text stringlengths 59 1.12k |
|---|
give reasons for it. A more capable writer might also choose to take one side and argue for it. However, this topic also lends itself to a comparative style response from a more capable writer. It can be argued there |
are benefits and limitations to living in the city and living in the country. A writer could also choose to introduce other options, for example living in a large country town that might have the benefits of city and rural |
life. Positions taken on this topic are likely to elicit logical, practical reasons and anecdotes based on writers’ experiences. Books or TV (see example prompt ) A beginning writer could write about their opinion of one aspect and give reasons |
for it. However, this topic lends itself to a comparative style response from a more capable writer. It can be argued there are benefits and limitations to both books and TV. The reasons for either side of the topic are |
likely to elicit logical, practical reasons and personal anecdotes based on the writer's experiences of both books and TV. It is cruel to keep animals in cages and zoos (see example prompt ) A beginning writer could take on one |
side of the topic and give reasons for it. However, this topic lends itself to be further redefined. For example, a more capable writer might develop the difference between open range zoos and small cages and then argue the merits |
of one and limitations of the other. The animal welfare issues raised by this topic are likely to elicit very empathetic and emotive arguments based on the writer's knowledge about zoos and animals. More information on persuasive writing can be |
found in the FAQ section for NAPLAN - Writing test. National minimum standards The national minimum standards for writing describe some of the skills and understandings students can generally demonstrate at their particular year schooling. The standards are intended to |
be a snapshot of typical achievement and do not describe the full range of what students are taught or what they may achieve. For further information on the national minimum standards see Performance Standards. |
Atomic oxygen, a corrosive space gas, finds many applications on Earth. An Atomic Innovation for Artwork Oxygen may be one of the most common substances on the planet, but recent space research has unveiled a surprising number of new applications for the gas, including restoring damaged artwork. It all started with a c... |
are highly corrosive. While most oxygen atoms on Earth’s surface occur in pairs, in space the pair is often split apart by short-wave solar radiation, producing singular atoms. Because oxygen so easily bonds with other substances, it is highly corrosive in atomic form, and it gradually wears away the protective layerin... |
combat this destructive gas, NASA recreated it on Earth and applied it to different materials to see what would prove most resistant. The coatings developed through these experiments are currently used on the ISS. During the tests, however, scientists also discovered applications for atomic oxygen that have since prove... |
NASA researchers quickly realized that atomic oxygen interacted primarily with organic materials. Soon after, they partnered with churches and museums to test the gas’s ability to restore fire-damaged or vandalized art. Atomic oxygen was able to remove soot from fire-damaged artworks without altering the paint. It was ... |
nearly destroyed a painting of Mary Magdalene. Although the paint was blistered and charred, atomic oxygen treatment plus a reapplication of varnish revitalized it. And in 2002, a fire at St. Stanislaus Church (also in Cleveland) left two paintings with soot damage, but atomic oxygen removed it. Buoyed by the successes... |
and ink. At Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Museum of Art, where an Andy Warhol painting, Bathtub, has been kissed by a lipstick-wearing vandal, a technician successfully removed the offending pink mark with a portable atomic oxygen gun. The only evidence that the painting had been treated—a lightened spot of paint—was easily re... |
forensic analysts who study documents became curious about using atomic oxygen to detect forgeries. They found that it can assist analysts in figuring out whether important documents such as checks or wills have been altered, by revealing areas of overlapping ink created in the modifications. The gas has biomedical app... |
knee implants prior to surgery. Such contaminants contribute to inflammation that can lead to joint loosening and pain, or even necessitate removing the implant. Previously, there was no known chemical process that fully removed these inflammatory toxins without damaging the implants. Atomic oxygen, however, can oxidiz... |
The Nature Conservancy’s successful island restoration and innovative conservation practices have inspired countless scientists and conservationists around the world. And now, Santa Cruz Island has motivated novelists as well. Best-selling author T.C. Boyle—author of such works as The Women, The Tortilla Curtain, and A... |
the National Park Service’s scientists work. The story of Santa Cruz Island—and its incredible return from the brink of ecological collapse—is nothing short of remarkable. The Conservancy is announcing a contest to win a trip to this iconic place. Come meet the scientists who are saving Santa Cruz Island and learn more... |
but sometimes that requires making hard choices. There is nothing pleasant about having to kill an animal,” said The Nature Conservancy Santa Cruz Island Director Lotus Vermeer. “My love of nature is what brought me to this job in the first place. But what is very clear to me is that when native plants and animals like... |
risk, and natural systems are threatened, we are morally obligated to take responsibility for undoing the damage that we have caused.” The Nature Conservancy is proud to be featured in this book, which highlights our collaborative work with our partner the National Park Service on Santa Cruz Island. Since 1978, The Nat... |
Is light made of waves, or particles? This fundamental question has dogged scientists for decades, because light seems to be both. However, until now, experiments have revealed light to act either like a particle, or a wave, but never the two at once. Now, for the first time, a new |
type of experiment has shown light behaving like both a particle and a wave simultaneously, providing a new dimension to the quandary that could help reveal the true nature of light, and of the whole quantum world. The debate goes back at least as far as Isaac Newton, who advocated |
that light was made of particles, and James Clerk Maxwell, whose successful theory of electromagnetism, unifying the forces of electricity and magnetism into one, relied on a model of light as a wave. Then in 1905, Albert Einstein explained a phenomenon called the photoelectric effect using the idea that light |
was made of particles called photons (this discovery won him the Nobel Prize in physics). [What's That? Your Physics Questions Answered] Ultimately, there's good reason to think that light is both a particle and a wave. In fact, the same seems to be true of all subatomic particles, including electrons |
and quarks and even the recently discovered Higgs boson-like particle. The idea is called wave-particle duality, and is a fundamental tenet of the theory of quantum mechanics. Depending on which type of experiment is used, light, or any other type of particle, will behave like a particle or like a |
wave. So far, both aspects of light's nature haven't been observed at the same time. But still, scientists have wondered, does light switch from being a particle to being a wave depending on the circumstance? Or is light always both a particle and a wave simultaneously? Now, for the first |
time, researchers have devised a new type of measurement apparatus that can detect both particle and wave-like behavior at the same time. The device relies on a strange quantum effect called quantum nonlocality, a counter-intuitive notion that boils down to the idea that the same particle can exist in two |
locations at once. "The measurement apparatus detected strong nonlocality, which certified that the photon behaved simultaneously as a wave and a particle in our experiment," physicist Alberto Peruzzo of England's University of Bristol said in a statement. "This represents a strong refutation of models in which the pho... |
a wave or a particle." Peruzzo is lead author of a paper describing the experiment published in the Nov. 2 issue of the journal Science. The experiment further relies on another weird aspect of quantum mechanics — the idea of quantum entanglement. Two particles can become entangled so that actions |
performed on one particle affect the other. In this way, the researchers were able to allow the photons in the experiment to delay the choice of whether to be particles or waves. MIT physicist Seth Lloyd, who was not involved in the project, called the experiment "audacious" in a related |
essay in Science, and said that while it allowed the photons to delay the choice of being particles or waves for only a few nanoseconds, "if one has access to quantum memory in which to store the entanglement, the decision could be put off until tomorrow (or for as long |
as the memory works reliably). So why decide now? Just let those quanta slide!" - Twisted Physics: 7 Mind-Blowing Findings - Quantum Weirdness Goes Big – Molecules Act Like Waves | Video - Wacky Physics: The Coolest Little Particles in Nature © 2012 LiveScience.com. All rights reserved. |
Take a $20 bill. Now strike a match and watch the money go up in smoke. Pretty crazy idea, right? Yet many of us do something similar every time we drive. We fill up our gas tanks, then burn through extra fuel - and money - that we could be saving. The good news is that it doesn't take much to start saving money |
at the gas pump. By tweaking your driving habits and adopting a few simple car maintenance tips, you can easily cut your fuel consumption and get more mileage out of your vehicle. Getting 30 MPG instead of 20 MPG saves the average driver about $990 per year in fuel costs! There are other benefits, too. Reducing the amo... |
quality, since motor vehicles account for about half of all greenhouse gas emissions in North Carolina and up to 70 percent in urban areas. That means everyone - you, your grandma, the family next door – can breathe easier. No matter what you drive, you can reduce carbon dioxide and save money - right now. This page wi... |
green and saving green. Download and print these free posters to spread the word about Drive Green, Save Green. Every five miles per hour you go over 60 can cost you an extra 20 cents per gallon. Notes that drivers can save $40 a year and help the environment by clearing out their trunks. Learn how small changes in you... |
a little slower, using cruise control or cutting off the AC can add up to big savings. Tips for simple, regular maintenance that can help you save on gas and avoid more costly repairs. Find public transit in your area, locate a carpool buddy, and get information on biking and walking in North Carolina. Keeping tires pr... |
a year? For every 5 mph you go over 60 mph, you’re paying 20 cents more per gallon for gas? Your air conditioner can consume up to one gallon of gas per tank to cool the vehicle? Using cruise control on 10,000 of the miles driven in a year could save you nearly $200? You can lose 30 gallons of gasoline annually by not |
tightening your fuel cap? On a 10-minute trip, rushing to get to your destination – i.e. flooring it at every green light and slamming on your brakes – will get you there only 24 seconds sooner, but reduce your fuel efficiency from 25 mpg to 17 mpg? |
Fleas, Mites, and Chiggers Fleas, mites, and chiggers often bite humans, but are not poisonous. It is sometimes difficult to assess which type of insect caused the bite, or if the rash is caused by poison ivy or other skin conditions. What are the symptoms of a flea, mites, or chigger bite? The following are the most c... |
a flea, mite, or chigger bite. However, each individual may experience symptoms differently. Symptoms may include: Small, raised skin lesions Pain or itching Dermatitis (inflammation of the skin) Allergic-type reactions in hypersensitive persons with swelling or blistering The symptoms of a flea, mite, or chigger bite ... |
Treatment for bites caused by fleas, mites, and chiggers: Specific treatment for these insect bites will be determined by your health care provider. Some general guidelines for treatment may include the following: Clean the area well with soap and water. Use an antihistamine, if needed, for itching. Take acetaminophen,... |
provider? Call your doctor if any, or all, of the following symptoms are present: Persistent pain or itching Signs of infection at the site such as increased redness, warmth, swelling, or drainage Call 911 or your local emergency medical service (EMS) if the individual has signs of a severe allergic reaction such as tr... |
A Brief Introduction To OpenFlow, November 14, 2011 OpenFlow is a specification now managed by the Open Networking Foundation, which defines the functions and protocols used to centrally manage switches via a centralized controller. While OpenFlow has a centralized controller, that doesn't mean that each new flow has t... |
be processed according to that rule's actions. Rules can be pre-populated, reducing the number of lookups that occur. Intelligent policy development should mean a reduced number of controller lookups. In addition, rules have a time to live associated, so if the switch is disconnected from the controller for some reason... |
Dementia and the Sniff Magnitude Test Sniff Test May Signal Disorders’ Early Stages By ELIZABETH SVOBODA Published: August 14, 2007 The Sniff Magnitude Test, developed with the aid of a $1.3 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, consists |
of a nasal tube called a cannula attached to a plastic container about the size and shape of a coffee thermos. Chemical vapors inside the canister are released through the tube, exposing subjects to a series of smells, some more |
objectionable than others. “People describe some of the smells as skunky or sewerlike,” said Jason Bailie, a University of Cincinnati graduate student working on the test. “There’s also one that smells like banana.” As patients take whiffs of each new |
fragrance, sensors in the thermos unit measure the negative pressure the inhalations produce. The size and intensity of these sniffs turn out to be important gauges of olfactory ability. After detecting a strong or disagreeable odor, people with a normal |
sense of smell take very small sniffs to avoid smelling it. Subjects with an impaired sense of smell, on the other hand, continue taking deep whiffs, because the scent does not register in their brains. The Cincinnati team’s efforts have |
piqued the interest of other researchers, including Dr. Doty and Alan Hirsch of the Smell and Taste Research and Treatment Foundation, who is using the Sniff test in his clinical practice. “They’ve chosen some very good odors that stimulate the |
olfactory system effectively,” Dr. Doty said. “This is a very novel approach — it just needs to be tested more broadly.” Still, Dr. Doty added, the Sniff Magnitude Test may not be the ideal way to assess every patient with |
cognitive deficits. “Very early in life, we make a connection between an odor and its source,” he said. “We give it a name. If the connection between the name of an odor and the odor itself is what’s breaking down |
in an Alzheimer’s patient, this test might not be as helpful,” because it does not tell evaluators how a patient identifies and categorizes smells. The Sniff Magnitude Test is likely to raise red flags only if an impending cognitive disorder |
INDIA INFO: India - More Indian Musical Instruments by V.A.Ponmelil (Feedback) More Indian Musical Instruments Chitra Veena / Gotu Vadhyam The Chitraveena which is also referred to as the gotuvadhyam is one of the most exquisite instruments. It is a 21 stringed fretless lute similar to Vichitraveena. It contains a flat... |
hand plectrums pluck the strings, the left hand slides a piece of wood over the strings. It is one of the oldest instruments of the world and the forerunner of the fretted Saraswati Veena. The word Jaltarang means "waves in water". The jaltarang is an interesting ancient musical instrument consisting of a series of tun... |
bowls are of different sizes and are tuned precisely to the pitches of various ragas by adding appropriate amounts of water. The instrument is played by striking the inside edge of the bowls with two small wooden sticks, one held in each hand. Jal tarang is not very common and is normally found in the accompaniment of ... |
instrument which is held in the left hand, the prongs against the upper and lower front teeth. The tongue, which protrudes from the mouth, is made of spring steel. This is plucked with the Index finger of the right hand (backwards, not forwards) while the tone and timbre are adjusted by changing the shape of the mouth ... |
of the sound can be achieved with the breath. Like the mridangam, the morsing is tuned to the Shruti and fine tuning is achieved by placing small amounts of bee's wax on the end of the tongue. The Shank is one of the ancient instruments of India. It is also referred to as the sushirvadya which is associated with religi... |
is considered very sacred. It is being regarded as one of the attributes of Lord Vishnu. Before using, the Shankh is drilled in such a way as to produce a hole at the base taking care that the natural hole is not disturbed. In Athar¬Veda, one finds reference to Shankh, though it existed long, before. In Bhagvad Gita, d... |
had played an important role. It also has different names like Panch Janya Shankh, Devadatt Shankh, Mahashan Ponder Shankh and more. Even in Valmiki's Ramayna, the mention of a Shankh can be traced. In the temples, Shankh is played in the mornings and evenings during the prayers. In homes, it is played before the start... |
wind instrument or a kind of trumpet which is usually played along with the Panchavadyam or the Pandi Melam or the Panchari melam. This musical instrument is like a long horn and is usually seen in Kerala state of South India. Travel Information on top destinations of India Hill Stations of India |
On December 21, 2012, our calendar will align with the Maya date 22.214.171.124.0, completing a great Maya cycle of time. There's been a lot of hoopla that we are about to face a doomsday -- better known as the Maya apocalypse. There are television specials and panic buying of disaster supplies in Russia, a reminder of... |
in 1999. While the Maya date will coincide with the solstice, the shortest day of the year, will it also coincide with the end of the world? I'm no seer, but I am confident that December 22 will see the dawn. The ancient Maya of Mexico, Guatemala, Belize and Honduras were close keepers of time. They charted every day, ... |
400-year periods. Using a base-20 counting system (ours is base 10) and zero, they easily calculated thousands of dates, some noting the existence of millions of years. During the height of their civilization in the 8th century, the Maya recorded dates and deeds at dozens of city-states, from births and battles to the ... |
painted pots and stone sculptures. Stucco inscriptions adorned monumental pyramids that crested over the rainforest canopy. But to continue building ever grander structures, the Maya needed the natural resources. Most of all, they needed timber to burn limestone in order to make cement. By the late 8th century, the rai... |
led to chronic warfare. And so around 800 AD, one of the most extraordinary civilizations came to a crushing halt. Small groups of desperate dwellers in some cities held out behind hastily thrown-up palisades. Elsewhere, foes burned enemy cities to the ground and smashed monuments, leaving them scattered across the sur... |
white plazas. Compact ball courts that had seen raucous competition of a team sport played like soccer went silent. Wildlife scavenged lavish furnishings for their nests and dens. The reasons were many, and the outcome was shocking. The Maya civilization collapsed in most of its southern lowlands, leaving only abandone... |
it coming? Just a few years before the rot set in, Maya painters at the site of Bonampak, a small city in Chiapas, Mexico, covered the walls of a small three-room palace with extraordinary murals. They painted more individuals -- men, mainly, but women and children, too -- than had been rendered before, numbering more ... |
been used before, more than would ever be used again in ancient Mexico, some 47 vibrant blues, reds and yellows. The paintings reveal the social layers of courtiers and lords, musicians and dwarves, victims and their blade-wielding sacrificers. Musicians, singers and performers lined up to perform on plazas and pyramid... |
rapidly crumbling world around the Bonampak painters. No one could change -- the paintings seem to tell us. The Maya ignored the crisis in front of them, instead dancing with great panaches of precious quetzal feathers on pyramids, as if the present would forever hold. Now in the 21st century, perhaps we have also reac... |
-- it's real. Weeks after Superstorm Sandy, scientists are now predicting the near-term and long-term effects of global warming as more dire that previously thought. Some, perhaps like our Maya predecessors, would rather not see the writing on the walls of our flooded cities. The crises pile up in front of us, one afte... |
doing something about the problems in front of us seems hard. Give us more feathers. Build more walls. Stockpile canned goods and buy a generator. As for December 21, rest easy. This day will pass as if it were nothing more than the Maya Y2K, the nonevent of the decade. We'll wake up on December 22, and the world will ... |
Young goats learn new and distinctive bleating "accents" once they begin to socialise with other kids. The discovery is a surprise because the sounds most mammals make were thought to be too primitive to allow subtle variations to emerge or |
be learned. The only known exceptions are humans, bats and cetaceans – although many birds, including songbirds, parrots and hummingbirds have legendary song-learning or mimicry abilities. Now, goats have joined the club. "It's the first ungulate to show evidence of |
this," says Alan McElligott of Queen Mary, University of London. McElligott and his colleague, Elodie Briefer, made the discovery using 23 newborn kids. To reduce the effect of genetics, all were born to the same father, but from several mothers, |
so the kids were a mixture of full siblings plus their half-brothers and sisters. The researchers allowed the kids to stay close to their mothers, and recorded their bleats at the age of 1 week. Then, the 23 kids were |
split randomly into four separate "gangs" ranging from five to seven animals. When all the kids reached 5 weeks, their bleats were recorded again. "We had about 10 to 15 calls per kid to analyse," says McElligott. Some of the |
calls are clearly different to the human ear, but the full analysis picked out more subtle variations, based on 23 acoustic parameters. What emerged was that each kid gang had developed its own distinctive patois. "It probably helps with group |
cohesion," says McElligott. "People presumed this didn't exist in most mammals, but hopefully now, they'll check it out in others," says McElligott. "It wouldn't surprise me if it's found in other ungulates and mammals." Erich Jarvis of Duke University Medical |
Center in Durham, North Carolina, says the results fit with an idea he has developed with colleague Gustavo Arriaga, arguing that vocal learning is a feature of many species. "I would call this an example of limited vocal learning," says |
Jarvis. "It involves small modifications to innately specified learning, as opposed to complex vocal learning which would involve imitation of entirely novel sounds." Journal reference: Animal Behaviour, DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2012.01.020 If you would like to reuse any content from New Scientist, |
either in print or online, please contact the syndication department first for permission. New Scientist does not own rights to photos, but there are a variety of licensing options available for use of articles and graphics we own the copyright |
Evolution can fall well short of perfection. Claire Ainsworth and Michael Le Page assess where life has gone spectacularly wrong THE ascent of Mount Everest's 8848 metres without bottled oxygen in 1978 suggests that human lungs are pretty impressive organs. But that achievement pales in comparison with the feat of |
the griffon vulture that set the record for the highest recorded bird flight in 1975 when it was sucked into the engine of a plane flying at 11,264 metres. Birds can fly so high partly because of the way their lungs work. Air flows through bird lungs in one direction |
only, pumped through by interlinked air sacs on either side. This gives them numerous advantages over lungs like our own. In mammals' two-way lungs, not as much fresh air reaches the deepest parts of the lungs, and incoming air is diluted by the oxygen-poor air that remains after ... To |
Walter Bagehot (February 3, 1826 – March 24, 1877) was a British journalist, political analyst and economist, famous for his analysis of British Parliament and money market. Under his leadership The Economist became one of world’s leading business and political journals. Bagehot recognized that economics in not just a ... |
of people's desires, motivations, and personality. Thus, he always emphasized social issues in his writings, and endeavored to make issues of government transparent to the public. Bagehot had an original and insightful mind, recognizing that the character of leaders was often more important than their political affilia... |
functioning of human society and its improvement. Walter Bagehot was born in on February 3, 1826, in Langport, Somerset, England, the son of a local banker. He attended the University College London, where he earned a Master's degree in mathematics in 1848. He studied law and was called to the Bar, but decided not to p... |
in Stuckey & Co. in the west of England. While still working as a banker, Bagehot started to write, first for some periodicals, and then for The National Review. He soon became the editor of the paper. In 1857, he met James Wilson, founder and editor of The Economist, a political and financial weekly newsmagazine. Bage... |
succeeded his father-in-law, James Wilson, as editor of The Economist. After taking over he expanded the publication's reporting on the United States and on politics, and is considered to have increased its influence among policymakers. Bagehot became influential in both politics and economics, among whose friends were... |
and directors of the Bank of England. Bagehot made several attempts to be elected as a Member of Parliament, but without success. He remained at the head of The Economist for the rest of his life. He died suddenly on March 24, 1877 in his home in Langport, Somerset, England, at the age of 51. Bagehot was a person with ... |
interests. He wrote on the topics of economics, politics, law, literature, and so forth. He remains most famous however for his three books: The English Constitution (1867), Physics and Politics (1872), and Lombard Street (1873). In addition to these volumes, he commanded substantial influence through his editorship of... |
of the United Kingdom, specifically the functioning of the British Parliament and the British monarchy, and the contrasts between British and American government. Bagehot revealed how the Parliament operated as it were "behind a curtain," hidden from public knowledge. He divided the constitution into two components: - ... |
the constitution, the way things actually work and get done. Instead of describing the constitution from the point of the law, as a lawyer would, Bagehot focused on the practical implications of the constitution, as experienced by the common man. The book soon became widely popular, ensuring Bagehot worldwide fame. He ... |
the English parliament real debates took place, after which changes could take place, in the American Congress debates had no power, since the President made the final decision. In Bagehot's view: a parliamentary system educates the public, while a presidential system corrupts it. (The English Constitution 1867) He als... |
that choose the president need not care as to the ultimate fitness of the man they choose. They are solely concerned with his attractiveness as a candidate. (The English Constitution, 1867) Physics and Politics Bagehot wrote Physics and Politics in 1872, in which he tried to apply the principles of evolution to human s... |
of the Principles of "Natural Selection" and "Inheritance" to Political Society. The book represented a pioneering effort to make a relationship between the natural and the social sciences. Bagehot explained the functioning of the market, and how it affects the behavior of the people. For example, he believed that peop... |
from it when it comes to a negative phase. In this book Bagehot also reflected on the psychology of politics, especially on the personality of a leader. He stressed two things as essential for leadership: the personality of a leader and his motivation. Bagehot believed that motivation played one of the key roles in goo... |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.