
In order to get over the defects of traditional sliding base isolation structure which the reactions of traditional sliding structure has always increased during the earthquake, and obtain sliding base isolation technology application for the frame structure. Based on the research of U work performances of energy-absorbed element, the whole element model of this new kind of sliding base isolation three storey frame structure with equipment of sliding-limit was established by the SAP2000 software. According to reasonable hysteretic mode, the calculation analysis under collision responses were carried out. The calculation results showed that the rigidity of the new sliding-limit had a great influence on changes of the storey acceleration and displacement after collision. The maximum base sliding displacement of both earthquakes loading was obviously bigger than that of a single earthquake loading. With the other direction loading earthquake increasing, the maximum base sliding displacement of the structure showed signs of increasing first, and then decreasing. Effective theoretical basis of sliding base isolation technology being applied to the frame structure were provided. | <urn:uuid:d7881688-cee8-49ab-874d-bb2aaa6fde19> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.scientific.net/AMM.105-107.412 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280221.47/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00232-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954495 | 197 | 2.25 | 2 |
Letting Go To Jesus
by Deacon Thomas Frankenfield
Continuing our Journey
Again, we will continue our journey down the road of dealing with pain and suffering. Before we begin let me respond to an email I received this week. If I have not made it clear previously, I want to state unequivocally that I have a high regard for the medical, clinical and scientific communities and their miraculous work with all who suffer in this world, of which I am one. I praise God that they are all using their personal and collective talents, which come from God, for the benefit of humankind. However, I bring spirituality point of view born of my pastoral experiences and theological training. I see this approach as coming from the heart. It is experienced with the People of God’s personal relationship and acceptance of the Holy Spirit’s role in pain and suffering. The choices we make in our relationship with God can destroy, renew and ultimately evangelize the world in which we live.
Last week we looked at the initial impact of the onset of pain and suffering. We discussed how we are ripped from our normal environment and placed in a new setting that often times is surrounded by anxiety and uncertainty. So going further we now look at other likely level in our experience. Many sufferers immediately withdraw in the face of these new circumstances. One of the most obvious reactions is to feel alone and abandoned. It is there that we make the tough choice of inviting others into our situation. After all, few have ever made it though pain and suffering alone.
Suffering in the life of Christ
Throughout our religious formation, we have always been trained to look to the life of our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ, as a model for most aspects our lives. Jesus, who was like us in every way but sin, can truly be our guiding light, especially in the darker paths of our journey. Having walked a similar journey, Jesus knows who we are and what we are going through.
Jesus’ earthly life started in Bethlehem in the midst of the most humble conditions. Those conditions of his birth alone would be considered suffering by today’s health and medical standards. Suffering and pain were not foreign to Jesus in his ministry either. In the instances of dealing with those who were hurting, His actions were unambiguous. From the compassionate healer to the broken Lamb of God on the Cross, Jesus completely fulfilled the role the Suffering Servant. (Reference the powerful prophecy in Isaiah 52:13-53:12.)
So, whatever we are facing in our particular journey of pain and suffering, we have Jesus by our side to love and support us should we be open to His care. The Catechism of the Catholic Church goes further to say that , “…the Church, following the apostles, teaches that Christ died for all men without exception: "There is not, never has been, and never will be a single human being for whom Christ did not suffer.” (CCC 605)
Through our Church and the sacrament of Baptism every one of us are called to be visible signs of Christ in world. So, not only do we participate in the sufferings of Christ but we are called to minister to others as Christ and the Apostles did in their time. So, the Christian Community is ready to support us, pray with and even cry with us in our pain and suffering.
Let Go and Let God
In the end, we are truly never alone in our sufferings, unless we choose to close ourselves into an interior shell. We need to remember that there are People of God, our Church and a loving Savior all waiting for us to say “yes!” I echo the phrase I learned in Cursillo many years ago—“Let go and let God!” In many cases God will touch your heart either by the gentle breath of his Holy Spirit or by sending one of the members of the Mystical Body of Christ. All we have to do is be open.
So my fellow sojourners, in spite of whatever is causing your suffering, know that Jesus is waiting to hold you close to His Sacred Heart. Release your pain to Jesus--say “yes” to make Jesus the Divine Physician in your life. Let Go to Jesus!
For Your Reflection
From a Ministry Perspective:
- What part of being a facilitator of Jesus’ healing love makes me the most comfortable or uncomfortable?
- Am I able to model saying “yes” to Jesus in my life so that I can better understand the community I am serving?
From a Family Perspective:
- In my Domestic Church, as parent, sibling, widow or single am I a facilitator of Jesus’ healing love? How can I make that a reality?
- Where in our relationship with each other and God, does my family most need to say “yes” to Jesus to sanctify our Domestic Church?
I would love your feedback, thoughts, stories and ideas. Please email me.
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The constitution protects the right of individuals to practice their religion and states religious groups are autonomous and independent from the state. The law, however, recognizes the “exceptional importance” of Orthodox Christianity. Minority religious groups and others reported the government continued to provide preferential treatment to the Moldovan Orthodox Church (MOC), and that the MOC exerted strong influence over government policies and electoral politics. Several legal cases involving minority religions continued to be unresolved. Throughout the year, President Igor Dodon expressed his support for Orthodox Christianity and particularly the MOC. In May the Jewish community submitted a request to renew a building permit with the Chisinau mayor’s office to renovate property on which a historical Jewish synagogue stands, following a favorable Supreme Court of Justice decision in 2017 and the 2016 endorsement by parliament of the Wiesel Commission’s Report on the Holocaust. The government also adopted a 2017-19 action plan based on the commission’s recommendations. In October it adopted a decision to establish a National Holocaust Museum in Chisinau, renovate the Jewish cemetery in Chisinau, one of the largest in Europe, and approve a high school curriculum on historic lessons of the Holocaust, to be introduced in the 2019 school year. There was progress on other commitments taken under the action plan, such as holding special sessions of parliament and government to commemorate Holocaust victims and developing content on the Holocaust for history textbooks. In July the Supreme Court of Justice upheld a decision recognizing the validity of a building permit for a Kingdom Hall in Ceadir-Lunga. After more than two years of opposition from local authorities, Jehovah’s Witnesses were able to proceed with the building’s construction. A number of religious entities benefited from a 2017 law allowing individuals to direct 2 percent of their income tax to nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) or religious organizations. The Islamic League of Moldova (Islamic League) reported an increase in actions taken against girls in public schools for wearing the hijab. The Ministry of Education, Culture, and Research (Ministry of Education) did not take action following complaints submitted by the parents and advised them to take the case to the Anti-Discrimination Council.
In the separatist Transnistria region, NGOs continued to report the de facto authorities discriminated against, restricted the activities of, and monitored activities of, minority religious groups. Jehovah’s Witnesses’ attempts to reregister their charters in Transnistria were unsuccessful. The Muslim community said it continued to refrain from overt religious activities because of past intimidation by the de facto authorities. The imam who led Friday prayers fled the region after the local Committee for State Security put him on their “wanted” list. Three Jehovah’s Witnesses’ complaints of discriminatory acts in Tiraspol to the UN Human Rights Committee involving the de facto authorities and the Russian Federation remained pending at year’s end.
Representatives of the Pentecostal Church said that on February 20, unknown individuals entered a Pentecostal church’s premises in Pirlita Village in Falesti District and beat and threatened the guard with retaliation if he attempted to thwart their actions. The individuals set several new doors in the church on fire. This was the second attempt since 2010 to set the church on fire. There were also arson attacks and other forms of destruction against churches in the Falesti District during the year. The Jewish community reported an increase in hate speech during the year, particularly in online forums. A Chisinau-based representative of the World Jewish Congress reported the presence of anti-Semitic comments and hate speech on social media sites such as VKontakte, Odnoklassniki, Facebook, and in the comments section of local news websites. The Jewish community reported one act of vandalism in which unknown individuals drew swastikas in a Jewish cemetery in Balti.
The chairman of the U.S. Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad and embassy officials held discussions in August with the government on the treatment and maintenance of Jewish heritage sites and the opening of a Jewish heritage museum in Chisinau. The embassy also sponsored several events that focused on religious freedom and tolerance. On June 1, the embassy hosted an iftar with leaders and representatives of the Muslim community and diplomatic representatives. The community discussed its concerns over rising societal intolerance toward Muslims in media, politics, education, and employment. The Ambassador and embassy officials called for enhancing interfaith tolerance and dialogue. Embassy officials discussed respect for the rights of religious minorities and combating religious intolerance with representatives of religious groups. In December the Ambassador hosted an event with leaders of minority religious groups to facilitate dialogue and cooperation between religious communities in the country. The Ambassador also met with the heads of the MOC, Bessarabian Orthodox Church (BOC), and Roman Catholic Church in the country to discuss the prospects of creating an official platform for cooperation among various faiths.
Section I. Religious Demography
The U.S. government estimates the population at 3.44 million (July 2018 estimate). According to the 2014 census, the predominant religion is Orthodox Christianity, with 90 percent of the population belonging to one of two Orthodox Christian groups. Of Orthodox adherents, approximately 90 percent belong to the MOC, which is subordinate to the Russian Orthodox Church, and the remaining 10 percent belong to the BOC, which falls under the Romanian Orthodox Church. Nearly 7 percent of the population did not identify a religious affiliation. The largest non-Orthodox religious groups, accounting for 15,000 to 30,000 adherents each, are Baptists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Pentecostals. Groups that together constitute less than 5 percent of the population include Seventh-day Adventists, evangelical Christians, Roman Catholics, Lutherans, Muslims, Jews, and atheists.
Smaller religious groups include Baha’is, Molokans, Messianic Jews, Presbyterians, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Evangelical Christian Church, Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (Unification Church), other Christians, Falun Gong, and the International Society of Krishna Consciousness.
In the separatist Transnistria region, an estimated 80 percent of the population belongs to the MOC. Other religious groups in the region include Catholics, followers of Old Rite Orthodoxy, Baptists, Seventh-day Adventists, evangelical and charismatic Christians, Jews, Lutherans, Muslims, and Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Section II. Status of Government Respect for Religious Freedom
The constitution stipulates equal treatment for all citizens regardless of religion and guarantees freedom of conscience, manifested in “a spirit of tolerance and mutual respect,” and of religious worship. It states religious groups may organize and operate according to their own statutes, independent from the state. The constitution prohibits all actions instigating religious hatred and “any manifestation of discord” between religious groups. The constitution stipulates the state shall support religious worship, including facilitating religious assistance in the army, hospitals, penitentiaries, nursing homes, and orphanages.
The law states every person has the right to belong or not belong to a religion, to have or not have individual beliefs, to change religion or beliefs, and to practice religion or beliefs independently or as a group, in public or in private, through teaching, religious practices, or rituals. According to the law, religious freedom may be restricted only if necessary to ensure public order and security, to protect public health and morality, or to protect a person’s rights and freedoms. The law also prohibits discrimination based on religious affiliation.
The law stipulates that the state recognize the “exceptional importance and fundamental role” of Orthodox Christianity, particularly that of the MOC, in the life, history, and culture of the country.
The law allows religious groups to establish associations and foundations. It permits local religious groups to change their denominational affiliation or dissolve themselves. The law exempts registered religious groups from paying real estate and land taxes.
The law allows individuals to redirect 2 percent of their income tax to NGOs or religious groups. Religious groups wanting to benefit from the provisions must register with the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) and use the amounts received only for social, moral, cultural, and/or charitable activities. The law exempts religious organizations from registration fees and from paying tax on the income received as donations under the 2 percent law.
In March parliament amended legislation to transfer the power to register and monitor noncommercial organizations from the MOJ to the Public Services Agency (PSA). The new law provides for a registration process in which a religious group must present to the PSA a declaration including its exact name, fundamental principles of belief, organizational structure, and scope of activities, financing sources, and rights and obligations of membership. The law also requires a group to show it has at least 100 founding members. A religious group must present proof of having access to premises where it can conduct its religious activities, but the law does not specify that the group must own this property. The PSA is required by law to register a religious group within 15 days if the registration request is made according to law, a change from the previous 30-day deadline. The applicant may request an extension if the government determines the documentation submitted is insufficient. Under the new provisions, the MOJ retains the right to request a suspension of the registered status of a religious group if it “carries out activities that harm the constitution or laws” or “affects state security, public order, [or] the life and security of the people.” The law also provides for suspension or revocation of a religious group’s registration in case of violation of international agreements or for political activity. The PSA makes all registration entries into the State Registry of Legal Entities.
The law does not require registration, but only registered religious groups possess status as legal entities, allowing them to build houses of worship, own land in cemeteries or other property, publish or import religious literature, open bank accounts, or employ staff. Registration also exempts them from land taxes and property taxes. Individual churches or branches of registered religious groups are not required to register with the PSA as long as they do not carry out legal transactions and do not receive donations as local legal entities. The parent organization must exercise authority in those areas for unregistered local branches.
The law allows all religious groups to hold services at state facilities, including prisons, orphanages, hospitals, schools, and military and police institutions, at the request of individuals in such institutions, provided they obtain the approval of the institution’s administration.
Through an agreement with the MOJ, MOC chaplains have free access to detention facilities for religious assistance without prior approval of the prison administration. In addition, the MOC has a separate agreement with the Ministry of Defense, which allows MOC priests to preach to army units, bless military personnel prior to their deployment in peacekeeping missions, and distribute religious literature to libraries within the army.
The law bans religious entities from engaging in political activity and prohibits “abusive proselytism,” defined as the action of changing religious beliefs through coercion.
Although the law provides for restitution of property confiscated during the successive fascist and Soviet regimes to politically repressed or exiled persons, the provision does not apply to property confiscated from religious groups.
The constitution provides for freedom of religious education and stipulates the state educational system should be secular. According to the law, religion classes in state educational institutions are optional. Students submit a written request to the school’s administration to enroll in a religion class. Religion classes are offered in grades one through nine. No alternative classes are offered for those who choose not to enroll in religion classes. The religion curriculum offers two types of courses: one for Orthodox denominations and Roman Catholics; and the second for evangelical Christians and Seventh-day Adventists. The religious curriculum for Orthodox and Catholic groups derives from instructional manuals developed by the Ministry of Education with input from the MOC and includes teaching guidelines developed with the support of the BOC. Teachers and Orthodox priests teach these optional courses, which focus on Orthodox Christianity. Teachers and representatives of the Evangelical Christian Church teach the second course, which is based on translated religious manuals and literature from Romania, the United States, and Germany. Both courses teach religious doctrine as well as moral and spiritual values.
The law mandates immunization of all children before they may enroll in kindergarten. It does not provide an exception for religious reasons.
The Anti-Discrimination Council, established by law, is an independent institution charged with reviewing complaints of discrimination, including discrimination of a religious character or based on religious affiliation. Parliament chooses members through a competitive process, appointing them to five-year terms. The council does not have sanctioning powers; however, it may determine if an act of discrimination took place, offer advice on how to remedy the situation, and send requests to prosecutors to initiate criminal proceedings. It may also suggest pertinent legislative amendments or participate in working groups authoring legislative initiatives.
According to the law, male citizens ages 18 to 27 have the right to choose civilian over military service if the latter runs counter to their religious beliefs. The standard duration of both alternative civilian and military service is 12 months; university graduates may choose six months of civilian service or three months of military training. Those who choose civilian service may complete it at public institutions or enterprises specializing in such areas as social assistance, health care, industrial engineering, urban planning, roads and road construction, environmental protection, agriculture or agricultural processing, town management, and fire rescue. There are no blanket exemptions for religious groups from the civilian service alternative, but higher-ranking clergy, monks, and theology students are exempted from alternative service. Refusal to enroll in civilian service is punishable by a fine up to 32,500 lei ($1,900) or between 100 and 150 hours of community service, and those punished are still obliged to enroll in civilian service.
The law defines as “extremist” and makes illegal any document or information justifying war crimes or the complete or partial annihilation of a religious or other kind of societal group, as well as any document calling for or supporting activities in pursuit of those goals.
Foreign missionaries may submit work contracts or volunteer agreements to apply for temporary residency permits and may reside and work in paid status or as unpaid volunteers. Only missionaries working with registered religious groups may apply for temporary residency permits. Foreign religious workers with these permits must register with the National Agency for the Occupation of the Workforce and the Bureau for Migration and Asylum. They must present documents confirming the official status of the registered religious group for which they will work, papers confirming their temporary residence, and proof of valid local health insurance. Other foreign missionaries belonging to registered religious groups may remain for 90 days on a tourist visa.
In separatist Transnistria, Transnistrian “law” affirms the special role of the Orthodox Church in the region’s culture and spirituality. The de facto law “recognizes respect” for Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Judaism, and other religious groups historically present in the region. All religious groups, whether registered or not, officially have freedom to worship, but the law permits restrictions on the right to freedom of conscience and religion “if necessary to protect the constitutional order, morality, health, citizens’ rights and interests, or state defense and security.” Foreign citizens also have the freedom to worship. The prosecutor’s office oversees implementation of the law on religious freedom.
Transnistrian “law” prohibits proselytizing in private homes and limits distribution of religious literature to houses of worship and special premises designated by the “authorities.” Transnistrian “law” requires the reregistration of religious groups to operate legally in the region. The region’s registration body registers religious groups and monitors their adherence to the goals and activities set forth in their statutes. Registration provides a number of advantages to religious groups, including the ability to own and build places of worship, open religious schools, and publish literature.
To register, a local religious group must present proof of activity in the region for at least 10 years; a list comprising at least 10 members ages 18 years or older with permanent residence in one of the seven administrative-territorial units in the region and Transnistrian “citizenship”; a list of founders and governing members and their personal details; the group’s charter, statutes, and minutes of its constituent assembly; basic religious doctrine; contact details of its governing body; and a receipt indicating payment of the registration fee. Local religious groups may also register as part of a centralized religious organization, which must consist of at least three local religious groups that have previously registered separately as legal entities. In that case, their application must additionally include a copy of the registration papers of the centralized organizations. The central religious organizations must inform the registration authority on a yearly basis about intentions to extend their activities.
The de facto authorities must decide to register a religious group within 30 days of the application. If they decide to conduct a religious assessment, which is a law enforcement investigation of the group’s background and activities, registration may be postponed for up to six months or denied if the investigating authorities determine the group poses a threat to the security or morality of the region, or if foreign religious groups are involved in its activities.
Foreign religious groups may not register or undertake religious activities. Foreigners may only worship individually; they may not be founders or members of religious groups.
Religious groups disband on their own decision or upon a “court’s” decision. The “prosecutor’s office” or the region’s de facto executive, city, or district authorities can request the courts to disband or suspend a religious group on multiple grounds. Such grounds include: disturbing public order or violating public security; conducting extremist activities; coercing persons into breaking up their families; infringing on citizens’ identity, rights, and freedoms; violating citizens’ morality and well-being, using psychotropic substances, drugs, hypnosis, or perverse activities during religious activities; encouraging suicide or the refusal of medical treatment for religious reasons; obstructing compulsory education; using coercion for alienation of property to the benefit of the religious community; and encouraging refusal to fulfill civic duties.
The “law” allows the use of private homes and apartments to hold religious services. It does not, however, allow religious groups to use homes and apartments as their officially registered addresses. The “law” also allows such groups to hold religious services and rituals in public places such as hospitals, clinics, orphanages, geriatric homes, and prisons.
The authorities screen and may ban the import and export of religious printed materials, audio and video recordings, and other religious items.
According to the “law,” citizens have the right to choose alternative civilian service over military service if the latter contradicts an individual’s religion and beliefs. Alternative civilian service may be performed only at organizations under the Transnistrian authority or “other military forces,” and at institutions subordinate to the “executive bodies of the state or local administration.”
The de facto authorities do not allow religious groups to participate in elections or other political party activities or to support NGOs involved in elections.
Moldova is not a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Throughout the year, President Dodon expressed his support for Orthodox Christianity and particularly the MOC. President Dodon took part in a number of publicized church celebrations and events promoting “traditional family values” together with the MOC head. During a meeting with the MOC head in October, President Dodon declared the MOC would keep its unity with the Russian Orthodox Church forever. In October, following the Russian Orthodox Church’s break from the Constantinople Patriarchate, Dodon expressed concern over the fate of the Orthodox Church, adding that Moldova would remain in the canonical territory of the Moscow Patriarchate.
Under previous agreement between the Ministry of Education and the MOC, the government transferred control of most churches and monasteries confiscated during the Soviet era to the MOC. The Ministry of Education is responsible for the remaining churches and monasteries not under the control of the MOC. Local authorities working through the Ministry of Culture may arrange with local parishes to return or lease those churches or monasteries to religious groups. Other religious groups, including the Lutheran and Jewish communities, reported they had not benefitted from a similar agreement with the government to reclaim religious property confiscated during the Soviet era. In previous years, the Jewish community’s attempts to restitute property were unsuccessful, and its requests for the government to adopt a law enabling it to restitute historically Jewish properties and sites remained unheeded.
The PSA registered 19 religious entities during the year, consisting of new religious subgroups that are part of existing religious denominations, including the Baptist Church, MOC, BOC, Evangelical Church, Seventh-day Adventists, Union of Pentecostal Churches, Orthodox Slavonic Church, and Orthodox Metropolis of Chisinau and all Moldova. The PSA did not reject any registration applications.
During the year, 83 religious groups received funds from income tax payments directed toward religious groups.
The Falun Gong association’s two complaints to the European Court of Human Rights, which were filed in 2015, remained pending at year’s end. The association exhausted all national court avenues regarding charges against it of violating the law on extremist activity by the Falun Gong’s symbol’s incorporation of five swastikas based on Buddhist and Chinese tradition, remained pending at year’s end. A case also remained pending in the courts on the liquidation of the organization.
Minority religious groups, including Baptists, Pentecostals, and Jehovah’s Witnesses, reported local authorities remained reluctant to allocate land to them to construct houses of worship. They also reported Orthodox priests often pressured local mayors or councilors to discriminate against Jehovah’s Witnesses by refusing to execute court orders allowing use of facilities by Jehovah’s Witnesses for worship.
Jehovah’s Witnesses leaders reported fewer restrictions from local authorities and an overall improvement in the registration process for acquiring properties to build houses of worship. Several cases related to obtaining zoning permits were ongoing, however. For example, in Olanesti Village Jehovah’s Witnesses could not use their Kingdom Hall, renovated in 2016, because the local authorities refused to provide a zoning permit. The case remained pending at year’s end. Jehovah’s Witnesses leaders said police failed to prosecute individuals who threatened or verbally abused members of Jehovah’s Witnesses in rural localities.
In July the Supreme Court of Justice upheld a decision recognizing the validity of a building permit for a Kingdom Hall in Ceadir-Lunga. After more than two years of opposition from local authorities, Jehovah’s Witnesses were able to proceed with the building’s construction.
On January 5, police in Ciorescu summoned two Jehovah’s Witnesses, alleging they had violated a law passed in 2017 by the village council banning religious preaching and distribution of religious literature in the village, which the council termed “propaganda.” Police issued fines worth 600 lei ($35) each. The two members submitted an appeal to the Chisinau court, which annulled the fines on March 28. The Ciorescu police department appealed this decision, which the Court of Appeals rejected on May 22.
In May the Jewish Community of Moldova (JCM) submitted a request to the Chisinau mayor’s office to renew a building permit to renovate a historical Jewish synagogue and yeshiva. The request followed a successful resolution of a long-standing court dispute with the Public Property Agency, which argued the JCM had taken too long to renovate the property and denied the permit. In September 2017, the Supreme Court ruled against the agency and awarded the property to the JCM. At year’s end, the JCM reported it had received the building permit but had not yet started reconstruction efforts on the synagogue property. The JCM had purchased the site in 2010.
The Union of Pentecostal Churches reported that the process of importing social and humanitarian assistance had improved. During the year, however, the Union reported that it remained unable to obtain a building certificate for a building in Copceac Village it bought in 2006 and used for religious services. In August the Union challenged the local authorities’ refusal to issue the building certificate in court.
In October the government adopted a decision to build a Jewish museum in Chisinau. According to the decision, the museum would provide education on the Holocaust, combat anti-Semitism, and promote culture, tolerance, and peace. The new museum will host a Jewish library and an educational center. Prime Minister Pavel Filip also announced in October the government would renovate the Jewish cemetery in Chisinau, one of the largest in Europe, with more than 40,000 graves. The government also pledged to build a Yad Vashem-style Jewish historical and cultural center that would include a number of historical sites of importance to the Jewish community in the country. These actions constituted partial implementation of the government’s 2017-19 action plan responding to recommendations of the Elie Wiesel Commission’s 2016 Report on the Holocaust.
The Jewish community reported progress in fulfilling the action plan and an enhanced openness by the authorities at the national level to address Jewish community concerns. This included the government partnership with the Jewish community to design and build a Jewish heritage museum in Chisinau, government renovation of Chisinau’s 30-acre Jewish cemetery, building a Jewish historical and cultural center, and approving a high school curriculum on historic lessons of the Holocaust to be introduced the following school year.
Through an earlier agreement with the Ministry of Labor, Social Protection, and Family, the MOC continued to develop a network of social assistance sites, including opening day-care centers and temporary shelters within churches and monasteries. The MOC also has agreements with other state institutions such as the Ministry of Internal Affairs and National Penitentiary Association to provide spiritual guidance and services to police officers, state workers, and prison inmates. Representatives of the BOC contended their attempts to obtain similar agreements with state institutions were unsuccessful.
According to minority religious groups and civil society leaders, authorities continued to exhibit preferential treatment toward the MOC, compared to other religious groups. The government invited MOC priests to officiate at state-sponsored events, national holidays, and blessing ceremonies at schools. During the year, President Dodon praised the role of the MOC in the lives of citizens and attended multiple MOC-led religious events. The MOC, however, reported problems receiving building and other types of permits from the Chisinau mayor’s office. Ahead of a planned visit by Russian Patriarch Kirill to the country in October, the Chisinau mayor’s office denied the MOC’s request for a permit to place billboards in the city to promote his visit.
An outbreak of measles during the year sparked social debate about the legal requirement for immunization. According to the Ministry of Education, of the 5,664 children who were not enrolled in schools at the beginning of the academic year, 800 were denied admission because their parents refused immunization for religious reasons.
The Islamic League stated that the principal and teaching staff at Mihai Berezovschi Public High School in Chisinau subjected three young Muslim girls who wore the hijab to constant pressure and intimidation, causing the parents to transfer the girls to schools outside the country. The principal reportedly tried to persuade the girls to give up their belief in Islam and banned the girls from attending school wearing a hijab, warning their dress did not comply with school norms. The principal also reportedly expressed “fear for herself and the other 2,000 students at the school.” The Ministry of Education did not take action following complaints submitted by the parents and advised them to take the case to the Anti-Discrimination Council.
NGOs and advocacy groups continued to note the government had no laws or mechanisms in place to address Holocaust-era claims of communal property restitution and reported the government had made no progress on resolution of these claims, including for foreign citizens.
Abuses by Foreign Forces and Nonstate Actors
Reports of discriminatory treatment of minority religious groups in Transnistria continued. According to such groups, local security forces in Transnistria continued monitoring their activities.
Jehovah’s Witnesses said the Transnistrian de facto authorities continued to refuse to reregister two local Jehovah’s Witnesses groups, in Tiraspol and Rybnitsa. Local authorities refused several times to accept the required documents. On April 12, the de facto ministry of justice filed a claim with the Rybnitsa city court to prohibit the reregistration of a local Jehovah’s Witnesses group. The case was pending in court at year’s end. On August 14, Jehovah’s Witnesses in Rybnitsa resubmitted papers for reregistration, which were ultimately denied.
The Muslim community continued to run a cultural and educational center in Transnistria, but the Islamic League again stated it chose not to register it as an official religious entity. The Muslim community continued to avoid undertaking any overt religious activity because of previous intimidation attempts by the region’s authorities. According to the Islamic League, during the year, the local security services declared the imam that led Friday prayers to be wanted for questioning by “authorities” in Transnistria, and he later fled the region.
Section III. Status of Societal Respect for Religious Freedom
Jehovah’s Witnesses reported some incidents of societal abuse, consisting mainly of verbal intimidation and property destruction.
Pentecostal representatives reported that on the evening of February 20, unknown individuals who posed as representatives of a company delivering construction materials entered the Pentecostal church premises in Pirlita Village in the district of Falesti. The individuals reportedly beat the guard and threatened him with retaliation if he attempted to thwart their actions. The perpetrators set several new doors of the church on fire. The individuals tried to forcibly enter the entrance to the attic to set it on fire as well but were not successful. Following the incident, the guard extinguished the fire and called the police. This was the second attempt since 2010 to set the same church on fire. Churches throughout several locations in Falesti were repeatedly the target of attacks, including arson and other forms of destruction.
According to the Islamic League, societal attitudes toward Muslims worsened compared with previous years, and local media continued to exhibit a critical attitude and bias against Islam. During the Chisinau mayoral election in June, a fake news story attempted to stir negative public opinion on Islam by claiming that one of the candidates intended to build mosques and a neighborhood for Arabs in Chisinau. The Islamic League reported Muslims, particularly Muslim women, faced discrimination when seeking employment. Employers were often reluctant to employ Muslim women choosing to cover their hair by wearing a hijab. Negative attitudes and bias against women wearing a hijab continued on public transportation, including drivers reportedly failing to stop to pick up women wearing a hijab and disapproving looks from other passengers.
Property disputes between the MOC and BOC Churches continued during the year.
Leaders of the Jewish community reported one case of vandalism during the year. Unknown individuals drew swastikas in a cemetery in Balti.
Anti-Semitic discourse and attitudes, particularly by politicians and public figures, increased during the year. In July the mayor of Orhei, an Israel-born Moldovan of Jewish descent, posted a video on social media criticizing his political opponents. This video triggered a wave of reactions and criticism from politicians, commentators, and media. According to the Jewish community, some of the comments were anti-Semitic in nature.
Section IV. U.S. Government Policy and Engagement
In August the chairman of the U.S. Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad and embassy representatives met with the foreign minister, speaker of parliament, and minister of education, culture, and research, as well as Jewish community leaders, to discuss the treatment and maintenance of Jewish heritage sites and the opening of a Jewish heritage museum in Chisinau. Embassy officials met with leaders and representatives of the MOC, BOC, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Muslim groups, Baptist Church, and Pentecostal Church to discuss societal attitudes and government actions or inaction with regard to religious groups. Embassy representatives also continued to meet regularly with leaders of the Jewish community to discuss respect for their rights and the challenges faced by the community.
On January 28, the embassy attended the unveiling of a new monument in Tiraspol dedicated to victims of the Holocaust who were killed in Transnistria. Subsequently, embassy representatives participated in a roundtable discussion on lessons learned from the Holocaust at the State University of Tiraspol with the dean, the de facto minister of education, and several of the region’s government representatives. The conference discussed ways to introduce Holocaust education into academic curriculums and broadly educate the public on the events of the Holocaust that took place in Moldova.
On June 1, the embassy hosted an iftar with leaders and representatives of the Muslim community and diplomatic representatives. The community discussed its concerns over rising societal intolerance toward Muslims in media, politics, education, and employment.
In December the Ambassador hosted a lunch with leaders of minority religious groups to discuss issues important to these groups and facilitate a better dialogue and cooperation between religious communities in the country. The Ambassador also had separate meetings with the heads of the MOC, BOC, and Roman Catholic Church to discuss prospects of setting up an official platform for cooperation between various faiths. | <urn:uuid:d8964b5b-d1c9-4887-abe7-0a160e1bb6ff> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.state.gov/report/custom/856ce9f292/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571222.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20220810222056-20220811012056-00676.warc.gz | en | 0.952009 | 6,981 | 2.25 | 2 |
Does 24/7 Connectivity Equal Increased Productivity?
Randstad survey shows the majority of women disagree
ATLANTA, Feb. 19, 2013, With technology increasingly blurring the lines between work and home and women assuming more prominent roles at work, a survey released today by Randstad US reveals that constant connectivity does not mean increased productivity for women workers.
Randstad’s latest Engagement Index study reveals that while 42 percent of women believe it is increasingly difficult to disconnect from work while at home, the majority (68 percent) do not believe that the blurring of lines between work and home has increased their productivity.
“As enhanced technologies and increased access to information continues to blur the lines between our professional and personal lives, many workers mistake being busy for being productive,” said Linda Galipeau, Randstad CEO of North America. “These are two very different concepts that when looked at from an organizational standpoint—could have serious implications for a company’s bottom line. We are only productive if we’re producing the results that are most impactful to our goals. Being that we live in a multi-tasking world, it is important to work smarter and hone in on those high-impact efforts that will create more meaningful results. This is incredibly important, especially as women and men can now perform their jobs from almost anywhere.”
Other notable findings:
Flexible Working Arrangements and Policies Among Prime Benefits For Women
- Forty-nine percent of women say their company is flexible and accommodating in terms of hours or working arrangements. Additionally, 33 percent of female respondents feel this is one of the most effective ways to engage them.
Women Cite the Top Asset in Growing Their Careers
- In terms of the skills important to growing their careers, half of women surveyed (50 percent) chose flexibility/adaptability, followed by encompassing computer and technology skills (43 percent).
On-the-Job Relationships Impact Career Happiness
- Women value their relationships with colleagues and supervisors. Relationships with their colleagues (87 percent) and direct supervisors (85 percent) have a big impact on their happiness with their jobs.
Randstad recently launched its Women Powering Business section on its Workforce360 thought leadership site. This section includes the latest research and trends shaping the way women work. For more information, as well as other research insights, advice and career resources, visit www.randstadusa.com/workforce360.
The Randstad Engagement Index is comprised of findings from quarterly waves of research targeting employees and annual surveys of employers. The sixth wave of findings was conducted November 1-13, 2012 from a national sample of 3,417 aged 18 and older who are currently employed full time from Ipsos’ U.S. online panel were interviewed online.
Weighting was used to balance demographics and ensure samples reflect the U.S. population of working adults.
Employees and employers were surveyed to compare notable differences in perceptions and attitudes. Multiple waves of research allow for trending and to track changes in perceptions and attitudes over time. Research into employee attitudes and perceptions will be conducted quarterly. Research into employer attitudes and perceptions will be conducted on an annual basis.
About Ipsos Public Affairs
Ipsos Public Affairs is a non-partisan, objective, survey-based research practice which conducts strategic research initiatives for a diverse number of American and international organizations, based on public opinion research. They are the international polling agency of record for Thomson Reuters, the world’s leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals. To learn more, visit: www.ipsos-pa.com.
About Randstad US
Randstad is a $22.5 billion global provider of HR services and the second largest staffing organization in the world. From temporary staffing to permanent placement to inhouse, professionals, search & selection, and HR Solutions, Randstad holds top positions around the world and has approximately 28,700 corporate employees working from its nearly 4,700 branches and inhouse locations in 40 countries. Founded in 1960 and headquartered in Diemen, the Netherlands, Randstad Holding nv is listed on the NYSE Euronext Amsterdam. Learn more at http://www.randstad.com. | <urn:uuid:f62a21c9-44de-41a0-9b65-c8932a155114> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | http://learn-finance.com/category/surveys/page/4/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573533.87/warc/CC-MAIN-20220818215509-20220819005509-00272.warc.gz | en | 0.949977 | 877 | 1.789063 | 2 |
Regulators Take Another Stab at Taking a Bite Out of Crime
In January 2021, after the override of President Trump’s veto, Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act (“NDAA”). The NDAA includes the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 (the “Act”), which contains significant changes to the Bank Secrecy Act (“BSA”), along with changes relating to anti-money laundering (“AML”), counter-terrorism financing (“CTF”), and protections to the U.S. financial system against foreign interference.
Among the key reforms in the Act are the following: (1) substantial revision of the definition of “financial institution” to recognize innovations in financial technology; (2) establishment of new beneficial ownership reporting; and (3) requiring the U.S. Treasury to increase transparency and update the AML/CFT legal framework.
The Act makes clear that innovation is coming to BSA/AML compliance. Although the Treasury Department may not complete its administrative and legislative findings and promulgate implementing regulations until 2022, we expect that the implementation of the Act will emphasize the need for businesses, particularly in the FinTech sector, to adopt effective transaction monitoring processes. The development of the beneficial ownership database, which is accessible to a financial institution (with the customer’s consent) for purposes of complying with customer due diligence requirements, should create efficiencies in the BSA/AML process by helping financial institutions analyze suspicious transactions.
Definition of “Financial Institution”
The Act amends the BSA’s definition of “financial institution” to include any business engaged in the transmission of currency, funds, or “value that substitutes for currency.” This amendment reflects the Act’s focus on FinTech and reinforces the position that the BSA possibly applies to cryptocurrency. The Act also requires the Treasury Department to establish a Subcommittee on Innovation and Technology, which will provide guidance to federal and state financial regulators in order to “encourage and support technological innovation in the areas” of AML and CFT and reduce obstacles that exist in current regulation. The U.S. Government Accountability Office Director must also conduct a study on the use of virtual currencies to facilitate drug trafficking and human trafficking on online markets.
Beneficial Ownership Reporting Requirements
The Act also includes the Corporate Transparency Act, which is intended to discourage the use of shell corporations to disguise and move illegal funds. In furtherance of this goal, the Corporate Transparency Act requires each business that meets the definition of a “reporting company” to disclose to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) certain information regarding the real person that owns and controls the entity and to update that disclosure upon a change. For each such beneficial owner, the “reporting company” is required to provide the following information: (1) full legal name; (2) date of birth; (3) current residential or business address; and (4) unique identifying number. FinCEN will then maintain a non-public national registry of beneficial ownership information.
The term “reporting company” is generally defined to include entities created under the laws of the United States or Indian Tribe and foreign entities registered to do business in the United States. One significant exclusion from this definition relates to entities that: (1) employ more than 20 full-time employees; (2) file a federal tax return of more than five million dollars; and (3) maintain a physical office in the United States. Other notable exclusions from this definition are publicly traded companies, certain nonprofits, government entities, and certain financial institutions (such as banks, credit unions, and bank holding companies).
Many of the details regarding beneficial ownership reporting will be determined through future regulations, which we expect to be promulgated throughout 2021 and potentially into 2022. Additionally, there is an extended compliance period and existing entities do not have to report beneficial ownership until two years after the effective date of the regulations promulgated under this law (and must update beneficial ownership information within one year of the change). Entities formed after the promulgation of the regulations, however, must report beneficial ownership information at the time of formation.
U.S. Treasury Priorities
The Secretary of the Treasury will establish national AML priorities, which are to be updated at least every four years. Financial institutions are then required to incorporate the AML priorities into their compliance programs (and can pool resources for AML/BSA compliance through collaborative arrangements).
The Treasury Department will also lead a review of existing BSA regulations and guidance and update them as necessary. Further, on an annual basis, beginning in January 2022, the Secretary of Treasury is required to submit to Congress a report of the Treasury Department’s findings, including administrative and legislative recommendations.
The Act also increases penalties for non-compliance with AML/BSA obligations and increases whistleblower incentives and protections.
This client alert was co-authored by Jonathan K. Moore, Scott D. Samlin, and Chenxi (CC) Jiao.
Blank Rome LLP has a comprehensive regulatory compliance team focused on consumer financial services that regularly assists clients in the development of internal policies and procedures needed to minimize non-compliance risk exposure. For additional information regarding consumer finance regulatory compliance issues, please contact Wayne Streibich, Jonathan K. Moore, Michael J. Barry, and Louise Bowes Marencik in the Philadelphia office, or Scott D. Samlin, Scott E. Wortman, and Chenxi (CC) Jiao in the New York office.
To download this client alert, please click here.
These additions supplement the prior definition of financial institution, which included banks, thrifts, credit unions, and any other insured depository institutions, branches, and agencies of foreign banks, broker-dealers of securities, and money services businesses, including money transmitters, issuers of checks, money orders or “similar instruments,” and foreign exchange dealers, among others. 31 U.S.C § 5312.
The Act also adds antiquities dealers, advisors, and consultants to the BSA’s definition of “financial institution.”
© 2021 Blank Rome LLP. All rights reserved. Please contact Blank Rome for permission to reprint. Notice: The purpose of this update is to identify select developments that may be of interest to readers. The information contained herein is abridged and summarized from various sources, the accuracy and completeness of which cannot be assured. This update should not be construed as legal advice or opinion, and is not a substitute for the advice of counsel. | <urn:uuid:3123abff-178c-48f8-a02e-b0f75f6fbf5b> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.blankrome.com/publications/regulators-take-another-stab-taking-bite-out-crime | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573623.4/warc/CC-MAIN-20220819035957-20220819065957-00671.warc.gz | en | 0.926676 | 1,374 | 1.695313 | 2 |
Years in the making, this new textbook will revolutionize the way Historia is taught.
Subtitled “A Parallel History,” From Ur to Pompedisa provides a detailed narrative of Jewish history, from the days of Avrohom Avinu until the end of the Geonim period. It also traces major highlights from world history during that same period using the format of two-paged spreads.
This work can serve as a year’s program for high schoolers—or as a teacher’s source book in younger grades. Includes maps, charts and much more. | <urn:uuid:4ad61de8-2092-4acb-8639-e41be43eeb0d> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.israelbookshop.com/from-ur-to-pompedisa-history-textbook-by-feige-twerski.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572161.46/warc/CC-MAIN-20220815054743-20220815084743-00475.warc.gz | en | 0.926849 | 125 | 3.15625 | 3 |
Creation Says, “They Are Inexcusable”
“His invisible qualities are clearly seen from the world’s creation onward, because they are perceived by the things made, even his eternal power and Godship, so that they are inexcusable.”—ROMANS 1:20.
1, 2. (a) What bitter complaint did Job make to Jehovah? (b) What retraction did Job subsequently make?
JOB, a man of ancient times who possessed unbreakable integrity to Jehovah God, had been put to a terrible test by Satan. The Devil had caused Job to lose all of his material possessions, had brought the death of his sons and daughters, and had afflicted him with a loathsome disease. Job thought it was God bringing these calamities upon him, and he complained bitterly to Jehovah: “Is it good for you that you should do wrong, . . . that you should try to find my error and for my sin you should keep looking? This in spite of your own knowledge that I am not in the wrong?”—Job 1:12-19; 2:5-8; 10:3, 6, 7.
2 Some time after this, Job’s words to God reflected a complete reversal: “I talked, but I was not understanding things too wonderful for me, which I do not know. In hearsay I have heard about you, but now my own eye does see you. That is why I make a retraction, and I do repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:3, 5, 6) What had happened to change Job’s attitude?
3. What new viewpoint did Job acquire concerning creation?
3 In the interim, Jehovah had confronted Job out of the windstorm. (Job 38:1) He had plied Job with questions. ‘Where were you when I founded the earth? Who barricaded the sea with doors and set limits on where its waves could come? Can you cause the clouds to drop their rain on the earth? Can you cause the grass to grow? Can you bind together the constellations and guide them in their courses?’ Throughout chapters 38 to 41 of the book of Job, Jehovah rained down on Job these questions and many more about His creation. He made Job see the tremendous gulf between God and man, forcefully reminding Job of the wisdom and power reflected in God’s creation, things far beyond the power of Job to perform or even to understand. Job, overwhelmed by the awesome power and incredible wisdom of the almighty God as revealed through His creations, was appalled to think that he had had the audacity to argue with Jehovah. So he said: “In hearsay I have heard about you, but now my own eye does see you.”—Job 42:5.
4. What should we perceive from Jehovah’s creations, and what is the situation with those who fail to see it?
4 Many centuries later an inspired Bible writer confirmed that Jehovah’s qualities could be seen through his creations. The apostle Paul wrote at Romans 1:19, 20: “What may be known about God is manifest among them, for God made it manifest to them. For his invisible qualities are clearly seen from the world’s creation onward, because they are perceived by the things made, even his eternal power and Godship, so that they are inexcusable.”
5. (a) What inborn need do humans have, and how is it improperly filled by some? (b) What was Paul’s recommendation to the Greeks in Athens?
5 Man was created with an inborn need to worship a higher power. Dr. C. G. Jung, in his book The Undiscovered Self, referred to this need as “an instinctive attitude peculiar to man, and its manifestations can be followed all through human history.” The apostle Paul spoke of man’s inborn urge to worship, which explained why the Greeks in Athens made images and altars to many gods, known and unknown. Paul also identified the true God to them and showed that they should satisfy this innate urge correctly by seeking Jehovah the true God, “if they might grope for him and really find him, although, in fact, he is not far off from each one of us.” (Acts 17:22-30) As near as we are to his creations, just that near we are to perceiving his qualities and attributes.
The Amazing Water Cycle
6. What qualities of Jehovah do we see in the water cycle?
6 What qualities of Jehovah do we perceive, for example, in the ability of fluffy clouds to hold tons of water? We see his love and wisdom, for he thus provides rain showers for earth’s blessing. He does this by means of the wonderful design involved in the water cycle, mentioned at Ecclesiastes 1:7: “All the winter torrents are going forth to the sea, yet the sea itself is not full. To the place where the winter torrents are going forth, there they are returning so as to go forth.” The Bible book of Job is specific on how it happens.
7. How does water get from the ocean to the clouds, and how can fluffy clouds hold tons of water?
7 When the winter torrents flow to the sea, they do not stay there. Jehovah “draws up drops of water from the sea and distils rain from the mist he has made.” Because the water is in the form of water vapor and ultimately a fine mist, “the clouds hang poised overhead, a wonderful work of his consummate skill.” (Job 36:27; 37:16; The New English Bible) The clouds float as long as they are mist: “He fastens up the waters in his clouds—the mists do not tear apart under their weight.” Or as another translation says: “He keeps the waters penned in dense cloud-masses, and the clouds do not burst open under their weight.”—Job 26:8, The Jerusalem Bible; NE.
8. By what different steps are “the water jars of heaven” tipped over and the water cycle completed?
8 These “water jars of heaven—who can tip them over” to cause rain to fall to earth? (Job 38:37) The One whose “consummate skill” put them there in the first place, who “distils rain from the mist he has made.” And what is needed to distill raindrops from the mists? There must be microscopic solid matter, such as dust or salt particles—from thousands to hundreds of thousands of them in each cubic inch [cm] of air—to act as nuclei for droplets to form around. It is estimated that it takes a million of the tiny cloud droplets to make up an average raindrop. Only after all this development can the clouds drop their torrents to earth to form the streams that return the water to the sea. Thus the water cycle completes itself. And all of this by blind chance? “Inexcusable,” indeed!
One Source of Solomon’s Wisdom
9. What did Solomon find remarkable about one species of ant?
9 In the ancient world, the wisdom of Solomon was unparalleled. Much of that wisdom concerned Jehovah’s creation: “[Solomon] would speak about the trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that is coming forth on the wall; and he would speak about the beasts and about the flying creatures and about the moving things and about the fishes.” (1 Kings 4:33) It was this same King Solomon who wrote: “Go to the ant, you lazy one; see its ways and become wise. Although it has no commander, officer or ruler, it prepares its food even in the summer; it has gathered its food supplies even in the harvest.”—Proverbs 6:6-8.
10. How was Solomon’s illustration about harvester ants vindicated?
10 Who taught the ants to store food in summer to see them through the cold of winter? For centuries the accuracy of Solomon’s account of these ants that harvested seeds and stored them for use in winter was doubted. No one had found any evidence of their existence. In 1871, however, a British naturalist discovered their underground granaries, and the Bible’s accuracy in reporting on them was vindicated. But how did these ants acquire the foresight to know in summer that winter’s cold lay ahead and the wisdom to know what to do about it? The Bible itself explains that many of Jehovah’s creations have a wisdom programmed into them for their survival. The harvester ants are recipients of this blessing from their Creator. Proverbs 30:24 speaks of it: “They are instinctively wise.” To say that such wisdom could just happen by chance is unreasonable; to fail to perceive a wise Creator behind it is inexcusable.
11. (a) Why is the giant sequoia tree so awesome? (b) What is so amazing about the first reaction in photosynthesis?
11 A man at the foot of a giant sequoia tree, amazed at its massive grandeur, understandably feels like a small ant. The tree’s size is awesome: 300 feet [90 m] tall, 36 feet [11 m] in diameter, bark 2 feet [0.6 m] thick, roots spreading out over three or four acres [1.2 to 1.6 ha]. Yet, far more awesome is the chemistry and physics involved in its growth. Its leaves take water from the roots, carbon dioxide from the air, and energy from the sun to manufacture sugars and give off oxygen—a process called photosynthesis that involves some 70 chemical reactions, not all of which are understood. Amazingly, the first reaction depends upon light from the sun that is just the right color, the right wavelength; otherwise it would not be absorbed by the chlorophyll molecules to initiate the process of photosynthesis.
12. (a) What is remarkable about the sequoia tree’s use of water? (b) Why is nitrogen needed in plant growth, and how is its cycle completed?
12 Also amazing is the fact that the tree can draw up columns of water from the roots to the top of this 300-foot-high [90 m] colossus. Much more water is drawn up than is needed for photosynthesis. The excess is given off through the leaves by transpiration into the air. It makes the tree water-cooled, somewhat like our being cooled by perspiration. To form protein for growth, nitrogen needs to be added to the sugars, or carbohydrates. The leaf cannot use gaseous nitrogen taken from the air, but soil organisms can turn the gaseous nitrogen in the earth into nitrates and nitrites soluble in water, which then travel from the roots up to the leaves. When plants and animals that have used this nitrogen in their proteins die and decompose, the nitrogen is released, completing the nitrogen cycle. In all of this, the complexity involved is staggering, hardly a task for chance to perform.
Without Speech or Words or Voice, They Speak!
13. What did the starry heavens declare to David, and what do they continue to say to us?
13 What an awesome reflection of the Creator it is that comes from a star-packed night sky that fills viewers with reverence! At Psalm 8:3, 4, David expressed the awe he felt: “When I see your heavens, the works of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have prepared, what is mortal man that you keep him in mind, and the son of earthling man that you take care of him?” To those who have eyes to see, ears to hear, and a heart to feel, these starry heavens speak, as they did to David: “The heavens are declaring the glory of God.”—Psalm 19:1-4.
14. Why is the dynamic energy of one of the stars so vital to us?
14 The more we know about stars, the louder they speak to us. At Isaiah 40:26, we are invited to note their tremendous energy: “Raise your eyes high up and see. Who has created these things? It is the One who is bringing forth the army of them even by number, all of whom he calls even by name. Due to the abundance of dynamic energy, he also being vigorous in power, not one of them is missing.” The force of gravity and the dynamic energy of one of them, our sun, hold the earth in place in its orbit, make plants grow, keep us warm, and make all life possible here on the earth. The apostle Paul under inspiration said: “Star differs from star in glory.” (1 Corinthians 15:41) Science knows of yellow stars like our sun, also blue stars, red giants, white dwarfs, neutron stars, and exploding supernovas that unleash incomprehensible power.
15. What have many inventors learned from creation and tried to imitate?
15 Many inventors have learned from creation and have attempted to copy the abilities of living creatures. (Job 12:7-10) Note just a few outstanding aspects of creation. Seabirds with glands that desalt seawater; fish and eels that generate electricity; fish, worms, and insects that produce cold light; bats and dolphins that use sonar; wasps that make paper; ants that build bridges; beavers that build dams; snakes that have built-in thermometers; pond insects that use snorkels and diving bells; octopuses that use jet propulsion; spiders that make seven kinds of webs and make trapdoors, nets, and lassos and that have babies who are balloonists, traveling thousands of miles [kilometers] at great heights; fish and crustaceans that use flotation tanks like submarines; and birds, insects, sea turtles, fish, and mammals that perform amazing feats of migration—abilities beyond science’s power to explain.
16. What scientific truths did the Bible record thousands of years before science discovered them?
16 The Bible recorded scientific truths thousands of years before science knew of them. The Mosaic Law (16th century B.C.E.) reflected awareness of disease germs thousands of years before Pasteur. (Leviticus, chapters 13, 14) In the 17th century B.C.E., Job stated: “He is . . . hanging the earth upon nothing.” (Job 26:7) A thousand years before Christ, Solomon wrote about the circulation of the blood; medical science had to wait until the 17th century to learn about it. (Ecclesiastes 12:6) Before that, Psalm 139:16 reflected knowledge of the genetic code: “Your eyes saw even the embryo of me, and in your book all its parts were down in writing, as regards the days when they were formed and there was not yet one among them.” In the 7th century B.C.E., before naturalists understood about migration, Jeremiah wrote, as recorded at Jeremiah 8:7: “The stork in the sky knows the time to migrate, the dove and the swift and the wryneck know the season of return.”—NE.
The “Creator” That Evolutionists Are Choosing
17. (a) What does Romans 1:21-23 say about some who refuse to see an intelligent Creator behind created wonders? (b) In a sense, what are evolutionists choosing as their “creator”?
17 One scripture says concerning some who refuse to perceive an intelligent Creator behind the created wonders: “They became empty-headed in their reasonings and their unintelligent heart became darkened. Although asserting they were wise, they became foolish and turned the glory of the incorruptible God into something like the image of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed creatures and creeping things.” They “exchanged the truth of God for the lie and venerated and rendered sacred service to the creation rather than the One who created.” (Romans 1:21-23, 25) It is similar with evolutionary scientists, who, in effect, glorify an imaginary ascending chain of protozoa-worms-fish-amphibians-reptiles-mammals-“ape-men” as their “creator.” They know, however, that there is no truly simple one-celled organism to start the chain. The simplest known organism contains a hundred billion atoms, with thousands of chemical reactions occurring within it simultaneously.
18, 19. (a) Who is the rightful One to be credited with originating life? (b) How much of Jehovah’s creation can we see?
18 Jehovah God is the Creator of life. (Psalm 36:9) He is the great First Cause. His name, Jehovah, means “He causes to become.” His creations are beyond our numbering. Certainly there are millions more than man is aware of. Psalm 104:24, 25 hints at this: “How many your works are, O Jehovah! All of them in wisdom you have made.” Job 26:14 is explicit on this: “Look! These are the fringes of his ways, and what a whisper of a matter has been heard of him! But of his mighty thunder who can show an understanding?” We see a few fringes, we hear a few whispers, but to catch the full import of his mighty thunder is beyond us.
19 We do, however, have a better source for seeing him than through his physical creations. That better source is his Word, the Bible. To that source we now turn in the following article.
Do You Remember?
◻ What did Job learn when Jehovah spoke to him out of the windstorm?
◻ Why did Paul say that some were inexcusable?
◻ How does the water cycle work?
◻ What important things does sunlight do for us?
◻ What scientific truths did the Bible reveal before science discovered them? | <urn:uuid:55779c47-6cff-4e39-ab71-6354ae3c7909> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1993442#h=22:0-23:976 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571982.99/warc/CC-MAIN-20220813172349-20220813202349-00065.warc.gz | en | 0.970362 | 3,834 | 2.78125 | 3 |
Week of Sunday June 23 – Pentecost 5
Readings: Galatians 3:23-29, Luke 18:9-14
Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. 24Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith.25But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian, 26for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. 27As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. 29And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise.
Let's have an honest conversation about how the world often works. In the Gospel of Luke, we hear a parable from Jesus concerning a pillar of society... and one of the—shall we say—rather less liked members of society.
[Jesus] told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt. [He said,] 10‘Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax-collector.11The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying like this, “God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax-collector. 12I... fast twice a week; I... give a tenth of all my income.”
13But the tax-collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” 14I tell you, [said Jesus, it was] this man [who] went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.’ (Luke 18:9 -14)
What the Pharisee was doing, was defining himself by his superiority to other people. We do this all the time; sadly, it almost seems to come naturally. "Thank God I am a nice person who lives in Norwood, and not in Elizabeth."(And those of us who do live in Elizabeth say... "Amen to that!")
When I worked in business for a while, I was occasionally asked where I lived. And when I would say "Elizabeth," it would frequently kill the conversation. It was clear that some of the good well-heeled people of the Eastern Suburbs didn't know whether to be sorry for me, or whether to hold their noses! They were embarrassed by their question. Sometimes their reassessment of me, and of my worth, was so obvious they may as well have taken a step backward me!
Well... I have a friend from Elizabeth who was studying in Norwood, and who managed to find a tiny run down cottage which she rents with a group of people. When I was visiting the other day, we were cut off by a BMW and then by a Mercedes, in quick succession. She apologised!!! and then said, "People here are so rude and selfish. They think the world is here for them!"
When we define ourselves as better than others, or by being 'not like others', we blind ourselves to our own faults. In truth, some Elizabeth drivers are just as rude and dangerous as some Norwood drivers, even if we more often do it old bombs instead of BMWs. A police friend once told me she thought the domestic violence is just as vicious in Norwood and Unley as it is in Elizabeth; it just hides behind money and respectability.
We're all the same—just people—but we use our prejudices to excuse our failings. And sometimes we blind ourselves to who we are. It has always been so.
One of the ancient Greek philosophers had "the habit of thanking God for three things: 'that I was born a human and not a beast; a man and not a woman; a Greek and not a Barbarian.'"
There is a Jewish prayer which says "Blessed are you, God, King of the Universe, for not having made me a Gentile... for not having made me a slave... and for not having made me a woman."
These words sound a lot like the reverse of an ancient baptismal liturgy that Paul quotes in his letter to the Galatians.
There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.
Some scholars think the liturgy was partly a response to that Jewish prayer that I read. Other scholars think a Jewish rabbi wrote the Jewish prayer as a reaction to Paul.
It doesn't matter which is correct. The two statements outline the two ways of being human.
One way of living is to say "Thank God I am not like them..." Every time we judge people, or make a distinction, we are living like that. God forgive us, for churches are often among the worst and most judgemental groups of people when it comes to ignoring the words of Paul and pretending to be superior.
The other way of living is to say that no one is worth more than anyone else. No one is worth less. We are all made equal in the sight of God. We are all loved equally by God. And all the Jewish people I have ever met have treated me with that sort of honour and respect.
When the early Christians were baptised they sometimes said something like
Now you are clothed with Christ. In this place there is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.
What that means for us is that in this place, here at Hare Street there is no difference. No one is better. No one is more important. There are no favourites.
God is blind. God makes... no distinction. Clever, rich, handsome, classy job, male, sixth generation Australian, latest model Commodore, Council Member, Minister, member here for 40 years, or received into membership two weeks ago; none of this matters to God.
We are one in Christ Jesus. And that is how we are to behave; here and always. Our love of God is shown first—and perhaps it is not too strong to say that, really, our love of God is shown only—by our treating every person who walks through these doors with the same honour, the same respect, and the same generosity as we treat ourselves and the best of our friends; with the same honour, the same respect, and the same generosity as we would show Jesus if he walked through our doors; he does, in each person who comes in.
Otherwise we are standing with the worst of the Pharisees, and praying futile prayers. God save us!
Do we find the source of our life in our relationship with Jesus... or do we seek to live by pretending to be better?
Direct Biblical quotations in this page are taken from The New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Please note that references to Wikipedia and other websites are intended to provide extra information for folk who don't have easy access to commentaries or a library. Wikipedia is never more than an introductory tool, and certainly not the last word in matters biblical!
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I have turned off the feedback module due to constant spamming. If you would like to share comments, you are welcome to email me, and I may include them at the bottom of this article. | <urn:uuid:f9bc3653-9627-4706-8651-0965680b0346> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.onemansweb.org/theology/the-year-of-luke-2013/thank-god-i-am-not-like-other-people-galatians-3-23-29-luke-18-9-14.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571989.67/warc/CC-MAIN-20220813232744-20220814022744-00479.warc.gz | en | 0.976661 | 1,660 | 1.78125 | 2 |
Keene Pumpkin Festival
74 images Created 17 Jan 2009
Photos and pictures that celebrate the Guiness World Record Pumpkin Fesitival. Keene, New Hampshire is the sight of tens of thousands of lit jack-o-lanterns, celebrating the harvest and the Halloween to come. The town began its Keene Pumpkin Festival in the early 90's as a way for school children to display their art and it grew into a Guiness World Record event with a series of world records with well over 26,000 jack o lanterns. | <urn:uuid:cf28325f-b271-425e-9498-7fac2b0feb58> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://albraden.photoshelter.com/gallery/G0000BslG69u.DYU | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280292.50/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00343-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.915258 | 109 | 1.703125 | 2 |
In a tweet on Sunday afternoon, President Trump announced he would delay the plan to raise tariffs on Chinese goods.
“I am pleased to report that the U.S. has made substantial progress in our trade talks with China on important structural issues including intellectual property protection, technology transfer, agriculture, services, currency, and many other issues. As a result of these very productive talks, I will be delaying the U.S. increase in tariffs now scheduled for March 1. Assuming both sides make additional progress, we will be planning a Summit for President Xi and myself, at Mar-a-Lago, to conclude an agreement. A very good weekend for U.S. & China!”
This comes after the latest round of meetings with Chinese officials in Washington for bilateral trade talks. The meetings were originally scheduled to wrap up on Friday, which was extended into the weekend with talks going well.
Tariffs Hurt the Heartland, the nationwide campaign against tariffs supported by American manufacturers, retailers, technology and agriculture organizations, was pleased after Sunday’s announcement that the March 1 tariff increase deadline would be extended. “We are encouraged by this latest sign of progress and that the administration seems to have heard the concerns of U.S. businesses and farmers who simply cannot afford more tariffs. However, existing tariffs and shifting deadlines are still making it harder for Americans to plan for the future, invest and grow.”
“As we have said repeatedly, we agree with the need to address China’s unfair trading practices. But tariffs are ultimately taxes paid by American businesses, and that’s why using them as leverage will always be a losing proposition. We need a solution as soon as possible that ends the tariff uncertainty once and for all and improves the U.S.-China trading relationship.”
Earlier this month at a press conference on Capitol Hill with bipartisan members of the U.S. Senate, Tariffs Hurt the Heartland released a report prepared by Trade Partnership Worldwide LLC that found that American workers would lose nearly one million U.S. jobs if tariffs increased on March 1. | <urn:uuid:e9f4eb03-666c-4287-b892-f77e9c1f8d19> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.agdaily.com/news/president-trump-delays-tariffs-chinese-goods/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572021.17/warc/CC-MAIN-20220814083156-20220814113156-00072.warc.gz | en | 0.966736 | 428 | 1.570313 | 2 |
I came across this pin earlier today on Pinterest and thought it’d be super easy to set up our own version of a can bean bag toss. It’s a very Earth-Day-appropriate activity, too, since it gives more life to items that would otherwise be trashed or recycled!
I have been saving cans for awhile to make this robot building kit, so I just borrowed 10 from my stash. I brought in a little plastic shelf from our garage and set it up on the rug in front of our couch. I figured the couch would be a good backstop for the beanbags to crash into, and the rug would soften the sound of all the falling cans!
We used 10 cans (emptied and cleaned) and I showed the kids how to build a pyramid with 4 cans on bottom, 3 on top of those, 2 on top of those, and 1 on the very top. For a simpler pyramid for younger kids, use just 6 cans: 3 on bottom, 2 in the middle, and 1 on top.
We had some alphabet beanbags, so we used those for throwing.
Each person got to throw 3 beanbags for his/her turn. We used the edge of the rug as the throwing line.
When a person’s turn was over, they counted the cans they were able to knock off the table, and they set up the pyramid for the next person.
This is a really fun and easy activity that’s great to keep in mind for rainy days! In addition to being fun, kids get some fine and gross motor skills practice, and they can practice counting!! 🙂
Here are some more pics of our fun:
This post may contain affiliate links. | <urn:uuid:591134e0-49ed-4630-9953-3663e023562c> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.inlieuofpreschool.com/earth-day-diy-carnival-can-bean-bag-toss/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560279410.32/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095119-00167-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955362 | 353 | 2.375 | 2 |
Former New York Gov. David Paterson says Kirsten Gillibrand was not his first choice to replace Hillary Rodham Clinton in the Senate after Clinton was confirmed as secretary of state.
Paterson wanted to name himself to the seat.
"My dream was to be a U.S. senator," Paterson said. "And this was the Bobby Kennedy seat, and he was like my hero."
He said that when Clinton, then still a senator, announced she was running for president, then-New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer gave Paterson "the wink" that he would be appointed to Clinton's seat if she won.
Paterson's hopes were dashed, however, when Barack Obama won the Democratic nomination.
But after Obama was elected and asked Clinton to serve as his secretary of state, Paterson said, "I thought my Senate dream is back. And this time I get to make the dream the way I want to."
By that time, Spitzer had resigned in disgrace and Paterson had stepped up from lieutenant governor to replace him.
But Paterson realized that naming himself to replace Clinton would create a major dilemma. He didn't have a lieutenant governor, so he would be replaced as governor by Malcolm Smith, the state Senate's majority leader and temporary president. Under the state constitution, Smith could serve only as acting governor and could be replaced by a majority vote of the state Senate.
Democrats held only a two-vote majority in the state Senate at the time, making it relatively easy for lawmakers to replace an acting governor who didn't curry favor with them.
"I thought the process of replacing me would be corrupt and it would rightly be blamed on me," Paterson said.
In fact, leadership of the state Senate changed in June 2009, when two Democrats switched allegiance. Since then, five state senators have been convicted of crimes.
Paterson said naming himself as Clinton's replacement "would have been one of the absolute worst decisions because it would have sent the leadership of the state into a quagmire — and a corrupt quagmire."
Choosing Gillibrand, then a House member representing New York's 20th District, offered Paterson the chance to replace Clinton with another woman. Gillibrand also represented an upstate district in a statewide delegation dominated by downstate residents, and she was relatively young and would be able to build seniority and clout in the Senate over time.
Just as importantly, Paterson said, Gillibrand's style "of fighting for people who don't have a voice" showed she was more aligned with his own style than any of the other candidates he interviewed.
"That's how I was my whole career," he said.
Contact Brian Tumulty at email@example.com | <urn:uuid:0a85e185-2c8b-4b6e-aed7-011882526651> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.pressconnects.com/story/news/local/new-york/2014/08/31/paterson-gillibrand-senate-appointment/14904063/?from=global&autologin= | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560281419.3/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095121-00482-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.987905 | 569 | 1.71875 | 2 |
In the state of California, wildfires are fairly common. The weather and climate here makes it easy for wildfires to spread and grow out of control. Due to this fact, it is important that everyone know what they need to do in case they ever need to evacuate due to a fire.
Before an evacuation is ever ordered, or a fire has even begun to spread, it is important to have things prepared. This way, if an evacuation is ordered, you will be ready to handle it. Cal Fire recommends creating an evacuation checklist. This will help ensure you grab everything important in the event of an evacuation. Some of the things that should be included on this list are:
• Important papers and photos
• Essential valuables
• Transport for pets and/or livestock and some food for those animals
• Spare clothes
• Cell phone
• An evacuation map with at least 2 routes on it
In the event that a fire breaks out, and an evacuation may be ordered for your area, use your evacuation list and begin grabbing everything on it. Pack up your car, and have it facing out of the driveway. Keep pets close by in case an evacuation is ordered.
Once an evacuation is ordered, follow the instructions of local law enforcement agencies.
No one wants to leave there home and risk never seeing it again due to a fire. However, leaving is the best thing to do. It helps keep you safe and out of the way so emergency officials can do their job. | <urn:uuid:e6372afb-8a74-4e67-8ca0-0a2284258cb5> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://sanfrancisco-bailbonds.com/what-to-do-during-an-evacuation/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570977.50/warc/CC-MAIN-20220809124724-20220809154724-00474.warc.gz | en | 0.957064 | 307 | 2.609375 | 3 |
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