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credit report from annualcreditreport.com or (877) 322-8228, the ONLY authorized source under Federal Law. Phone: Call (877) 322-8228 to request credit reports by phone. There is a simple verification process |
over the phone. Your reports will be mailed to you. Mail: You can obtain your credit report by mailing a request to: Annual Credit Report Request Service P.O. Box 105281 |
Atlanta, GA 30348-5281 Report any erroneous entries immediately. If you believe you have been a victim of identity theft, the Federal Trade Commission provides resources and advice for rectifying the |
damage. Various victims' stories indicate that it may take a long time and a lot of work, however, to clear your name, re-establish your credit, and divest yourself of any |
responsibility to pay for an identity thief's crimes. It's worth some time and energy to deter identity theft in the first place. Summary of recommendations: Discourage identity theft - Carry |
as little personal information in your wallet as possible. - Shred documents containing personal information before you dispose of them. - Use secure mailboxes for sending and receiving personal information. |
- Bank, pay bills, and view account information online rather than on paper. - Don't print your Social Security number or driver's license number on your checks. - Use firewalls |
and virus protection programs. - Password-protect sensitive files. - Create unusual account passwords. - Use a different password for each account. - Change your passwords every 30 to 60 days. |
- Secure your network(s). - If you use a public, non-secure network, don't transmit any personal information. - If you shop online (on a secure network), use only sites that |
provide transaction security protection. An additional safeguard for online purchases is to open an additional checking account just for your online purchases. - Don't respond to any telephone or e-mail |
queries for personal information, even if they seem to be from your own financial institutions. Detect identity theft - Check your bank account statements, credit card statements, and other bills |
as soon as you receive them. - Be sure that you receive bills on time. - Inspect your credit report every four months. Recover from identity theft Visit the Federal |
Trade Commission's Web site for guidance. - Update and strengthen the security of your online passwords. - Change the password every 30 to 60 days - Complex, at least 8 |
characters that include a combination of mixed case letters, numbers and special characters. - Prohibit the use of "shared" usernames and passwords for online banking systems. - Use a different |
password for each website that is accessed. - Never share username and password information for Online Services with third-party providers. - Use a secure browser and trusted computer for sensitive |
transactions. - Be selective about where you surf. - Never access bank, brokerage or other financial services information at Internet cafes, public libraries, etc. Unauthorized software may have been installed |
to trap account number and sign on information leaving the customer vulnerable to possible fraud. - Limit Internet use on computers used for Online Banking. This reduces the risk that |
malicious programs will infect those computers. - Log off when you're done using Web sites that require a user ID and password. - Never leave a computer unattended while using |
any online banking or investing service. - Disconnect and shut down when you're not using your computer. - Log off, disconnect, and shut down. - Utilize Online Banking to review |
account daily. - Use Bill Pay within Online Banking. - Monitor account balances and activity daily. Report any suspicious activity immediately by calling customer service or your nearest banking office. |
- Check for the VeriSign certificate visuals. - Consider clearing the browser cache before starting an Online Banking session in order to eliminate copies of web pages that have been |
stored on the hard drive. How the cache is cleared will depend on the browser and version. This function is generally found in the browser's preferences menu. - Verify that |
you, sometimes with little or no notice, that your account will be shut down unless you confirm your billing information, do not reply to the e-mail, or click on any |
links in the e-mail; instead, you must contact the company referenced in the e-mail by telephone or by using a website address that you know to be genuine. - Be |
suspicious of e-mails purporting to be from a financial institution, government department or other agency requesting account information, account verification or banking access credentials such as usernames, passwords, PIN codes |
and similar information. Opening file attachments or clicking on web links in suspicious emails could expose your system to malicious code that could hijack your computer. - Reconcile daily/monthly (including |
separation of duties between who issues payment versus who reconciles) - Separate controls for your business Online Banking. Use one computer to create online payments; have a second user approve |
those payments from a different computer. - Initiate ACH and wire transfer payments under dual control, with a transaction originator and a separate transaction authorizer. - If possible, carry out |
all online banking activities from a stand-alone, hardened and completely locked down computer system from which e-mail and Web browsing are not possible. - Immediately escalate any suspicious transactions with |
the bank. There is a limited recovery window for these transactions and immediate escalation may prevent further loss by the customer. - Online Cash Management Customers - Review all e-mail |
from the bank. You will receive e-mail messages automatically when your challenge questions are answered correctly, as well as when ACH or wire transfers are processed. You must notify the |
A Critical Analysis of Fatwas Issued on Muslim Women in India This project covers an extensive assessment of various Fatwas against Muslim women which have been issued by the Darul Uloom Deoband which is the highest Islamic seminary in India, |
next to the world renowned Al-Azhar in Cairo. The main purpose is to highlight whether these Fatwas are in congruence with the Quran. The Quran gives absolute rights to women in a patriarchal society and has uplifted not only their |
social status but equipped them with several important rights, for example, right to education, right to work, right to choose a partner, right to get divorced, etc. In spite of this, Muslim women more often do not get these rights |
in practice and people attribute it to religion. However, it is vice-versa. The Quran gives absolute rights to women but a male dominated society deprives women of all the significant rights enshrined in the holy Quran. In India, there have |
been some controversial Fatwas like the one against Taslima Nasreen, the exiled Bangladeshi writer pronounced by the Majlis Bachao Tehreek, one which offered unlimited financial rewards to anybody who would kill her or the Fatwa issued by a Maulvi in |
Midnapore (West Bengal) on the dress code of Sania Mirza, tennis star of India, which aroused the highest controversy and raised people’s doubts about the relevance of Fatwas in modern times. Is it just an opinion? Then why is it |
privet (prĭvˈĭt) [key], any plant of the genus Ligustrum, Old World shrubs or small trees of the family Oleaceae (olive family), some of which are common as hedge plants. Privet |
hedges are popular for their dark green leaves and their ease of cultivation even in adverse city conditions. The various species are evergreen, nearly evergreen, or deciduous, some producing small |
white flowers in profusion. They are usually propagated by cuttings. The common privet ( L. vulgare ) has become naturalized in the E United States; the California privet ( L. |
Tabernacles, Feast of Tabernacles, Feast of, one of the oldest and most joyous of Jewish holidays, called in the Bible the Feast of Ingathering and today often called by its Hebrew name, Sukkoth [Heb., = booth]. The holiday begins on |
the 15th day of Tishri, the seventh month in the Jewish calendar, and lasts for eight days (seven days in Israel). The Feast of Tabernacles, which marked the closing of the harvest season for the Jews of ancient Palestine, is |
today celebrated by the taking of all meals in a lightly constructed booth roofed with thatch (a sukkah ) to recall the shelters of the Jews when they wandered in the wilderness. The palm branch (lulav or lulab) and citron |
(etrog or ethrog) used in conjunction with prayers of the Feast of Tabernacles possibly go back to the harvest festival associated with the holiday. The day after Sukkoth is Simhath Torah [Heb., = rejoicing of the law], which celebrates the |
annual completion of the reading of the Torah. Ex. 23.16; Lev. 23.33–44; Num. 29.12–40; Ezek. 45.25. See H. Schauss, Guide to Jewish Holy Days (1938, repr. 1970); P. Goodman, The Sukkot and Simhat Torah Anthology (1974). See more Encyclopedia articles |
chapter house, a building in which the chapter of the clergy meets. Its plan varies, the simplest being a rectangle. At Worcester, England, the Norman builders created a circular chapter house (c.1100), with vaulting springing from a central pillar. Subsequent examples, adopting this central support for their vaulted roofs but frequently having a polygonal plan, are among the most distinctive |
achievements of the English Gothic builders. Those at Salisbury, Wells, and Westminster Abbey (1250) are octagonal, while that at Lincoln is decagonal. At York, the octagonal room (c.1300) exhibits a departure in that it dispenses with the central column and is covered with a vaulted wooden roof. More on chapter house from Infoplease: See more Encyclopedia articles on: Architecture |
Last reviewed by Faculty of Harvard Medical School on January 24, 2013 By Harvey B. Simon, M.D. Harvard Medical School Sexual activity is an instinctive, automatic part of human behavior. But the biology behind that behavior is quite complex, particularly in men. For many men, sexuality is one of the things that change over time. It's usually a gradual, almost |
unnoticeable process that begins in middle age. How Age Affects Sexual Function Scientists don't understand all the factors that contribute to sexual function in young men, let alone what is responsible for the changes that occur with healthy aging. Still, it's clear that the hormones, nerves and blood vessels responsible for male sexuality all change over time. Although the sex |
act is a continuous process, it has six stages. Almost all are affected by aging. 1. Sexual Desire or Libido The normal sex drive is a prime example of the unity of mind and body: It requires both the right mind set and enough testosterone, the male hormone. Sexual desires surface in puberty, when testosterone levels rise. Although the intensity |
of the sex drive tends to wane with age, most men make enough testosterone to maintain libido throughout life. - For most older men sexual interest is still there, but it's generally a far cry from the preoccupation with sex that's so common in youth. Many older men think about sex but don't have the drive to put theory into |
practice. And even when the spirit is willing, the flesh may be weak. - On average, levels of testosterone fall by about 1% per year beyond age 40, but most older men still have enough testosterone to function sexually. To produce arousal, testosterone acts on the brain, and these nerve cells become less hormone-responsive with age. In contrast, men tend |
to produce more female hormones (estradiol and prolactin) as they age. Sexual activity begins with arousal. It's the result of a combination of erotic thoughts and sensory stimulation that may involve touch, sight, scent, taste or hearing. An area of the brain called the hypothalamus coordinates erotic images and sensations and transmits the impulses of desire through the spinal cord |
to the pelvis. The impulses link up with the nerves in the pelvis, which spring into action. Sensory nerves from the skin of the penis and other erogenous zones also connect directly to the pelvic nerves, bypassing the brain. All of this happens involuntarily. When properly stimulated, the pelvic nerves send chemical signals to the arteries of the penis. This |
causes them to widen and admit more blood. Blood rushes in and the penis swells. This causes an erection. For years, doctors have known that an erection is a hydraulic event (it requires pressure created by forcing liquid through a narrow "pipe") that depends on a six-fold increase in the amount of blood in the penis. But new research has |
revealed that an erection is also a chemical event. A tiny chemical called nitric oxide allows nerves to communicate with each other and with the arteries of the penis. It's been an exciting discovery and has led to the development of erectile dysfunction (ED) medications (Viagra, Levitra, and Cialis). - As for nerve function, penile responsiveness to sensory stimulation slows |
with age. In addition, penile blood flow may decrease as men grow older, even if they stay healthy. - Most men experience decreased sexual responsiveness with increasing age. Erections occur more slowly and they become more dependent on physical stimulation than on erotic thoughts. - Even when erections develop, most men in their 60s report that they are more difficult |
to sustain and not as hard or rigid. - Nighttime erections diminish with age. Between the ages of 45 and 54, men average 3.3 erections per night; between ages 65 and 75, it's 2.3 erections. The erections also tend to become briefer and less rigid with age. This stage usually lasts from 30 seconds to two minutes. Heart rate and |
blood pressure increase and more blood is pumped to the body's tissues. Blood flow increases not just to the penis; most men also experience facial flushing and the testicles swell by about 50%. During the plateau phase, the prostate and seminal vessels begin to discharge fluid to prepare for ejaculation. There are no reported changes in the plateau phase with |
aging. Back to top During this fourth stage, the muscles in the epididymis, vas deferens, seminal vesicles and prostate contract automatically. This propels semen forward. At the same time, nerve impulses tighten muscles in the neck of the bladder so that semen is forced out through the urethra instead of flowing back into the bladder. The pleasurable sensation of orgasm |
usually occurs with ejaculation. In nearly all men, the heart rate reaches its peak during ejaculation. - Ejaculation also changes with age. The muscular contractions of orgasm are less intense, ejaculation is slower and less urgent, and semen volume declines. - Sperm counts also decline. Healthy men can father children well into their senior years, but their fertility rate can't |
match younger men's. All good things come to an end. Detumescence is when the penis returns to its flaccid state. It usually follows ejaculation, but it can occur prematurely if the sex act is interrupted by an intrusive thought or event. In either case, detumescence occurs when the penile arteries narrow and the veins widen, draining blood away. There are |
no reported changes in this phase due to aging. 6. Refractory Period The final stage in the sex act is the quietest. It lasts from 30 minutes (in younger men) to 3 hours (in older men). The penis can't respond to sexual stimulation during this phase. At any age, however, worry, stress or depression can interfere with sexual interest, activity |
and satisfaction even if a man's physical apparatus remains intact. So, too, can marital strife, poor communication, poor sexual technique and boredom; many of these problems become more common with age. Back to top Erectile Dysfunction -- Not Part of the Normal Aging Process In men who stay well, all of these changes add up to a gradual, partial decline |
in sexual activity. But in some men, the shift is more abrupt and complete. Erectile Dysfunction (ED) is closely linked to age. Only 5% of men under age 40 experience ED, but the prevalence rises steadily with age. About 44% of 60- to 69-year old men have ED. The problem may affect up to 70% of older American men. Because |
ED is so common in older men, many assume that it's part of the normal aging process. It's not. Instead, ED reflects the impact of chronic diseases that become increasingly common with age. The most important are atherosclerosis and hypertension, which affect blood vessels, and diabetes, which strikes both blood vessels and nerves. Many drugs that older men take can |
interfere with sexual function, including some that treat high blood pressure, heart disease, anxiety and depression. Back to top Keeping It Up Sexuality is an important aspect of life, but its role changes over time. Most men remain interested in sex as they age. But many find that sexual desire and sexual function change. Nevertheless, healthy men can remain sexually |
active and satisfied throughout life. The best way to preserve sexuality is to stay healthy and reduce your risk of chronic diseases. That takes a good diet, regular exercise and good health habits. Back to top Harvey B. Simon, M.D. is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and a member of the Health Sciences Technology Faculty at |
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is the founding editor of the Harvard Men's Health Watch newsletter and author of six consumer health books, including The Harvard Medical School Guide to Men's Health (Simon and Schuster, 2002) and The No Sweat Exercise Plan, Lose Weight, Get Healthy and Live Longer (McGraw-Hill, 2006). Dr. Simon practices at the Massachusetts General Hospital; he |
This project is focused on a little-known collection of objects housed at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. Called the MacFarlane Collection after the Hudson’s Bay trader who assembled the objects, the collection includes nearly 5000 natural history specimens, such as birds’ eggs and animal skeletons, and an additional 300 cultural objects collected from Anderson River Inuvialuit in the 1860s. |
Few people have ever seen the collection in its entirety, as it has been in the Smithsonian’s care for nearly 150 years. In 2009, our project team sought to change this situation by raising funds to take a small group of Inuvialuit Elders, traditional experts, and educators to Washington for a week-long workshop with the collection. This modest start brought |
much interest from the Inuvialuit and museum communities, and from the local and national media. The trip launched a much broader program of outreach with Inuvialuit youth, Elders, and community members, and the generation of new knowledge about the MacFarlane collection and its ongoing life in Inuvialuit communities, which we describe in this website. During our visit at the National |
Museum of Natural History in 2009, elder Albert Elias described the MacFarlane Collection as a “living collection”. As curator Stephen Loring pulled intricate items of clothing, tools, hunting, and artwork from storage, members of the project team recalled how many of these objects had once been used in practice. They also discussed how new access to artifacts in the collection |
will inspire the re-creation of cultural objects and other cultural activities and education programs. For our project team, the MacFarlane Collection represents “Inuvialuit Pitqusiit Inuuniarutait: Inuvialuit Living History”. Inuvialuit Pitqusiit Inuuniarutait (Inuvialuit Living History) is a work in progress. It has been designed to create access for Inuvialuit people and interested public wherever they live to the Smithsonian’s MacFarlane Collection. |
We have designed the website to provide a view into the emerging and dynamic relationship between Inuvialuit peoples and the MacFarlane Collection, and to promote the collection as a place for learning and teaching. The website features teachers’ resources and interactive lesson plans tailored to meet the requirements for the Northwest Territories curriculum, so that Inuvialuit youth can reference their |
own culture and history online. We use artifact descriptions from the Smithsonian, and those that were developed in the course of this project, as well as video and photographs of our workshop with Inuvialuit elders, youth, cultural workers at the Smithsonian, and our team’s consultations in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region, to show how the MacFarlane collection is becoming a “living |
collection” once again through its reconnection to Inuvialuit people. We use interactive maps to connect the artifact records and related community media to places in the Anderson River area, and show how knowledge of the collection is being applied in every day life. The website provides information about the history of the collection, including the biography of Roderick MacFarlane and |
the short life of Fort Anderson; about the Smithsonian Institution, and how it came to be in possession of these invaluable artifacts; and about repatriation, ownership, and intellectual property rights to the collection. We also want the website to reflect the collaborative spirit in which the website is being built, by including video and photographs of our production process. In |
addition to teaching about the collection and this project, it is our goal to create a website that can become an archive of documentation of community activities and other resources related to ongoing educational and cultural programs related to the MacFarlane Collection. |
Born 1749 - Died March 6 1838 Patented April 11, 1803 Independent inventor John Stevens was a pioneer in the development of steam-powered engines used in boats and railroad cars in the early nineteenth century. Over the next ten years, Stevens continued to pursue steam technology. By 1803, he had patented his first successful steamboat design, Little Juliana, which used screw propellers and a |
multitubular boiler. Subsequent designs led to Phoenix, a larger boat that could easily navigate smaller tributaries. Beginning in 1810, Stevens pursued the use of steam engines for railroads. To prove the feasibility of steam power, Stevens designed and constructed a steam locomotive, which operated on a circular track on his New Jersey estate. Even though his locomotive did not enter commercial service, it is |
regarded as the first locomotive built in America. Born in New York City, Stevens was educated at King’s College, and earned his degree in 1768. After serving in the American Revolutionary War, he took notice of John Fitch’s successful steamboat and began working on his own design. By 1791, Stevens had patented a steam engine with an improved vertical boiler. Stevens’ devotion to science |
Food & Environment Food & Environment Australia is rich in both ecology and natural resources. The Institute of Public Affairs Food and Environment Unit seeks to determine our national and international role in feeding the world and protecting the environment. The IPA examines environmental and agricultural policies across the countries, with particular emphasis on climate change policy, water, agricultural biotechnology, resource management, and market-based |
solutions to environmental challenges. Sub-topics of Food & Environment Jim Hoggett and Aled Hoggett show why decades of poor policy based on a failed ideology are directly responsible for the horrific Australian bushfires in 2003. Close scrutiny of the ABS's Measuring Australia's Progress reveals a superficial presentation of environmental data and conclusions based more on opinion that rigorous analysis. We have all heard about |
the declining health of the Murray River, including poor water quality, dying red gums and threats to the continued survival of the Murray cod---this is the popular view in urban Australia. Along the river, communities... Whipping up public fears that GM canola would be the 'first' GM food in Australia conveniently overlooks the fact that we've been eating oil from GM cotton for years. |
We are repeatedly told that Australia's waterways are seriously degraded or under threat. Yet no-one seems seriously willing to answer the obvious question- where's the data to support the alarming claims? If water rights are taken away without compensation, major incentives that power the economy’s well-being are undermined. 'Deception' is the only fitting word for the treatment of some of the evidence used in |
the most recent campaign about the Barriet Reef. WWF Says 'Jump!', Governments Ask 'How High?' A case study suggests that governments need to better scrutinize allegations of environmental harm and those who make them by Jennifer Marohasy and Gary Johns '[We] base our work on sound... Despite what one tends to read or hear, the gains in environmental quality around the world in the |
ISO/IEC 29160:2012 specifies the design and use of the RFID Emblem: an easily identified visual guide that indicates the presence of radio frequency identification (RFID). It does not address location of the RFID Emblem on a label. Specific placement requirements are left to application standards developers. It also specifies an RFID Index, which can be included in the RFID Emblem and which addresses the |
complication added by the wide range of RFID tags (frequency, protocol and data structure). The RFID Index is a two-character code that provides specific information about compliant tags and interrogators. Successful reading of RFID tags requires knowledge of the frequency, protocol and data structure information provided by the RFID Index. |
becoming increasingly fragmented, its extent of occurrence and the area and quality of suitable habitat are decreasing, and thus its small population is suspected to be declining rapidly. |Range Description:||Mesitornis |
unicolor has a patchy distribution in the eastern rainforest of Madagascar (Morris and Hawkins 1998), known for certain from as far north as Marojejy and the Masoala peninsula and extending |
almost as far south as Taolañaro (Fort Dauphin). It is thinly distributed and never common, although its status is difficult to ascertain as it is secretive and rarely seen.| |Range |
range size. This is consistent with recorded population density estimates for congeners or close relatives with a similar body size, and the fact that only a proportion of the estimated |
Extent of Occurrence is likely to be occupied. This estimate is equivalent to 3,750-14,999 individuals, rounded here to 3,500-15,000 individuals.| |Habitat and Ecology:||This is a ground-dwelling species of undisturbed primary, |
evergreen, humid forest (Langrand 1990; Morris and Hawkins 1998). It occurs from sea-level to 1,200 m but is most frequently encountered below 800 m. It seems to prefer steep slopes |
and dark areas with much leaf-litter and little herbaceous growth (Langrand 1990; Morris and Hawkins 1998). It forages on the forest floor for seeds and small insects, often in family |
groups of two to three (Langrand 1990), also gleaning from leaves and stems at ground-level (Evans et al. 1992). The nest is built 1-1.5 m from the ground and clutch-size |
is one.| |Major Threat(s):||Rainforest is under pressure from slash-and-burn cultivation by subsistence farmers, with commercial timber exploitation and hunting in some areas (Morris and Hawkins 1998; ZICOMA 1999). Near villages, |
dogs and rats Rattus may predate the species as it is a reluctant flier (Langrand 1990).| Conservation Actions Underway The species is known from 14 Important Bird Areas in eastern |
Madagascar, including seven National Parks, one Strict Reserve, four Special Reserves and one Classified Forest (ZICOMA 1999). Conservation Actions Proposed Monitor rainforest clearance and degradation. Assess threat posed by predatory |
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