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Throughout the United States, more than a half-million children are being raised in foster care. Whether it is because of abuse, neglect or other family problems, children are placed by the Department of Children and Family Services into the temporary custody of people other than their parents. Although foster care was created to support children of abuse until they can be reunited with their families or achieve alternative permanent placement, it often fails the children it seeks to protect. Adding to the trauma of being separated from their parents is the separation of thousands of children from their siblings.
Unlike traditional foster care programs, Neighbor to Neighbor, a program of Jane Addams Hull House Association in Chicago, has designed a model that keeps siblings together, while working intensively with birth families and foster families to successfully reunite or permanently place children.
Vanessa Lankford, Director of Foster Care at Neighbor to Neighbor, says that she has her mother to thank for her desire to take action. There wasn’t a time during her childhood that her mother, Willie Anderson, wasn’t reaching out to help strangers in need, even if it meant moving them temporarily into her home. At Neighbor to Neighbor, Lankford has managed to help more than 500 children.
“When I joined Neighbor to Neighbor I was relieved to see that someone had [developed] a creative and innovative way of fostering,” she says.
That someone was Gordon Johnson, the former head of the Department of Children and Family Services in Illinois, who had witnessed a need for siblings to stay together while also maintaining a connection to their birth parents. In 1994, he founded Neighbor to Neighbor with three main principles in mind:
Siblings were to be kept together, and placed within a five mile radius of their initial home. Foster parents were to work with the birth parents to provide them mentoring and modeling of childcare. The goal would be to reunite the children with their family, or strive toward adoption or guardianship. | <urn:uuid:c7ade460-7ef5-41c7-ac4d-0d700dc7778d> | CC-MAIN-2015-40 | http://www.savvymiss.com/body-spirit/womens-health-womens-body/womens-health-womens-body/article/neighbor-to-neighbor-in-chicago-illinois-451.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-40/segments/1443737940789.96/warc/CC-MAIN-20151001221900-00177-ip-10-137-6-227.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.982902 | 396 | 2.609375 | 3 |
While cooling systems are essential for regulating greenhouse temperatures in the summer, greenhouse heating systems are also oftentimes needed in the winter. Maintaining a comfortable temperature year-round is crucial for the health of your plants. One effective method of heating your greenhouse is through radiant heating, also known as hydronic heating. Radiant heating uses boiling water controlled by valves to assist hot water to travel through metal pipes and emit heat into the greenhouse.
What are the benefits of radiant heating?
Radiant heating can increase crop production and result in healthier plants. It will also help you save an estimated 20 to 30 percent in energy costs through increased efficiencies. From one heat source, hot water can be consistently controlled to steer various flow rates and temperature. One of the main advantages is the water can be reused so you don’t have to worry about waste.
Is radiant heating cost-effective?
With advancements in technology, radiant heating has become more affordable. At the end of the day it will all come down to your supplier, the material you select and the amount of heat you need. The goal of radiant and hydronic heating is to distribute heat evenly throughout your greenhouse, ensuring that every plant is exposed to the same temperature and climate. Having an efficient heating solution will help with overall costs and help prevent losses in crop production.
What heating system factors should you consider?
The idea is to get the most out of the tools to ensure the temperature and climate is catering to your growing environment’s needs. Hot water is an efficient method to transport heat into your greenhouse over a greater distance using insulated pipes.
The bare pipes can be made up of materials like steel, black iron, copper and aluminum.
Locate your pipes around the perimeter of your greenhouse structure and under benches, in the rows of cut flowers or vegetable crops, and at gutter height as well. This will allow for uniform heat distribution to create an ideal temperature year-round.
Year-round production + controlled temperature = profit!
Having the ability to control the environment means you can grow season-to-season crops, leading to a higher demand and increased revenue.
Radiant heating methods
One of the most popular applications is placing pipes under concrete slabs on benches for greenhouse radiant floor heating. This method will help to distribute even heat right at the root level and has been a proven success. Another option is using tubing in the soil of raised beds or under grow tables.
Are you ready to explore greenhouse heating systems so you can make year-round profit? Contact Autogrow today. | <urn:uuid:85f47708-4ad9-4e31-b9d7-719534e1e8c7> | CC-MAIN-2019-26 | https://blog.autogrow.com/greenhouse-radiant-heating-systems | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-26/segments/1560627998509.15/warc/CC-MAIN-20190617143050-20190617164657-00029.warc.gz | en | 0.940041 | 521 | 2.828125 | 3 |
Our world is being totally trashed, not out of necessity, out of convenience. Something has changed in recent decades, and companies deliberately no longer produce goods that will last as long as possible, instead capitalizing on the consumer’s willingness to toss something in the trash and replace it with something new, rather than go through the effort of having it fixed.
It’s called planned obsolescence, a strategy of some product manufacturers. The basic idea is to engineer a product to have a predictably short lifetime so that when it malfunctions or breaks, the company can profit by selling another product. The additional sales and profits make it possible to sell more products at a lower cost, thereby increasing the attractiveness in a replacement. This is especially true for technology products, and some companies are finally beginning to design products that can evolve as technology does.
This business model has led to the collapse of the repair industry which used to be a thriving source of skilled labor for many people while saving resources and reducing mountains of waste.
Sweden is now poised to become the first country in the world to directly address this issue, and has recently proposed tax incentives for repairing and re-using many consumer goods.
The Swedish government is introducing tax breaks on repairs to everything from bicycles to washing machines so it will no longer make sense to throw out old or broken items and buy new ones.
Sweden’s ruling Social Democrat and Green party coalition is set to submit proposals to parliament on Tuesday to slash the VAT rate on repairs to bicycles, clothes and shoes from 25% to 12%.
It will also submit a proposal that would allow people to claim back from income tax half of the labour cost on repairs to appliances such as fridges, ovens, dishwashers and washing machines.
The proposals will be presented in parliament as part of the government’s budget proposals and if voted through in December will become law from 1 January 2017. [Source]
The proposals will make it more affordable for people to repair items, thus positively impacting the repair industry and creating jobs. The end result would be a win for the economy and the environment.
“We believe that this could substantially lower the cost and so make it more rational economic behaviour to repair your goods.
I believe there is a shift in view in Sweden at the moment. There is an increased knowledge that we need to make our things last longer in order to reduce materials’ consumption.” ~Per Bolund, Sweden’s minister for financial markets and consumer affairs and one of six Green party cabinet members
These measures signal the recognition of a serious global problem, meanwhile, the world’s oceans and landfills are filling up with trashed goods, and the world’s resources are being extracted to the phenomenal detriment of the environment. While this is positive news, you can’t help but wonder if government is the right organization to address personal behavior.
Read more articles by Vic Bishop.
About the Author
Vic Bishop is a staff writer for WakingTimes.com and OffgridOutpost.com Survival Tips blog. He is an observer of people, animals, nature, and he loves to ponder the connection and relationship between them all. A believer in always striving to becoming self-sufficient and free from the matrix, please track him down on Facebook.
This article (Sweden to Incentivize Product Repairs to Reduce Consumer Waste) was originally created and published by Waking Times and is published here under a Creative Commons license with attribution to Vic Bishop and WakingTimes.com. It may be re-posted freely with proper attribution, author bio, and this copyright statement. Please contact WakingTimes@gmail.com for more info.
~~ Help Waking Times to raise the vibration by sharing this article with friends and family… | <urn:uuid:219c6b93-d14f-4f75-85c9-5dcd1ce4d2db> | CC-MAIN-2019-35 | https://www.wakingtimes.com/2016/09/30/sweden-incentivize-product-repairs-reduce-consumer-waste/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-35/segments/1566027313501.0/warc/CC-MAIN-20190817222907-20190818004907-00340.warc.gz | en | 0.952893 | 782 | 2.59375 | 3 |
Open as PDF
Starting the Engine
1. Position the vehicle on a level surface outdoors or in a well-venti-
2. Place the transmission in PARK.
3. Lock the parking brake.
Tip: The starter interlock will prevent the engine from starting if the transmission
is in gear and the brake is not engaged.
4. Turn the fuel valve on.
5. Sit on the vehicle.
6. Do not use the choke if starting a warm engine. Excessive use of the
choke can cause the spark plug to become wet fouled.
7. If the engine is cold, pull the
choke knob out until it stops.
Tip: The variable choke is fully on
when the knob is pulled com-
pletely out. The choke is off when
the knob is pushed completely in.
The choke can be adjusted gradu-
ally, depending on how much
choke is needed for starting. Be
sure the choke is off during opera-
tion, as excess fuel washing into
the engine oil will increase wear
on engine components.
8. If the knob doesn't stay where
positioned, increase the ten-
sion by rotating the tension
adjusting nut clockwise.
9. Move the engine stop switch to RUN.
10. Do not press the throttle while starting the engine. | <urn:uuid:8d2e892d-5f9b-4ec0-895d-2f3df98acd9d> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | http://auto.manualsonline.com/manuals/mfg/polaris/400_ho_2.html?p=50 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233511106.1/warc/CC-MAIN-20231003124522-20231003154522-00551.warc.gz | en | 0.858598 | 304 | 2.96875 | 3 |
Chikungunya is a relatively rare viral fever that is caused by the bite of infected mosquitoes. These mosquitoes can be found biting throughout daylight hours, though there may be peaks of activity in the early morning and late afternoon. The incubation period is usually 1 to 12 days. This means the disease manifests 1 to 12 days after the bite of the mosquito. Chikungunya is sometimes mistaken for dengue which also manifests with similar symptoms.
Even though mortality rateof Chikungunya is less compared to dengue, symptoms last longer and affect the person. Most patients recover fully from Chikungunya virus infection. They get better after a few days, however sometimes joint pains can persist for a longer period after the other symptoms have disappeared.
- Abrupt onset of Fever with chills ( >104 F)
- Joint Pain
- Arthritis affecting multiple joints, can be debilitating
- Swelling of joints
- Sometime there may be infection of the conjunctiva of the eye
- Nausea and vomitings
- Bleeding, Rash may occur rarely
How to manage it:
- It is important to rule out dengue first by necessary investigations as the mortality rate is higher with dengue by employing some serological tests.
- Mainstay of treatment is relieving symptoms, supportive care and rest
- To relieve symptoms of fever and joint pain the drug commonly used is paracetamol.
- There is no specific antiviral drug treatment for chikungunya.
- Avoid self-medication particularly antibiotics, steroids, and other painkillers specially overdosing.
- Aspirin should be avoided.
- Ensure adequate intake of water orally to maintain urine output at least more than a litre per day to prevent dehydration.
- Use cold compresses to involved and painful joints. Avoid hot compresses in acute stages as it can worsen the joint symptoms.
- Movement and mild exercise tend to improve morning stiffness and pain, but heavy exercise may worsen your symptoms.
- Hospital admission is necessary if symptoms worsen.
The best methods of prevention involve minimizing contact with mosquitoes.
- Elimination of stagnant water at home, schools and workplace to avoid breeding of mosquitoes.
- Using insect repellents over the exposed parts of the body.
- For protection during outbreaks of chikungunya, clothing which minimizes skin exposure to the day-biting mosquitoes is advised.
- Using mosquito screens or nets.
- Staying indoors as much as possible, especially during early morning and late afternoon.
- Basic precautions should be taken if you are travelling to risk areas.
- There Is No Vaccine Currently Available. | <urn:uuid:525e4d44-1f40-4e7e-bc52-6ce9f6a29eaf> | CC-MAIN-2019-22 | https://blog.ekincare.com/2018/05/18/chikungunya-to-walk-bent/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-22/segments/1558232260161.91/warc/CC-MAIN-20190526225545-20190527011545-00539.warc.gz | en | 0.918399 | 555 | 3.609375 | 4 |
The modern streets of Jerusalem are no older than the middle ages. So where are the original streets that Jesus would have walked on? Descend underground, beneath the Convent of the Sisters of Zion on the Via Dolorosa, to find the original stones that would have witnessed the events.
In the 14th century, Pope Clement VI establishing the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land, and charging the friars with “the guidance, instruction, and care of Latin pilgrims as well as with the guardianship, maintenance, defense and rituals of the Catholic shrines of the Holy Land.” Beginning around 1350, Franciscan friars conducted official tours of the Via Dolorosa, from the Holy Sepulchre to the House of Pilate—opposite the direction travelled by Christ in Bible. The route was not reversed until c. 1517 when the Franciscans began to follow the events of Christ’s Passion chronologically-setting out from the House of Pilate and ending with the crucifixion at Golgotha.
Convent of the Sisters of Zion
The Convent of the Sisters of Zion is a Roman Catholic convent located near the eastern end of the Via Dolorosa in the Old City. The convent was built in 1857 by Marie-Alphonse Ratisbonne. The site includes the Church of Ecce Homo, named for Pontius Pilate’s Ecce homo speech which is traditionally thought to have taken place on the pavement below the church.
Beneath the convent is an extensive area of Roman flagstones, known for several centuries due to an etching of a game by Roman soldiers discovered in 1864 involving the execution of a “monk king”. The flagstones were thought by nuns to be those of Gabbatha, which John 19:13 describes as the location where Pontius Pilate adjudged Jesus’ trial. It is possible that following its destruction the Antonia Fortress’s pavement tiles were brought to Hadrian’s plaza. | <urn:uuid:26b0e59a-31fe-4ccd-b577-bdcad5b6216a> | CC-MAIN-2021-17 | http://www.israelandyou.com/the-underground-via-dolorosa-in-jerusalem/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-17/segments/1618038921860.72/warc/CC-MAIN-20210419235235-20210420025235-00048.warc.gz | en | 0.954372 | 420 | 3.453125 | 3 |
If Christine Todd Whitman were really serious about promoting jobs in the energy industry, she would be talking about wind and other renewable energy resources, not nuclear power. Her July 9 op-ed, co-written with Florida State Rep. Juan C. Zapata, overstated the benefits of nuclear power and mentioned none of its drawbacks.
Whitman claims that constructing new nuclear plants has the potential to create "as many as 70,000 jobs," but how long would that take? According to Whitman's own figures, building one new reactor would produce as many as 2,400 construction jobs, and, once built, would employ 800 workers. To generate those 70,000 jobs -- 75 percent of them temporary -- the industry would have to build 22 new reactors. Given the lack of a trained labor force, constraints on the availability of key manufacturing components, and Wall Street's reluctance to finance them, building 22 reactors would take at least two decades to accomplish even under the rosiest scenario.
In any case, her projection of 70,000 jobs pales in comparison with renewables. If the federal government established a standard requiring utilities to obtain 25 percent of their electricity from renewable sources by 2025, it would create 297,000 new jobs, according to a 2009 analysis by my organization, the Union of Concerned Scientists. Echoing our analysis, a February 2010 study by Navigant Consulting found that a 25 percent by 2025 standard would create 274,000 jobs.
Energy efficiency programs also would produce more jobs. A 2009 study by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy found that a national standard requiring utilities to institute programs reducing electricity demand by 15 percent and natural gas demand by 10 percent would generate more than 220,000 jobs by 2020.
Texas is blessed by a wealth of renewable sources. In fact, it has the technical potential to generate more than 17 times the electricity it used in 2008 from renewable energy, primarily from wind, bioenergy and solar. And it is beginning to take advantage of that bounty.
Texas is a national leader in wind energy, generating more than 9,500 megawatts (MW) of installed capacity, thanks in part to the state's renewable electricity standard. That standard requires utilities to increase their reliance on renewable resources to produce at least 5,800 MW (about 5.5 percent) of the state's power needs by 2015. On March 5, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas reported a record high for instantaneous wind output of 6,272 MW. That met 19 percent of the total state customer demand, showing that Texas is on track to exceed the standard.
Likewise, Texas has been a leader on efficiency. It was the first state to adopt an energy efficiency resource standard, which required utilities to use efficiency to cut 10 percent of annual growth in power demand. This year the standard jumped to 30 percent of customer demand growth. Increased energy efficiency will translate into lower electricity bills.
Texas's leadership on renewables and efficiency has meant more jobs. In 2007, Texas ranked second to California in numbers of businesses (4,802) and jobs (55,646) tied to the clean energy sector, according to 2009 report by the Pew Charitable Trusts.
Can new reactor construction compete? According to a recent report by the Nuclear Information and Resource Service, even if new construction created 2,400 temporary jobs per site, a significant number of those jobs could go to workers overseas. All applicants seeking permits to build new reactors or building them now - including the South Texas Project -- plan to use or are using foreign manufacturers and labor to build major reactor parts.
Whitman also sidestepped the issue of construction costs -- which have quadrupled over the past decade -- and the fact that the industry has such a miserable financial track record that Wall Street will not invest in new reactors without massive federal loan guarantees and other subsidies.
The South Texas Project she touts, which is building two new reactors, provides a sobering example. CPS Energy, San Antonio's public utility, first planned to hold a 40 percent ownership stake, tried to reduce it to 20 percent, and then, when the cost estimate jumped from $9 billion to $13 billion, tried to pull out completely. CPS fired its top executive, filed a $32 billion lawsuit against the plant owner, and ultimately wound up with less than an 8 percent stake. The plant owner is still seeking investors, as well as a loan guarantee from the Department of Energy, which would put U.S. taxpayers on the hook if the project falls apart. South Texas, whose reactor vendor is Japanese manufacturer Toshiba, is reportedly third in line for a loan guarantee.
So why is Whitman pushing nuclear power? Because the group she co-chairs, the benignly sounding Clean and Safe Energy Coalition, is a front for the nuclear industry. The industry trade organization, the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), created the coalition - which is little more than a website with a list of supporters -- and is its sole funder. Whitman, who has been shilling for NEI for four years, has a right to earn a living, but your readers have the right to know she is a paid industry mouthpiece -- a fact that she routinely fails to disclose -- and that she is not giving them the whole story.
Elliott Negin is the media director for the Union of Concerned Scientists in Washington, D.C. He can be reached at 202-331-5439. | <urn:uuid:cd56f37d-9345-4e64-ba94-1450ad706a66> | CC-MAIN-2018-22 | https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/renewable-energy-would-create-more-jobs-than-nuclear-power | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-22/segments/1526794867417.75/warc/CC-MAIN-20180526131802-20180526151802-00380.warc.gz | en | 0.959353 | 1,103 | 2.640625 | 3 |
By Michael Murphy Talks of using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for deliveries have taken place for years, but the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was understandably apprehensive about allowing unregulated use. Companies like Amazon have had to put their plans on hold. Dreams of a science fiction style future grew more distant daily.
Yet, on July 17, the FAA allowed a UAV to deliver medical supplies to a free clinic in western Virginia for the purpose of practicing research flights.
For a lot of companies, this is a huge moment. It is an indicator that the FAA recognizes the impact of expedited delivery and is taking big steps towards making it happen.
Unfortunately, this Kitty Hawk moment comes with a slightly bittersweet taste to some. Some wonder why, during such a historic moment for the United States, NASA and Virginia Tech chose an Australian drone start-up, Flirtey Inc., instead of one of the countless other American made drones.
In 2013, in exchange for equity, the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) created a partnership with Flirtey toprovide access to UNR's R&D Labs. Flirtey could then design, manufacture, research, as well as use their indoor flight testing facilities and supply graduate students an opportunity for hands on work.
They joined up with Zookal to create the world-first drone delivery test in October of the same year, in which they conducted over a hundred successful test deliveries of textbooks. Managing such an accomplishment was only made possible by strategically aligning themselves with areas that featured, what they call, “friendly regulation.”
This is a massive step in the right direction for increased delivery time for anything from medical supplies to consumer products. | <urn:uuid:1ce3d1de-92f8-4848-a72f-ee87ecedc564> | CC-MAIN-2018-51 | http://www.murphycompany.com/blog/2773 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-51/segments/1544376825495.60/warc/CC-MAIN-20181214070839-20181214092339-00240.warc.gz | en | 0.960503 | 356 | 2.953125 | 3 |
Fan fiction is a term used to describe stories written by fans of a particular television show, movie, or book that feature the characters and settings from those sources. The fanfic genre has been around for decades, but it gained massive popularity through the rise of online fandom.
What exactly is Fan Fiction?
Fanfiction is an online form of writing that involves taking characters, settings, or other elements from a book series, movie series, video game series, etc. and writing stories about them.
Almost every fandom has fan fiction and there are plenty of examples on the web.
Where to Read Fan Fiction Stories?
On the internet, fan fiction is often posted as fanfiction stories on different websites similar to FictionPress and Wattpad. These sites allow users to read content that is free of charge, but they also allow users to post their own work in order to share with others who are interested in reading stories about their favorite shows or books. Fanfiction | <urn:uuid:a76e48a4-fb56-47bd-9165-87896b74d4ee> | CC-MAIN-2021-49 | https://www.readab.com/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-49/segments/1637964363134.25/warc/CC-MAIN-20211205005314-20211205035314-00581.warc.gz | en | 0.958953 | 197 | 2.796875 | 3 |
The Department of Justice may not have a legal case to pursue the shooting death of Michael Brown, but the Ferguson, Mo incident, which sparked massive outrage across the nation for months in 2014, has brought to light a culture where abuse of power and discrimination reign. Where statistics may not be able to convince skeptics that institutionalized racism is the problem in Ferguson, emails of public officials ridiculing blacks and plotting to fine more people simply to raise revenue, alongside stories of trumped up charges largely made against blacks, demonstrates racism and abuse are deeply entrenched in the culture of the Ferguson government.
Because local officials are closer to the people they serve, local authorities can be more responsive to the needs of their constituents than state, national, and international governments. Unfortunately, a lack of adequate scrutiny on a regular basis leaves local governments susceptible to those who abuse government to serve their own agendas. Where national governments can suffer from a lack of understanding, empathy, and consequences when it comes to constituent interests due to distance and the diversity of their constituents, local governments can become just as unresponsive to the interests of their constituents when there are cultural barriers that separate those in power from those they are supposed to serve.
In many respects, racism in places like Ferguson actually has nothing to do with racism. When people do wrong, do not know how to respond to a wrong, or feel threatened if they confront those doing wrong, they tend to justify why someone is being mistreated. When discussing issues like the abuse of civil penalties or code enforcement as part of a revenue-raising scheme, the poor and otherwise defenseless are targeted, because their inability to afford a legal defense against such charges and vulnerable social position means they are less likely to fight back when wronged. In turn, authorities slander and demonize these people in order to justify their mistreatment of them, which reinforces the division between these disenfranchised groups and the more affluent.
Beyond Ferguson and abusive governance, this pattern can be seen throughout all of human civilization. It is not just blacks and other minorities who suffer from efforts to legitimize the mistreatment of them nor is it just the poor inside the United States. Those who benefit from the marginalization of others, whether it is those who mistreat others to secure their authority or those who do not stand against such wrongs in order to preserve their own socioeconomic status, can found throughout the world. It is, of course, far easier to call people lazy rather than to create jobs that provide for their needs while it is just as easy to say, “nothing can be done,” rather than to defend someone.
Recognizing this human flaw, terrorist groups like the Islamic State and tyrannical governments, such as many of those in the Middle East, China, and Russia, can be thoroughly brazen when it comes to victimizing the weak, because those who can intervene are more likely to justify why they cannot intervene than to actually stand up for what is beneficial to all. Those who victimize others for their own gain need only to justify their behavior to those who might undermine their agenda and sufficiently intimidate others so they will legitimize the behavior of the victimizers.
Back inside the United States, Republicans are failing, as expected, to force President Obama and Congressional Democrats to accept Republican legislation that aims to undermine the President’s priorities. In the minds of Republicans, the need to show unquestioned loyalty to Israel is seen as a way of discrediting Democrats, however, this view fails to recognize changes in the Middle East and the reality that Americans are increasingly against costly interventions that tend to create more problems than they solve. Meanwhile, Conservative attempts to use the Supreme Court to derail Obamacare by invalidating tax credits for millions is a way of reigniting anger over the landmark healthcare law, yet the American People can only see it as creating problems for them.
In truth, Republicans are managing to brand themselves for the next election through their attempts to “battle Democrats.” Unfortunately, they are doing it by dividing the country while short-circuiting the legislative process. For decades, the Republican versus Democrat, Conservative versus Liberal artificial “war” has helped candidates on both sides of the aisle win elections. In their efforts to demonize each other and use their legislative efforts to manipulate voter opinion, they have managed to create an elite-controlled political class that has created more problems than it has solved. Just as in Ferguson, elitist rationales that justify the abuse of governing institutions are the problem.
Read old posts | <urn:uuid:4db42fb5-ecfc-4ecc-b584-583835dbad4f> | CC-MAIN-2017-43 | http://www.washingtonoutsider.org/editors-blog/when-government-is-the-problem-justifying-wrongdoing-in-ferguson-and-beyond | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-43/segments/1508187824325.29/warc/CC-MAIN-20171020192317-20171020212317-00523.warc.gz | en | 0.964935 | 916 | 2.71875 | 3 |
Look, listen, learn touch - a great way to learn English!
Touch the picture and word that match. Listen to how each word is pronounced. Test yourself on hundreds and hundreds of words.
Compete with your friends by completing the puzzle with the fastest time and fewest errors! When used as part of a English-language education, this simple "match the words to pictures" exercise helps you to remember basic words in English.
This application has a good mix of nouns, adjectives and verbs. Select a category to help fine tune your learning experience.
To improve the text to speech synthesis, you should consider downloading the free IVONA Text to Speech application.
Available on Android phones and tablets
Tags: English learning, Learning game, English learning puzzle, The Rosetta Stone, ABC, Synthesized, Listen, Professional
Look, listen, learn, touch... Users can now listen to each word! A fabulous enhancement to this inexpensive application.
Added categories to help you fine tune your learning experience; now supports Portuguese. | <urn:uuid:453acb33-cd20-4c66-8e9b-94153dc4834f> | CC-MAIN-2014-52 | http://www.appbrain.com/app/abc-english-for-beginners/com.kvn.abcEnglishForBeginners | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-52/segments/1419447548035.129/warc/CC-MAIN-20141224185908-00005-ip-10-231-17-201.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.900956 | 214 | 2.515625 | 3 |
Providing students with a commonsense approach to the solution of engineering problems and packed full of practical case studies to illustrate the role of the engineer, the type of work involved and the methodologies employed in engineering practice, this textbook is a comprehensive introduction to the scope and nature of engineering.It outlines a conceptual framework for undertaking engineering projects then provides a range of techniques and tools for solving the sorts of problems that commonly arise. Focusing in particular on civil engineering design, problem solving, and the range of techniques and tools it employs, the authors also explore:creativity and problem solving, social and environmental issues, management, communications and law, and ethics the planning, design, modelling and analysis phases and the implementation or construction phase. Designed specifically for introductory courses on undergraduate engineering programs, this extensively revised and extended second edition is an invaluable resource for all new engineering undergraduates as well as non-specialist readers who are seeking information on the nature of engineering work and how it is carried out.
- Publication Date:
- 12 / 09 / 2007 | <urn:uuid:09614637-f6a9-4510-9dec-fdabda35bbb7> | CC-MAIN-2017-26 | https://www.qbd.com.au/planning-and-design-of-engineering-systems-second-edition-second-edition/robert-warner/9780203960806/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-26/segments/1498128320243.11/warc/CC-MAIN-20170624082900-20170624102900-00636.warc.gz | en | 0.922088 | 210 | 2.59375 | 3 |
Take a look at our most recent medical question sent in. It isn’t for everyone – but it’s some useful information.
Our child recent underwent surgery for Pyloric Stenosis. We were shocked by the news that our baby was sick. We are hopeful that this will help. Can you please get out the news.
Pyloric Stenosis is an interesting and well understood condition. It affects boys much more than girls. In fact, it often affects the first born males almost 4 times more than others. I am not sure if that is the case from our email reader. But it something to think about.
When you have your well child check ups – this is something that is often looked for. It “develops” in the first six weeks of life. Sometimes it can be seen in older children, but this is unlikely. The presenting symptoms is often projectile vomiting. Of course, projectile vomiting can happen in several other diseases – but this needs to be considered each time.
An exam will happen and a mass can be felt in the abdomen in most cases. The word “mass” is often never a good sign. In this case, the mass comes from the functional problem of this condition. Stenosis means narrowing and Pyloric often refers to the stomach and means gate. In this case therefore – a narrowing of the gate is occurring. The location is near the end of the stomach and the Small Intestines.
Food enters the stomach and gets broken down. Some digesting of the food happens in the stomach, but more digesting happens in the intestines. In infants with pyloric stenosis – the food can’t pass from the stomach to the intestines and it therefore is vomited back out the mouth. It needs to go somewhere.
A muscle that helps with the closing of the Stomach when empty becomes quite enlarged. This muscle does not allow for the complete opening of the stomach into the intestines. This portion of the intestines is known as the duodenum. AS the muscle thickens – the opening becomes smaller and smaller.
The real concern of this condition is malnutrition and dehydration. As both consequences advance, serious complications can be seen by the infant. Loss of weight, abdominal pain, food hungers, crying can be seen.
The treatment of this condition is Surgery. A 3-4 cm incision used to be the treatment of choice. Now, laproscopy is the preferred treatment. IV fluids will often be given prior to and after surgery. A child may remain in the hospital for 1-2 days – more if a complication is experienced. Recovery is often seen.
The main question about this condition is cause. Functionally – an enlarged muscle is the answer. But, an exact cause is often unknown. Genetics is a likely cause and some see Erythomycin given in the first month of life as another cause possibility. It is believed that a baby is not born with the condition but develops it early in life.
Learn more about Pyloric Stenosis here:
Leave a Reply | <urn:uuid:db1fa4a1-ebf4-4360-8d4a-6eef5a17128d> | CC-MAIN-2013-48 | http://iahealth.net/what-really-is-pyloric-stenosis-and-why-did-it-affect-my-child/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-48/segments/1386163066152/warc/CC-MAIN-20131204131746-00040-ip-10-33-133-15.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967233 | 638 | 2.71875 | 3 |
In this guide, we match sources to your train needs — at every fitness degree. Fitness can embody muscular endurance, which is the flexibility of a muscle to proceed exerting drive without tiring. As talked about above, energy training builds bigger muscle tissue. Endurance training, however, doesn’t essentially generate muscles of a bigger size.
Here’s what occurs to your body when you overthink
Engaging in common train can strengthen the cardiovascular system, enhance blood circulation, tone muscular tissues and improve flexibility, all of which might improve your sex life . As people age, they have an inclination to lose muscle mass and performance, which may result in accidents and disabilities. Practicing common bodily exercise is essential to decreasing muscle loss and maintaining strength as you age . Flexibility is the flexibility of your joints to move through a spread of motion.
Another confirmed that sixteen weeks of bodily exercise increased sleep high quality and helped 17 people with insomnia sleep longer and extra deeply than the management group. Regular exercise has been shown to enhance insulin sensitivity, cardiovascular fitness and body composition, yet decrease blood stress and blood fats ranges . One study discovered that six weeks of standard train reduced feelings of fatigue for 36 healthy individuals who had reported persistent fatigue . Exercise can be a actual energy booster for wholesome individuals, as well as these affected by various medical circumstances . Additionally, studies have proven that combining cardio exercise with resistance training can maximize fat loss and muscle mass upkeep, which is important for keeping the burden off .
You may even see an estimate of the number of energy you have burned throughout your session as well as the number of MEPS factors you have earned. Again, cardio and muscular health training are going to pack probably the most punch when it comes to burning calories and incomes MEPs. Both of those components concentrate on coaching your neuromuscular system, but in several ways. ACTIVE is the leader in on-line event registrations from 5k working races and marathons to softball leagues and native events. ACTIVE additionally makes it simple to study and put together for all of the belongings you love to do with skilled sources, training plans and health calculators.
Get off the sofa and revel in getting fit by following these few easy steps. Try to search out the time for some regular, vigorous train for additional well being and health benefits.
It’s a good idea to start out with 10 minutes each day at first and then finally work your means up to 30 minutes or extra. Let’s face it, we’re more prone to stick to bodily activity if we do it with pals or family. If you presently do no physical activity, begin by doing a little, and steadily build up to the really helpful quantity. Exercise burns energy, but many people claim it does not assist you to shed weight.
Seafood, such as, shrimp, and tilapia are additionally great alternatives. These foods are stuffed with protein and wholesome nutrients to assist maintain muscle tissue match and ready for workouts. Try to plan out consuming six times a day and setting smaller portions, quite than having three giant meals all through the day.
Fitness & Exercise Home
Katie Hiscock is a fitness writer with diplomas in private coaching and sports therapeutic massage therapy. With an interest in sports vitamin, antenatal exercise and damage prevention, she works as a therapist for Brighton & Hove Albion. Salmon is an effective supply of Omega 3, a fatty acid that’s believed to maintain your coronary heart healthy and decelerate the results of memory loss. Frozen blueberries (usually far cheaper than fresh in the grocery store) are good when whizzed up into a post-exercise smoothie to replenish your muscular tissues’ glycogen (vitality) shops. | <urn:uuid:a03a6e49-4b16-4754-84d8-470ac8544b39> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.badmintonandalucia.com/10-suggestions-to-improve-your-psychological-fitness.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571536.89/warc/CC-MAIN-20220811224716-20220812014716-00629.warc.gz | en | 0.952857 | 772 | 2.578125 | 3 |
Question: What is Germany most famous for these days? Answer: engineering.
In light of the worldwide respect for German engineering, precision and management, why has Chancellor Angela Merkel taken up arms against her most admired national talents?
For that is what she has done in turning Germany against its nuclear future — a future she endorsed last fall. She has closed seven reactors permanently and has the 10 others set to cease operating sequentially by 2022.
Ostensibly, she has taken this draconian action in light of the Fukushima-Dai-ichi crisis in Japan; but more especially because her conservative-led Christian Democratic Union party and its coalition members have taken a drumming from the Green party in local elections.
Since the Japanese crisis, the German Greens have mobilized large anti-nuclear demonstrations throughout Germany. Indeed, the party was formed immediately after the Three Mile Island accident in Pennsylvania in 1979. Since then it has been a force to be reckoned with in German politics — always there, but sometimes more vocal than others.
To German commentators, Merkel’s about-face speaks of just one thing: opportunism. Fearing the dissolution of her fragile coalition, she gave the Greens what they wanted: complete surrender on the nuclear issue.
While buying a political-life extension, Merkel has cast a shadow over Germany’s future as the economic engine of Europe. Without nuclear, Germany will face severe economic and even environmental challenges ahead.
Merkel says that the nuclear slack will be taken up by boosting its renewable energy sources – wind, solar and hydro — from 17 percent of the mix today to double that. Nuclear has been providing 25 percent of German electricity. It would take about 20,000 windmills alone to replace that.
Also, Merkel says, electricity consumption will be cut by 10 percent.
Quite how any of this will be achieved is uncertain. Already, conservation is a high priority in Germany and alternative energy has been a high priority for years.
Most likely there will be electricity shortages in parts of the country, mostly in the south; there will be more brown coal burned; and Russia will further extend its energy hegemony over Northern and Eastern Europe by upping the amount of gas provided to Germany for electricity production. Another ironic likelihood is that as Germany will have to import more electricity and it will have to do so from countries with a large nuclear base like France.
The three German utilities that own various nuclear plants are in a state of shock, even disbelief. One, Eon, already is talking about billions of euros of compensation for loss of business and capital goods. The others are likely to follow suit. There is likely to be litigation in the German and the European courts.
Early polls show that while the German people do not want nuclear, they also see the Merkel move as political and cynical. One poll found that 70 percent of the electorate found the chancellor’s actions to be opportunistic.
First calculations, not denied by Merkel’s administration, expect electricity prices – already among the highest in Europe – to bound by nearly 20 percent.
The untold damage is to the concept of the invulnerability of German engineering – that something special that has made German cars the gold standard of the world. If Germany does not believe that it can engineer its reactors to levels of safety and manage them with Prussian zeal, then what has happened to the German ethic?
Brown coal — the dirtiest there is, being somewhere between bituminous coal and peat in its makeup — is the default position in German energy. Dirty to burn but plentiful, it may now make a comeback with severe environmental consequences for Germany and its neighbors.
When Merkel talks about alternatives, she is really talking about wind and at thousands more turbines will now have to be added in a country with limited land area for diffuse energy sources.
Although the Germans have been more successful than thought possible with solar, it remains a cold, gray northern country that requires a lot of reliable affordable electricity to keep its place in the global economy. Merkel appears to have put her own future above that of her country. –For the Hearst-New York Times Syndicate | <urn:uuid:bfdaad2b-988d-489d-992a-b398fcb328c4> | CC-MAIN-2017-47 | http://whchronicle.com/merkel-finds-german-engineering-not-good-enough-for-nuclear/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-47/segments/1510934806225.78/warc/CC-MAIN-20171120203833-20171120223833-00364.warc.gz | en | 0.966168 | 839 | 2.609375 | 3 |
Seabrook has experienced considerable growth in recent years, much like many other communities in South Texas. There are some obvious effects of growth, such as the increased demand for water, sewer and streets. There are other, more subtle effects of growth that also impact demand for city service. One of these is the demand for Animal Control.
Parts of Seabrook and surrounding areas use to be large, wooded, vacant tracts of land. These areas were heavily populated with wildlife such as coyotes and wild hogs along with other variety of small game animals and varmints. These animals were able to live relatively undisturbed and were only occasionally seen by residents on the fringe of the woods.
As development began to encroach upon these native areas, the animal's territory was increasingly reduced. Of course, a natural result of that encroachment has been an increase in sightings of the animals by humans in developed areas.
Residential development has also resulted in new homes and apartments in close proximity to animals native habitat. Animal Control has had an increase of sightings of coyotes and wild hogs. Efforts to trap these animals are not productive. Animal Control states that the animal's natural avoidance of humans plays a large part in this.
Seabrook Animal Control recommends that residents not approach or feed wild animals. Try to avoid leaving pet food outside at night. If an animal is observed acting unusually, please contact Animal Control at (281) 291.5644.
Wildlife is an interesting and beautiful part of our Texas Heritage. Enjoy them as you see them. Leave them alone and they will leave you alone.
Wildlife that you may encounter while in Seabrook includes; coyotes, Muscovy ducks, wild hogs, deer, alligators, snakes and all kinds of birds. Seabrook is listed on the Texas Coastal Birding Trail. Like most wildlife, when left alone they are harmless, however, some animals such as coyotes, wild hogs and Muscovy ducks may become a nuisance. Please learn more about these animals and what you can do to help reduce the nuisance. | <urn:uuid:d62debbd-8192-40e5-b454-8da6f4b20b28> | CC-MAIN-2019-09 | https://www.seabrooktx.gov/378/Wildlife | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-09/segments/1550247494449.56/warc/CC-MAIN-20190220044622-20190220070622-00473.warc.gz | en | 0.969225 | 434 | 2.671875 | 3 |
Song Sparrows (Melospiza melodia) are one of many bird species with complex songs and other vocalizations. Previous research shows that these sparrows learn most of their repertoire. While the ability to sing is innate, the precise songs are not. They learn most of this repertoire during their first year, between the time they leave the nest and the time they migrate. A new study adds some more detail to the picture: young sparrows learn by listening to vocal exchanges among their elders.
For the field study, the researchers radio tagged 11 male sparrows in Seattle's undeveloped Discovery Park. These birds were about two months old and had not yet begun to sing. The park has a year-round resident population of approximately l50 breeding pairs.The abstract for the study is here.
To test a young bird's reactions, it was first located by its radio signal and then the speakers were placed about 50 yards from the animal's location. Finally the bird was exposed to five minutes of pre-recorded song, either from pairs of song sparrows, a sparrow and a chickadee (effectively a solo sparrow) or a pair of chickadees (the control condition). All of the sparrow recordings were from birds that were no longer alive, so that the songs the young birds heard were not familiar. Chickadees commonly live in the same habitat as song sparrows, so sparrows are familiar with their songs.
That the juvenile birds approached the simulated interaction of two song sparrows but largely ignored the solo singing of a song sparrow lends support to the social eavesdropping hypothesis proposed by Beecher. This theory says young birds learn to sing by eavesdropping on singing between adult birds, rather than listening to a single bird or directly interacting with an adult.
As a side note, American birders will note that the BBC article on this Song Sparrow study contains an egregious taxonomy error. | <urn:uuid:8f584c18-630c-4188-a1ba-ef05d0f667c7> | CC-MAIN-2015-32 | http://dendroica.blogspot.com/2009/10/song-sparrows-learn-by-listening.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-32/segments/1438042988924.75/warc/CC-MAIN-20150728002308-00114-ip-10-236-191-2.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972803 | 398 | 3.96875 | 4 |
E. Cobham Brewer 18101897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
is represented by Domenichino as kneeling on a pile of fagots, the fire extinguished, and the executioner about to slay her with the sword. The introduction of a lamb (agnus) is a modern innovation, and play on the name. St. Agnes is the patron of young virgins.
St. Agnes was first tied to a stake, but the fire of the stakes went out; whereupon Aspasius, set to watch the martyrdom, drew his sword, and cut off her head. | <urn:uuid:7d27e83b-e695-410c-ab4a-d28db92e1779> | CC-MAIN-2016-36 | http://bartleby.com/81/325.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-36/segments/1471982296571.15/warc/CC-MAIN-20160823195816-00187-ip-10-153-172-175.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946755 | 130 | 3 | 3 |
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been the subject of countless discussions and articles in the sphere of digital technology. With its practical applications rising rapidly, it is the next transformative technology to stand out from global research in ‘deep learning’.
AI can be described as a set of deep learning techniques that use artificial neural networks unlike traditional analytics. Techniques that address classification, estimation and clustering problems are currently most widely applicable, reflecting the problems whose solutions drive value across a range of sectors.
Recently, McKinsey Analytics conducted research on over 400 companies and organisations to assess both the practical applications and the economic potential of advanced AI techniques across industries and business functions. According to this research, greatest potential for AI, in 69 percent of cases, was found to create value in cases where more established analytical techniques such as regression and classification techniques can already be used, but where neural network techniques could provide higher performance or generate additional insights and applications. Whereas, only 16 percent of cases benefited from “greenfield” AI solution that was applicable where other analytics would not be effective.
Applicability of AI varies across sectors primarily due to varying relative importance on different drivers of value within each sector. For example, in consumer-facing industries such as retail, marketing and sales is the area with most value whereas in industries such as advanced manufacturing supply chain, logistics and manufacturing are the most valuable drivers since their operational performance drives corporate performance.
The scale of potential economic and societal impact from AI technology creates an imperative for all participants, AI-innovators, AI-customers i.e. Ai-using companies and policy makers to ensure an environment that can effectively and safely capture economic and societal benefits is fostered. | <urn:uuid:24379758-5cbb-4421-a2d1-d6295598be24> | CC-MAIN-2019-26 | http://www.sydneyconsultingclub.com/insights/ai-frontier-applications-value-of-deep-learning | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-26/segments/1560628000414.26/warc/CC-MAIN-20190626174622-20190626200622-00212.warc.gz | en | 0.940428 | 344 | 2.859375 | 3 |
The word “depression” comes from the Latin deprimere, to press down. To feel depressed means to have feelings of severe despondency and dejection. Depression often occurs along with other illnesses and medical conditions.
When you have depression, you may wonder “Why?” or “Where did these unfamiliar, out-of-character feelings come from?” Though the answer to the question of what causes depression is not a simple one, studies suggest that there are risk factors for becoming depressed. The more of these risk factors you have and the greater your levels of stress, the greater the chance you will experience a bout of depression:
- your genetics: Have any of your relatives experienced depression? People with a family history have a slightly higher chance of becoming depressed at some stage in their lives.
- your personality style and how you have learned to deal with problems:
- Do you worry a lot?
- Do you have a low opinion of yourself?
- Are you overly dependent on other people?
- Are you a perfectionist?
- Do you expect too much from yourself or others?
- Do you hide your feelings?
- your life experiences: You may be at increased risk of depression if you’ve gone through certain major life events, such as:
- early childhood trauma (death of a parent, parental separation or divorce)
- death of a loved one
- loss of a job or retirement
- financial problems
- family conflict, including abuse and neglect
- your biology: People with depression may have hormone and chemical imbalances in the brain. These imbalances are what most medications for depression help to fix.
More women than men have depression. However, depression can affect anyone, including men, children and seniors. And while depression symptoms most commonly appear between 15 and 45 years of age, the condition can strike anyone at any age.
No matter what your age or stage of life, if you experience the signs and symptoms of depression you can talk to us about what you’re experiencing. And if you recognize the symptoms of depression in someone you love or care for, share this information with them.
Symptoms of depression may include:
- emotional symptoms (tearfulness, sadness, brooding, blues, irritability, anxiety)
- behavioural/cognitive symptoms (indecision, lack of concentration, trouble focusing, withdrawal from social and work activities, decreased personal care such as grooming)
- physical symptoms (changes in sleep patterns, weight, or appetite; fatigue; complaints of pain, which can include headache, stomach pain, and other unexplained pain)
Homeopathy can provide a safe and effective way of treating depression, sadness, and anxiety. | <urn:uuid:3eb17be0-9609-4551-a838-e38cda6884b0> | CC-MAIN-2021-49 | https://www.aggarwalhealth.com/homeopathic-remedies-for-depression/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-49/segments/1637964362230.18/warc/CC-MAIN-20211202145130-20211202175130-00413.warc.gz | en | 0.942231 | 567 | 3.375 | 3 |
Download SACI National Programme 2008 -2018
Young Chemist Symposium - SACI North Section
Download abstract template
SACI INORGANIC 2017 - Incorporating the Carman Symposium
The 3rd TCS International Conference and the 6th FASC Congress
- Competence in Chemistry: Component Steps to Skills and Strategies
SACI Chemical Education Medal Award Talk - Helen Drummond - 11 May 2017
This paper hypothesises that all skills are teachable. Skills (e.g. representation of knowledge, mathematical skills, visualization skills) can be broken down into their component steps, and strategies (e.g. problem solving) into their component skills, each of which can be taught. Each step must be thoroughly understood; otherwise the overall skill or strategy will not be mastered.
Much has been written on the need to improve chemistry teaching and learning, and to make Chemistry more attractive to students. Thus there have been many innovations in Chemistry teaching, many of which focus on using different media or rearranging the way in which content is taught.
However, if students do not learn the skills needed, they will never master chemistry. Thus a skills based approach to teaching chemistry is proposed. Various skills needed in the learning and application of Chemistry are discussed. Several studies have been undertaken by the author to test and improve students’ ability in these skills and strategies, and the results of these studies will be discussed.
The use of strategies which are likely to lead to a correct answer will improve students’ confidence, their competence and their success rate. The performance of students has been shown to improve when they receive guidance in the use of skills and strategies, and this should translate to higher grades in Chemistry. | <urn:uuid:f3b4d514-8cca-4fbb-84d4-f5c23dacec24> | CC-MAIN-2017-30 | http://saci.co.za/saci_events.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-30/segments/1500549424961.59/warc/CC-MAIN-20170725042318-20170725062318-00308.warc.gz | en | 0.938146 | 351 | 2.953125 | 3 |
Franco's death was just weeks away when, on September 27 1975, Baena was hauled in front of a military court, accused of killing a policeman in Madrid. This was impossible, says his sister, because he was in Portugal, but the alibi was never presented at his hastily arranged trial. The case against him was flimsy, relying on the witness statements of two women, one of whom later retracted her claims.
At the age of 24 Baena was killed by firing squad - one of the last five men to be executed under Franco.
"He had his political ideas but he was never involved in violent attacks. They killed him simply because he was a republican," said his sister. She has fought for years to clear his name, going through the Spanish courts and up to the European court of human rights because she wants him to be remembered "not as a killer, but as someone who was killed".
Last year the Socialist government of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, whose own grandfather was executed by Franco's forces, declared a "year of the recovery of historic memory".
But it has taken until this week for a compromise to be reached on a historical memory law that would mean that trials held by Franco's regime would be ruled illegitimate and his victims would be recognised. It will be voted on at the end of the month. Even this agreement was not unanimous - the conservative People's party refused to support it, saying the law unnecessarily "stirs up the past", while the Catalan Republican Left said it did not go far enough.
The civil war, which began in 1936 and resulted in Franco's 36-year dictatorship, cost an estimated 500,000 lives. After their victory Franco's nationalist forces killed thousands of republicans and sent many more to labour camps.
Many Spaniards believe that the transition to democracy that followed Franco's death in 1975 is a model for other former dictatorships, but it was based on a "pact of forgetting".
The Socialist parliamentary spokesman Diego López Garrido declared the compromise to be a crucial moment in Spain's history. "The law will provide definitive reparation and recognition for those who suffered in the civil war," he said.
But human rights groups have opposed many elements of the bill, saying that it falls short of providing justice. While the law describes the trials held under Franco as "illegitimate", it has not annulled them, because that would require each case to be reinvestigated, and the government does not want an avalanche of old cases.
Conservatives see Mr Zapatero's efforts as highly partial. El Mundo newspaper condemned the law for "talking only of the victims of Francoism, without ever mentioning the others", arguing that victims of the republicans have been ignored.
Emilio Silva, president of the Commission for the Recovery of the Historic Memory, describes the law as a necessary step for Spain, saying that "it normalises us with the rest of Europe". He is concerned that there is no provision "for a census of the victims, which would allow people to find out what happened to their relatives", but is pleased to see a debate on the civil war "after so many years of silence".
The law will not clear Baena's name. His sister faces the problem of double jeopardy - with no new evidence to present, she cannot return to court. "We would have to find the person who did it," she says, and more than three decades on that is not going to happen. Her lawyer has advised her that if the law passes in its current form she will have to take a case for clemency to the UN. "It's our last hope to clear his name," said Ms Baena. | <urn:uuid:5a474f17-f78b-40c3-a7c8-f36b063cfc99> | CC-MAIN-2016-36 | https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/oct/11/spain.international | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-36/segments/1471982950764.62/warc/CC-MAIN-20160823200910-00233-ip-10-153-172-175.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.987088 | 761 | 2.59375 | 3 |
Sandbox (software development)
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A sandbox is a testing environment that isolates untested code changes and outright experimentation from the production environment or repository, in the context of software development including Web development and revision control.
Sandboxing protects "live" servers and their data, vetted source code distributions, and other collections of code, data and/or content, proprietary or public, from changes that could be damaging (regardless of the intent of the author of those changes) to a mission-critical system or which could simply be difficult to revert. Sandboxes replicate at least the minimal functionality needed to accurately test the programs or other code under development (e.g. usage of the same environment variables as, or access to an identical database to that used by, the stable prior implementation intended to be modified; there are many other possibilities, as the specific functionality needs vary widely with the nature of the code and the application[s] for which it is intended).
The concept of the sandbox (sometimes also called a working directory, a test server or development server) is typically built into revision control software such as CVS and Subversion (SVN), in which developers "check out" a copy of the source code tree, or a branch thereof, to examine and work on. Only after the developer has (hopefully) fully tested the code changes in their own sandbox should the changes be checked back into and merged with the repository and thereby made available to other developers or end users of the software.
By further analogy, the term "sandbox" can also be applied in computing and networking to other temporary or indefinite isolation areas, such as security sandboxes and search engine sandboxes (both of which have highly specific meanings), that prevent incoming data from affecting a "live" system (or aspects thereof) unless/until defined requirements or criteria have been met.
In web services
The term sandbox is commonly used for the development of Web services to refer to a mirrored production environment for use by external developers. Typically, a third-party developer will develop and create an application that will use a web service from the sandbox, which is used to allow a third-party team to validate their code before migrating it to the production environment. Microsoft, Google, Amazon.com, Salesforce.com, PayPal, eBay and Yahoo, among others, provide such services.
Wikis also typically employ a shared sandbox model of testing, though it is intended principally for learning and outright experimentation with features rather than for testing of alterations to existing content (the wiki analog of source code). An edit preview mode is usually used instead to test specific changes made to the texts or layout of wiki pages.
- Comparison of online source code playgrounds
- Sandbox (computer security)
- Sandbox effect (search engines)
- Sandbox (video game editor)
- Sandbox game
- Margaret Rouse. "Sandbox Definition". TechTarget.
- Vivek Venugopalan, "Developer Sandbox" chapter 4, CVS Best Practices, The Linux Documentation Project, 2005. (See also Google for numerous other examples from the CVS FAQ, SourceForge, etc.)
- "Microsoft UDDI Business Registry (UBR) node". Archived from the original on 2005-11-07. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
- "Amazon Mechanical Turk Developer Sandbox". amazon.com. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
- "Salesforce Sandboxes". salesforce.com. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
- "PayPal Sandbox User Guide" (PDF). paypal.com. Archived from the original (pdf) on 28 January 2007. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
- "eBay Developer's Sandbox". ebay.com. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
- "Enterprise Web Services: Sandbox". yahoo.com. Archived from the original on 2008-01-19. Retrieved 27 July 2012. | <urn:uuid:bcd9dd0a-2f05-448d-ada7-aba2dbe49e74> | CC-MAIN-2019-22 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandbox_(software_development) | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-22/segments/1558232255943.0/warc/CC-MAIN-20190520101929-20190520123929-00062.warc.gz | en | 0.878763 | 825 | 3 | 3 |
Posted September 8th, 2009 in Aquaculture, News
From Science Daily:
Aquaculture, once a fledgling industry, now accounts for 50 percent of the fish consumed globally, according to a new report by an international team of researchers. And while the industry is more efficient than ever, it is also putting a significant strain on marine resources by consuming large amounts of feed made from wild fish harvested from the sea, the authors conclude. Their findings are published in the Sept. 7 online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). Read more. | <urn:uuid:ceffe02d-e24f-4732-80dc-fec745ba28dc> | CC-MAIN-2023-14 | https://iiseagrant.org/in-the-news-half-of-fish-consumed-globally-is-now-raised-on-farms-study-finds/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-14/segments/1679296948965.80/warc/CC-MAIN-20230329085436-20230329115436-00189.warc.gz | en | 0.936811 | 117 | 2.546875 | 3 |
Many companies and organizations have taken advantage of a crowdsourcing model to gauge public opinion on a wide range of questions. Now, the government is doing it. Last April, residents of Helsinki were given the opportunity to try proto-crowd sourced democracy: a pop-up touch screen to “Like” a proposal for a government funded Guggenheim museum in their city (unlike Facebook, the screens also featured a ‘Dislike’ button, giving the opposition an opportunity to be heard as well.)
The campaign came from advertising agency HeyDay, as part of an award winning media strategy. Working with outdoor advertising giant JCDecaux, HeyDay set up two booths featuring touch screens close to the site where the Guggenheim was proposing to develop a Helsinki branch of its museum. The voting stations proved to be a popular way for people to engage with an important civic issue. On the first day of opening, the booths registered several thousand votes with the dislikes 35% higher than the likes.
But, even with a one second delay to dissuade double-voting, the Helsinki touch screens had no way of stopping users from repeatedly casting a vote to skew the results. As a result, the votes were not binding, but the outcome could have potentially boosted the winning side’s argument. Even if the votes weren’t official, the visibility and playfulness of the touch screens encouraged people to engage with an important civic issue. Also, a government’s adoption of Facebook-style referendums marks a huge shift in the way we interact with the state.
It’s also interesting that HeyDay chose to place the touch screens near the proposed site of the museum. The vote could have easily taken place online, with no physical “on-site” component. The pop up touch screens show that even with the ability to have conversations and make decisions on the internet, the physical location of the museum remained a very important element of the decision: place matters!
In the end, the Guggenheim plan was rejected by Helsinki’s municipal government. Does this mark the end of starchitecture in the face of crowdsourced urbanism? | <urn:uuid:e854e471-d52e-4061-b442-cf8d05a7ec9c> | CC-MAIN-2015-35 | http://popupcity.net/crowdsourced-urbanism-in-helsinki-the-rise-of-facebook-democracy/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-35/segments/1440644064420.15/warc/CC-MAIN-20150827025424-00150-ip-10-171-96-226.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954352 | 449 | 2.78125 | 3 |
Agriculture and agri-food regulations
If you operate a business in the agriculture and agri-food industry, you play a role in ensuring the health and well-being of Canadians. You should therefore be aware of the regulations that apply to your operations.
- Food policy and regulatory issues
Access information on food labelling for nutrition, health claims, quality standards, allergens, and more.
- Food labelling and safety regulations
Find out everything you need to know when producing, handling, selling and importing food in Canada.
- Guide to developing accurate nutrient values
Do you produce or manufacture food? If so, learn how to provide accurate nutritional value information for your products.
- Centre of Administration for Permissions — Food, Animals, Plants
Find answers to your questions about import licences, permits, and registrations issued by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, and check on the status of your application.
- The Regulation of Intensive Livestock Operations in Saskatchewan
If you are starting or operating a livestock operation, learn about your rights and regulatory responsibilities.
- Nutritional labelling fact sheet
If you are a food processor, get information on the database and laboratory nutritional analysis processes.
- Farm ownership (Saskatchewan)
Find out the rules and regulations pertaining to the ownership of farm land in Saskatchewan by non-Canadians.
- Marketing meat and meat products
Learn how the intended market of your meat products determines the regulations with which your Saskatchewan meat processing plant or abattoir must comply.
- Date modified: | <urn:uuid:6f18ba51-7c54-4d3a-8aac-e57b4c88513f> | CC-MAIN-2014-23 | http://www.canadabusiness.ca/eng/page/2666/sgc-47/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-23/segments/1405997881423.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20140722025801-00009-ip-10-33-131-23.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.88293 | 317 | 2.609375 | 3 |
Major depressive disorder with a seasonal pattern (MDD-SP), formerly known as seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a type of depression that usually happens in the winter when there's reduced sunlight, but it can happen in the summer, too. While MDD isn't as common in the sunnier months, it's believed that for people with bipolar disorder, manic episodes can peak in the spring and summertime. Moreover, changes in schedule and structure during the day and too much sunlight can throw off people's circadian rhythms and hormone levels, which can lead to anxiety and stress.
Research suggests that people with SAD have problems regulating serotonin, a neurotransmitter responsible for balancing mood. In the winter, your body may produce more SERT, a protein that assists with serotonin transport, but in the summer, sunlight can lead to lower SERT levels, which can cause depression. In addition, remission of SAD symptoms can occur in the spring and summer if light therapy isn't continued through the end of winter. Treatment for MDD-SP includes light therapy, antidepressants or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), and psychotherapy. Doctors also recommend you plan ahead with MDD-SP treatment if you know you're at risk for it by exercising more toward the end of the summer, doing therapy around September, and using a lightbox in October when the days get shorter.
To help you get the treatment you need, here are some common symptoms of MDD-SP you should know.
The link between sleep and depression is complex because a variety of health conditions, such as hypothyroidism, diabetes, and heart disease, can cause someone to oversleep. But for people with MDD-SP, too much sunlight can throw off your melatonin production—the hormone that regulates sleep—so longer days means you might have fewer hours to snooze, which make you feel more tired and oversleep during the day. Oversleeping can, in turn, reduce your sunlight exposure as well and lead to anxiety and depression.
On the other hand, depression can also make it harder for you to fall asleep or stay asleep. Many people with depression have insomnia. A 2019 study from Heliyon suggests that insomnia is associated with anxiety and depression, and that anxiety often acts as a precursor for insomnia.
During the summer, your days might be filled with celebrations and parties, like weddings and graduation parties. These commitments can create a big gap between your own expectations and reality. You might feel stressed or anxious that you're the only one who's not feeling as celebratory or having as much fun as others. This can cause you to have feelings of worthlessness and failure—all common signs of depression.
At the same time, the hustle and bustle of summertime activities can make you feel anxious around many people and crave more alone time. As a result, you might seclude yourself from others in fear of being judged by others. Studies have shown that social withdrawal is an early symptom of MDD-SP.
Be sure to make time for yourself every day and do something that makes you feel relaxed and happy, whether it's lounging by the pool and reading a good book, or cooking a delicious, healthy meal.
Sure, it's normal to feel stressed or overwhelmed if many of your co-workers are out of the office on vacation throughout the summer, but if fatigue has been derailing your efforts to get things done around the house and at work, it might be a sign of MDD-SP. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, having low energy or fatigue, or feeling sluggish or agitated are common symptoms of major depression. Depression can cause decreased energy, as well as problems with memory and concentration.
Do you catch yourself getting irritated over small things that normally don't upset you? The heat can trigger some agitation, but if you find yourself raging or snapping at the most minor problems and can't seem to shake the funk, it could be a red flag for MDD-SP. Check in with your doctor or speak to a therapist if you suspect you need treatment.
With depression, it's common for many people to eat food to mask their sadness and make them feel better. Maybe you've been inhaling ice cream every night or wolfing down potato chips in front of the TV mindlessly. Eating comfort food can raise serotonin levels and make you feel good for that moment, but over time emotional eating can lead to weight gain and having feelings of shame. On the flip side, depression can also zap your appetite and cause you to lose weight.
Depression is completely debilitating, and severe forms of it can drive people to contemplate suicide. In fact, research shows people with depression may experience suicidal ideation and have an increased risk of psychotic symptoms, which can lead to suicidal ideation.
If you've been experiencing suicidal thoughts, speak to a therapist, who can assess your needs and prescribe the right form of therapy for you. Your therapist might recommend psychotherapy, which is a form of therapy that helps you identify and address negative thoughts and behaviors, and find healthy ways to cope with them. | <urn:uuid:cd758947-cbb7-4890-ad5c-89e45ab6f5e1> | CC-MAIN-2020-45 | https://www.prevention.com/health/mental-health/g28233450/seasonal-affective-disorder-summer-symptoms/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-45/segments/1603107904039.84/warc/CC-MAIN-20201029095029-20201029125029-00429.warc.gz | en | 0.968664 | 1,048 | 3.71875 | 4 |
We talk a lot about pollution and how to cut back on emissions, but if you haven’t heard by now, we also have a trash problem – a worldwide trash problem. About 2.01 billion metric tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) are produced annually worldwide, according to The World Bank, and that is projected to increase by 70% by 2050.
In 2018, the United States alone generated 292.4 million tons of waste, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). While a large percentage of that waste was biodegradable, like food, wood, paper, and yard trimmings, 37.7 million tons of it was not. Those numbers are in addition to the billions of pounds of trash and other pollutants that enter our oceans each year, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
While properly disposing of our trash will help keep our oceans, cities, and green spaces clean, it still has to be processed and stored. The World Bank estimates that 1.6 billion tons of carbon dioxide equivalent greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) were generated from the management of solid waste in 2016 – roughly 5% of our global emissions.
It is a number that is estimated to rise year over year as the world’s population continues to grow. Thankfully, there is something we can all do to improve the health of our planet today and in the future. Consume smarter by using eco-friendly products.
“Eco-friendly” simply means “not environmentally harmful.” While no manufactured products can be 100 percent eco-friendly, some products can be more environmentally friendly than others can. Some eco-friendly products help us to use less single-use products – lessening the amount of waste we produce over time – while others are sustainably produced and packaged and have a smaller carbon footprint overall.
If everyone consumed just a little bit smarter, we could make a big impact on the amount of waste (and emissions) we put into the world.
Here are a few tips for incorporating eco-friendly products into your life to reduce your carbon footprint and generate less waste:
Opt for reusable items. If you’ve never tried to live an eco-friendly lifestyle, chances are there are a ton of items you use every day that can easily be swapped out for a reusable version. Start the day off on the right foot with a reusable single-serve coffee pod for your Keurig or Nespresso, or pack your lunch in a reusable sandwich bag in a fun lunch box or make it fancy with a lunch bag. Always be sure to take a few reusable bags with you to the grocery store – the single-use plastic bags they give at most stores cannot be recycled through your home recycling bin.
Buy products with minimal or sustainable packaging. Try swapping your body wash and shampoo bottled in plastic for shampoo and conditioner tablets, or buy your bar soap with paper packaging. There have been a lot of innovations when it comes to packagings, like these laundry detergent sheets that dissolve in water and refillable deodorant inserts for men and women. Nowadays you can even buy toothpaste tablets to avoid the plastic packaging that comes with traditional toothpaste.
Look for eco-friendly certifications. Be careful with items marketed as “eco-friendly”, “sustainable”, or “all-natural”. Oftentimes, these claims are used deceptively and to mislead customers. Look for products bearing third-party logos certifying the credibility of their eco-friendly claims. A few examples are Cradle to Cradle, Ecocert, GREENGUARD, EPA Safer Choice, and B-Corp. | <urn:uuid:99188871-da0d-41f2-b942-f1e3ab0ffc36> | CC-MAIN-2021-39 | https://consumerenergyalliance.org/2021/04/celebrate-earth-day-everyday-eco-friendly-products/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-39/segments/1631780057830.70/warc/CC-MAIN-20210926053229-20210926083229-00442.warc.gz | en | 0.940775 | 761 | 3.3125 | 3 |
Facts Frozen Out: Network News and Global Warming
Table of Contents:
Polls from groups as diverse as Greenpeace and Citizens for a Sound Economy show that most climate scientists are skeptical of claims that the climate change of the 20th century has been a result of greenhouse gas emissions. This is news to network reporters. A study from the MRC's Free Market Project demonstrates that over the past five years reporters have presented a highly distorted picture of the global warming debate. Specifically, researchers found:
1) Thirty-nine of the 48 network evening news stories during the study period simply assumed that science supports global warming theories. Only seven stories mentioned that climate scientists are skeptical of claims that humans are changing the earth's temperature.
2) Of the seven stories which did mention that scientists are skeptical of global warming theories, only two brought up the actual arguments of skeptical scientists. (There were two stories during the study period that neither assumed climate change nor brought up arguments against global warming.)
3) Only two of the 48 stories pointed out that some scientists believe global warming, if it did occur, would be a boon to human health and well-being. The other 46 stories assumed global warming would be disastrous.
4) Only 10 of the 85 soundbite sources reporters interviewed opposed policies aimed at curbing greenhouse gas emissions, while 60 soundbite sources supported such policies. Fifteen sources were neutral.
In order for their stories to be balanced, reporters must present the arguments of the many climate scientists who are skeptical of claims that humans are disastrously warming the planet. So far, such scientists have rarely been heard from on the evening news. | <urn:uuid:f848523e-4499-43ad-bd4f-b29e2309f7db> | CC-MAIN-2014-42 | http://www.mrc.org/special-reports/facts-frozen-out-network-news-and-global-warming | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-42/segments/1413507444493.40/warc/CC-MAIN-20141017005724-00145-ip-10-16-133-185.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942745 | 331 | 2.71875 | 3 |
A NOTE ON SPELLING
THE spelling in this book is consistently inconsistent. It is consistent in so far as, where I have quoted other authors, I have preserved their own spelling of proper names (what else can you do?); this led to the apparent inconsistency that the same person, town or tribe is often spelt differently in different passages. Hence Kazar, Khazar, Chazar, Chozar, Chozr, etc.; but also Ibn Fadlan and ibn-Fadlan; Al Masudi and al-Masudi. As for my own text, I have adopted that particular spelling which seemed to me the least bewildering to English-speaking readers who do not happen to be professional orientalists. .T. E. Lawrence was a brilliant orientalist, but he was as ruthless in his spelling as he was in raiding Turkish garrisons. His brother, A. W. Lawrence, explained in his preface to Seven Pillars of Wisdom:
- The spelling of Arabic names varies greatly in all editions, and I have made no alterations. It should be explained that only three vowels are recognized in Arabic, and that some of the consonants have no equivalents in English. The general practice of orientalists in recent years has been to adopt one of the various sets of conventional signs for the letters and vowel marks of the Arabic alphabet, transliterating Mohamed as Muhammad, muezzin as mu'edhdhin, and Koran as Qur'an or Kur'an. This method is useful to those who know what it means but this book follows the old fashion of writing the best phonetic approximations according to ordinary English spelling.
He then prints a list of publisher's queries re spelling, and T. F. Lawrence's answers; for instance: .Query: "Slip [galley sheet] 20. Nuri, Emir of the Ruwalla, belongs to the 'chief family of the Rualla'. On Slip 23 'Rualla horse', and Slip 38, 'killed one Rueli'. In all later slips 'Rualla'." .Answer: "should have also used Ruwala and Ruala." .Query: "Slip 47. Jedha, the she-camel, was Jedhah on Slip 40." .Answer: "she was a splendid beast." .Query: "Slip 78. Sherif Abd el Mayin of Slip 68 becomes el Main, el Mayein, el Muein, el Mayin, and el Muyein." .Answer: "Good egg. I call this really ingenious." .If such are the difficulties of transcribing modern Arabic, confusion becomes worse confounded when orientalists turn to mediaeval texts, which pose additional problems owing to mutilations by careless copyists. The first English translation of "Ebn Haukal" (or ibn-Hawkal) was published AD 1800 by Sir William Ouseley, Knt. LL.D.*[Ibn Hawkal wrote his book in Arabic, but Ouseley translated it from a Persian translation.] In his preface, Sir William, an eminent orientalist, uttered this touching cri de cour:
- Of the difficulties arising from an irregular combination of letters, the confusion of one word with another, and the total omission, in some lines, of the diacritical points, I should not complain, because habit and persevering attention have enabled me to surmount them in passages of general description, or sentences of common construction; but in the names of persons or of places never before seen or heard of, and which the context could not assist in deciphering, when the diacritical points were omitted, conjecture alone could supply them, or collation with a more perfect manuscript.... .Notwithstanding what I have just said, and although the most learned writers on Hebrew, Arabick, and Persian Literature, have made observations on the same subject, it may perhaps, be necessary to demonstrate, by a particular example, the extraordinary influence of those diacritical points [frequently omitted by copyists]. .One example will suffice - Let us suppose the three letters forming the name Tibbet to be divested of their diacritical points. The first character may be rendered, by the application of one point above, an N; of two points a T, of three points a TH or S; if one point is placed under, it becomes a B - if two points, a Y and if three points, a P. In like manner the second character may be affected, and the third character may be, according to the addition of points, rendered a B, P, T, and TH, or S.*[The original of this quote is enlivened by letters in Persian script, which I have omitted in kindness to the publishers.]
A NOTE ON SOURCES
(A) ANCIENT SOURCES
OUR knowledge of Khazar history is mainly derived from Arab, Byzantine, Russian and Hebrew sources, with corroborative evidence of Persian, Syriac, Armenian, Georgian and Turkish origin. I shall comment only on some of the major sources.
- The early Arabic historians differ from all others in the unique form of their compositions. Each event is related in the words of eye-witnesses or contemporaries, transmitted to the final narrator through a chain of intermediate reporters, each of whom passed on the original report to his successor. Often the same account is given in two or more slightly divergent forms, which have come down through different chains of reporters. Often, too, one event or one important detail is told in several ways on the basis of several contemporary statements transmitted to the final narrator through distinct lines of tradition.... The principle still is that what has been well said once need not be told again in other words. The writer, therefore, keeps as close as he can to the letter of his sources, so that quite a late writer often reproduces the very words of the first narrator....
Thus the two classic authorities in the field, H. A. R. Gibb and M.J. de Goeje, in their joint article on Arab historiography in earlier editions of the Encyclopaedia Britannica.1 It explains the excruciating difficulties in tracing an original source which as often as not is lost - through the successive versions of later historians, compilers and plagiarists. It makes it frequently impossible to put a date on an episode or a description of the state of affairs in a given country; and the uncertainty of dating may range over a whole century in passages where the author gives an account in the present tense without a clear indication that he is quoting some source in the distant past. Add to this the difficulties of identifying persons, tribes and places, owing to the confusion over spelling, plus the vagaries of copyists, and the result is a jigsaw puzzle with half the pieces missing, others of extraneous origin thrown in, and only the bare outlines of the picture discernible. .The principal Arabic accounts of Khazaria, most frequently quoted in these pages, are by Ibn Fadlan, al-Istakhri, Ibn Hawkal and al-Masudi. But only a few of them can be called "primary" sources, such as Ibn Fadlan who speaks from first-hand experience. Ibn Hawkal's account, for instance, written circa 977, is based almost entirely on Istakhri's, written around 932; which in turn is supposed to be based on a lost work by the geographer el-Balkhi, who wrote around 921. .About the lives of these scholars, and the quality of their scholarship we know very little. Ibn Fadlan, the diplomat and astute observer, is the one who stands out most vividly. Nevertheless, as we move along the chain through the tenth century, we can observe successive stages in the evolution of the young science of historiography. El-Balkhi, the first in the chain, marks the beginning of the classical school of Arab Geography, in which the main emphasis is on maps, while the descriptive text is of secondary importance. Istakhri shows a marked improvement with a shift of emphasis from maps to text. (About his life nothing is known; and what survives of his writings is apparently only a synopsis of a larger work.) With Ibn Hawkal (about whom we only know that he was a travelling merchant and missionary) a decisive advance is reached: the text is no longer a commentary on the maps (as in Balkhi, and still partly in Istakhri), but becomes a narrative in its own right. .Lastly with Yakut (1179-1229) we reach, two centuries later, the age of the compilers and encyclopaedists. About him we know at least that he was born in Greece, and sold as a boy on the slave market in Baghdad to a merchant who treated him kindly and used him as a kind of commercial traveller. After his manumission he became an itinerant bookseller and eventually settled in Mossul, where he wrote his great encyclopaedia of geography and history. This important work includes both Istakhri's and Ibn Fadlan's account of the Khazars. But, alas, Yakut mistakenly attributes Istakhri's narrative also to Ibn Fadlan. As the two narratives differ on important points, their attribution to the same author produced various absurdities, with the result that Ibn Fadlan became somewhat discredited in the eyes of modern historians. .But events took a different turn with the discovery of the full text of Ibn Fadlan's report on an ancient manuscript in Meshhed, Persia. The discovery, which created a sensation among orientalists, was made in 1923 by Dr Zeki Validi Togan (about whom more below). It not only confirmed the authenticity of the sections of Ibn Fadlan's report on the Khazars quoted by Yakut, but also contained passages omitted by Yakut which were thus previously unknown. Moreover, after the confusion created by Yakut, Ibn Fadlan and Istakhri/Ibn Hawkal were now recognized as independent sources which mutually corroborated each other. .The same corroborative value attaches to the reports of Ibn Rusta, al-Bekri or Gardezi, which I had little occasion to quote precisely because their contents are essentially similar to the main sources. .Another, apparently independent source was al-Masudi (died circa 956), known as "the Arab Herodotus". He was a restless traveller, of insatiable curiosity, but modern Arab historians seem to take a rather jaundiced view of him. Thus the Encyclopaedia of Islam says that his travels were motivated "by a strong desire for knowledge. But this was superficial and not deep. He never went into original sources but contented himself with superficial enquiries and accepted tales and legends without criticism." .But this could just as well be said of other mediaeval historiographers, Christian or Arab.
Among Byzantine sources, by far the most valuable is Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus's De Adnimistrando Imperio, written about 950. It is important not only because of the information it contains about the Khazars themselves (and particularly about their relationship with the Magyars), but because of the data it provides on the Rus and the people of the northern steppes. Constantine (904-59) the scholar-emperor was a fascinating character - no wonder Arnold Toynbee confessed to have "lost his heart" to him2 - a love-affair with the past that started in his undergraduate days. The eventual result was Toynbee's monumental Constantine Porphyrogenitus and his World, published in 1973, when the author was eighty-four. As the title indicates, the emphasis is as much on Constantine's personality and work as on the conditions of the world in which he - and the Khazars - lived. .Yet Toynbee's admiration for Constantine did not make him overlook the Emperor's limitations as a scholar: "The information assembled in the De Administrando Imperio has been gathered at different dates from different sources, and the product is not a book in which the materials have been digested and co-ordinated by an author; it is a collection of files which have been edited only perfunctorily."3 And later on: "De Administrando Imperio and De Caeromoniis, in the state in which Constantine bequeathed them to posterity, will strike most readers as being in lamentable confusion."4 (Constantine himself was touchingly convinced that De Caeromoniis was a "technical masterpiece" besides being "a monument of exact scholarship and a labour of love"5.) Similar criticisms had been voiced earlier by Bury,6 and by Macartney, trying to sort out Constantine's contradictory statements about the Magyar migrations:."...We shall do well to remember the composition of the De Administrando Imperio - a series of notes from the most various sources, often duplicating one another, often contradicting one another, and tacked together with the roughest of editing."7 .But we must beware of bathwaterism - throwing the baby away with the water, as scholarly critics are sometimes apt to do. Constantine was privileged as no other historian to explore the Imperial archives and to receive first-hand reports from his officials and envoys returning from missions abroad. When handled with caution, and in conjunction with other sources, De Administrando throws much valuable light on that dark period.
Apart from orally transmitted folklore, legends and songs (such as the "Lay of Igor's Host"), the earliest written source in Russian is the Povezt Vremennikh Let, literally "Tale of Bygone Years", variously referred to by different authors as The Russian Primary Chronicle, The Old Russian Chronicle, The Russian Chronicle, Pseudo-Nestor, or The Book of Annals. It is a compilation, made in the first half of the twelfth century, of the edited versions of earlier chronicles dating back to the beginning of the eleventh, but incorporating even earlier traditions and records. It may therefore, as Vernadsky8 says, "contain fragments of authentic information even with regard to the period from the seventh to the tenth century" - a period vital to Khazar history. The principal compiler and editor of the work was probably the learned monk Nestor (b. 1056) in the Monastery of the Crypt in Kiev, though this is a matter of controversy among experts (hence "Pesudo-Nestor"). Questions of authorship apart, the Povezt is an invaluable (though not infallible) guide for the period that it covers. Unfortunately, it stops with the year 1112, just at the beginning of the Khazars' mysterious vanishing act. .The mediaeval Hebrew sources on Khazaria will be discussed in Appendix III.
It would be presumptuous to comment on the modern historians of repute quoted in these pages, such as Toynbee or Bury, Vernadsky, Baron, Macartney, etc. - who have written on some aspect of Khazar history. The following remarks are confmed to those authors whose writings are of central importance to the problem, but who are known only to a specially interested part of the public. .Foremost among these are the late Professor Paul F. Kahle, and his former pupil, Douglas Morton Dunlop, at the time of writing Professor of Middle Eastern History at Columbia University. .Paul Eric Kahle (1875-1965) was one of Europe's leading orientalists and masoretic scholars. He was born in East Prussia, was ordained a Lutheran Minister, and spent six years as a Pastor in Cairo. He subsequently taught at various German universities and in 1923 became Director of the famous Oriental Seminar in the University of Bonn, an international centre of study which attracted orientalists from all over the world. "There can be no doubt", Kahle wrote,9 "that the international character of the Seminar, its staff, its students and its visitors, was the best protection against Nazi influence and enabled us to go on with our work undisturbed during nearly six years of Nazi regime in Germany.... I was for years the only Professor in Germany who had a Jew, a Polish Rabbi, as assistant." .No wonder that, in spite of his impeccable Aryan descent, Kahle was finally forced to emigrate in 1938. He settled in Oxford, where he received two additional doctorates (in philosophy and theology). In 1963 he returned to his beloved Bonn, where he died in 1965. The British Museum catalogue has twenty-seven titles to his credit, among them The Cairo Geniza and Studies of the Dead Sea Scrolls. .Among Kahle's students before the war in Bonn was the young orientalist D. M. Dunlop. .Kahle was deeply interested in Khazar history. When the Belgian historian Professor Henri Grgoire published an article in 1937 questioning the authenticity of the "Khazar Correspondence",10 Kahle took him to task: "I indicated to Grgoire a number of points in which he could not be right, and I had the chance of discussing all the problems with him when he visited me in Bonn in December 1937. We decided to make a great joint publication - but political developments made the plan impracticable. So I proposed to a former Bonn pupil of mine, D. M. Dunlop, that he should take over the work instead. He was a scholar able to deal both with Hebrew and Arabic sources, knew many other languages and had the critical training for so difficult a task."11 The result of this scholarly transaction was Dunlop's The History of the Jewish Khazars,published in 1954 by the Princeton University Press. Apart from being an invaluable sourcebook on Khazar history, it provides new evidence for the authenticity of the Correspondence (see Appendix III), which Kahle fully endorsed.12 Incidentally, Professor Dunlop, born in 1909, is the son of a Scottish divine, and his hobbies are listed in Who's Who as "hill-walking and Scottish history". Thus the two principal apologists of Khazar Judaism in our times were good Protestants with an ecclesiastic, Nordic background. .Another pupil of Kahle's with a totally different background, was Ahmed Zeki Validi Togan, the discoverer of the Meshhed manuscript of Ibn Fadlan's journey around Khazaria. To do justice to this picturesque character, I can do no better than to quote from Kahle's memoirs:13
- Several very prominent Orientals belonged to the staff of the [Bonn] Seminar. Among them I may mention Dr Zeki Validi, a special protégé of Sir Aurel Stein, a Bashkir who had made his studies at Kazan University, and already before the first War had been engaged in research work at the Petersburg Academy. During the War and after he had been active as leader of the Bashkir-Armee [allied to the Bolshevists], which had been largely created by him. He had been a member of the Russian Duma, and had belonged for some time to the Committee of Six, among whom there were Lenin, Stalin and Trotzki. Later he came into conflict with the Bolshevists and escaped to Persia. As an expert on Turkish - Bashkirian being a Turkish language - he became in 1924 adviser to Mustafa Kemal's Ministry of Education in Ankara, and later Professor of Turkish in Stambul University. After seven years, when asked, with the other Professors in Stambul, to teach that all civilisation in the world comes from the Turks, he resigned, went to Vienna and studied Mediaeval History under Professor Dopsch. After two years he got his doctor degree with an excellent thesis on Ibn Fadlan's journey to the Northern Bulgars, Turks and Khazars, the Arabic text of which he had discovered in a MS. in Meshhed. I later published his book in the "Abhandlungen fr die Kunde des Morgenlandes". From Vienna I engaged him as Lecturer and later Honorar Professor for Bonn. He was a real scholar, a man of wide knowledge, always ready to learn, and collaboration with him was very fruitful. In 1938 he went back to Turkey and again became Professor of Turkish in Stambul University.
Yet another impressive figure in a different way, was Hugo Freiherr von Kutschera (1847-1910), one of the early propounders of the theory of the Khazar origin of Eastern Jewry. The son of a high-ranking Austrian civil servant, he was destined to a diplomatic career, and studied at the Oriental Academy in Vienna, where he became an expert linguist, mastering Turkish, Arabic, Persian and other Eastern languages. After serving as an attach at the Austro-Hungarian Embassy in Constantinople, he became in 1882 Director of Administration in Sarajevo of the provinces of Bosnia-Hercegovina, recently occupied by Austro-Hungary. His familiarity with oriental ways of life made him a popular figure among the Muslims of Bosnia and contributed to the (relative) pacification of the province. He was rewarded with the title of Freiherr (Baron) and various other honours. .After his retirement, in 1909, he devoted his days to his lifelong hobby, the connection between European Jewry and the Khazars. Already as a young man he had been struck by the contrast between Sephardi and Ashkenazi Jews in Turkey and in the Balkans; his study of the ancient sources on the history of the Khazars led to a growing conviction that they provided at least a partial answer to the problem. He was an amateur historian (though a quasi-professional linguist), but his erudition was remarkable; there is hardly an Arabic source, known before 1910, missing from his book. Unfortunately he died before he had time to provide the bibliography and references to it; Die Chasaren - Historische Studie was published posthumously in 1910. Although it soon went into a second edition, it is rarely mentioned by historians. .Abraham N. Poliak was born in 1910 in Kiev; he came with his family to Palestine in 1923. He occupied the Chair of Mediaeval Jewish History at Tel Aviv University and is the author of numerous books in Hebrew, among them a History of the Arabs; Feudalism in Egypt 1250-1900; Geopolitics of Israel and the Middle East, etc. His essay on "The Khazar Conversion to Judaism" appeared in 1941 in the Hebrew periodical Zion and led to lively controversies; his book Khazaria even more so. It was published in 1944 in Tel Aviv (in Hebrew) and was received with - perhaps understandable - hostility, as an attempt to undermine the sacred tradition concerning the descent of modern Jewry from the Biblical Tribe. His theory is not mentioned in the Encyclopaedia Judaica 1971-2 printing. .Mathias Mieses, however, whose views on the origin of Eastern Jewry and the Yiddish language I have quoted, is held in high academic esteem. Born 1885 in Galicia, he studied linguistics and became a pioneer of Yiddish philology (though he wrote mostly in German, Polish and Hebrew). He was an outstanding figure at the First Conference on the Yiddish Language, Czernovitz, 1908, and his two books: Die Entstehungsursache der jdischen Dialekte (1924) and Die Jiddische Sprache (1924) are considered as classics in their field. .Mieses spent his last years in Cracow, was deported in 1944 with destination Auschwitz, and died on the journey.
THE "KHAZAR CORRESPONDENCE"
THE exchange of letters between the Spanish statesman Hasdai ibn Shaprut and King Joseph of Khazaria has for a long time fascinated historians. It is true that, as Dunlop wrote, "the importance of the Khazar Correspondence can be exaggerated. By this time it is possible to reconstruct Khazar history in some detail without recourse to the letters of Hasdai and Joseph."1 Nevertheless, the reader may be interested in a brief outline of what is known of the history of these documents. .Hasdai's Letter was apparently written between 954 and 961, for the embassy from Eastern Europe that he mentions (Chapter III,3-4) is believed to have visited Cordoba in 954, and Caliph Abd-al-Rahman, whom he mentions as his sovereign, ruled till 961. That the Letter was actually penned by Hasdai's secretary, Menahem ben-Sharuk - whose name appears in the acrostic after Hasdai's - has been established by Landau,2 through comparison with Menahem's other surviving work. Thus the authenticity of Hasdai's Letter is no longer in dispute, while the evidence concerning Joseph's Reply is necessarily more indirect and complex. .The earliest known mentions of the Correspondence date from the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Around the year 1100 Rabbi Jehudah ben Barzillai of Barcelona wrote in Hebrew his "Book of the Festivals" - Sefer ha-Ittim - which contains a long reference, including direct quotations, to Joseph's Reply to Hasdai. The passage in question in Barzillai's work starts as follows:
- We have seen among some other manuscripts the copy of a letter which King Joseph, son of Aaron, the Khazar priest wrote to R. Hasdai bar Isaac.*[Hasdai's name in Hebrew was bar Isaac bar Shaprut. The R (for Rabbi) is a courtesy title.] We do not know if the letter is genuine or not, and ifit is a fact that the Khazars, who are Turks, became proselytes. It is not definite whether all that is written in the letter is fact and truth or not. There may be falsehoods written in it, or people may have added to it, or there may be error on the part of the scribe.... The reason why we need to write in this our book things which seem to be exaggerated is that we have found in the letter of this king Joseph to R. Hasdai that R. Hasdai had asked him of what family he was, the condition of the king, how his fathers had been gathered under the wings of the Presence [i.e., become converted to Judaism] and how great were his kingdom and dominion. He replied to him on every head, writing all the particulars in the letter.3
Barzillai goes on to quote or paraphrase further passages from Joseph's Reply, thus leaving no doubt that the Reply was already in existence as early as AD 1100. A particularly convincing touch is added by the Rabbi's scholarly scepticism. Living in provincial Barcelona, he evidently knew little or nothing about the Khazars. .About the time when Rabbi Barzillai wrote, the Arab chronicler, Ibn Hawkal, also heard some rumours about Hasdai's involvement with the Khazars. There survives an enigmatic note, which Ibn Hawkal jotted down on a manuscript map, dated AH 479 - AD 1086. It says:
- Hasdai ibn-Ishaq*[Arab version of Hasdai's name.] thinks that this great long mountain [the Caucasus] is connected with the mountains of Armenia and traverses the country of the Greeks, extending to Khazaran and the mountains of Armenia. He was well informed about these parts because he visited them and met their principal kings and leading men.4
It seems most unlikely that Hasdai actually visited Khazaria; but we remember that he offered to do so in his Letter, and that Joseph enthusiastically welcomed the prospect in the Reply; perhaps the industrious Hawkal heard some gossip about the Correspondence and extrapolated from there, a practice not unfamiliar among the chroniclers of the time. .Some fifty years later (AD 1140) Jehudah Halevi wrote his philosophical tract "The Khazars" (Kuzri). As already said, it contains little factual information, but his account of the Khazar conversion to Judaism agrees in broad outlines with that given by Joseph in the Reply. Halevi does not explicitly refer to the Correspondence, but his book is mainly concerned with theology, disregarding any historical or factual references. He had probably read a transcript of the Correspondence as the less erudite Barzillai had before him, but the evidence is inconclusive..It is entirely conclusive, however, in the case of Abraham ben Daud (cf. above, II, 8) whose popular Sefer ha-Kabbalah, written in 1161, contains the following passage:
- You will find congregations of Israel spread abroad from the town of Sala at the extremity of the Maghrib, as far as Tahart at its commencement, the extremity of Africa [Ifriqiyah, Tunis], in all Africa, Egypt, the country of the Sabaeans, Arabia, Babylonia, Elam, Persia, Dedan, the country of the Girgashites which is called Jurjan, Tabaristan, as far as Daylam and the river Itil where live the Khazar peoples who became proselytes. Their king Joseph sent a letter to R. Hasdai, the Prince bar Isaac ben-Shaprut and informed him that he and all his people followed the Rabbanite faith. We have seen in Toledo some of their descendants, pupils of the wise, and they told us that the remnant of them followed the Rabbanite faith.5
The first printed version of the Khazar Correspondence is contained in a Hebrew pamphlet, Kol Mebasser, "Voice of the Messenger of Good News".*[Two copies of the pamphlet belonging to two different editions are preserved in the Bodleian Library.] It was published in Constantinople in or around 1577 by Isaac Abraham Akrish. In his preface Akrish relates that during his travels in Egypt fifteen years earlier he had heard rumours of an independent Jewish kingdom (these rumours probably referred to the Falashas of Abyssinia); and that subsequently he obtained "a letter which was sent to the king of the Khazars, and the king's reply". He then decided to publish this correspondence in order to raise the spirits of his fellow Jews. Whether or not he thought that Khazaria still existed is not clear. At any rate the preface is followed by the text of the two letters, without further comment. .But the Correspondence did not remain buried in Akrish's obscure little pamphlet. Some sixty years after its publication, a copy of it was sent by a friend to Johannes Buxtorf the Younger, a Calvinist scholar of great erudition. Buxtorf was an expert Hebraist, who published a great amount of studies in biblical exegesis and rabbinical literature. When he read Akrish's pamphlet, he was at first as sceptical regarding the authenticity of the Correspondence as Rabbi Barzillai had been five hundred years before him. But in 1660 Buxtorf finally printed the text of both letters in Hebrew and in a Latin translation as an addendum to Jehudah Halevi's book on the Khazars. It was perhaps an obvious, but not a happy idea, for the inclusion, within the same covers, of Halevi's legendary tale hardly predisposed historians to take the Correspondence seriously. It was only in the nineteenth century that their attitude changed, when more became known, from independent sources, about the Khazars.
The only manuscript version which contains both Hasdai's Letter and Joseph's Reply, is in the library of Christ Church in Oxford. According to Dunlop and the Russian expert, Kokovtsov,6 the manuscript "presents a remarkably close similarity to the printed text" and "served directly or indirectly as a source of the printed text".7 It probably dates from the sixteenth century and is believed to have been in the possession of the Dean of Christ Church, John Fell (whom Thomas Brown immortalized with his "I do not love thee, Dr Fell...")..Another manuscript containing Joseph's Reply but not Hasdai's Letter is preserved in the Leningrad Public Library. It is considerably longer than the printed text of Akrish and the Christ Church manuscript; accordingly it is generally known as the Long Version, as distinct from the Akrish-Christ Church "Short Version", which appears to be an abbreviation of it. The Long Version is also considerably older; it probably dates from the thirteenth century, the Short Version from the sixteenth. The Soviet historian Ribakov8 has plausibly suggested that the Long Version - or an even older text - had been edited and compressed by mediaeval Spanish copyists to produce the Short Version of Joseph's Reply. lAt this point we encounter a red herring across the ancient track. The Long Version is part of the so-called "Firkowich Collection" of Hebrew manuscripts and epitaphs in the Leningrad Public Library. It probably came from the Cairo Geniza, where a major part of the manuscripts in the Collection originated. Abraham Firkowich was a colourful nineteenth-century scholar who would deserve an Appendix all to himself. He was a great authority in his field, but he was also a Karaite zealot who wished to prove to the Tsarist government that the Karaites were different from orthodox Jews and should not be discriminated against by Christians. With this laudable purpose in mind, he doctored some of his authentic old manuscripts and epitaphs, by interpolating or adding a few words to give them a Karaite slant. Thus the Long Version, having passed through the hands of Firkowich, was greeted with a certain mistrust when it was found, after his death, in a bundle of other manuscripts in his collection by the Russian historian Harkavy. Harkavy had no illusions about Firkowich's reliability, for he himself had previously denounced some of Firkowich's spurious interpolations.9 Yet Harkavy had no doubts regarding the antiquity of the manuscript; he published it in the original Hebrew in 1879 and also in Russian and German translation,10 accepting it as an early version of Joseph's letter, from which the Short Version was derived. Harkavy's colleague (and rival) Chwolson concurred that the whole document was written by the same hand and that it contained no additions of any kind.11 Lastly, in 1932, the Russian Academy published Paul Kokovtsov's authoritative book, The Hebrew-Khazar Correspondence in the Tenth Century12 including facsimiles of the Long Version of the Reply in the Leningrad Library, the Short Version in Christ Church and in Akrish's pamphlet. After a critical analysis of the three texts, he came to the conclusion that both the Long and the Short Versions are based on the same original text, which is in general, though not always, more faithfully preserved in the Long Version.
Kokovtsov's critical survey, and particularly his publication of the manuscript facsimiles, virtually settled the controversy - which, anyway, affected only the Long Version, but not Hasdai's letter and the Short Version of the Reply. .Yet a voice of dissent was raised from an unexpected quarter. In 1941 Poliak advanced the theory that the Khazar Correspondence was, not exactly a forgery, but a fictional work written in the tenth century with the purpose of spreading information about, or making propaganda for, the Jewish kingdom.13 (It could not have been written later than the eleventh century, for, as we have seen, Rabbi Barzillai read the Correspondence about 1100, and Ibn Daud quoted from it in 1161). But this theory, plausible at first glance, was effectively demolished by Landau and Dunlop. Landau was able to prove that Hasdai's Letter was indeed written by his secretary Menahem ben-Sharuk. And Dunlop pointed out that in the Letter Hasdai asks a number of questions about Khazaria which Joseph fails to answer - which is certainly not the way to write an information pamphlet:
- There is no answer forthcoming on the part of Joseph to enquiries as to his method of procession to his place of worship, and as to whether war abrogates the Sabbath.... There is a marked absence of correspondence between questions of the Letter and answers given in the Reply. This should probably be regarded as an indication that the documents are what they purport to be and not a literary invention.14
Dunlop goes on to ask a pertinent question:
Why the Letter of Hasdai at all, which, though considerably longer than the Reply of Joseph, has very little indeed about the Khazars, if the purpose of writing it and the Reply was, as Poliak supposes, simply to give a popular account of Khazaria? If the Letter is an introduction to the information about the Khazars in the Reply, it is certainly a very curious one - full of facts about Spain and the Umayyads which have nothing to do with Khazaria.15
Dunlop then clinches the argument by a linguistic test which proves conclusively that the Letter and the Reply were written by different people. The proof concerns one of the marked characteristics of Hebrew grammar, the use of the so-called "waw- conversive", to define tense. I shall not attempt to explain this intricate grammatical quirk,*[The interested reader may consult Weingreen, J., A Practical Grammar for Classical Hebrew, 2nd ed, (Oxford, 1959)] and shall instead simply quote Dunlop's tabulation of the different methods used in the Letter and in the Long Version to designate past action:16
Waw Conversive Simple Waw with Imperfect with Perfet Hasdai's Letter 48 14 Reply (Long Version) 1 95
In the Short Version of the Reply, the first method (Hasdai's) is used thirty-seven times, the second fifty times. But the Short Version uses the first method mostly in passages where the wording differs from the Long Version. Dunlop suggests that this is due to later Spanish editors paraphrasing the Long Version. He also points out that Hasdai's Letter, written in Moorish Spain, contains many Arabisms (for instance, al-Khazar for the Khazars), whereas the Reply has none. Lastly, concerning the general tenor of the Correspondence, he says:
- ... Nothing decisive appears to have been alleged anainst the factual contents of the Reply of Joseph in its more original form, the Long Version. The stylistic difference supports its authenticity. It is what might be expected in documents emanating from widely separated parts of the Jewish world, where also the level of culture was by no means the same. It is perhaps allowable here to record the impression, for what it is worth, that in general the language of the Reply is less artificial, more naive, than that of the Letter.17
To sum up, it is difficult to understand why past historians were so reluctant to believe that the Khazar Kagan was capable of dictating a letter, though it was known that he corresponded with the Byzantine Emperor (we remember the seals of three solidi); or that pious Jews in Spain and Egypt should have diligently copied and preserved a message from the only Jewish king since biblical times.
SOME IMPLICATIONS - ISRAEL AND THE DIASPORA
WHILE this book deals with past history, it unavoidably carries certain implications for the present and future. .In the first place, I am aware of the danger that it may be maliciously misinterpreted as a denial of the State of Israel's right to exist. But that right is not based on the hypothetical origins of the Jewish people, nor on the mythological covenant of Abraham with God; it is based on international law - i.e., on the United Nations' decision in 1947 to partition Palestine, once a Turkish province, then a British Mandated Territory, into an Arab and a Jewish State. Whatever the Israeli citizens' racial origins, and whatever illusions they entertain about them, their State exists de jure and de facto, and cannot be undone, except by genocide. Without entering into controversial issues, one may add, as a matter of historical fact, that the partition of Palestine was the result of a century of peaceful Jewish immigration and pioneering effort, which provide the ethical justification for the State's legal existence. Whether the chromosomes of its people contain genes of Khazar or Semitic, Roman or Spanish origin, is irrelevant, and cannot affect Israel's right to exist - nor the moral obligation of any civilized person, Gentile or Jew, to defend that right. Even the geographical origin of the native Israeli's parents or grandparents tends to be forgotten in the bubbling racial melting pot. The problem of the Khazar infusion a thousand years ago, however fascinating, is irrelevant to modern Israel. .The Jews who inhabit it, regardless of their chequered origins, possess the essential requirements of a nation: a country of their own, a common language, government and army. The Jews of the Diaspora have none of these requirements of nationhood. What sets them apart as a special category from the Gentiles amidst whom they live is their declared religion, whether they practise it or not. Here lies the basic difference between Israelis and Jews of the Diaspora. The former have acquired a national identity; the latter are labelled as Jews only by their religion - not by their nationality, not by their race. .This, however, creates a tragic paradox, because the Jewish religion - unlike Christianity, Buddhism or Islam - implies membership of a historical nation, a chosen race. All Jewish festivals commemorate events in national history: the exodus from Egypt, the Maccabean revolt, the death of the oppressor Haman, the destruction of the Temple. The Old Testament is first and foremost the narrative of a nation's history; it gave monotheism to the world, yet its credo is tribal rather than universal. Every prayer and ritual observance proclaims membership of an ancient race, which automatically separates the Jew from the racial and historic past of the people in whose midst he lives. The Jewish faith, as shown by 2000 years of tragic history, is nationally and socially self-segregating. It sets the Jew apart and invites his being set apart. It automatically creates physical and cultural ghettoes. It transformed the Jews of the Diaspora into a pseudo-nation without any of the attributes and privileges of nationhood, held together loosely by a system of traditional beliefs based on racial and historical premisses which turn out to be illusory. .Orthodox Jewry is a vanishing minority. Its stronghold was Eastern Europe where the Nazi fury reached its peak and wiped them almost completely off the face of the earth. Its scattered survivors in the Western world no longer carry much influence, while the bulk of the orthodox communities of North Africa, the Yemen, Syria and Iraq emigrated to Israel. Thus orthodox Judaism in the Diaspora is dying out, and it is the vast majority of enlightened or agnostic Jews who perpetuate the paradox by loyally clinging to their pseudo-national status in the belief that it is their duty to preserve the Jewish tradition. .It is, however, not easy to define what the term "Jewish tradition" signifies in the eyes of this enlightened majority, who reject the Chosen-Race doctrine of orthodoxy. That doctrine apart, the universal messages of the Old Testament - the enthronement of the one and invisible God, the Ten Commandments, the ethos of the Hebrew prophets, the Proverbs and Psalms - have entered into the mainstream of the Judeo-Helenic-Christian tradition and become the common property of Jew and Gentile alike..After the destruction of Jerusalem, the Jews ceased to have a language and secular culture of their own. Hebrew as a vernacular yielded to Aramaic before the beginning of the Christian era; the Jewish scholars and poets in Spain wrote in Arabic, others later in German, Polish, Russian, English and French. Certain Jewish communities developed dialects of their own, such as Yiddish and Ladino, but none of these produced works comparable to the impressive Jewish contribution to German, Austro-Hungarian or American literature. .The main, specifically Jewish literary activity of the Diaspora was theological. Yet Talmud, Kabbala, and the bulky tomes of biblical exegesis are practically unknown to the contemporary Jewish public, although they are, to repeat it once more, the only relics of a specifically Jewish tradition - if that term is to have a concrete meaning - during the last two millennia. In other words, whatever came out of the Diaspora is either not specifically Jewish, or not part of a living tradition. The philosophical, scientific and artistic achievements of individual Jews consist in contributions to the culture of their host nations; they do not represent a common cultural inheritance or autonomous body of traditions. .To sum up, the Jews of our day have no cultural tradition in common, merely certain habits and behaviour-patterns, derived by social inheritance from the traumatic experience of the ghetto, and from a religion which the majority does not practise or believe in, but which nevertheless confers on them a pseudo-national status. Obviously - as I have argued elsewhere1 - the long-term solution of the paradox can only be emigration to Israel or gradual assimilation to their host nations. Before the holocaust, this process was in full swing; and in 1975 Time Magazine reported2 that American Jews "tend to marry outside their faith at a high rate; almost one-third of all marriages are mixed". .Nevertheless the lingering influence of Judaism's racial and historical message, though based on illusion, acts as a powerful emotional break by appealing to tribal loyalty. It is in this context that the part played by the thirteenth tribe in ancestral history becomes relevant to the Jews of the Diaspora. Yet, as already said, it is irrelevant to modern Israel, which has acquired a genuine national identity. It is perhaps symbolic that Abraham Poliak, a professor of history at Tel Aviv University and no doubt an Israeli patriot, made a major contribution to our knowledge of Jewry's Khazar ancestry, undermining the legend of the Chosen Race. It may also be significant that the native Israeli "Sabra" represents, physically and mentally, the complete opposite of the "typical Jew", bred in the ghetto. | <urn:uuid:41f219bb-b80f-4908-99f2-d87b9ebc6325> | CC-MAIN-2017-51 | http://1amendmentcont.blogspot.com/2011/12/appendices_4084.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-51/segments/1512948608836.84/warc/CC-MAIN-20171218044514-20171218070514-00170.warc.gz | en | 0.968065 | 9,681 | 2.6875 | 3 |
The Wedding Procession
The custom of escorting the bride and groom to the Chuppah is an ancient one. Throughout Jewish history, brides and grooms have been compared to kings and queens, who always appear with an entourage. The tradition of attendants continues to this day.
The order of the procession and the number of participants is not fixed by Jewish Law. Some customs have continued over the years, and these may help serve as guides. The family may decide the order of the procession and who stands under the Chuppah. Non-Jews may be part of the wedding procession. Many families provide for a marriage coordinator to aid in facilitating these arrangements.
Since Judaism has always emphasized the important role of parents, it is usual for the couple to be escorted by their parents or to have their parents stand at their side under the Chuppah. At the conclusion of the wedding ceremony, the bride and groom walk down the aisle together, followed in reverse order by those who participated in the processional. | <urn:uuid:96960faf-c0a1-4d09-bffe-34d6e64f0385> | CC-MAIN-2023-14 | https://bridalbasics.ca/wp/2018/11/21/jewish-weddings-the-wedding-procession/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-14/segments/1679296949694.55/warc/CC-MAIN-20230401001704-20230401031704-00091.warc.gz | en | 0.948648 | 205 | 2.71875 | 3 |
I think that the galaxy closest to the Earth, that is, to the Milky Way, is the nebula called Andromeda, which is 2.5 million light years away. Despite this great distance, M31 is visible, and very pretty. Are there any galaxies closer to the Milky Way than the Andromeda galaxy?
At last 80 nearby galaxies are believed to be part of a small cluster called the Local Group.
The three largest members of the Local Group, have their own system of satellite galaxies.
Over 50 galaxies are satellite galaxies of the Milky Way Galaxy and are closer to it than the Andromeda Galaxy is.
The Andromeda Galaxy is actually number 86 in that list of nearest galaxies.
The Small Magellanic Cloud is number 23 and the large Magellanic Cloud is number 19.
The nearest galaxy on the list is the Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy, altough its status as a galaxy is soemewhat disputed.
If the Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy is not actually a galaxy, the next galaxy on the list would become the nearest galaxy. That is Draco II. | <urn:uuid:3b31c13d-2921-4915-abd9-19a5e70a4f57> | CC-MAIN-2024-10 | https://astronomy.stackexchange.com/questions/39879/what-is-the-closest-galaxy | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-10/segments/1707947474573.20/warc/CC-MAIN-20240225003942-20240225033942-00690.warc.gz | en | 0.938422 | 220 | 2.875 | 3 |
New research suggests senescent cells may drive plaque formation in atherosclerosis
Atherosclerosis is one of the world's biggest killers, and is caused by plaque formation in arteries across the body - typically resulting in stroke and heart attack events. We know that cellular senescence causes a range of negative effects throughout a range of tissues as we get older and it's been labelled as one of the major hallmarks of human aging, but could it also be contributing to atherosclerotic plaque formation?
A recap on senescence
Cellular senescence is a unique cellular state in which a cell ceases to divide and adopts a distinctive appearance; spewing out an assortment of molecules called the SASP, which attract immune cells and contribute to rising inflammation with age. Research on animals has shown that eliminating senescent cells improves a number of health biomarkers and increases mouse lifespan by up to 35%. We know that senescence can occur in response to a number of different factors and may even come in an assortment of different types with different behaviours - each type of senescence being distinct. However, broadly speaking the phenomenon happens in response to either replicative exhaustion (the erosion of telomeres to such a short state that the genome becomes unstable), or increased stress and damage exposure.
A new link
A new study has demonstrated that senescent cells contribute to all 3 stages of atherosclerosis progression. When mice with a mutation in the LDL receptor gene were fed with a high fat diet intended to accelerate atherosclerosis onset, they began forming lesions within a number of days. Under closer examination, to their surprise a large percentage of these streaks contained senescent cells. When they then selectively targeted these cells for destruction, the fatty streaks began to disappear.
Preventing immune recruitment
In the 2nd stage of the disease, lesions and fatty streaks recruit circulating immune cells which then initiates the formation of more dangerous plaques. Two specific signalling molecules VCAM1 and MCP1 are known to attract these cells, and when the researchers analysed streak composition they found these signals were predominantly being produced by senescent cells. Eliminating the cells at this stage resulted in fewer and reduced plaques.
Stopping fatal rupture
During the latter stages of atherosclerosis the plaques become vulnerable to fracture, which releases clots into the bloodstream and causes strokes and heart attacks. Senescent cells are known to release factors that break down and remodel surrounding tissue. The scientists discovered that these cells were promoting plaque maturation and rupture by dissolving the connective material holding the mass together. Furthermore, when the team again treated these with a senescent cell busting approach they inhibited further expansion and stabilised existing plaques.
"Our research shows that these cells are present throughout plaque development. We find that at the earliest stages of disease, senescent cells propel plaque enlargement through the secretion of factors that attract circulating monocytes to the plaque. At advanced disease stages, senescent cells produce enzymes that dissolve the fibrous cap that overlays the plaque to give it stability, thereby promoting plaque rupture, coagulation of platelets at the site of rupture, full arterial occlusion and myocardial infarction. We show that drugs that eliminate senescent cells (referred to senolytics) inhibit plaque expansion and preserve the cap, giving plaques long-term stability"
A bigger picture
While senescent cells do appear to have evolved as an anti-cancer response in part, they also play a role in wound healing. This study indicates their role is detrimental in the case of atherosclerosis and ties in well to the known hallmarks of aging which many scientists believe are the dominant factors driving age-related disease. While the research is again on mice alone, it is further evidence that tackling these hallmarks is likely to yield wide-ranging health benefits in multiple tissues.
Read more at MedicalXpress | <urn:uuid:65641344-1b8f-473c-8b7f-8ac159baed2a> | CC-MAIN-2019-35 | http://longevityreporter.org/blog/2016/10/28/senescent-cells-linked-to-atherosclerosis | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-35/segments/1566027318952.90/warc/CC-MAIN-20190823172507-20190823194507-00325.warc.gz | en | 0.954541 | 794 | 3.4375 | 3 |
There is evidence that the word translated mammon in the New Testament was the name of a pagan god and means much more than just “money.” In John Gill’s Exposition of the Bible he wrote:
The word “mammon” is a Syriac word, and signifies money, wealth, riches, substance, and everything that comes under the name of worldly goods.
In Wikipedia under the word Mammon we read:
The spelling μαμμωνᾷ refers to “a Syrian deity, god of riches; Hence riches, wealth”
Susanne Schuberth had a great observation of how mammon works in her comment on her latest blog.
“As soon as [church] tradition comes in and money is needed for the building, [also] money for those clerical ‘workers’ who believe they need to be paid (as ‘god’ speaks and acts through them), then the Holy Spirit withdraws. Thus [due to His absence] God makes room for other spirits to take over.” (1)
Jesus saw the seductive power of this mammon spirit warning:
No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. (Matt 6:24, KJ2000)
Adam Clarke wrote about this verse in his commentary saying,
Our blessed Lord shows here the utter impossibility of loving the world and loving God at the same time; or, in other words, that a man of the world cannot be a truly religious character. He who gives his heart to the world robs God of it, and, in snatching at the shadow of earthly good, loses substantial and eternal blessedness. How dangerous is it to set our hearts upon riches, seeing it is so easy to make them our God!
Ever since “church growth” became the new focus, the god of Mammon has always trumped the Holy Spirit in today’s worldly churches.
There was no such thing as a “church building” for the followers of Christ to meet in for the first 290 years of Church history (The pagan Emperor Constantine took control of the church in about 311 AD and changed it into worldly organization. He made Christianity the official bureau of religion in the Roman Empire and appointed his own bishops over it). The early saints knew that the true temple of God was not made of bricks and mortar or wood, but rather it was one made from living stones.
So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. (Eph 2:19-22, ESV2011)
Those who trusted in Christ alone met in homes or underground because of persecution so the only “offerings” that were taken up were for the poor and needy among them. There were no “paid Christians,” and no salaried professionals, either. The apostle Paul made that the norm in his teachings.
Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. (Phil 3:17-20, ESV2011)
Jesus was so taken by the need for money to support “His ministry” that He put a known thief in charge of the communal purse. When money was demanded of them to pay the temple tax, He sent Peter to catch a fish with which God miraculously provided a coin in its mouth!
According to Paul, we are NOT to keep our eyes on those who do not follow his example, supporting himself by manual labor. But what we have today are churches with people who can’t wait to get a position on the paid staff. THAT is their only example of what “church leadership” does. How sick! Paul calls the paid professional Christians, “enemies of the cross” whose minds are set on earthly things, and not on their citizenship in heaven.
And again he wrote:
Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate. For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies. Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living. (2Thess 3:6-12, ESV2011- emphasis added)
To the present hour we hunger and thirst, we are poorly dressed and buffeted and homeless, and we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; (1Cor 4:11-12, ESV2011- emphasis added)
The early church leadership suffered much. Church leadership was not a “profession” that worldly men sought after as it is today. They often went without, laboring with their own hands as they provided for themselves, and they did not mooch off other believers. Paul not only supported himself, as an example to all, but he often supported others who were in need among them (see Acts 20:34-35). He had no lust for the things of this world! “The ministry” in churches today is a paid profession just like any other worldly profession. You get a college degree, apply for work in a corporation and settle in, looking for ways to climb higher in the organization (or build up your own organization) as you keep the wheels of the machine turning and the money coming in. If you rise high enough, you get paid vacations, medical benefits, a company car, a corporate jet and even a good retirement.
We have friends who attended one of the local mega-churches here in town while they were barely making it on his wages and she is medically disabled and can’t work. She got very sick for a few weeks and nobody from that church called, came to visit or even cared, even though she was the chairman of a church “ministry.” The final straw for them as members of that church was a collection the officials took up so the pastor could have a bigger and better boat than the expensive one he already had (one that our friends could never dream of owning). They have not attended a church since. A sad thing these days is how many people there are outside the church because they rightfully have observed, “All those people want is your money!”
It is very obvious here in America, at least (and everywhere in the world that the American gospel has been preached), that the example of church leadership is not a heavenly one, but very worldly. The churches here are operated like any other corporation with salaries, perks and bonuses for building ever bigger church buildings and a larger human mechanized force with bigger programs to go with it. It seems that for the most part Paul’s warning to the elders of the Ephesian church has gone unheeded.
“I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish every one with tears.” (Acts 20:29-31, ESV2011)
Paul shed tears over what he saw coming on the church, men speaking perverse things to draw away disciples after themselves. Whatever happened to men and women, who led by a godly example with the Spirit of Christ, and were driven by a passion to make disciples connected to Him instead of to themselves?
Father, please break through the fog over Christian minds and give them the mind of Christ in all things. Amen. | <urn:uuid:9320ae26-bf11-4483-a0ab-3544ab112808> | CC-MAIN-2021-43 | https://awildernessvoice.blog/2019/02/02/what-does-spiritual-church-leadership-look-like/?like_comment=7257&_wpnonce=551d55102c | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-43/segments/1634323587719.64/warc/CC-MAIN-20211025154225-20211025184225-00003.warc.gz | en | 0.982241 | 1,880 | 2.59375 | 3 |
This week a reminder that citizens wield powerful rights
Transparent government is not an oxymoron. The importance of transparency in government is simple. In a government “of the people, by the people, and for the people”, it is the responsibility of the people to hold government accountable. For “we the people” to do our job, we have to know exactly what the government is doing. As citizens, we have the rights to enable us to do just that.
Sunshine Week serves as a reminder that we, citizens, wield powerful rights authorizing each of us to proactively require open and transparent government. The Constitutional amendment adopted by Floridians in 1992 was intended to preserve and strengthen those rights by making them an inherent component of our democracy.
The “Sunshine Laws” were specifically adopted to protect citizens against the “back room politics” that occurs when government officials attempt to keep secrets that support special interests. Courts have held these rights sacrosanct, stating that the “mere showing that the government in the sunshine law has been violated constitutes an irreparable public injury.”
The Sunshine Law requires that all government business be discussed in publicly noticed meetings. The overarching purpose of the law is to guarantee the right of citizens to hear their elected representatives debate issues of public interest and to provide a platform to praise, rebuke or challenge elected officials by voicing their own opinions in a public meeting. Decisions that officials make outside of the sunshine can be invalidated.
The Public Records Law empowers each citizen to access virtually all government documents and includes the right to demand emails sent to or by our public officials as well as other records related to the operation of our government.
When we delegate authority to politicians to represent us or when we fund public agencies, we are entitled to demand strict compliance with the laws that dictate the responsibility to keep government open and transparent. While we would all agree that there are permissible “secrets” at the highest levels in Washington, there simply should be no secrets in our cites, counties or public agencies, except for limited privacy issues.
Most governments and agencies have public records procedures and employees trained to provide helpful assistance. Citizens can make the request and pay a few dollars for the documents. There is the occasional agency that loses or ignores a request, or asks for the reason for the request or even the name of the person making the request.
In Florida, no reason or identification need be provided. If the agency fails to comply with either the Sunshine or Public Records Law, a citizen can file suit to enforce the request or the Sunshine law violation. If the court determines either of those rights was violated, the citizen is entitled to be reimbursed for legal fees and costs.
Every year, thousands of public records requests are made, some under state laws, some under the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Not every request uncovers a secret, but they are all important seeds sown throughout government that help cultivate and nurture our democracy.
While not as well known as the First Amendment, our constitutional rights to open government are as precious and as powerful as our the right to free speech. In their operation, they give each of us the right to observe and plumb the very depths of our government. All we have to do is ask.
For more information, see the First Amendment Foundation’s website at floridafaf.org or take a look at Chapter 119 Florida Statutes for the Public Records Law or § 286.011 Florida Statutes for the Sunshine Law. | <urn:uuid:497c58cf-5b7f-4bb6-89ed-677fb2913b44> | CC-MAIN-2021-21 | https://www.tallahassee.com/story/opinion/columnists/2014/03/21/this-week-a-reminder-that-citizens-wield-powerful-rights/6673419/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-21/segments/1620243988923.22/warc/CC-MAIN-20210508181551-20210508211551-00310.warc.gz | en | 0.954492 | 727 | 3.046875 | 3 |
- Caused by an imbalance of signals from the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) to the muscles
- A stroke or brain injury can lead to insufficient oxygen supply to the brain, leading to damage to the nerves that travel from the brain to the arm. The brain sends incorrect messages through the nerves that travel to the arm. As a result, the incorrect nerve signals to the muscles causing excitability of the muscle. This causes the muscle to contract continuously.
- Triggers that increase spasticity: full bladder, constipation, extreme temperatures, fatigue, infection, poor posture, pressure sore, stress.
Continuous contraction of certain muscles due to damage caused to the parts of brain or spinal cord controlling voluntary movements.
- Inhibition of longitudinal muscle growth
- Inhibition of protein synthesis in muscle cell
- Muscle fatigue
- Muscle spasms
- Unusual posture
- Involuntary jerks movements
- Joint stiffness
- Muscle tightness
Slow, prolonged stretching of the arm is used to reduce spasticity.
Weight bearing reduces spasticity of the tight muscles of the arm while also promoting a muscle contraction of the weak muscles of the arm.
Supporting, positioning, and aligning the body is useful to minimize or prevent pain and stiffness that are commonly present due to spasticity.
Warming the arm for 10-20 minutes is a sufficient period to produce a temporary effect of reducing spasticity. The application may be by wrapping body part with towels, hot packs, tepid baths and air splints.
Icing immersion of the hand produces a temporary effect in reducing spasticity (proceed with caution)
Deep tendon pressure
Orthotics (splints) to lengthen shortened muscles and tendons that result from spasticity.
Baclofen: Baclofen is a muscle relaxer that acts on the central nervous system to relax muscles. Baclofen decreases stretch reflexes, the rate of muscle spasms and clonus, pain, tightness, and improves range of motion. Side effects can include sedation, dizziness, muscle weakness, urinary frequency, drowsiness, confusion, nausea, seizures, constipation, dyspnea, impaired vision, fatigue, and edema.
Tizanidine (Zanaflex): Tizanidine is a short-acting muscle relaxer. It works by blocking nerve impulses (pain sensations) that are sent to your brain. Tizanidine is used to treat spasticity by temporarily relaxing muscle tone. Side effects drowsiness, dizziness, weakness, feeling nervous, blurred vision, dry mouth, abnormal liver function tests, runny nose, urination problems, vomiting.
Gabapentin (Neurontin): Used to treat pain due to spasticity. Side effects include drowsiness, loss of coordination, dizziness.
Pregabalin Lyrica: Similar to gabapentin, pregabalin was developed as a treatment for epileptic seizures, but it has evolved to include other indications, such as neuropathic pain.
Diazepam has been shown to cause muscle relaxation, which has led to their use in reducing the increased tone associated with spasticity.
Cannabis: There has been anecdotal evidence that cannabis can reduce spasticity in persons with spinal cord injury, as well as a growing body of work that has examined this class of drug in managing spasticity in persons with multiple sclerosis.
Intrathecal Baclofen Therapy is a pump that is surgically implanted and releases Baclofen into the spinal cord. Patients who benefit from the effects of oral Baclofen but cannot tolerate the side effects may benefit from intrathecal Baclofen.
Side effects are usually minimal because the drug is delivered directly to the intended site rather than circulating through the body. Complications can occur related to the pump and may include infection, catheter dislocation or kinking, impaired wound healing, and pump malfunction. Possible side effects can include headaches, nausea, vomiting, excessive weakness, and transient urinary retention.
Botulinum toxin (Botox, Myobloc, & Dysport) is injected into the muscle and temporarily stops the connection between nerves and muscles, causing spasms to stop. The effects usually occur within 24 to 72 hours with maximum effect seen in about 2 weeks. The effects last from about 12 to 16 weeks.
Adverse reactions can include nausea, fatigue, muscle weakness and limb pain.
Myobloc is used to treat severe spasms in the neck muscles.
Dysport and Botox are essentially the same drug, but Dysport produces quicker results. Both last for the same amount of time.
A Phenol injection can also provide relief from spasticity. Phenol destroys the nerve pathways to the involved muscle group, blocking nerve impulses to the muscle. The relief can last from several weeks to 6 months or more. Side effects can include pain and burning/tingling and swelling of the injected area.
Surgical tendon lengthening is considered when the wrist or fingers cannot be passively extended or opened fully.
Test your own level of spasticity:
This is an adapted version of the Modified Ashworth Scale, a common test used by medical professionals to test the amount of resistance a spastic muscle produces when it is stretched.
Step 1: In a seated position, place your affected arm on a table in front of you.
Step 2: Passively bend your affected elbow with your unaffected arm.
Step 3: Quickly straighten your affected elbow with your unaffected arm within 1 second.
Step 4: Repeat bending and straightening your affected elbow 2 more times, 1 second each.
0 = No increase in tone (you do not feel resistance when you try to straighten your affected elbow).
1 = Slight increase in tone (you feel a little resistance when you straighten your affected elbow, but only at the end of the stretch).
1+ = Slight increase in tone (when you passively straighten your elbow, you feel a "catch" about halfway, followed by a little resistance throughout the remainder of the stretch.
2 = You feel resistance throughout the entire movement (from being fully bent to being fully straightened).
3 = You feel a lot of resistance, It is very difficult to stretch your elbow from a bent to a straightened position due to the amount of resistance.
4 = You can't passively bend or straighten your elbow at all, it is rigid in a bent position.
Page last updated: 1/19/2021 | <urn:uuid:18297fae-e2c0-49cf-81c1-a502e3e0a726> | CC-MAIN-2021-31 | https://www.strokeot.org/spasticity-sub-page/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-31/segments/1627046154796.71/warc/CC-MAIN-20210804045226-20210804075226-00522.warc.gz | en | 0.926659 | 1,361 | 3.265625 | 3 |
Essays about chinese literature
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Essays about chinese literature
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Chinese literature the history of chinese literature 1 shang dynasty (about 1700-1050 bc) development of chinese writing historical record and. Get this from a library chinese literature, essays, articles, reviews = chung-kuo wen hsüeh. Youtube english essay writing journals persuasive essay graphic organizer doc numbers outline format 3 paragraph essay be, international high school essay contest. Chinese cultural studies: chinese literature: compiled from from compton's living encyclopedia on america online (august 1995) 1 an essay on literature. Free and custom essays at essaypediacom take a look at written paper - chinese literature. | <urn:uuid:4234e7af-a82d-426f-9e0d-d3785e85fd44> | CC-MAIN-2018-05 | http://cpcourseworkoyfc.sgoods4.me/essays-about-chinese-literature.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-05/segments/1516084886739.5/warc/CC-MAIN-20180116204303-20180116224303-00526.warc.gz | en | 0.889895 | 789 | 2.578125 | 3 |
San Francisco‘s Exploratorium has long been a popular destination for children as well as adults to learn about science and the broader world through hands-on exhibits. I’ve been there on many trips growing up in San Francisco.
Now the Exploratorium is releasing its second free educational iPad app, called Sound Uncovered. The app provides 12 different experiences, or chapters in the app, that include audio illusions and experiments.
The idea is to bring the same type of educational experience that visitors would get at the museum but in an app. It’s part of the museum’s broader mission, which includes teacher development training, digital learning tools and various other projects. “The tablet allows you to create experiences in different mediums that are very powerful,” says Rob Semper, Executive Associate Director at the Exploratorium. “Our staff scientists, artists, educators–we talk about creating experiences similar to our exhibits or the ideas used in the teaching.”
The experiments in the app include “Find the Highest Note,” a mind-bender in which you try to figure out which note in a circle of musical keys is the highest note. Another chapter plays with what you see versus what you hear and how they differ, while another tests how “old” your ears are. The overall effect of the app is to surprise you and make you reconsider some basic assumptions about one of your basic senses. The app can be used with formal educational classes but is really designed for anyone interested in science to learn.
The Exploratorium’s first app, Color Uncovered, which covered similar ground but for visual senses, had more than one million downloads.
Unlike most apps you’d find on the App Store, the goal of the Exploratorium’s apps is to educate people. They don’t have to sell the apps or sell virtual goods or ads on them. (As an aside, it’s refreshing to play with an app without ads and other distractions constantly popping up.) Of course, the success of the app helps generate more funding from foundations and others.
Founded in 1969, the Exploratorium is preparing for its opening in its massive new digs at Pier 15 on San Francisco Bay. While the institution is moving more into apps, it’s known for its other offline exhibits in the “real world.” The Exploratorium’s science exhibits are used widely: 2,500 of it sexhibits are used in museums and science centers worldwide. | <urn:uuid:67e35647-2c60-46fb-b523-2d6a9a711016> | CC-MAIN-2014-41 | http://www.forbes.com/sites/tomiogeron/2013/02/12/exploratoriums-ipad-app-uncovers-the-secrets-of-sound/?ss=future-tech | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-41/segments/1410657137190.70/warc/CC-MAIN-20140914011217-00082-ip-10-234-18-248.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958949 | 525 | 2.734375 | 3 |
Since the dawn of the space age, unmanned spacecraft have flown blind, with little to no ability to make autonomous decisions based on their environment. That, however, changed in the early 2000s, when NASA started working on leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI) and laying the foundation that would help Astronauts and Astronomers to work more efficiency in Space. In fact, just last month, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory published how AI will govern the behavior of space probes.
Recent advancements in Artificial Intelligence, especially Deep Learning (a subfield in AI), are set to make a deeper impact in the field of astronomy and astrophysics. From navigating the unknown terrain of Mars, to analyzing petabytes of data generated from Square Kilometer Array, to finding Earth-like planets in our messy galaxy, AI is already revolutionizing our lives here on earth by building smarter and more autonomous cars, helping us find solutions to climate change, revolutionizing healthcare and much more. Mellanox is proud to be working closely with the leading companies and research organizations to make advancements in the field of Artificial Intelligence and Astronomy.
AI: The Next Industrial Revolution
Coined in 1956 by Dartmouth Assistant Professor John McCarthy, AI existed before the “Race to Space” but could only deliver rudimentary displays of intelligence in specific context. Progress was limited due to the complexities of algorithms needed to tackle various real-world issues. Many were above the ability of a mere human to execute. This however, changed in the past decade mainly due to two reasons:
- Storing Unstructured Data More Efficiently: Around 90 percent of data generated today are unstructured, including free-form documents, images, audio and video recordings. Traditionally, it hasn’t been possible for computers to efficiently store and process these data. However, the advancements in Hadoop and NoSQL databases, in concert with the underlying storage technologies (Software-Defined Storage, Object Storage, etc.), have enabled storing and processing petabytes of unstructured data in a far more cost effective way.
- Processing Data Faster: It takes massive amount of computing resource to train a sophisticated AI model – training that can take weeks to months. The advancements in the underlying hardware, including faster compute (GPUs, FPGAs etc.), faster storage (SSDs/NVMe, NVMe-over-Fabrics, etc.) and faster networks at speeds of up to 100Gb/s, has helped reduce the training time to just a week. Further, using Remote Direct Memory Access (RDMA), an industry networking standard that Mellanox has pioneered, helps to reduce days and to mere hours. (All popular AI frameworks such as Tensorflow, Caffe, Torch and Microsoft CTNK all support RDMA).
Due to this, AI now presents one of the most exciting and potentially transformative opportunities for the mankind. In fact, in some quarters it is being heralded as the next industrial revolution:
“The last 10 years have been about building a world that is mobile-first. In the next 10 years, we will shift to a world that is AI-first.” — Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, October 2016
AI for the Messy Galaxy
While humanity has made great strides in exploring the observable universe, we need to rely on intelligent robots to explore where we cannot humanly go. This is because our galaxy, the Milky Way, is one messy place, filled with cosmic dust from stars, comets, and more; concealing the very things scientists want to study. That said, there are three major challenges in leveraging AI in the future of space exploration. Firstly, the probes will have to be able to learn about and adapt to unknown environments including responding to thick layers of gas in a planet’s atmosphere, extreme temperatures or unplanned for fluctuations in gravity. Secondly, when a probe falls outside the communication range, would have to figure out when and how to return the data collected during the time the signal was lost. Finally, given the vast distances in space, it could take several generations before the probe reaches its destination and therefore, will need to be flexible enough to adapt to any new discoveries and innovations we make here on earth. The solution to these problems will require training AI models on petabytes of data captured using supercomputers.
The benefits of using AI to control space-exploring robots are already being realized by missions that are currently underway. For example, Opportunity, the Mars Exploration Rover, which was launched back in 2003, has an AI driving system called Autonav that allows it to explore the surface of Mars. In addition, Autonomous Exploration for Gathering Increased Science (AEGIS) has been used by the NASA Mars rover, Curiosity, since May in order to select which aspects of Mars are particularly interesting and subsequently take photos of.
But Mars is by no means the final destination and the exploration of more challenging destinations will require even more advanced AI. For example, exploring the subsurface ocean of the Jovian moon Europa in the hope of finding alien life, will require bypassing a thick (~10km) ice crust. Controlling this exploration would be severely limited without advanced autonomy.
Artificial Intelligence Needs Intelligent Network
Since the early age of Mellanox, we have been working closely with NASA and many research labs to help solve the challenges of scientific computing, whether it’s the aerodynamic simulation of the Jet Propulsion Engine or monitoring the universe in unprecedented detail. In addition, over the last few years, Mellanox has also enabled the pioneers in the field of AI including Baidu for their advancements in autonomous cars and Yahoo for image recognition. The applications of autonomous driving and object recognition go far beyond the limits of Earth and Mellanox is proud to be working closely with several research organizations and companies and helping them achieve technological breakthroughs in the field of astronomy and astrophysics.
Exactly 48 years ago, Neil Armstrong said “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”, when he became the first human to set the foot on the surface of the moon. The next giant leap for mankind will come from the small step of a robot, powered by AI and Mellanox. | <urn:uuid:37c87d2e-6562-4d81-9fe1-803d499a1a9c> | CC-MAIN-2017-39 | http://www.mellanox.com/blog/author/ramnathsagar/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-39/segments/1505818689615.28/warc/CC-MAIN-20170923085617-20170923105617-00013.warc.gz | en | 0.939699 | 1,276 | 3.703125 | 4 |
Evidence of Volcanic Activity on Mercury
This region on Mercury appears to have experienced a high level of volcanic activity. The bright yellow area near the top right is centered on a rimless depression that is a possible site for an explosive volcanic vent. The double-ring basin near the bottom center of the image has a smooth interior that may be the result of effusive volcanism. (Effusive volcanism is when lava pours out over the land instead of being thrown into the air.) Smooth plains, thought to be a result of earlier episodes of volcanic activity, cover much of the surrounding area.
Special techniques were used to create this image so the geology and composition of the area could be more easily studied. The images, taken on Sept. 29, 2009, are part of NASA's MESSENGER mission.
Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington | <urn:uuid:2413002b-d365-4156-a9bd-9a658f3455f9> | CC-MAIN-2015-22 | http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/education/spaceimages/index.cfm?category=3&image=38 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-22/segments/1432207928030.83/warc/CC-MAIN-20150521113208-00043-ip-10-180-206-219.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.924771 | 187 | 3.921875 | 4 |
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More Great Links
- Haiken, Melanie. "Can this carbon sink swim?" Mother Jones. March/April 2008. Vol. 33, Issue 2. (March 18, 2008)
- Liss, Peter et al. "Ocean fertilization with iron: effects on climate and air quality." Tellus. Nov. 18, 2004. (March 18, 2008) http://www.cababstractsplus.org/google/abstract.asp?AcNo=20053110962
- Schiermeier, Quirin. "Fertilizing the sea could combat global warming." Nature News. April 22, 2004. (March 18, 2008) http://www.bioedonline.org/news/news.cfm?art=921
- Wingenter, Oliver. "Slowing Global Warming by Enhancing the Natural Sulfur Cycle." PR Web. July 24, 2007. (March 18, 2008) http://climos.com/news/articles/slowingglobal.htm
- Wright, Karen. "Watery Grave." Discover. Vol. 24, Issue 10. Oct. 1, 2003. (March 18, 2008) http://discovermagazine.com/2003/oct/featocean
- World Wildlife Fund. "World Wildlife Fund Warns Against Iron Dumping Experiment near the Galapagos Islands." June 27, 2007. (March 18, 2008)http://www.worldwildlife.org/news/displayPR.cfm?prID=411 | <urn:uuid:7899b91a-d679-4b37-8f23-23e0137cbcf5> | CC-MAIN-2018-17 | https://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/green-science/iron-sulfate-slow-global-warming2.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-17/segments/1524125949489.63/warc/CC-MAIN-20180427060505-20180427080505-00516.warc.gz | en | 0.783097 | 416 | 2.78125 | 3 |
Artists can create both simple pictures and elaborate masterpieces on the computer by using digital art software. Many different types of digital art programs exist, each tending to favor a particular artistic leaning by including functions that would be better for some art projects than for others. Illustrating, or vector art, is useful for lines and curves, while bitmap and raster programs are best for adding elaborate effects. Painting digital art software works to emulate real paint strokes, and three-dimensional (3D) art programs make models. Some programs blend the features of several types to help the digital artist create a wider variety of projects with a single program.
One type of digital art software that is sometimes called an image editor or bitmap program is generally known as raster software. A raster program is one that saves every bit of information in each shape and layer of the art project, making the image more memory-heavy, but also allowing the use of effects. These programs are based on pixels, so they can turn out pixilated if printed at an expanded size. The advantage this program offers is that many layer effects can be used, and there are typically many features that allow the artist to warp shapes to look textured, glassy or metallic.
Illustration software is usually considered the opposite of raster software, because this digital art software only saves the dots, lines and color of the image. Each individual pixel is not saved, so the image takes up less memory, there will be no blurriness from printing at expanded sizes, and the pictures themselves tend to look cleaner. The disadvantage of illustration software is that it can only include line and color information, so the ornate effects that are possible with raster programs are impossible in this arena.
Painting digital art software is for those who want to mimic real paint strokes. There are digital paintbrushes that create the appearance of oil paint, water paint, dry paint and many other paint types and techniques. There often is the ability to control drying and wind direction, to help the picture look more realistic. While very similar to actual painting, artists new to the world of digital art may find it difficult to work with all the different tools and features.
With 3D digital art software, artists are able to make 3D models, usually from a wireframe or an image reference. By taking shapes and manipulating them, artists will be able to create 3D scenes with characters, environments and architecture. This is more technical than other art programs, and the models have a tendency to look blocky when created by an amateur or novice. | <urn:uuid:3a14ad50-0228-4ddc-ad43-1a7ed72789eb> | CC-MAIN-2022-27 | https://www.easytechjunkie.com/what-are-the-different-types-of-digital-art-software.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-27/segments/1656103271864.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20220626192142-20220626222142-00514.warc.gz | en | 0.949736 | 523 | 3.296875 | 3 |
The Premier Site for Russian Culture
On 1 June 1844, Tsar Nicholas I paid a surprise visit to London. Although advanced in her seventh month of pregnancy, Queen Victoria did all she could to welcome the Russian emperor. Nicholas visited Windsor Castle, stayed in Buckingham Palace and accompanied Victoria to Ascot.
Two months later, on 6 August 1844, Queen Victoria gave birth to her fourth child and second son – Alfred Ernest Albert. Prince Alfred grew up as a shy and handsome young man, interested in the navy and everything to do with the sea.
Maria was the first Russian princess to be raised by English nannies and to speak fluent English. She was also the first, and only, member of her family to marry into the British royal family.
Growing up, both children had narrow escapes from death. At the age of five, Alfred suffered concussion after sliding down a banister in Buckingham Palace. Maria almost died from a throat disease at the age of seven. In 1868, Alfred survived an assassination attempt when he was shot by an Irish nationalist in Australia.
In summer 1871, Alexander II and his wife paid a visit to relatives at Jugenheim in Germany. They were accompanied by seventeen-year-old Maria and her two elder brothers. Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, also happened to be there, along with the Prince and Princess of Wales.
Although Alfred and Maria had met before at Jugenheim, something happened that summer and they fell in love. They spent their days walking and talking, and soon found that they had a common love of music. Alfred was an enthusiastic amateur violinist, while Maria played the piano.
Although they confessed their love to one another, no engagement was announced, and the Duke of Edinburgh returned to England. The reason was that both parents were against the match.
Alexander II did not want to lose his daughter, to whom he was deeply attached. The Tsar also objected to a British son-in-law, due to the general anti-English feeling in Russia following the Crimean War. His wife regarded the British customs as peculiar and the English people as cold and unfriendly. She was convinced that her daughter would not be happy there.
Queen Victoria had her own reasons for being against the match. No English prince had ever married a Romanov, and she foresaw problems with the Orthodox religion and the Russian upbringing. The Queen had visions of Orthodox priests running in and out of her son’s home. She thought that the Romanovs were “false, arrogant and half-Oriental,” and that Russia was generally “unfriendly” towards Britain. Victoria was also suspicious about Russian moves in the direction of India.
The Queen was dismayed, therefore, when she heard that official negotiations had begun in January 1873. There were rumours going about St Petersburg that Maria had compromised herself with Prince Golitsyn, if not others, and her family were anxious to see her settled.
The truth was that just as Alexander II had been prepared to fight to marry the person he loved, so was his daughter. Maria declared that she loved Alfred and would not marry anyone else.
Alfred was equally determined to marry Maria. Queen Victoria therefore swallowed her pride and said nothing. Both mothers continued to look for other partners for their children, but Alfred and Maria would not have anyone else.
The British cabinet began to like the idea of a Russian-British marriage. That year, an Anglo-Russian dispute had arisen over the Afghan border. The Queen’s ministers thought that a marriage might help to ease the tension between the two countries, if only by putting the monarchs into closer contact with one another.
In July 1873, Alfred went to Jugenheim to meet the Russian Emperor. He sent a telegram from Germany back to his mother: “Maria and I were engaged this morning. Cannot say how happy I am. Hope your blessing rests on us.”
The Tsar and his wife also sent a telegram to Victoria: “We implore with you God’s blessing on our dear children and recommend to you our daughter, who kisses your hand.” The Queen sent back her congratulations, but confined her misgivings to her diary on 11 July 1873: “Not knowing Maria, and realising that there may still be many difficulties, my thoughts and feelings are rather mixed.” When breaking the news to her eldest daughter, Crown Princess Victoria of Prussia, she simply said: “The murder is out.”
Alexander gave Maria a bridal present of magnificent jewellery that had once belonged to Catherine the Great. Alfred was made the honorary chief of a Russian guards regiment and even had a Russian battleship named after him – the Herzog Edinburgsky.
A week after the engagement, the proposed Russian-British alliance experienced its first crisis. Queen Victoria asked the Tsar to bring Maria to Scotland, so that she could inspect her future daughter-in-law. Alexander refused and called Victoria a “silly old fool” – forgetting that she was in fact a year younger than him.
Alexander’s wife only made matters worse by suggesting that they all meet in Cologne. The Queen called it “simply impertinent” that “I ... who have been nearly twenty years longer on the throne than the Emperor of Russia ... and who am a Reigning Sovereign ... should be ready to run to the slightest call of the mighty Russians ... like any little Princess.” Victoria also made herself unpopular by refusing the Tsar’s offer to make the Prince of Wales colonel of a Russian regiment and by demanding that an Anglican marriage service be held in St Petersburg alongside the Orthodox ceremony.
The wedding was celebrated in great splendour, even by Russian standards, at the Winter Palace on 23 January 1874. The Duke of Edinburgh arrived in St Petersburg a week before the event, and stayed in the Winter Palace. The other British guests arrived on 18 January. Queen Victoria was represented by Edward, Prince of Wales, and his wife Alexandra, sister of Tsarevna Maria Fyodorovna.
The marriage ceremony consisted of two parts. First of all, the Orthodox service was performed by the Metropolitans of St Petersburg, Moscow and Kiev in the Imperial Chapel. The bride and groom then moved into the Blue Drawing Room, where Arthur Stanley, Dean of Westminster, made them man and wife according to the rites of the Anglican Church.
Back in England, The Graphic described the “glittering fairytale wedding” to its readers: “The most picturesque portion of the ceremony was the placing of the two massive golden crowns on the heads of the bride and bridegroom, which were subsequently held above them by the groomsmen, Prince Arthur and the Grand Duke Vladimir. After this they partook of the ‘common cup’, each drinking thrice from a goblet of wine ... the service concluded with an act which renders the marriage indissoluble. Joining hands under the priest’s stole, the bridal pair followed the Archbishop three times round the altar, in commemoration of the Trinity ... The procession then proceeded to the Alexander Hall, for the ceremony according to the Anglican rites.”
The newspaper recorded that Maria wore a glittering coronet and a mantle of crimson velvet trimmed with ermine and a sprig of myrtle, specially sent by Queen Victoria. Alfred wore the uniform of the British Navy. The Tsar looked pale throughout the entire ceremony and said afterwards: “It is for her happiness, but the light of my life has gone out.”
Back in London that night, Queen Victoria wore the Order of St Catherine on her dress and drank a toast to the young couple. Those members of her court who had travelled to St Petersburg were overwhelmed by the scale of the celebrations, receptions and entertainments marking the Anglo-Russian marriage. Major-General Sir Howard Elphinstone noted that in one room supper was served to five hundred people at fifty different tables, with “palms and exotics ... used to so large an extent that it gives the place the appearance of a conservatory ... the heat of the rooms was almost unbearable, and several ladies left the ballroom in a fainting state.” Lady Augusta Stanley summed up the wedding in three words: “What a day.”
Alfred and Maria spent their wedding night at the Alexander Palace in Tsarskoe Selo. Alexander had ordered a lavish honeymoon suite on the ground floor, hoping that it would persuade the young couple to remain in Russia. After a short honeymoon in Tsarskoe Selo, however, Alfred and Maria left Russia to live in England. Alexander never lost hope that they would return, and the honeymoon suite was kept preserved for the couple for two decades. It later became the bedroom of the last Tsar, Nicholas II, and his wife Alexandra, in 1894.
The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh arrived in England on 7 March 1874. The town of Windsor was decorated in their honour, with Union Jacks and Russian flags, and Maria was given a great welcome by the waiting crowds. Queen Victoria met them at the South-Western Station and records their arrival in her journal: “I took dear Maria in my arms and kissed her warmly several times. I was quite nervous and trembling, so long had I been in expectation ... Dear Maria has a very friendly manner, a pleasant face, beautiful skin and fine bright eyes ... She speaks English wonderfully well.”
Alfred and Maria moved into Clarence House in London and spent the first three years of their marriage creating a family. Three children were born in quick succession – first a son, known as young Alfred, in 1874, followed by Maria in 1875 and Victoria Melita in 1876. The Duchess of Edinburgh shocked English society by nursing the children herself.
The seal was put on the royal wedding when the Tsar and his son Alexei paid a family visit to England in May 1874. Alexander had first visited Victoria back in 1839, when she was a twenty-year old queen, and he was a twenty-one year-old prince influenced by Vasily Zhukovsky. Back then, they had confessed their platonic love for one another, and the Queen had afterwards confided to her diary: “I really think I was in love with him.”
Victoria and Alexander now met again, exactly thirty-five years later. The visit got off to a bad start when the Tsar’s yacht ran onto some rocks near Dover, ruining the plans for a welcoming lunch. Alexander only arrived at Windsor by train at half past ten in the evening. Victoria was shocked by the change in the Emperor. She found him “very kind, but ... terribly altered, so thin, and his face looks so old, sad, and careworn.”
Throughout his time in England, the Tsar rode on horseback in Windsor Park, dined with the Prince of Wales, visited the Russian church in Welbeck Street, attended a military review at Aldershot and was guest of honour at a banquet given by the Lord Mayor of London. A state concert was held at the Royal Albert Hall, with a programme containing Russian Orthodox church music.
On the second day of Alexander’s visit, Victoria held a banquet in his honour at St George’s Hall in Buckingham Palace. The Queen and the Tsar talked nostalgically about the past and the happy days they had spent together thirty-five years ago. Alexander thanked Victoria for her kindness to his daughter, and she responded by reaching out and taking his hand. On leaving England, he wrote back to the Queen: “I leave London ... profoundly touched by your so kind reception and persuaded that my beloved daughter will always find a second mother in you.”
Despite their words of affection for one another, however, the following year an international dispute arose that brought the two countries to the point of war and caused irreparable damage to the Edinburghs’ marriage.
In 1875, an anti-Turkish uprising broke out in Bosnia and Herzegovina, spreading to Bulgaria in 1876. The rebellion was cruelly put down by the Turks, who massacred fifteen thousand people at Philippopolis (now Plovdiv). Although English public opinion was outraged, articles began to appear in the British press about Russian intrigues and provocations.
Alfred attempted to defend his Russian father-in-law and wrote to his mother in July 1876, saying that the Russian Emperor was “deeply hurt at all the unpleasant and untrue things said of him in the English press.” His words had little effect and, when Russia declared war on Turkey in 1877, Victoria sent Alexander a series of aggressive telegrams that almost led to a state of war between the two countries.
Maria was deeply shocked at her mother-in-law’s hostility towards her country and her own father in particular. She decided then that none of her daughters would ever marry an Englishman.
The Balkan crisis was not the only problem affecting the great Anglo-Russian royal marriage. There were also arguments over royal rank. As the Tsar’s only daughter, Maria had precedence over all the Grand Duchesses in Russia. She therefore deeply resented having to give precedence in England to the Princess of Wales and Queen Victoria’s own daughters.
Alexander II wrote to Victoria asking that his daughter be called imperial, not royal, “as in all civilised countries.” Victoria replied that she did not care whether imperial was used or not, as long as royal came first. There was also the added problem that Maria was both Duchess of Edinburgh and Grand Duchess of Russia. Which title should be written first?
Maria was extremely disappointed with Britain. She found the climate detestable, and the food tasteless and badly cooked. She did not like the Royal Albert Hall, describing it as “all ecclesiastical and ... quite boring ... Every concert goes on for several hours.” London was drab and uninteresting after the broad streets, golden domes and magnificent palaces of St Petersburg. Buckingham Palace compared unfavourably to the Winter Palace, and there was no court life in England.
The Russian Grand Duchess also disliked the constant visits to her mother-in-law at Windsor Castle and the Isle of Wight. Worse was to come when she visited Scotland. Maria was frozen in her unheated bedroom in Balmoral Castle and ordered a fire to be lit. When she was out, Queen Victoria entered the room and ordered a maid to throw water on the fire and open all the windows. Maria said that she might as well live on an iceberg as in a British house in winter. She was soon writing letters home to her father describing Queen Victoria as a “silly obstinate old fool.”
Maria, however, was also capable of being obstinate. Although she spoke perfect English, she made herself unpopular by preferring to speak French, the traditional language of the Russian court. British people thought her rough and masculine, with a tendency to be rude to servants. Maria also broke English convention by smoking cigarettes in public.
The Duchess of Edinburgh also took great pleasure in showing off her magnificent jewellery. The English princesses were clearly jealous of her diamonds, and so was Queen Victoria. Meriel Buchanan, daughter of the last British ambassador to Imperial Russia, describes Maria’s first Drawing Room: “The Queen compared the Duchess’s tiara with those of her own daughters, shrugging her shoulders like a bird whose plumage has been ruffled, her mouth drawn down at the corners, in an expression which those who knew her had learned to dread.”
Disenchanted with Britain and life with her difficult mother-in-law, Maria became increasingly homesick for Russia and was happy for any excuse to return there. On one of her visits to her parents, on 17 February 1880, she was almost killed in a bomb attack on the Winter Palace. Maria returned to Russia again in June 1880, to be with her dying mother, and also attended the funeral of her father in St Petersburg in March 1881.
Alfred accompanied Maria to the coronation of her brother, Tsar Alexander III, in Moscow in May 1883. The following year, in July 1884, they travelled to Ilinskoe outside Moscow to visit Maria’s younger brother Sergei, who had married Queen Victoria’s granddaughter Ella. The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh also went to Livadia in October 1894 to be with the dying Alexander III.
Maria’s situation slightly improved in August 1893, when Alfred’s uncle, Duke Ernest of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, died and Alfred inherited his title. Although Maria was glad of the chance to escape from Queen Victoria and move to Coburg, she was no happier in Germany than she was in Britain.
The love between Alfred and Maria had gone out. They had been living apart since 1889, when the Duke of Edinburgh moved back to England from Malta, where he had commanded the British Mediterranean Fleet. Alfred was now an alcoholic, and arguments over their children added to their marital problems.
The Duke hoped that their eldest daughter, Maria, would marry his nephew George, who later became King George V of England. The Duchess, however, was determined that her daughter should avoid her mistake, and married her instead to Crown Prince Ferdinand of Romania on 10 January 1893.
After becoming Queen of Romania on 11 October 1914, Maria played an important role in bringing Romania into the First World War on the same side as Britain and Russia. She followed the Romanian armies as a Red Cross nurse, treating sick and wounded soldiers, including victims of cholera and typhus. After the war, she represented Romania at the Versailles Peace Conference, where she managed to double the country’s territory and population. Maria was also a successful writer, publishing many novels in English.
Alfred and Maria’s second daughter, Victoria Melita, was also linked to Russia. She married Ernest of Hesse, brother of the last Russian empress, on 7 April 1894. She divorced him in 1901, and married Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia on 25 September 1905. Victoria converted to Russian Orthodoxy and became known as the Grand Duchess Victoria Fyodorovna. For many years after the revolution, her husband was the pretender to the Russian throne. In the unlikely event of a restoration, Victoria might have become the empress of Russia. She died in Germany in 1936, but was reburied, along with her husband, at the Peter and Paul Fortress in St Petersburg in 1995.
In February 1899, tragedy hit Alfred and Maria when their only son committed suicide. Young Alfred was a junior officer in Coburg, where his chief hobbies were drinking and womanising. In 1898, he concluded a morganatic marriage with an Irish girl called Mabel Fitzgerald, who was the granddaughter of the 4th Duke of Leinster. When his mother found out, she demanded that the marriage be annulled, even though the girl was already pregnant. Young Alfred shot himself and died a week later at the age of twenty-five.
The Duke of Edinburgh was heartbroken at young Alfred’s death and the news that he himself had cancer of the throat. By May 1900, he was unable to swallow and could only be fed by a tube. On 30 July 1900, he died in his sleep at Schloss Rosenau in Coburg.
After Alfred’s death, Maria moved to a villa in Tegernsee in Bavaria. The First World War and the Russian Revolution, however, meant that she could no longer live in Germany or in Russia.
Unwilling to return to Britain, where she had never been happy, Maria spent her last years in a run-down hotel in Switzerland. Eight days after her sixty-seventh birthday, on 25 October 1920, the only child of Alexander II to survive the revolution died in her sleep of a heart attack. | <urn:uuid:06f64757-593c-4aae-8800-45af8626b499> | CC-MAIN-2016-22 | http://www.rusartnet.com/biographies/russian-rulers/romanov/family-of-alexander-ii/children/grand-duchess-maria-alexandrovna | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-22/segments/1464049277091.36/warc/CC-MAIN-20160524002117-00189-ip-10-185-217-139.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.983897 | 4,173 | 3 | 3 |
iplab Das reports in NatureAsia.com that a research team has found aqueous extracts of the marine brown algae Lobophoro variegate that can inhibit the replication of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) by preventing its entry into host cells.
The algae extracts inhibit various HIV-1 strains – including a multi-drug resistant strain – that cause infection by binding to different cell-surface proteins of host cells. This could mean the brown algae is a potential natural source for developing a broad-spectrum anti-HIV-1 drug, suggests the research published in PLOS ONE.
L. variegata is a common brown alga that thrives in the coral reefs of the Caribbean, the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea. It contains high concentrations of phenolic compounds, mainly bromophenols, and no previous studies had identified its antiviral effects.
“Our study is the first to demonstrate the anti-viral effects of L. variegata and thus contributes to the extraordinary bioactive spectrum of this abundant marine brown alga,” says Stephan Kremb, one of the authors of the study, a marine biologist from the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia, and Institute of Virology, Helmholtz Zentrum Muenchen, Germany.
The scientists exposed aqueous extracts of the brown algae to various patient-derived HIV-1 strains grown in peripheral blood mononuclear cells prepared from the whole blood of healthy donors. The algae extracts were non-toxic and inhibited the replication of the HIV-1 strains in the cells.
To understand how the algae extracts inhibit the virus, the researchers added fluorescent-protein-labeled HIV-1 particles and specific indicator cells to the algae extracts. They found that the algae extracts prevented the attachment of the HIV-1 particles to the cells, suggesting it inhibits HIV-1 entry into the cells. | <urn:uuid:159cc1eb-e1c7-4bde-8845-60bbba45311a> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://algaeindustrymagazine.com/brown-algae-may-inhibit-hiv-infection/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573029.81/warc/CC-MAIN-20220817153027-20220817183027-00000.warc.gz | en | 0.917756 | 398 | 2.796875 | 3 |
For the Birds Radio Program: Bird Gluttons: Original
(Recording of a Turkey)
There are probably one or two Northlanders sitting out there who can’t believe they ate the whole thing yesterday. But even the most gluttonous person can’t compare to a bird when it comes to how much food he can pack away. Bird gluttony is not a pretty subject–if you are in the middle of your breakfast, you may want to close your ears for the next few minutes. When you think of a sweet little black-and-white warbler, do you really want to know that it can eat 80% of its weight in grasshoppers every day? Or that captive woodcocks have eaten their total weight in earthworms in a single day?
Birds have a much faster metabolic rate than mammals. The body temperature of sparrows is about 107 degrees, and some thrushes have a temperature as high as 113 degrees. Even an ostrich has a temperature of 104 degrees. It takes a lot of fuel to maintain that kind of metabolism. A growing bird’s digestive system extracts about 33% of its food intake as usable calories–compared to only about 10% in a growing mammal. Even with that high efficiency, birds eat a tremendous amount relative to their size.
A pair of loons with their chicks will consume well over a ton of fish during the fifteen weeks it takes to raise the young. An eight pound brown pelican eats 4 pounds of fish daily. The black-footed albatross is often called a “feathered pig” because if can swallow half- pound chunks of fresh shark meat in one gulp. Turkeys eat as much as a pound of nuts or acorns in a single meal. Robins eat as much as 14 feet of earthworms every day. And an owl sometimes swallows so many mice or rats that its crop can’t hold them all–the tail of the last one may hang out of the mouth until some of the first have been digested–not a pretty sight, even on the radio. Of course, for every night hunting is that good, there are dozens of nights when little or no food at all is taken–that’s why you never see a fat owl.
There are stories of California Condors and turkey vultures eating so much that they couldn’t take flight. One cormorant in California died after a 10-inch fish got stuck in its throat. Right here in Duluth, observers have seen robins and Cedar Waxwings drop dead after pigging out on apple blossoms or mountain ash berries.
Birds that hunt or fish for a living often take on prey that they would have been better off avoiding. One golden eagle died after taking on a porcupine. There’s a preserved hawk in a display case outside UMD’s biology department that met the same fate. A red-tailed hawk in South Dakota carried off a weasel, but in mid-air the weasel got a death grip on the hawk’s throat. Six young common terns died on Long Island in 1962 after swallowing blowfish. And more than one osprey has drowned trying to pull a heavy fish out of the water.
All in all, it makes the biggest Thanksgiving pig-out look like pretty mild stuff.
(Recording of a Turkey)
This is Laura Erickson, and this program has been “For the Birds.” | <urn:uuid:874986d3-2237-49d1-b7ba-b2a9977afb6e> | CC-MAIN-2020-29 | https://www.lauraerickson.com/radio/program/11140/bird-gluttons-original/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-29/segments/1593657147031.78/warc/CC-MAIN-20200713225620-20200714015620-00498.warc.gz | en | 0.96648 | 723 | 2.84375 | 3 |
This June, Great Forest founder Richard Fuller addressed the U.N. as president of Pure Earth/Blacksmith Institute, on behalf of the Global Alliance on Health and Pollution (GAHP), to urge the world to pay more attention to the largest cause of death in the developing world – pollution.
Pollution is a global killer, causing about 8.4 million deaths a year.
It causes three times more deaths than HIV, malaria and tuberculosis combined.
“Air and chemical pollution is growing rapidly… and when the total impact on the health of people is also considered, “the consequences are dire,” Fuller told IPS News.
Petition to #SpotlightPollution in the SDGs
Despite its large toll, pollution is virtually being ignored in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are currently being decided at the U.N.
Since the SDGs will determine what the world pays attention to over at least the next 15 years, and how funding to poor countries is allocated, it is crucial that all aspects of pollution is addressed in the SDGs.
The current #SpotlightPollution campaign has gathered growing support among countries, agencies, organizations and the public in a bid to get more focus placed on pollution issues in the SDGs.
You can help. Sign and share this petition to help us spread the word.
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In 1919, Lee De Forest filed his first patent on a sound-on-film process, DeForest Phonofilm, which recorded sound directly onto film as parallel lines. These parallel lines photographically recorded electrical waveforms from a microphone, which were translated back into sound waves when the movie was projected. Some sources say that DeForest improved on the work of Finnish inventor Eric Tigerstedt — who was granted German patent 309.536 on 28 July 1914 for his sound-on-film work — and on the Tri-Ergon process, patented in 1919 by German inventors Josef Engl, Hans Vogt, and Joseph Massole.
The Phonofilm system, which recorded synchronized sound directly onto film, was used to record vaudeville acts, musical numbers, political speeches, and opera singers. The quality of Phonofilm was poor at first, improved somewhat in later years, but was never able to match the fidelity of sound-on-disc systems such as Vitaphone, or later sound-on-film systems such as RCA Photophone or Fox Movietone.
The films of DeForest were short films made primarily as demonstrations to try to interest major studios in Phonofilm. These films are particularly valuable to entertainment historians, as they include recordings of a wide variety of both well-known and less famous American vaudeville and British music hall acts which would otherwise have been forgotten. Some of the films, such as Flying Jenny Airplane, Barking Dog, and a film of DeForest himself explaining the Phonofilm system (all 1921) were experimental films to test the system.
Some of the people filmed included vaudevillians Joe Weber and Lew Fields, Eva Puck and Sammy White, Eddie Cantor, Ben Bernie, Oscar Levant, Phil Baker, Roy Smeck, jazz musicians Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake, "all-girl" bandleader Helen Lewis, harmonicist Borrah Minnevitch, Nikita Balieff's company La Chauve-Souris, opera singers Eva Leoni, Abbie Mitchell, and Marie Rappold, Broadway stars Helen Menken and Fannie Ward, folklorist Charles Ross Taggart, copla singer Concha Piquer, and politicians Calvin Coolidge, Robert La Follette, Al Smith, and Franklin D. Roosevelt. Smith and Roosevelt were filmed during the 1924 Democratic National Convention, held June 24 to July 9 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Coolidge became the first U. S. President to appear in a sound motion picture when DeForest filmed him at the White House on 11 August 1924.
In November 1922, De Forest founded the De Forest Phonofilm Corporation with studios at 314 East 48th Street in New York City, but was unable to interest any of the major Hollywood movie studios in his invention.
List of Films Produced in Phonofilm
A Boston Star: Borrah Minnevitch (1923) harmonicist
A Few Moments With Eddie Cantor, Star of "Kid Boots" (late 1923, early 1924)
A Musical Monologue (1923) with Phil Baker and his accordion
A. C. Astor with Sentimental Mac (1928) ventriloquist Astor with his dummy Sentimental Mac
The Actors' Squad (1927) short with Lawrence Anderson
The Antidote (1927) dramatic short directed by Thomas Bentley, with Primrose Morgan, Walter Sondes, and Jameson Thomas
Abraham Lincoln (1924) portrayal of Lincoln by actor Frank McGlynn
Adolph Zukor Introduces Phonofilm (1923) for release of The Covered Wagon and Bella
Donna, two Paramount Pictures feature films with soundtracks filmed in Phonofilm
Ag and Bert (1929) with Mabel Constanduros and Michael Hogan, directed by Bertram Phillips
Ain't She Sweet (1928) ?same Phonofilm as "Pilbeam and His Band"
Al Herman (1926) comedian Herman (1887-1967) performing a comedy sketch
Alexander's Ragtime Band (1926)
Alma Barnes the Internationally Famous Mimic (1926)
Almost a Gentleman (1928) comedy short with Billy Bennett
Alvin and Kelvin Keech (1926) brothers who are credited with the invention of the banjulele (banjo and ukulele)
America's Flyers (1927) filmed at Roosevelt Field (29 June 1927) with Richard E. Byrd, George Noville, and Bert Acosta, with speech given by Grover Whalen
An Attempted Duet (1928) comedy short with Beryl Beresford and Leslie Hinton
Annie Laurie (1926)
Armistice Day of 1928 (1928) produced by Phonofilms (Singapore) and released by British Sound Film Corporation
Arthur Roberts (1927) comedy and musical short with Arthur Roberts
As We Lie (1927) comedy short with Lillian Hall-Davis and Miles Mander, directed by Mander
Barber and Jackson in The Long and the Short of It (1922) with Barber and Jackson (first names unknown)
Barking Dog (1921) experimental film with barking dog
Being All Alone (1927)
Bella Donna (1923) Paramount Pictures feature film directed by George Fitzmaurice and starring Pola Negri and Conway Tearle
Ben Bernie and All the Lads (1925) with Oscar Levant on piano
Betty Chester the Well-Known Star of The Co-Optimists (1926) Chester sings "Pig-Tail Alley"
Billy Merson Singing Desdemona (1926)
Billy Merson in Scotland's Whiskey (1927) parody of Sir Harry Lauder
Billy Merson in Russian Opera (1927)
Bleak House (1926) aka Grandfather Smallweed, the Miser (UK title) with Bransby Williams
Boat Race (1929) University Boat Race of 1929 (centenary year)
Boheme Blue (1927) musical short
The Bride (1929) comedy short with George Robey
Brooke Johns and Goodee Montgomery (1925) Johns plays ukulele and Montgomery sings "I'm in Love Again" and dances
The Burglar and the Girl (1928) comedy short with Moore Marriott and Dorothy Boyd
By the Light of the Silvery Moon (1926) the last of the Fleischer "Song Car-Tunes" with Phonofilm, released August 1926
Call Me Up Some Rainy Afternoon (1926)
Calm as the Night (1927) sung by Mary Cavanova (Marie Cavan)
Canoodling (1928) Hal Jones sings song "Canoodling" from stage review Splinters
Casey at the Bat (1922) famous poem read by actor DeWolf Hopper
Cellist and Pianist (1928) two women play Saint-Saëns' "The Swan" from Carnival of the Animals
Charles Lindbergh (1927) filmed at Clapham Studios in London on Lindbergh's departure from the UK
Charles Lindbergh Reception (1927) Lindbergh receives Medal of Valor from NYC mayor Jimmy Walker
Charles Ross Taggart (1923) "The Old Country Fiddler at the Singing School"
Charmaine (1928) musical short with Eric Marshall singing
Chauncey Depew (1925) 91-year-old former legislator gives memories of Abraham Lincoln
Chorus Gentlemen (1926) or Chorus, Gentlemen!
Clapham and Dwyer No. 1 (1929) Charles Clapham and Bill Dwyer
Clapham and Dwyer No. 2 (1929) Charles Clapham and Bill Dwyer
Clonk! (1928) musical short with Arty Ash and Leslie Sarony
The Coffee Stall (1927) Mark Lupino (c. 1894-1930) and Company
Cohen on the Telephone (1923) with monologist Monroe Silver
Come Take a Trip in My Airship (1924) one of the first in the Fleischer "Song Car-Tune" series
Comin' Thro' the Rye (1926)
Conchita Piquer (1923) in dance sketch "From Far Seville"
The Covered Wagon (1923) Paramount Pictures feature directed by James Cruze
Cuando fui león (1928) Spanish producer purchased rights from DeForest for "Fonofilm"
Cuban Sound Documentary (1926) with the Cuban national anthem and excerpts of The Merry Widow
Daisy Bell (1925)
Dandy George and Rosie (1927) Dandy George (Albert George Spink) and his dog Rosie
Darling Nelly Gray (1926)
Der rote Kreis (1929) aka The Crimson Circle, UK-German feature based on Edgar Wallace novel, trade-shown in March 1929 in the UK
Dick Henderson Sings "I Love Her All the More" (1926)
Dick Henderson Sings "Tripe" (1926)
Dick Henderson Sings "There Are More Heavens Than One" (1927)
Die Niebelungen (1924), part I, "Siegfried" (only at the U.S. premiere in NYC on August 23, 1925)
Doing His Duty (1929) Ernie Lotinga playing "Jimmy Josser"
Dolly Gray (1926)
Domen (1924) Swedish language version of Retribution (1924), directed by Arthur Donaldson
Donald Brian (1925) in Peggy O'Hooligan
Doris Ashton and Billy Rawson (1928)
Downey and Owens (1925) Morton Downey (Sr.) and ?Owens sing "Show Me the Way to Go Home" and "There Is No One Like Myself"
The Duke and Duchess of York Arrive at Farm Cove (1927) film first shown 12 May 1927 at the Lyceum in Sydney, Australia
Dunio and Gegna (1927) instrumental comedians
Drink to Me Only (1926) Gwen Farrar sings title song
East Side, West Side (1925) also known as "The Sidewalks of New York"
Edith Sitwell (1927) reads from her work
El misterio de la Puerta del Sol (1929) first sound feature film made in Spain
Elga Collins the Versatile Entertainer (1927) Collins sings "Ain't It Nice" and "Tonight You Belong to Me"
Emmie Joyce Sings "I Need Love" (1927)
Emmie Joyce Sings "Patience" (1927)
En confesionario (1928)
Ethel Hook (1926) song by contralto Ethel Hook, sister of classical singer Clara Butt
Eubie Blake Plays His "Fantasy on Swanee River" (1923)
Eva Puck and Sammy White (1923) doing their sketch "Opera vs. Jazz"
Everybody's Doing It (1926)
The Fair Maid of Perth (1926) live-action UK film with Louise Maurel, directed by Miles Mander
False Colours (1927) dramatic short with Ursula Jeans and A. B. Imeson (dir. Miles Mander)
Fannie Ward (1924) Fannie Ward sings "Father Time"
Fannie Ward (1924) performs comedy sketch as the "Perennial Flapper"
Farewell Message of Mr. Levine and Captain Hinchcliffe, Just Before Their Departure on Their Return Flight to America (1927) with Charles A. Levine and Capt. W. G. R. Hinchcliffe (1894–1928)
Femina Quartette Nr. 1 (1928) woman pianist, cellist, and vocalist perform
Five Minutes with Al Smith (1924) Franklin D. Roosevelt introduces Smith at 1924 Democratic Convention
The Flat Charleston (1926) with Santos Casani and Josie Lennard
Flying Jenny Airplane (1921) experimental film with Curtiss JN-4 ("Jenny") airplane
Franklin D. Roosevelt Speech (1924) filmed at 1924 Democratic National Convention in NYC
Frivolous Fragments (1927) comedy sketch with Alec Daimler and Dora Eadie
The Gentleman (1925) first sound-on-film UK film, directed by William J. Elliott
George Bernard Shaw (1927) one year before similar film by Fox Movietone News
George Jackley (1885-1950), the Indignant Comedian in "A Doggy Ditty" (1927)
George Jessel (1924) comedy sketch by Jessel
Gilland Singer (1927) M. Gilland from France sings, dressed as wounded World War I soldier
Gimme the Net (1927)
Gloria Swanson Dialogue (1922), Gloria Swanson and Thomas Meighan
Goodbye My Lady Love (1924)
Gorno's Italian Marionettes (1928) aka Die singenden Marionetten
Gwen Farrar (1899-1944) cellist Farrar performs "Drink to Me Only With Thine Eyes" (1926)
Gwen Farrar and songwriter Billy Mayerl perform "I've Got a Sweetie on the Radio" (1926)
Hal Brown Lancashire Comedian (1928)
Harry and Max Nesbitt (1927) film sometimes listed as "Yid Nesbitt" (Max's nickname), brothers from South Africa in "vocal, verbal, and terpsichorean tidbits"
Harry Shalson the Popular Entertainer (1927) Shalson sings "You Go Too Far"
Has Anybody Here Seen Kelly? (1926) Fleischer cartoon originally with green and orange tinting
The Hawaiian Revellers (1928) with Kahola Marsh and His Hawaiian Orchestra
Hedicashun (1929) monologue by A. W. Goodwin
Helen Lewis and Her All-Girl Jazz Syncopators (1925) Lewis leads her "all-girl" band
Helen Menken (1925) Broadway star Helen Menken
Henry Cass Demonstration Film (1923)* also at the Engineers Society Auditorium in NYC on April 12, 1923
Her Unborn Child (1930) last feature film made in Phonofilm (screen debut of Elisha Cook)
His Rest Day (1927) comedy short with Matthew Boulton as Bill Gosling
Hot Water and Vegetabuel (1928) Leslie Sarony sings "When You're Up to Your Neck in Hot Water (Think of the Kettle and Sing)"
The Houston Sisters (1926) musical short with Billie and Renee Houston
I Can't Take You Out of My Dreams (1926) Winnie Collins and Walter Williams sing title song
I Don't Believe You're in Love With Me (1926) Winnie Collins and Walter Williams sing title song
I Don't Care What You Used to Be (1927) Dick Henderson sings title song
I Don't Know (1928) Emmie Joyce sings title song
I Love a Lassie (1925)
I Want a Pie with a Plum In (1926) Dick Henderson sings title song by Wal Clifford
In the Good Old Summer Time (1926)
I've Never Seen a Straight Banana (1926) sung by Dick Henderson, song by Ted Waite
J. H. Squires' Celesta Octet (1928) aka "Memories of Tschaikovsky" w/The Squires Octet
Jack Pearl and Ben Bard (1926) with Bard, Pearl, and Sascha Beaumont
Joe Termini the Somnolent Melodist (1926) specialty musician performs on violin and banjo
Joe Theiss Saxotette (1929)
John Citizen's Lament (1927) Charles Paton performs song "If Your Face Wants to Smile, We'll Let It In" from revue John Citizen's Lament
John W. Davis Campaign Speech (1924), Democratic candidate who lost to Coolidge
Josephine Earle (1929) musical short
Josser, KC (1929) Ernie Lotinga playing "Jimmy Josser" (poss. dupe of Doing His Duty)
The Jubilee Four (1924) gospel quartet
Julius Caesar (1926) excerpt from the Shakespeare play, with Basil Gill as Brutus and Malcolm Keen as Cassius
Knee Deep in Daisies (1926) song "I'm Knee-Deep in Daisies (and Head Over Heels in Love)" sung by Paul England and Dorothy Boyd
Kollege Kapers (1929) comedy short written and directed by Bobby Harmon
La Chauve-Souris (1923) Nikita Balieff's group La Chauve-Souris performing their sketch "Parade of the Wooden Soldiers"
Lee De Forest (1922) De Forest standing in front of a curtain and explaining Phonofilm
Lillian Powell Bubble Dance (1923)* also shown at the Engineers Society Auditorium in NYC April 12, 1923
Lincoln, the Man of the People (1923) Edwin Markham reads his poem "Lincoln, the Man of the People"
The London Four (1927) male voice quartet
The Long and the Short of It (1923) with ?Barber and Jackson, man and woman vaudevillian
Love's Old Sweet Song (1923) two-reeler with Louis Wolheim, Donald Gallaher, and Una Merkel, cinemotography by Freeman Harrison Owens
Lulu (1928) musical short
Luna-cy! (1925) 1922 experimental 3-D film by Frederick Ives and Jacob Leventhal re-released with Phonofilm soundtrack 18 May 1925
Madelon (1927) Camille Gillard in "Madelon", directed by Widgey Newman
The Man in the Street (1926) short based on Louis N. Parker play, directed by Thomas Bentley, with Wilbur Lenton, John MacAndrews, and Bunty O'Nolan (UK title: Man of Mystery)
Marie Lloyd Jr. (1926) daughter of music hall star Marie Lloyd
Marie Rappold (1922) Metropolitan Opera star
Mark Griver and His Scottish Revellers (1927) perform "She Was Just a Sailor's Sweetheart" and "Ain't She Sweet"
Medevedeff's Balalaika Orchestra (1929)
The Merchant of Venice (1927) the trial scene, with Joyce Lyons and Lewis Casson
Miss Edith Kelly-Lange (1927) violin solo
Miss Lalla Dodd, the Modern Soubrette (1927)
Mirth and Magic (1928) unidentified magician performs his magic act
Mother, Mother, Mother Pin a Rose on Me (1924)
Mr. George Mozart the Famous Comedian (1928) comedy short
Mr. Smith Wakes Up (1929) comedy short with Elsa Lanchester
Mrs. Mephistopheles (1929) comedy short with George Robey as title character
My Bonnie (1925) aka My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean
My Old Kentucky Home (1926) first to use "Follow the Bouncing Ball"
My Wife's Gone to the Country (1926)
Nervo and Knox (1926) perform their song "The Love of Phtohtenese" pronounced "Hot Knees")
The New Paris Lido Club Band (1928)
The Nightingale's Courtship (1927) French clowns, the Plattier Brothers
Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake (1923) perform their song "Affectionate Dan" and "All God's Chillen Got Shoes"
Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake Sing Snappy Songs (1923) sing "Sons of Old Black Joe" and "My Swanee Home"
Norah Blaney (1927) Blaney plays piano and sings "He's Funny That Way" and "How About Me"
Nutcracker Suite (1925)
Oh! How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning (1926)
Oh I Wish I Was in Michigan (1927)
Oh Mabel (1924) early entry in the Fleischer "Sound Car-Tune" series
Oh What a Pal Was Mary (1926)
Oh Suzanna (1925)
Oh, You Beautiful Doll (1926)
Old Black Joe (1926)
Old Folks at Home (1925) ?dupe of "Swanee" entry below
Old Pal (1926) ?possible dupe of title below, also sometimes listed as "My Old Pal" of "Dear Old Pal"
Old Pal Why Don't You Answer Me (1926)
Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit-Bag (1926) Fleischer cartoon
Packing Up (1927) dramatic short with Mary Clare and Malcolm Keen
Paul Specht Musical Number (1925)
Peace and Quiet (1929) with Ralph Lynn and Winifred Shotter, play by Ronald Jeans
Percival and Hill (1927)
The Percival Mackey Trio (1929)
Percy Pryde and His Phonofiddle on the Phonofilm (1928)
Philip Ritte and His Revellers (1927)
Phonofilm (1923) with Binnie Barnes
Pilbeam and His Band With Specialty Dance by the Misses Tosch (1927) jazzy version of "Ain't She Sweet?" (?Arnold Pilbeam, father of Nova Pilbeam); ?same as other "Ain't She Sweet" film
Plastigrams (1924) 1922 experimental 3-D film by Frederick Ives and Jacob Leventhal, re-released with Phonofilm soundtrack on 22 September 1924
President Calvin Coolidge, Taken on the White House Grounds (1924) filmed 11 August 1924
Punch and Judy (1928)
The Radio Bug (1926) comedy short, produced by Jack White, directed by Stephen Roberts and co-starring Phil Dunham, Toy Gallagher and Clem Beauchamp, about delivery of a new radio, released in sound and silent versions by Educational Pictures
The Radio Franks (1926) NYC radio stars Frank Bessinger and Frank Wright sing "Remember" and "Hooray for Radio"
Raymond Hitchcock Sketch (1924)
Rigoletto, Act Two (1923) with opera singer Eva Leoni (1895–1972)
Robert M. LaFollette, Sr. (1924) speech given during 1924 presidential campaign
Rocky Road to Dublin (1927)
Roger Wolfe Kahn Musical Number (1925)
Romeo et Juliette (1927) tenor Otakar Marak and soprano Mary Cavanova (Marie Cavan)
Safety First (1928) comedy short with George Robey
Sailing, Sailing (1925) ?dupe of title below
Sailing, Sailing, Over the Bounding Main (1925)
Saint Joan (1927) cathedral scene from Shaw's play, with Sybil Thorndike
Sammy Fain and Artie Dunn (1923) before Fain quit to become full-time songwriter
Santa Claus (1926) with Basil Gill as Santa Claus
The Saventini Trio (1927) two ballads and Hungarian dance performed by male trio
Scovell and Wheldon (1926) sing "Ukulele Lullaby" and "Fresh Milk Comes From Cows" (?Phillip Scovell and Phyllis Wheldon)
Scrooge (1928) with Bransby Williams as Scrooge
Sensations of 1927 (1927) Thorpe Bates in excerpt of Lawrence Wright's Sensations of 1927
The Sentence of Death (1927) dramatic short directed by Miles Mander and starring Dorothy Boyd (US title: His Great Moment)
Sextet from Lucia di Lammermoor (1923) DVD by Zouary shows it to be produced by the ?"Latin American division" of Phonofilm
The Sheik of Araby (1926) Fleischer cartoon
The Sheik of Araby (1926) live-action short directed in the UK by Miles Mander
Sidney Bernstein Welcomes Phonofilm (1926) shown 4 October 1926 at the Empire Cinema in London
So Blue (1927) with ?Delys and Clark
Songs of Yesterday (1922) spirituals sung by Abbie (Abbey) Mitchell
Sonia Serova Dancers (1924) modern dance group performs to Edvard Grieg's "Song of Spring"
The Stage Hands (1928)
Stringed Harmony (1923) with ukulele and banjo player Roy Smeck
The Sugar Step (1928)
Swanee River (1925)
Sweet Adeline (1926)
Syncopation and Song (1927) with The Coney Island Six
Teddy Brown (1927)
Teddy Brown, Xylophonist (1929)
Thorpe Bates (1926)
The Three Rascals and a Piano (1927)
To See If My Dreams Come True (1927) Jack Hodges sings title song
Tommy Lorne and "Dumplings" (1927)
Tommy Lorne (1927) sings "The Lard Song"
Toot Toot (1926) Fleischer cartoon ("Toot Toot Tootsie"?)
Topsey-Turvey (1927) comedian Arthur Roberts sings "Topsey-Turvey"
The Toy Shop (1928)
The Trail of the Lonesome Pine (1927)
Tramp, Tramp, Tramp the Boys Are Marching (1926)
Tumbledown Shack in Athlone (1927)
Unmasked (1929) mystery feature film (released by Weiss Brothers Artclass Films)
Va usted en punto con el banco (1928)
Ventriloquist (1927) with William Frawley and girl who becomes the dummy
Vicarage Trio—Kerbstone Entertainment (1928)
The Victoria Girls (1928) perform "The Doll Dance", their "famous dancing medley"
Waiting for the Robert E. Lee (1927)
Weber and Fields (1923) doing their pool hall sketch
Westminster Glee Singers (1927) group directed by Edward Branscombe
When I Leave This World Behind (1926)
When I Lost You (1926)
When That Yiddisher Band Played an Irish Tune (1926) with Teddy Elben and His Irish Jewzaleers
When the Midnight Choo-Choo Leaves for Alabam' (1926)
The Whistler (1926) dramatic short with Louise Maurel, John Hamilton, and Reginald Fox directed by Miles Mander
Why Bananas? (1926) with Teddy Elben
Wyn Gladwyn, One Person Two Personalities (1928)
You and I and My Gondola (1927)
Yvette Darnac (1929) radio star Darnac sings Gershwin tune "The Man I Love" | <urn:uuid:e809f9fd-7ed8-48b8-8cca-6e9e10d1035f> | CC-MAIN-2023-50 | https://www.deforestradio.com/?p=phonofilm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-50/segments/1700679100399.81/warc/CC-MAIN-20231202105028-20231202135028-00030.warc.gz | en | 0.848479 | 5,912 | 2.875 | 3 |
Jean Zimmerman (top left) of the School District of Palm Beach County in West Palm Beach, Fla., heads special-needs training sessions at school districts around the country. Her sessions offer trainees opportunities to work in the bus with special-needs equipment.
When it comes to transporting students with special needs, pupil transportation and special-education officials, along with therapists and disability experts, agree that understanding students’ disabilities and how to work with the students is an integral part of ensuring a successful transportation experience.
“We have to see things through the students’ eyes and step into their realm. Once we’re able to do that and we understand them a little better, it makes a huge difference in how we work with these students,” says Michelle Brower, special-needs coordinator for Douglas County School District in Castle Rock, Colo.
Providing training for school bus drivers and aides is the best way to achieve this understanding and endow them with knowledge to effectively serve students.
“There are strategies that can really make a difference in the kids’ lives, so training is critical,” explains Jocelyn Taylor, an education specialist for the Utah State Office of Education whose expertise is in autism. “It will also make the adult’s job much more enjoyable if they understand how to work with the students they transport.”
Training session topics
Cheryl Wolf, safety and training supervisor for Lafayette (Ind.) School Corp., offers extensive special-needs training for her drivers and bus aides. Her sessions comprise five modules, including sensitivity training. The staff learns the importance of being respectful of the students’ personal space and of letting students do things themselves, such as latching their own seat belt, if they are able to.
In addition to sensitivity training, many pupil transportation operations cover confidentiality, equipment and how to properly use it, behavior and health plans as well as loading, unloading and evacuation procedures.
Pete Meslin, transportation director at Newport-Mesa Unified School District (USD) in Costa Mesa, Calif., says he also discusses with his staff the different types of disabilities to help them become familiar with them, as well as ways for the staff to communicate and work as a team.
Pauline Gervais, executive director of transportation services for Denver Public Schools, feels that it is equally important for school bus drivers and aides to receive bullying and harassment awareness training.
“Students with disabilities are more vulnerable to harassment and can be taken advantage of,” Gervais explains. “It is the responsibility of the driver and the attendant to ensure that students with disabilities are safe on the bus as well as at the bus stop. It is important to consider the student’s ability, age and gender when assigning seats on the bus.”
Approaches to keep drivers and aides engaged
As with any type of training, the drivers and bus aides must remain engaged during the sessions so that they retain the information and can apply it to their jobs. Changing how the information is delivered and who delivers it can help prevent people from tuning out.
“Drivers don’t want to hear things the same way twice, so we make a very big effort to switch up the training,” Meslin says. “Sometimes it will be a classroom setting with our trainers or me doing the presentation or sometimes it will be a special-education teacher, an autism expert, an occupational therapist or a nurse giving a presentation.”
Meslin also takes his drivers on field trips and organizes training sessions in a game show format. For the field trips, drivers are usually brought to special-needs students’ educational setting — in the classroom or the places where they have their community-based instruction. The drivers watch the students participate in the learning experience to gain a better understanding of how they process information.
For the game show-style training, Meslin says he sets up a Jeopardy-like game, dividing participants into teams and directing questions at them. Drivers can work in teams or individually, and small prizes are awarded for correct answers.
In recent months, Denver Public Schools’ transportation department has begun a practice of having the trainers and administrative officials (including Gervais) take turns teaching classroom training sessions. Gervais has found this approach to be successful because the trainees hear the information from different people and it also requires all of the instructors to become familiar with every component of the department’s training curriculum.
Taylor advocates using coaching to train school bus drivers and bus aides. She feels that having a coach in the bus to demonstrate how to communicate with students, how to properly buckle in a student, etc., is the most effective training method. | <urn:uuid:f3483865-af20-4794-a3fb-b5374250dc15> | CC-MAIN-2014-49 | http://www.schoolbusfleet.com/channel/special-needs/articles/2010/02/opportunities-for-stimulating-special-needs-training-abound.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-49/segments/1416931010938.65/warc/CC-MAIN-20141125155650-00015-ip-10-235-23-156.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959356 | 973 | 3.296875 | 3 |
Math Tutoring on Radian Measure and Application
A Radian is based on the radius of a circle. One Radian is the angle created by bending the radius length around the arc of a circle. Because a Radian is based on an actual part of the circle rather than an arbitrary division, it is a much more natural unit of angle measure for upper-level mathematics.
The circumference of a circle is 2π Radians. So it becomes 2π radians = 360 degrees.
In Math Tutoring, to convert radians to degrees, multiply a radian measure by 180°/π and simplify.
The Length Of An Arc on a circle depends on both the angle of rotation and the radius length of the circle. We know that, a Radian is the measure of an angle that cuts off an arc the same length as the radius. So that a half-rotation is π radians, so the length of the half-circle would be π radius length.
On the other hand, the length ‘s’ of the arc intercepted on a circle of radius ‘r’ by a central angle of measure ‘θ’ radians is given by the product of the radius and the radian measure of the angle. So s=rθ.
One of the major application of Radian is the measurement of Angular Velocity. The measure of how fast a central angle is changing is called Angular Velocity, ω. So ω=θ/t. where ‘θ’ is the measure of the central angle at time ‘t’. θ must be in radians and ω(omega) is expressed in radians per unit of time.
We know that the length ‘s’, of an intercepted arc on a circle with radius ‘r’ by a central angle ‘θ’ is given by s=rθ. So the Linear Speed Around a Circle is
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1. What is Radian and how it is measured?
2. Deduce the relation Radian and Degrees.
3. What is Angular Velocity and how it is measured?
4. How is Linear Speed around a Circle measured?
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King Alfred’s English: SUGGESTED FILMS
Here are a few suggested films related to topics in the book. I have listed each of them under the chapter most closely associated with the film’s subject matter .
NOTE TO PARENTS:
ONE CAUTION about the recommended movies: I have noted a few that are particularly bloody or may have sexual content, so please beware that you need to read reviews and decide for yourself which ones are appropriate for your student. Here are 2 recommended sites for checking out content on films-
At a minimum, it would be best if students watch at least one Shakespeare movie, and the other must-see film is Luther.
- Gladiator. Check the rating (it’s violent), but this in one outstanding film. About a man of great integrity (though not a Christian) up against the politics of Rome. The history in this film is a good mix of facts with imagination, a well-done compression of truth and historical fiction. If you want to see what wild Germanic hordes might have really looked like, this film gives a good depiction. Gladiator games, the coliseum, Rome in all its glory (and gore) are brought to life. It is one of my all-time favorite movies but not for the squeamish. If you watch Gladiator, be sure and have a look at this article which compares the story to the actual history: Gladiator, the History Behind the Movie. Classic films worth the viewing:
- Ben Hur–Christian content. With Charlton Heston, based on the book by Lew Wallace
- The Robe— incredible Christian story, also. Richard Burton; based on Lloyd C. Douglas’s book.
- The Silver Chalice — Paul Newman’s first movie (he’s more than just a salad dressing). Also Christian in content. Story entails the search for the Chalice from which Christ drank at the last supper, i.e. the Holy Grail.
Article on the accuracy of the history in Gladiator
Ever After, with Drew Barrymore — not precisely educational, but it goes with the whole study of the Grimm brothers. The movie treats the story as if Cinderella were actually based on facts. The Grimm brothers appear at the beginning and end of the movie. Also, Sir Thomas More’s Utopia plays a part as does Renaissance artist and inventor Leonardo da Vinci.
- Beowulf— Any of several versions. One option is the 2006 digitally rendered film (like 300, in case you saw that one) PG13. Several others (most rated R) are available and there are several documentaries on Beowulf out there, too.
- The Thirteenth Warrior— This movie got much better reviews than the digitally rendered Beowulf mentioned above (but I haven’t seen either, so I can’t vouch for them). This one is a loose retelling of Beowulf retaining much of the story and also the flavor and mood of ancient Germanic legend.
- Braveheart, with Mel Gibson. This is a great film, but rated R for violence. It tells the story of Scottish hero William Wallace who lived in the 1300’s just before the time of Chaucer. The movie contains one glaring historical error. Now that you have read about this period in England, you should be able to spot it. Watch for a conversation that simply would not have occurred at this time. Here’s the page explaining the answer If you don’t want to wait: Historical blunder in Braveheart
- Becket – the 1962 film with Richard Burton and Peter O’Toole. This movie tells the story of Thomas a’Becket (1118-1170), his friendship with King Henry II, and the eventual falling out and murder that occurred as a result of Becket’s resistance to some of the King’s policies. The link below tells you all about this classic film: http://www.becketthemovie.com/becket_00.html
On YouTube– but this is a full length documentary so I have considered it a “movie.” It’s about the man considered to be the ideal “Renaissance man”– Leonardo da Vinci. Part I of this 18-part documentary is a great introduction and just 8 min. and then you can watch more if you’re interested. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQ9ar3X_u1k
WATCH LUTHER! If you can only watch one film or do one suggested activity, let it be this one. Stars Joseph Fiennes as Martin Luther in a wonderful and well-made film about his life as a monk, his break with the Roman Church, and the havoc wrought in Germany at the time. You may also recognize Dr. Octopus from Spiderman playing the part of Tetzel, the infamous seller of indulgences.
Jesus and the Shroud of Turin This may seem somewhat off topic, but it does have to do with the Catholic Church and its relics. In the film Luther, Martin Luther makes fun of the medieval practice of collecting so-called relics, especially since the church charged money to see relics and then gave your great aunt Matilda time off from purgatory just because you looked at the supposed bones of some saint. However, that being said, this particular relic has caused quite a stir among evangelicals as well as Catholics. The scientific investigation to see if this relic is real is so interesting I show it to my world history classes every year. The jury is still out, but watch it more than once and I promise that you will not write this relic off. Netflix has it, but the link above is to Amazon so you can read the reviews there.
- God’s Outlaw, the Story of William Tyndale. You can watch from Amazon for just $1.99. I found it on Netflix too, but not on Blockbuster. I haven’t seen it myself, but the trailers above look very well done. I hestated to add this because I am unable to find it anywhere. But perhaps by the time you’re checking out this link, it will be available somewhere, and it is wonderful and well worth the search–
- Henry VIII — the 2003 Masterpiece Theater production — 200 min., lengthy but thoroughly engrossing. It does have some sex and violence, so use caution. This is such an outstanding film that it is worth the parental effort to fast-forward through whatever is not appropriate for your student. The whole family will enjoy it. Great acting. Incredible history. There are so many more movies and documentaries about Henry VIII that I’m simply going to send you to a link where most are listed. I can’t vouch for which ones are appropriate for teen viewing. The Other Boleyn Girl was wonderfully well done and is one of my favorites, but some editing would be required on this one too– so please beware! Henry VIII’s life was pretty scandalous, so it’s hard to deal with him and his consorts (one of whom was the “other Boleyn girl”) without some parental editing.
- A Man For All Seasons— 1966 version, winner of 4 academy awards, with Paul Scoffield (far superior to the later remake with Charlton Heston). This movie is about Sir Thomas More. It is especially enlightening to see a movie honoring this man because he was the personal enemy of both Martin Luther and William Tyndale. It’s a great illustration of the complexity of the events and times, seeing God working on both sides of a truly great divide and very real heroics on both sides. More, like Tyndale, lost his life while standing up for his principles. This is a great movie!
Not only was a Bible named for King James, but so also was the first permanent English settlement in America, Jamestown, Virginia. Watch The New World, a lavish adaptation of the Jamestown story– about Pochahantas, and Captain John Smith. More about the movie here– http://www.jamestown1607.org/newworldmovie.asp And here’s a link to multiple movies about Jamestown on Amazon(some are instant videos).
- These are mine and my children’s favorites. Much Ado is tops for us, but they are all very well produced and entertaining. Much Ado About Nothing — 1993 Director, Kenneth Branaugh. Two caveats: crazy bare-bottoms scene thrown in randomly at the very beginning (you can easily fast forward and not miss any story or dialog), and one scene with a man and woman in a window insinuating sexual activity that you will probably want to fast forward through. Other than that, this is one of the best movies ever! (also stars, Kate Beckinsale, Emma Thompson, Michael Keaton, Denzel Washington, Keanu Reeves)
- The Taming of the Shrew — Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor. Classic and very funny. Hamlet — either version: the 1996 version with Kenneth Branaugh (longer), or the 1990 with Mel Gibson. Others are good, too, but I prefer these.
- Midsummer Night’s Dream– with Michelle Pfeiffer.
- Romeo and Juliet. There’s a bit of bare bottom in this one, too, but at least they are married! Easy to fast forward. This production by Franco Zeffrelli simply can’t be beat. It is lavish and beautiful. And in case you don’t already know about this, here’s the free sparknotes for Shakespeare. | <urn:uuid:f401bc97-46fd-4b73-9b45-5cea9368f3e7> | CC-MAIN-2015-40 | http://www.theshorterword.com/king-alfreds-english/kae-suggested-films/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-40/segments/1443737956371.97/warc/CC-MAIN-20151001221916-00211-ip-10-137-6-227.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937587 | 2,017 | 2.703125 | 3 |
Monday, January 24th, 2011
Quite often you’ll find that you have two tables in a Word document and you want to join the two together to make just one table. The solution is simple but way from obvious.
To do this, first select over all the cells in one of the two tables. If the table is underneath the one you want to join it up to, then press Alt + Shift + Up Arrow to move the table up the document so that it joins the bottom of the table before it. Keep pressing the key until the top row that you have selected joins the bottom border of the one above.
If you have selected the topmost table, then press Alt + Shift + Down Arrow until the top table locks onto the table below.
You can also drag one table up or down until it joins but this method is very slick. It also works on a single row so you can take one row from one table and move only it to join up with another table or to become a table all of its own. Experiment with this key combination – I’m sure you will love it.
Once you’ve done this, the tables will be joined to make one single table. If desired, you can then adjust the positioning of the columns so that the columns match between the two tables – this isn’t required but you may want to do it if the columns are supposed to be the same throughout.
Labels: join two tables, shortcut keys, Word, Word 2003, Word 2007, Word 2010
Thursday, January 20th, 2011
Sometimes you’ll need to include a table in a document but place it so that it’s placed over a series of columns rather than inside the column itself.
To do this, click where you want the table to appear and insert the table at this point.
Hold your mouse over the table and you’ll see the table selector above the top left corner of the table. Click it to select the table and drag the table into position.
The default text wrap settings for a table in Word is that the text wraps around the table so there’s no special option to set to make this happen.
You can widen the table cells as large as necessary. If desired, the table can be sized so it fits the full width of the page or you can make it any size that you want.
To adjust the wrapping of text around a table, right click the table selector (the little square above its top left edge) and choose Table Properties > Table tab. Here you can select how text flows around the table or you can make it not flow around it if you want the table to push the text completely out of its way.
Here too you can alter the alignment of the table – by choosing Left, Center or Right.
This table behavior is consistent across Word 2007, 2010, 2003 and earlier versions.
Labels: columns, table over columns, Word, Word 2003, Word 2007, Word 2010, Wrap text
Tuesday, January 18th, 2011
One of the features of Microsoft Word is the ability to insert a line between columns in a Word document.
In Word 2003 and earlier choose Format > Columns and there is an option for Line Between in the dialog. Select it and click Ok and a line will appear between the columns.
In Word 2007 and 2010 the option is harder to find. You need to select the Page Layout > Columns > More Columns Option. This opens the Columns dialog, which gives you the opportunity to select the Line Between checkbox.
If you want to disable this feature, go back to the columns dialog and disable the checkbox.
Labels: line between columns, Word, Word 2003, Word 2007, Word 2010
Saturday, January 15th, 2011
Continuing the short series on working with columns in Word, here’s how to create a column layout in Word.
Create two columns
To turn an entire document into columns in Word 2007 and 2010 click the Page Layout tab and select Columns > Two. This immediately formats all the text in your document into two columns.
In Word 2003 you’ll choose Format > Columns, select Two (or Three etc.,) and click Ok.
Remove two columns
To undo the change and set your document back to one column in effectively undoing the two columns, repeat the process. In Word 2007 or Word 2010, choose Page Layout > Columns > One. The default for any document is one column so all you’re doing is going back to the default. In Word 2003 choose Format > Columns > One.
Make only part of the document into columns
If you want only part of a document to be in columns then select that part of the document first. For example, you may select all the content after the heading, leaving the heading unselected so it will be full width of the page. With that content selected, choose Page Layout > Columns and then select the number of columns.
This will make just the selected text into columns, leaving everything else full width of the page.
Again, if that piece of text ever needs to be returned to a single column just click inside it, choose Page Layout > Columns > One and it will be restore to the way it used to look.
So, that’s how to make text in columns in Word, how to delete columns and how to make only part of a document into columns.
Labels: create text in columns, delete columns, Page Layout, Word, Word 2003, Word 2007, Word 2010
Thursday, January 13th, 2011
One of the most difficult things that people find with working with columns in Word is moving between the columns.
The reason is that the process itself is anything but easy.
The Tab key, which will move you between cells in columns in a table, doesn’t work inside newspaper style columns in Word so that key is out.
Instead, to move or jump from one column to the next you’ll press Alt + Page Down to go to the column on the right (the second column) or Alt + Page Up to move to the first column.
When you click Alt + Page Down, if you are in column 1 you’ll go to the very top of column 2. If you keep pressing the key you’ll flip between the top character in each column.
If you’re somewhere in column 2, when you press Alt + Page Up you’ll go to the top of column 1.
These are the only specialist keys for moving or switching between columns – we could use more – like jumping from a line in one column to the same line in the one next to it – but nada! Sorry!
Labels: columns, jump, move between columns, shortcut keys, switch, Word, Word 2003, Word 2007, Word 2010
Tuesday, January 11th, 2011
Ok, so you’ve formatted your text to be two columns in Word and you’ve typed something in the first column. You haven’t filled the first column because you don’t want to. Fair enough – it’s your document – your choice.
But you do want to type something in the next or second column but however hard you try – Word won’t play nice. It wants you to fill column one before you get to fill column two – you don’t want to – so you’re at a stalemate.
The solution is to force Word to the top of the second column and you do this by inserting a break. In Word 2002/2003 choose Insert> Break > Column Break.
In Word 2007 & 2010 choose Page Layout tab> Breaks > Column.
Now you can type at the top of the second column. Yeah!
Labels: columns, Type in second column, Word, Word 2003, Word 2007, Word 2010
Sunday, January 9th, 2011
I get a lot of folks at projectwoman.com who come looking for help with columns and Word – anything from Word 2002 through 2003 to 2007 and now 2010. I have to think the reason is that Microsoft doesn’t make it as easy as it thinks to work with columns.
In the next few posts I’ll show you some things to do with columns that I think most folk have trouble with.
First up, how to put a picture in between columns in Word. Start by formatting your text in columns and then add your picture.
Chances are it won’t move and sit between columns. The issue is that Word inserts images as In Line With Text by default which is the setting MOST OF US WOULDN’T USE IN 1,000 YEARS – but Microsoft doesn’t really understand most users and so that’s what we get – images that are stuck – they won’t move where we want them to go and they won’t rotate.
To fix this, in Word 2002/2003 from the Picture toolbar find the Text Wrapping button, click it and choose practically anything except In Line With Text – I choose Square because it is the best all round setting.
In Word 2007/2010 click the Picture and from the Picture Tools > Format tab on the ribbon click the Text Wrapping button and choose Square.
Now your picture does what you expected it to do in the first place – it moves, it can be rotated and when you drag it over the space between two columns it sits where it is put and it pushes the text out of the way around it. Neat huh?
One day… maybe Microsoft will hear our cries of frustration and insert images so they behave like they should without us having to jump through hoops to make them.
Labels: columns, pictures over columns., span columns, Word, Word 2003, Word 2007, Word 2010
Monday, July 5th, 2010
Ok, so its easy to change units of measure in Word by setting the Word Options to measure in inches or cm – depending on where you live. However, if you’re using PowerPoint don’t waste your time looking in PowerPoint for the setting – it ain’t there.
Instead, the measurements in PowerPoint are tied to your geography. If you live in the US you get inches, if you fess up to living else where you get your local units of measure. To change where you live, launch the Control Panel and look for a Regional settings option and set your location there.
For those of us who live in the US but who think imperial measurements suck big time and who yearn for the metrics of our childhood in the far off land of Aus, thanks to Microsoft we are s*** out of luck. You see, if I set my region as Australia or the Uk to get metrics, everything else goes pear shaped and Google starts serving up UK or Australian pages in preference to US ones, or I get £ by default in Excel. It’s all round not a good choice. So, I’ll have to suck it up and learn to embrace feet and inches – but provided you still call the land of your birth home chances are you’ll be just fine.
Labels: PowerPoint 2007, PowerPoint 2010, Units of measure, Word 2007, Word 2010
Tuesday, May 4th, 2010
I don’t like Word’s basic bullet design and generally I’ll want bullets of my own liking. For example I’ll use bullet lists to create checkbox lists for things I need to do.
To get a checkbox list working in Word 2007 requires a little bit of list knowhow.If you’ve created your list items you can simply select the list and, from the Home tab, select the Multilevel list button and choose Define new list style.
You need to use this rather than the Bullet Lists > Define new bullet options because otherwise you don’t get control over the tabs and Word’s tab settings for bullets don’t always make good sense.
The Define New List Style option gives you the ability to control all of this. Start by typing a name for your list so that you can find it easily again later on. The select Bullets which is a small button to switch from numbers to bullet style. Click Insert symbol and select Wingdings as your font.
You can then select a bullet style such as a shadowed box, select it and click Ok.This is applied as the bullet style.
To adjust the spacing between the edge of the page and the bullet and the bullet and the text, click the Format button and choose Numbering. Set the Aligned at value to the distance that you want between the left edge of the page and the bullet itself. I set this to 0 inches.
Set the text indent at a value to the distance you want between the bullet and the text. This is a hanging indent so it ensures that all lines of text are wrapped automatically to the value you set. I like to set this to .75 inches if I’m using large bullets. Click Ok. You can then click Ok again to set this as your bullet style.
You can ignore the rest of the numbering if you’re simply using a one level bullet. Click Ok.
To apply this bullet style to your document click the multilevel list and select the list style from the list styles area of the dialog. If you hold your mouse over it, you’ll see the list style appear in a small dialog with the name that you gave it showing. Click it to apply it to your list.
Labels: bullet list, Custom, list, list style, Word 2007
Thursday, February 18th, 2010
Word 2007 comes with a range of styles you can use when inserting images into your document.
To see them at work, insert a picture into your document, click the image and choose Picture Tools > Format on the Ribbon.
The Picture Styles are formats you can apply to your image and they include some very attractive looking options.
Once you’ve selected a picture style you can adjust things like the Effects which are attached to it.
For example, you can create a picture reflection by selecting the picture and then choose the Picture Effects > Reflection option to create a reflected edge.
You can also recolor the picture border if desired by using the Picture Border option. If you have a picture inserted in a document and formatted the way you like it but determine that you don’t like the picture and want to replace it, choose Picture Tools > Format and click the Change Picture option and choose an alternate picture to use. The format will remain and only the picture itself will change.
Labels: edge, format picture, picture styles, reflection, Word 2007 | <urn:uuid:83afe2c7-aadc-45cb-8dcd-993ae17f3895> | CC-MAIN-2016-50 | http://projectwoman.com/tag/word-2007/page/2 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-50/segments/1480698542932.99/warc/CC-MAIN-20161202170902-00144-ip-10-31-129-80.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.865006 | 3,067 | 3.1875 | 3 |
Transcript from the "References & Borrowing" Lesson
>> So first we're gonna talk about references and how they interact with borrowing, they're gonna talk about mutable references and finally slices. Okay, so, we talked about previously we had our example of printing years function which takes years and then we iterate through each of the years and at the end to deallocate.
[00:00:17] Years because yours is not returned. And we talked about how this is a problem, because if I want to call print yours twice in a row passing the same years, I Got a compiler error, specifically a use after move error. And we talked about how, one way we can fix this is with clone and what we could do is with this, returning the the vec, just for purposes of satisfying the compiler.
[00:00:36] Here's another way we can fix it. Loop, we just add three ampersands on the screen, which are highlighted in hot pink. So this actually also solves it and it makes it so that, this compiles and runs and everything works great. There's no cloning, there's no need to return like those extra do that sort of returning dance.
[00:00:55] This is sort of the solution to the problem that we had in the previous exercise. Okay, so what's going on here, let's talk about it. A couple things are going on. So first, let's look at this thing. This right here inside this box, is a new type that we haven't seen before.
[00:01:10] This is called a reference type and it begins with an ampersand. So this is not a vec of i32, is rather it is a reference to a vec of i32s, and we'll talk about the rules behind references later. So, a reference, is basically something that says, I want to have access to this thing, but I don't actually own it.
[00:01:31] I'm not going to clean it up, I'm just going to look at it. So, access to it but not ownership means, something different than ownership especially when it comes to deallocating memory. So here's another, a really common example of reference you can find. In this case we have ampersand self.
[00:01:48] So this is a reference to self. And this is what you see inside the length function of vectors as well as strings as well as other data structures like that. And basically it says, hey, when you're asking me for my lenth, that's not like transferring ownership, I'm not saying I'm gonna delete self, I'm gonna deallocate it after I'm done telling you the length.
[00:02:08] Of course not, that would be ridiculous. Instead, what it's gonna say is, yeah, just give me a reference to self, I'll go look at it, and figure out what its length is and return that. And then, we're not going to do anything having to do with who's responsible for deallocating this thing.
[00:02:21] The caller is still just as responsible as before, or the original owner is still responsible for deallocating this thing. I just want to take a look at it and then whoever, was originally going to deallocate it, they're still responsible for doing that. Yeah, so this is a reference to a vec i32, this is a reference to a self.
[00:02:39] So basically, you can think of what is happening here with this ampersand and here is it saying, hey, I temporarily want to give print years access two years. And ampersand years in this case where we're outside of the type signature, we're inside an actual value. This is basically called a borrow.
[00:02:55] So I'm saying I want to borrow years. So the metaphor years, it's not a perfect metaphor, but, it's basically the concept of like, okay, I have this thing, and I'm not giving it to you. I'm not transferring ownership from me to you. I'm just letting you borrow it.
[00:03:09] So I'm still responsible for it, it's still mine. And you're going to give it back to me at some point, there's sort of an implicit understanding there. But I am [COUGH] temporarily allowing you to have access to it, you can borrow it. So, when we write it like this, what we're basically saying is, okay, when I call print years, not going to transfer ownership, main is still responsible for main still owns years.
[00:03:32] Which means main is still responsible for deallocating it. We're just handing temporary ownership, sorry, we're handing temporary reference to it, to print here. So print yours is able to do some things with it, but not necessarily everything. So, in the context of this use after move compiler that we saw, the reason that this is called a borrow checker error.
[00:03:52] Is because typically, this is like the this sort of checking to see if all the borrows are done properly, is kind of the the uniquely rust thing. This is the thing that you don't really find in other languages. So it's colloquially called the borrow checker even though it also has to do with ownership errors, or as we'll see in the next section, lifetime errors.
[00:04:11] One really important thing to know about the borrow checker is you can't turn it off, I mentioned this because, it's a thing. It's a common misconception that people say, Rust has this borrow checker. But don't worry, you can turn it off using this keyword called unsafe. False, that is absolutely not true.
[00:04:26] In fact, it is so false that you can't turn off the borrow checker in Rust, is the exact title of a blog post, by a Rust core team member, who wrote this entire blog post, in order to try and dispel this myth. There is no way to drop the borrow checker.
[00:04:40] When you see an error like this, you got to figure out some way to deal with it, either by using clone or by using return or by introducing a borrow or something like that. There is no way to get around these things. So really important to note, that's why we're learning this [LAUGH] because, when you encounter an error like this, you got to figure out some way to deal with it. | <urn:uuid:f8b8c62d-0d59-496c-bc89-b9992430c60e> | CC-MAIN-2022-49 | https://frontendmasters.com/courses/rust/references-borrowing/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-49/segments/1669446710684.84/warc/CC-MAIN-20221128235805-20221129025805-00048.warc.gz | en | 0.977101 | 1,419 | 2.59375 | 3 |
The Ozone Balance
Over Earth's lifetime, natural processes have regulated the balance of ozone in the stratosphere.
Scientists are finding that ozone levels change periodically as part of regular natural cycles such as
seasons, periods of solar activity, andchanges in wind direction.Concentrations are also affected by
isolated events that inject materials into the stratosphere, such as volcanic eruptions.
Polar regions reflect the greatest changes in ozone concentrations, especially the South Pole.The
topography of Antarctica is such that a stagnant whirpool of extremely cold stratospheric air forms
over the region during the long polar night.The air stays within this polar vortex all winter, becoming
cold enough to allow the formation of polar stratospheric clouds.
Polar stratospheric clouds speed up the natural process of ozone destruction by providing ice crystal
surfaces on which the destructive reactions take place.After the long polar winter, ozone within this
extremely cold vortex is very vulnerable to the arrivalof sunlight. As spring arrives, major ozone
losses occur. In the southern hemisphere, the area of most severe ozone depletion is localized above
Antarctica and is generally referred to as the ozone hole.Thehole appears in the southern spring,
following the continent's coldest season and polar night.
Ozone depletion over the Arctic is not as well defined as in Antarctica.The rugged topography results
in an air circulation pattern that is quite different from that of the South Pole, but expeditions have
shown that the atmospheric chemistry of the two polar regions is very similar.In the Northern
Hemisphere, the polar vortex is not as strong.It can break up and reform several times during the
course of winter.One air mass after another enters the polar darkness and soon emerges back into low
sunshine. Thus, a bit of ozone is lost from each parcel of air, rather than a large amount from one
parcel as in the southern hemisphere.
The end result is that we are losing ozone in both hemispheres. (26k
jpeg) Ozone levels in the atmosphere have been monitored from the ground since the 1950s and by
satellite since the 1970s.Regional total ozone levels measured from satellites over Antarctica have
decreased 30-50% since their monitoring began.
Since ozone is created and destroyed by solar UV radiation, there is some correlation of ozone
concentration with 11-year sunspot cycles.Sunspots emit high levels of electromagnetic radiation.
The increased UV radiation contributes to ozone production.Sunspot variations only account for 2 to 4
% of the total variation in ozone concentrations.Natural cycles in ozone variation are also associated
with the quasi-biennial oscillation in which tropical winds switch from easterly to westerly every 26
months.This cyclic change in wind direction accounts for approximately 3 % of the natural variation
in ozone concentration.
- last: Ozone Production and Destruction
next: Social Considerations
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Fourteen centuries ago, Allah sent down the Qur'an. This book of guidance and wisdom calls man to the truth and instructs all human beings to adhere to the values which this mighty revelation contains. From the day of its revelation to the Day of Judgment, this last divine book will remain as the sole guide for humanity. In addition, the Qur'an contains within its words many miracles which prove it to be Allah's word. One of these attributes is the remarkable number of scientific truths which are contained in the Book of Islam. In this book which was revealed over fourteen centuries ago to the Prophet Muhammad (saas), there are innumerable examples of information humanity have only been able to uncover by the technology of the 20th and 21st centuries. | <urn:uuid:1d89f52c-f785-4675-a346-9e939dbd0da7> | CC-MAIN-2017-22 | http://www.harunyahya.com/en/works/4808/THE-MIRACLES-OF-THE-QURAN---3 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-22/segments/1495463607620.78/warc/CC-MAIN-20170523103136-20170523123136-00148.warc.gz | en | 0.946922 | 151 | 2.578125 | 3 |
- EH&S Training & Services
- Occupational Health & Safety
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- Noise Exposure
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- Lab & Research Safety
Autoclave Testing Program
Autoclaves need periodic testing to ensure proper functioning. Oregon Public Health regulations require that autoclaves used to decontaminate regulated wastes such as cultures and stocks be tested monthly by challenge testing using biological indicators containing endospores of the bacterium Geobacillus stearothermophilis.
OSU Biosafety offers autoclave testing kits to researchers or other users on the campus. The kits contain a vial of endospores, information card and return packaging. Users are asked to bury the vial inside a bag of waste, run it in the autoclave, then retrieve the vial and return it to EH&S for evaluation. A report of the results is generated and sent to the user for their records.
To safely decontaminate solid bagged waste, leave the bags closed and place them in secondary containment so any leaks will be captured. Do not overfill the autoclave with bags; one bag at a time is recommended unless the autoclave is very large. Steam must be able to contact all surface areas of the bag. Use heat tape or a temperature chart recorder to validate that each run reaches the appropriate temperature (usually 121 degrees celsius). For waste bags, usually one hour of run time is required; some campus autoclaves need more time. A dry cycle can be used.
After the autoclave has come returned to ambient pressure, carefully open it an inch or two to allow excess steam to escape before opening the door completely. Use thermal gloves to handle hot materials when removing them from the autoclave. | <urn:uuid:11cb2778-7e6b-4ad7-b6fe-12d304ccfc16> | CC-MAIN-2016-50 | http://podcast.oregonstate.edu/ehs/autoclave-testing | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-50/segments/1480698540975.18/warc/CC-MAIN-20161202170900-00071-ip-10-31-129-80.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.859962 | 386 | 2.796875 | 3 |
April 25, 2005
"April [is] National
Donate Life Month, a time to raise public awareness of the critical
need for organ, tissue, marrow, and blood donation. ... Over the
years, many participating organizations and individuals found
it restrictive to limit special donation awareness efforts to
one week in April-especially as the week often conflicted with
other observances such as National Volunteer Week, or at times,
with Passover or Holy Week. The change to a month-long observance
of 'National Donate Life Month' underscores the importance of
donation of not only organs and tissues, but also marrow and blood."
The goal is to "raise
public awareness of the critical need." The need for...
"In recent years,
the science of organ transplantation has made great strides. Unfortunately,
the process of securing and allocating organs has not matched
this progress. There still is a critical shortage of organs. Here
are some statistics: * The number of people waiting to receive
an organ transplant in the United States is rising. There are
now more than 82,000 people on the national organ transplantation
waiting list. * Each day, 63 people receive an organ transplant,
but another 16 people on the waiting list die because organs aren't
Every day, "people
on the waiting list die because organs aren't available."
"There are two essential
steps to saving lives through organ donation. 1. SHARE YOUR LIFE.
Decide to be a donor.Transplants provide hope for thousands of
people with organ failure. In addition, hundreds of thousands
more can be helped with tissue transplants. Unfortunately, the
need for donors is much greater than the actual number of donors.
Your commitment to organ and tissue donation can save lives. 2.
SHARE YOUR DECISION. Tell your family. The most important part
of deciding to be a donor is telling your family. Talking about
donation doesn't mean talking about death. It is talking about
the opportunity to give another person a second chance at life.
... There is no national registry of organ and tissue donors.
Even if you have signed something, be sure you have told your
family of your wishes as they will be consulted before donation
can take place."
Making the decision is
not enough; you need to talk with your family and let them know
what you have decided. Now what? Once you've talked to your family,
you won't have to think about that issue again... Right?
"Kidney and sometimes
liver transplant patients are now routinely urged by their physicians
to seek living donors after being told it will take years before
they reach the top of the waiting list, which now numbers more
than 87,000 for all organs. Relatives and friends could feel pressured
to say yes. Last year, there were nearly 7,000 living organ donors
-- more than double the number a decade ago. Most gave a kidney;
about 300 gave a liver lobe, and 28 donated a piece of lung."
Someone you love asks
you to help. You want to help, but you have your concerns...
"While many living
donors suffer no problems, others fight pain after surgery and
other complications, and a few die. Hospitals vary widely in what
they tell potential donors and how they screen them. The new rules
would require hospitals to spell out the risks. Those that fail
to comply could lose Medicare payments, a powerful tool aimed
at ensuring that centers are providing quality care and looking
out for living donors, whose numbers have soared amid an acute
shortage of organs from the dead. ... "
What if someone you love
didn't need an organ, but needed something your body could replace?
"A marrow or blood
cell transplant is a potentially life-saving treatment for patients
with leukemia, lymphoma, and other blood diseases. A transplant
replaces a patient's unhealthy blood cells with healthy blood-forming
cells from a volunteer donor. ... Because tissue type is inherited,
patients are most likely to match someone of their same race and
ethnicity. There is a special need to recruit more donors who
identify themselves as: Black or African American, American Indian
or Alaska Native, Asian, Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, Hispanic
or Latino. ... A donor's marrow is completely replaced within
four to six weeks.... Most donors are back to their usual routine
in a few days. Some may take two to three weeks before they feel
completely recovered. ... These effects go away shortly after
donating. When asked about their discomfort, most donors are quick
to point out that it was worth it to help save a life, and they
would be willing to do it again.... Potential donors must be between
the ages of 18 and 60 years old and meet health guidelines."
What if it is someone
you love? A family member? A friend? What if your marrow was needed
by a total stranger? What about your blood?
"To give blood for
transfusion to another person, you must be healthy, be at least
17 years old or 16 years old if allowed by state law, weigh at
least 110 pounds, and not have donated blood in the last 8 weeks
(56 days). 'Healthy' means that you feel well and can perform
normal activities. If you have a chronic condition such as diabetes
or high blood pressure, 'healthy' also means that you are being
treated and the condition is under control. Other aspects of each
potential donor's health history are discussed as part of the
donation process before any blood is collected. Each donor receives
a brief examination during which temperature, pulse, blood pressure
and blood count (hemoglobin or hematocrit) are measured."
While alive, many people
donate blood; some people donate bone marrow; few people donate
organs. If tragedy strikes, and a loved one dies suddenly, many
try to honor the wishes of the one who died. Others don't know
what those wishes were.
Questions of the Week:
WHAT would you want for your organs if you were no longer alive
to use them? WHAT would you do if you were asked to be a living
donor? WHAT would you be willing to donate? WHAT information do
you need before you can make these decisions? WHY is it important
to think about these things now? WHO should you talk with about
your decisions? WHO should you talk with about what they would
want? WHEN can you talk to those you need to talk to about the
issue of organ donation? HOW can you bring this up in conversation?
HOW can you avoid and/or minimize conflict in a family if members
disagree about what should be done? WHERE, HOW, and WHY should
these decisions be documented?
Please email me with any ideas or suggestions.
Note: Due to increasing amounts of SPAM sent to this account, please include "QOW" in the subject line when sending me email.
I look forward to reading
what you have to say.
Health Community Coordinator
Access Excellence @ the National Health Museum | <urn:uuid:2801f561-5748-49c6-bb44-008f4dabeb09> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.accessexcellence.org/HHQ/qow/qow04/qow050425.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382398/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942866 | 1,500 | 2.84375 | 3 |
Topic :Operating Systems.Presented By ;Chirag Chandiramani (21)
What is an OperatingSystem? Operating System is an interface between the user and the computer hardware. OS is software, consisting of programs and data, that runs on computers, manages computer hardware resources, and provides common services for execution of various application software. It is the most important type of system software in a computer system. Without an operating system, a user cannot run an application program on their computer, unless the application program is self booting.
Operating System Functions Memory Management That is, allocation of main memory and other storage areas to the system programs as well as user programs and data. Process Management: That is, assignment of processor to different tasks being performed by the computer system. File Management: It is the storage of file of various storage devices to another. It also allows all files to be easily changed and modified through the use of text editors or some other files manipulation routines.
Types of Operating $ystems GUI Multi Multi User Threading Operating System Multi Multi Processing Tasking
1) GUI : Short for Graphical User Interface, a GUI Operating System contains graphics and icons and is commonly navigated by using a computer mouse.Examples : System 7.x Windows 98 Windows CE2) Multi User : A multi-user operating system allows for multiple users to use the same computer at the same time and different times. Being able to have multiple accounts on a Windows operating system does not make it a multi-user system. Rather, only the network administrator is the real user. But for a Unix-like operating system, it is possible for two users to login at a time and this capability of the OS makes it a multi-user operating systemExamples : Linux Windows 2000 Unix
3) Multi Tasking : When a single program is allowed to run at a time, the system is grouped under a single-tasking system, while in case the operating system allows the execution of multiple tasks at one time, it is classified as a multi-tasking operating system.Examples : Unix Windows 2000a) Real Time Operating System : A real-time operating system is a multitasking operating system that aims at executing real-time applications. Real-time operating systems often use specialized scheduling algorithms so that they can achieve a deterministic nature of behavior. The main objective of real-time operating systems is their quick and predictable response to events.
4) Multi Processing : An operating system capable of supporting and utilizing more than one computer processor.Examples : Linux Unix Windows 2000 5) Multi Threading : Operating systems that allow different parts of a software program to run concurrently.Examples : Linux Unix Windows 2000
The control program in a users machine (desktop or laptop). Also called a "client operating system," Windows is the overwhelming majority while the Macintosh comes second. There are also several versions of Linux for the desktop. Examples : Windows Mac Linux
Microsoft Windows OS …• Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.• Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces (GUIs) Microsoft Windows came to dominate the worlds personal computer market, overtaking Mac OS, which had been introduced in 1984. As of October 2009, Windows had approximately 90% of the market share of the client operating systems for usage on the Internet• The most recent client version of Windows is Windows 7; the most recent server version is Windows Server 2008 R2; the most recent mobile version is Windows Phone 7.
FEATURES OF WINDOWSEasy to use Familiar Gaming Updates Supporting Not Expensive Unsecure Stable
Windows Journey :• Windows 1• Windows 2, 2.1x• Windows 3.0, 3.1• Windows 95, 98, Me• Windows NT family• Windows CE• Windows XP• Windows Vista• Windows 7
Latest Version : Windows 7• Windows 7 is the latest release of Microsoft Windows, a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, net books, tablet PCs, and media center PCs. Windows 7 was released to manufacturing on July 22, 2009,and reached general retail availability on October 22, 2009,less than three years after the release of its predecessor, Windows Vista.• Windows 7 includes a number of new features, such as advances in touch and handwriting recognition, support for virtual hard disks, improved performance on multi- core processors, improved boot performance, Direct Access, and kernel improvements
MAC OS- Apple• Mac OS is a series of graphical user interface- based operating systems developed by Apple Inc. (formerly Apple Computer, Inc.) for their Macintosh line of computer systems. The Macintosh user experience is credited with popularizing the graphical user interface. The original form of what Apple would later name the "Mac OS" was the integral and unnamed system software first introduced in 1984 with the original Macintosh, usually referred to simply as the System software.
Features of MAC Stable Great GUI Secure Better Graphics Not all softwares run No Gaming Difficult mouse (one click) Expensive
Latest Version : Mac OS X Lion• Mac OS X Lion (version 10.7) is the eighth and current major release of Mac OS X, Apples desktop and server operating system for Macintosh computers. Lion was released on July 20, 2011, as announced during Apples third quarter 2011 earnings report.[Apples promotional webpages refer to it as OS X Lion, although press releases announcing the systems availability included the "Mac".• It brings many developments made in Apples iOS, such as an easily navigable display of installed applications, to the Mac, and includes support for the Mac App Store, as introduced in Mac OS X Snow Leopard version 10.6.6.
LINUX OS• Linux is a computer operating system which is based on free and open source software. Although many different varieties of Linux exist, all are Unix-like and based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel created in 1992 by Linus Torvalds.• The popularity of Linux on standard desktop computers and laptops has been increasing over the years. Currently most distributions include a graphical user environment, with the two most popular environments being GNOME and the KDE Plasma Desktop.
Server OS Server operating systems are designed to provide platforms for multi-users , for critical, network applications. Their main purpose is to provide security, stability and collaboration. Most of them come with a pack of dedicated software tools such as Web servers, e-mail agents and terminal services The common applications for server OSes are: File and printer sharing Application services (including databases) Web site services E-mail, groupware and messaging Terminal services Caching
Server os needs StabilityFeature Server Security Operating System Performance Administration
Mobile OS• Operating System that controls a mobile device.Symbian I phone Windows Palm Linux Rim OS OS Mobile OS OS Blackberry OS
BOTTOM LINE .. phew.. As Operating System controls and coordinates the use of the hardware among the various applications programs for various uses, we can say that it plays a very important role in computer system. | <urn:uuid:6a6884dd-e23c-4f3f-a28c-96fd981e3aed> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.slideshare.net/chiragchandiramani/os-9852147 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988717959.91/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183837-00375-ip-10-142-188-19.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.909557 | 1,457 | 3.4375 | 3 |
Some 40,000 residents of Sundsvall in northern Sweden may have been exposed to contaminated water following the discovery of coliform bacteria in the city's mains water supply.
"It's serious, but all routines have worked," said Tomas Östergren at the environmental office in Sundsvall to the local Dagbladet daily.
The city's authorities have announced that the mains water system will be chlorinated in order to protect inhabitants against infection.
"It can take up to a day before the chlorination reaches everywhere," said Uno Schön at water firm Mittsverige Vatten to the newspaper.
The discovery of the coliform bacteria, which are not necessarily a cause of serious illness but can indicate the presence of other pathogens, was made on Friday morning.
The infection is reported to cover the entire Grönsta water catchment area which supplies central Sundsvall, home to some 51,000 people.
It remained unclear on Saturday just how many people may have been drinking contaminated water before the bacteria were discovered.
Nearby Östersund suffered a Cryptosporidium bacterial outbreak in 2010 which left as many as 30,000 people suffering from stomach problems. In July 2013 the municipality was charged with environmental crimes over the outbreak.
With regards to the Sundsvall there are currently no criminal suspicions of wrong doing and the cause of the infection to the municipality's water supply is under investigation. | <urn:uuid:935d31bd-e798-43a7-829e-a09df17eabde> | CC-MAIN-2015-22 | http://crofsblogs.typepad.com/h5n1/2013/week36/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-22/segments/1432207930259.97/warc/CC-MAIN-20150521113210-00219-ip-10-180-206-219.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966144 | 291 | 3.046875 | 3 |
A heavyweight for Einstein
Observations of the most massive neutron star confirm Einstein's Relativity Theory
An international research team led by astronomers from the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy) used a collection of large radio and optical telescopes in Bonn to investigated in detail a pulsar and its white dwarf companion. The observations revealed a binary stellar system with unusual properties. The pulsar weighs twice as much as the sun, making it the most massive neutron star measure to date. This, in combination with its short orbital period of only 2.5 hours, provides new insights into the emission of gravitational radiation. The system thus serves as a laboratory for General Relativity in extreme conditions.
Imagine half a million Earths packed into a sphere 20 kilometres in diameter, spinning faster than an industrial kitchen blender. These extreme conditions, almost unimaginable by human standards, are met in a neutron star – a type of stellar remnant formed in the aftermath of a supernova explosion. Neutron stars often catch the attention of astronomers because they offer the opportunity to test physics under unique conditions. They were first discovered almost half a century ago as pulsars which emit radio pulses like a lighthouse. Pulsar research has been honoured with two Nobel prizes, one for their discovery (1974) and one for the first indirect detection of gravitational waves (1993) – a consequence of Einstein’s theory of General Relativity.
PSR J0348+0432 is a pulsar in orbit with a white-dwarf, recently discovered using the Green-Bank radio telescope in an ongoing global effort to find more of these exciting pulsars. With a separation of just 830,000 km, the pulsar and the white dwarf in this system are close enough to emit a significant amount of gravitational waves. This should make the orbital size and period shrink, as predicted by General Relativity. To verify this prediction, one needs to know both the mass of the pulsar and its companion.
“I was observing the system with ESO’s Very Large Telescope in Chile, trying to detect changes in the light emitted from the white dwarf caused by its two million km/h motion around the pulsar.” says John Antoniadis, IMPRS student at the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy (MPIfR) in Bonn and leading author of the paper. “This allows us to weigh both, the white dwarf and the pulsar. After a quick on-the-spot analysis I realized that the pulsar was quite a heavyweight: a mass twice that of the Sun, making it the most massive neutron star we know of.”
With these masses at hand, one can calculate the amount of energy taken away from the system by gravitational waves, causing the orbital period to shrink. The team immediately realized that this change in the orbital period should be visible in the radio signals of the pulsar and turned its full attention to PSR J0348+0432, using the three largest single-dish radio telescopes on Earth. “Our radio observations with the Effelsberg and Arecibo telescopes were so precise that by the end of 2012 we could already measure a change in the orbital period of 8 microseconds per year, exactly what Einstein’s theory predicts”, states Paulo Freire, scientist at MPIfR. “Such measurements are so important that the European Research Council has recently funded BEACON, a new state-of-the-art system for the Effelsberg radio telescope.” | <urn:uuid:47c1daba-5b16-469b-80ad-92f4ee22bf49> | CC-MAIN-2017-51 | https://www.mpg.de/7127350/supermassive-neutron-star | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-51/segments/1512948513330.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20171211090353-20171211110353-00555.warc.gz | en | 0.929244 | 722 | 3.640625 | 4 |
|Management in ancient and medieval Sri Lanka
|Page 1 of 1|
|Author:||Guest [ Wed Dec 24, 2008 1:56 pm ]|
|Post subject:||Management in ancient and medieval Sri Lanka|
Management in ancient and medieval Sri Lanka
The monks at the Abhayagiri hermitages were directed to collect the income from the villages belong to these hermitages. At the end of the year, the monks in the hermitages had to present a statement of income, expenditure and balance in hand for perusal by the monks nominated for the purpose by the main monastery. If any dishonesty was detected, the offender was to be made to restore the property in question. Disputes were to be inquired into by the senior monks who kept the register at Abhayagiri. Individual monks who enjoyed property belonging to the monastery also were required to show their accounts.
by Kamalika Pieris
@ The Island - Dec 2007
From the early Anuradhapura period onwards there was an elaborately organised and efficiently run administrative system in Sri Lanka. Managerial positions were created to ensure smooth delivery of administrative decisions. Brahmi inscriptions which record cave donations refer to the positions of ‘officer in charge of the administration of the city’ and ‘superintendent of state departments.’ There were many superintendents, known as ‘adeka’. Ninth century inscriptions show that the ‘royal departments’ had two classes of officials, senior (executive) and junior (non-executive).
The central administration consisted of a series of subject departments. Each department had a head with designated officers working under him. The treasury was under the bhandagarika. There was an inner treasury and an outer treasury with separate officers for each. Subjects were divided into categories. The tax department had a collector of road tax, collector of water tax and collector of higher taxes. Line management was practised. Inscriptions of the 9th century refer to superintendent of works and inspector of works, field overseer and work overseer. There were plenty of middle level officers. The inscriptions speak of agriculture officer, customs officer, warden of land allotments and warden of labour. Supporting staff were provided. According to the Kaduruwewa inscription there were several lesser Dovarika under the senior one, the Mahadoratana. There were clerical positions. One was the ‘clerk attending to security division’.
Important matters were set down in writing and the records were preserved. Proceedings of the royal court were recorded and preserved in the time of Udaya I. Registers were maintained. The divel poth listed the details of every divel holding. Donations were noted and the original record of the donation was kept in the king’s archives. Ruvanvelisaya inscription states that whenever a donation was made to an institution belonging to Mahavihara, the original was filed in the archives at Loha maha paya.
There is considerable information on the management of Buddhist monasteries. The Mihintale tablets of Mahinda IV (10th century) as well as the ‘Sanskrit inscription’ of Abhayagiri (9th century) give information on the management of Cetiyagiri and Abhayagiri monasteries. They show that management methods were known and practised in ancient Sri Lanka. The Mihintale tablets show that Chetiyagiri had an elaborately organised system of management.
Responsibility for the management of each monastery lay with the monks of that monastery. The monks of the two mulas and the six avasas of Abhayagiri were responsible for the administration of their institutions. But the final authority lay with the monks at the main monastery. The Chetiyagiri committee sometimes sat in session with a group of monks representing the two fraternities of the Abhayagiri monastery to administer Chetiyagiri matters. Disputes at the minor institutions were settled by the monks from the main monastery.
Inscriptions of the period between 800-1200 AD show that the monasteries were managed through a committee system involving many officials working for wages. These officials supervised the work, collected revenue and maintained the monastic buildings. At Abhayagiri however, monastic management was directly under the monks. There was a committee of management with lay officers, but they came under the direct supervision of the monks. There is evidence to show that monks engaged in management at Abhayagiri were paid.
At Chetiyagiri the overall administration was in the hands of a committee of management of eight persons. The titles of the persons on the committee are given in the Mihintale tablets, but historians have not been able to decide on the meaning of the terms. This committee was appointed by the monastery, and reported to a group of monks who represented the monastery. Monks were prohibited from appointing relatives to the committee. All relatives of monks appointed to office at the monastery were to be dismissed. Officials were to be instructed or reproached by the committee of monks, not by individual monks. Meetings of committee were held in the ‘inner monastery’. There was a ‘junior scribe’ to attend to the clerical work arising from its proceedings. The committee members were paid. They got the highest remuneration At Abhayagiri the payment to a committee member depended on the efficiency he showed in carrying out his duties.
The committee supervised the day to day running of the establishment. Three officials had to be present without fail, at the ‘pay office’ when allowances were distributed, at the place where raw rice was given for cooking and in the refectory when the food was distributed to the monks. The monastery employees were administered by the committee. The sureties and guarantors provided by the employees were accepted by them. No trees on monastic grounds could be felled without the permission of the committee and any person who violated this was liable to a fine. There seems to have been an official who liaised between Chetiyagiri and its hermitages.
This committee of management has similarities with the committee system operating in secular administration. Badulla pillar inscription of Udaya IV (946-954) refers to committees of eight persons. Some of the designations given for Chetiyagiri committee members are found in secular records of the 8th and 9th century. The lesser officials can be traced back as far as the 5th century. The designation ‘pirivahunava’ is found in two secular inscriptions, one of which is the Badulla inscription.
Mihintale tablets give detailed instructions on the management of administrative affairs. It was compulsory to maintain records. There was a monastery register known as ‘paspot’. Abhayagiri stipulated that upon appointment, the name of the employee and exact nature of his duties were to be entered in the register. Mihintale tablet stipulated that all receipts from estates as well as all payment made for the supply of food, for repairs and allowances were also recorded in the register. At Abhayagiri this register was maintained by the monks. At Chetiyagiri it was maintained by a layman. There was also a register listing the names of the monks in the monastery.
Mihintale tablets prescribe that the committee of management should attend to the duties connected with the revenue and expenditure of the main monastery as well as the subsidiary institutions attached to it. This would not have been an easy task. The large monasteries were rich. They owned vast extents of land, many buildings, villages and irrigation works. They also owned cattle and salterns. Monasteries also had a cash income. Money was used to purchase robes for monks, certain items which were not manufactured in the monastery and for the material needed for monastic repairs. In a few instances, allowances were also paid in gold. Institutions within a monastery such as ‘dage’ and ‘pilimage’ had separate endowments and separate officials.
I think that the monasteries worked according to a budget. Records show that allocations were made. Mihintale tablets stipulated that the produce from two villages, Damgamiya and Algamiya, were to be used for repairs at Katu maha saya and Kiriband pavu dagoba respectively. However, all offerings at these two shrines as well as the shrines of the main monastery together with one ‘yal’ of paddy and one hundred kalandas of gold were to be allocated for repairs at the main monastery.
At Abhayagiri a 10th century record stated that the income from the villages and the land set apart for meeting the cost of repairs should be used for that purpose alone. If there were no such funds, whatever was left from funds set aside for food and clothing was to be used. If there was no balance from the funds set apart for food, then half of the funds set apart for robes were to be used for repairs. Monks who failed to carry out these instructions were to be expelled from the monastery. .
The monasteries maintained elaborate accounts. R.A.L.H. Gunawardana remarked that the book keeping and accounting of the monastery was ‘worthy of a business house.’ Abhayagiri obtained regular accounts from all institutions under it. Abhayagiri stipulated that separate statements of accounts, giving income, expenditure and the payments made to employees be prepared for each of the various establishments attached to monastery, such as Bo tree, refectory and image house. According to the inscription of Kassapa V (914-923) the monks appointed a committee of eight members to obtain the accounts of the Maha Kapara fraternity and prepare the statement of accounts, which was to be presented to the general assembly of Abhayagiri monks at the end of year. The committee consisted of both junior and senior monks.
The monks at the Abhayagiri hermitages were directed to collect the income from the villages belonging to these hermitages. At the end of the year, the monks in the hermitages had to present a statement of income, expenditure and balance in hand for perusal by the monks nominated for the purpose by the main monastery. If any dishonesty was detected, the offender was to be made to restore the property in question. Disputes were to be inquired into by the senior monks who kept the register at Abhayagiri. Individual monks who enjoyed property belonging to the monastery also were required to show their accounts. Minor monasteries had to submit their accounts to the main monastery.
At Chetiyagiri 145 kaland and one aka in gold were set apart for its annual expenses. In 1924, Codrington calculated that this added up to more than ten thousand English grains of gold.
The committee of management at Chetiyagiri had to prepare a daily statement of accounts from the entries in the registers. This was signed and placed in a locked casket. The committee had its own seal and the casket was stamped with this seal. Since this was done daily, the committee of management knew the day today state of its finances and was able to exert full control over financial matters and to reduce chances of financial misappropriation. At the end of the month, a monthly statement of accounts was prepared from the daily statements. At the end of the year, the twelve monthly statements were used to prepare the annual statement of accounts. Kaludiyapokuna inscription directs officials to submit accounts before a certain date in October or November.
This statement of accounts was presented to the assembly of monks. Monks representing the two mulas of Abhayagiri nikaya met the committee of management at Chetiyagiri and looked at the statement of accounts. They then submitted the annual statement to the general assembly of Abhayagiri monastery for ratification. It is likely that accounting was both in cash and kind. Gunawardana suggests that the two incomes were totalled and accounted separately.
Monasteries employed a large number of persons. The Chetiyagiri and Abhayagiri inscriptions contain a list of the various types of workers, with detailed information regarding services and remuneration. Chetiyagiri monastery employed more than a 170 workers. They included officials connected to the ceremonial and ritual aspects of the monastery as well as support staff. There was an officer in charge of repairs, with 12 men under him. There was a permanent staff of craftsmen for renovation work. There was a caretaker for the storehouse. Cooks were employed for the kitchen. A register of employees was maintained.
Monastery employment was bounded by all sorts of conditions. The assignments were very specific At Chetiyagiri and Abhayagiri carpenters, brick makers and stone cutters had to serve the monastery 65 days per year. Some employees had to provide sureties and guarantors to ensure the reimbursement of any loss that might be incurred by them. Monastery work was supervised. Some of the craftsmen at Chetiyagiri such as carpenters, brick makers, and stone cutters, were organised under ‘chief master artisans’ and ‘master artisans.’ The monastery owned all the implements needed for monastery work. Kankavitarani lists as monastery property the metal implements used by craftsmen such as carpenters, leather workers, tinsmiths, blacksmiths and lapidaries and the agricultural implements like hoes, spade, and axes.
Craftsmen who supplied the monastery with goods were given specific quotas. Mihintale tablets refer to five potters who had to provide five vessels a day, another potter had to supply ten bowls and ten water pots every month. These potters provided exclusively for the monastery. There were time limits. If an employee failed to complete the work in the allotted time, the allotments of land made over to him were liable to be withdrawn. Chetiyagiri could dismiss employees and withdraw the allowances and land allotments made over to them of they failed in their duties. Gunawardana observed that monastery employment was like a contract between two unequal parties. However, Mihintale tablets also stipulated that no employee who had fulfilled his obligations should be harassed or dismissed.
Employees were paid from monastery resources. At Chetiyagiri payment was in terms of land and a daily allowance of rice. The land allotments made to the workers at Chetiyagiri amounted to more than 431 acres. There were paymasters. Walpola Rahula pointed out that every little detail of work necessary for the maintenance of the monastery was very carefully considered and remuneration for each item of work was assigned. Even such minor servants as flower gatherers were paid definite sums of money. Payment varied according to the work done and the rank of the workman.
At Chetiyagiri the officer in charge of repairs, and his 12 assistants, the stone workers, carpenters, and the temple official who supervised such work, the master lapidaries, goldsmiths, blacksmiths and painters, the florists who placed flowers in the relic houses, the washerman and carters all got varying amount of land. Craftsmen received relatively high emoluments. The highest was for master lapidaries, followed by potter, painter, florist and astrologer. Potters were given graded amounts of land for their services, as well as a daily allowance of rice. Cooks and washer men got more than the lesser administrative officials. The assistant to the ‘chief caretaker of the storehouse’ got less pay than his superior. The chief cook got more than the servant who procured the firewood. Some of the employees at Chetiyagiri received an allowance for clothing. Chetiyagiri also set apart three kiri of land to be assigned to washer men for laundering the garments of its employees. Employees wore an upper garment, a lower garment and a headdress.
The monasteries owned villages, reservoirs and irrigation channels. These also needed managing and monastic officials were in direct contact with tenants. Mihintale tablets give information on rights of tenants and remuneration. Fines to be levied for offences committed by tenants were specified.. Officials who went on tour were prohibited from demanding form monastic tenants anything other than the portion of rice they are entitled to. They were not to accept any presents. The monastery was entitled to dues from tenants using its canals, fields, and forests. Samantapasadika advocates tact when dealing with new tenants. The text suggests that new tenants be told that the earlier tenants had supplied certain services and goods to the monastery. It should be left to the new tenants to decide whether to do the same.
Management methods had percolated into the communal areas of the monastery as well. There were common refectories attached to large monasteries like Mahavihara, Abhayagiri and Mihintale. According to Rasavahini the Mahapali refectory had thousands of monks assembling there. Tickets were issued to monks before proceeding to the refectory for their ration of food.
The writings of M. Dias, R.A.L.H. Gunawardana, T. Hettiarachchy, S.Paranavitana, S. Ranawella, W.I. Siriweera and Walpola Rahula were used for this essay.
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We need to stop all fossil fuel emissions if we want to prevent irreversible climate change. Expanding a pipeline to transport fossil fuels is not a step in the right direction, a Harvard University climate change expert says.
Jim Anderson is the Philip S. Weld professor of chemistry at Harvard, a "titanic force" behind saving the planet from disintegration of the ozone layer. Anderson's "smoking gun" research — identifying the culprit damaging the ozone layer — catalyzed the 1987 Montreal Protocol to phase out chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). He now says it’s not enough to talk about slowly decreasing carbon emissions, like Canada’s Paris Accord pledge to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 30 per cent from 2005 levels by 2030.
“When you look at the hard evidence, that is completely incapable of handling the problem,” Anderson said in an interview. “What’s required is terminating CO2 and methane emissions from the extraction, distribution and combustion of fossil fuels and then actually extracting CO2 from the atmosphere.”
The global climate is becoming more unstable, and much of that instability starts and ends in the Arctic, he said.
“In the last 35 years, we’ve lost 75 to 80 per cent of the permanent flowing ice in the Arctic,” Anderson said.
Climate change is reaching a point of irreversibility, due to smaller changes with significant implications, Anderson said.
"It’s the flow of heat into the subsystems of the climate that is controlling the timescale for irreversibility of the climate that is so profoundly worrisome,” Anderson said.
Greenland is a case in point. The Arctic ice cap serves as a cooling structure that keeps the Greenland ice structure solid all year. But as the Arctic ice cap is lost, then the entire structure becomes more unstable, he said.
“Greenland isn’t going to melt, it’s going to disintegrate. The forefront of research right now is forecasting how quickly that will happen and Greenland contains seven metres of sea level rise worldwide in its ice melt volume,” Anderson said.
Economic impacts make action a priority
Extreme weather events are expensive and as the difference between tropical temperatures and polar temperatures shrinks, they become more common, Anderson said.
“Last year, in 2017, severe storms, wildfires and droughts in the United States alone reached a loss of $320 billion. This is becoming a major economic consideration now,” Anderson said.
The answer is switching to renewable sources of energy, like wind and solar power, Anderson said.
"Nature provides us with 5,000 to 7,000 times as much energy created by the sun than all of humanity uses,” Anderson said. “It’s not as though Mother Nature hasn’t supplied us with the obvious ways to do this."
Both North America and China, which cover very large areas, have the potential of enough renewable energy and enough space to implement and operate the technology to more than meet their energy needs, Anderson said.
The move away from fossil fuels into renewable energies can also invigorate the economy, he said.
“It creates technical innovation and it creates jobs from the entire spectrum of the economic system," Anderson said. "You need high end research, you need research and development, you need production and you need installation of the systems."
Investing in and building fossil fuel pipelines – such as Canada is now doing with the Tran Mountain pipeline – is not a wise move, he said.
“If you’re putting in pipelines and you’re building systems that burn whatever is going through that pipeline, you’re becoming less competitive economically than by moving to renewables,” Anderson said.
But Anderson remains convinced that change is possible, in time to prevent irreversible climate change.
“It’s completely feasible, both technically and economically. There’s no technical or human barrier to this,” Anderson said.
Tracy Sherlock writes about B.C. politics for the National Observer. Send news tips and story ideas to [email protected]. | <urn:uuid:f5c9c8f9-f196-4fa3-a958-ce98b61eb210> | CC-MAIN-2018-30 | https://www.nationalobserver.com/2018/06/15/news/harvard-university-climate-change-expert-talks-national-observer-about-future | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-30/segments/1531676592475.84/warc/CC-MAIN-20180721090529-20180721110529-00222.warc.gz | en | 0.935045 | 861 | 3.359375 | 3 |
Transgender and Gender Diverse Youth
No. 122; May 2017
As children grow up, they develop a sense of who they are. This sense is sometimes called their identity. Gender is an important part of identity. Gender identity refers to an internal sense of being male, female, a combination of both, or neither. Gender identity is different from sex anatomy, also called someone's sexual body parts, and is different from sexual orientation, which refers to sexual or romantic attraction. Gender expression refers to how a person displays their gender, for example through play, dress pronoun use, and the name they use. Assigned gender is the gender that was originally on a child's birth certificate. Affirmed gender is the gender by which one wishes to be known.
Starting around age 2, children begin to think about and express their gender. Some of a child's behavior and interests may match traditional gender roles and some may not. For example, a boy may be more interested in traditionally female activities like playing with princess dolls, or a girl may be more interested in traditionally male activities like playing with trucks. These examples do not mean the child has a gender identity different from their assigned gender. Exploration of different gender expressions is a common part of development.
Having a child whose affirmed gender identity differs from the gender on their birth certificate can be confusing for families. Parents may not understand why their child's behavior and interests differ from their siblings or peers. Parents may worry about their child's future or what friends or relatives will think or say. Children and adolescents may also have trouble asking questions or expressing their feelings. When a child's gender identity consistently differs from their assigned gender, it may cause them a great deal of sadness and distress. This is referred to as gender dysphoria.
It can be very helpful to try to understand how your child describes their gender identity. Some terms that describe gender variations include:
- Gender diversity, expansiveness, creativity, or nonconformity, referring to behaviors and appearances that do not match a society's traditional ideas about gender
- Transgender, meaning that a person consistently identifies with a different gender than their gender assigned at birth
- Gender neutral, genderqueer, gender fluid, and agender, describing other gender variations
Research suggests that accepting a child's affirmed gender identity and expression can decrease the risk of future psychiatric problems such as depression, anxiety, and suicidal behavior. There are many ways a parent can do this:
- Talk about gender with your child in an open and understanding way
- Use the name and gender pronouns (e.g. “he/she/they”) your child prefers
- Allow your child to play with toys and dress in clothes they choose
- Stand up for your child if you notice other people acting disrespectfully
- Help your child prepare for teasing or bullying, including identifying trusted adults
- Learn about school policies and laws that address gender issues. Advocate for changing them if they negatively impact your child
- Help your child make decisions about telling others about their gender identity
- Connect with other parents raising gender diverse or transgender children
- Seek out guidance early on from medical and mental health professionals who have experience with these issues
Sometimes children take steps to transition from their assigned gender to their affirmed gender. This is called transitioning. Social transitioning refers to a change of gender roles, expressions, name, and pronouns. Medical transitioning refers to the use of medication to help their body better match their gender identity. Medications can pause some of the physical changes that happen with puberty. Surgical transitioning refers to the use of surgery to match one's body and gender identity. Surgery is not an option until late adolescence and adulthood. If transitioning is something your child is wondering about, you can explore options with a medical professional who is knowledgeable in this area. These treatments are different from conversion therapy which attempts to force gender identity to match assigned gender. Conversion therapy is not based on evidence and is harmful to the child and their relationship with their parents.
Raising a gender diverse or transgender child can lead to many questions and concerns. Consult with your primary doctor who may recommend speaking to a qualified mental health professional or another expert in the field. With patience and support, both children and parents can adjust, improve understanding of each other's concerns, and lead a happy and productive life. Most importantly, reassure your child they will always have your love and support. | <urn:uuid:fe44e44b-eddf-40c4-ad7b-d9ff76ed931c> | CC-MAIN-2018-09 | https://www.aacap.org/aacap/Families_and_Youth/Facts_for_Families/FFF-Guide/transgender-and-gender-diverse-youth-122.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-09/segments/1518891812841.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20180219211247-20180219231247-00285.warc.gz | en | 0.952976 | 893 | 3.96875 | 4 |
About National Youth Leadership Forum: Explore STEM
Explore the Frontiers of Science and Technology with a Mission to Mars
NYLF Explore STEM is a unique learning experience for bright, forward-thinking middle school students who will evolve into our next generation of innovators, engineers, doctors, forensic scientists, mathematicians, and physicists.
During this six-day immersive experience, students learn by doing as they take part in hands-on simulations, workshops, and competitions, while making new friends and having unforgettable adventures as they plan for a "Mission to Mars."
Few fields are more important to the future of mankind than STEM—science, technology, engineering, and math—and few show as much promise for future career opportunities. Virtually all career fields today require a solid foundation of STEM, and that’s precisely why these are the fastest growing areas of study—and the reason that STEM professionals are in the highest demand throughout the world.
NYLF Explore STEM is built on a multidisciplinary curriculum designed to help students find their passion through hands-on activities in forensics, robotics programming, medicine, and civil engineering . The program provides an invaluable opportunity for curious and high-achieving students to explore the frontiers of 21st century science and technology.
Featured Curricular Component
When Care Is Hours Away: A Simulation in Collaboration with Stanford Medicine
Created by wilderness medicine expert Dr. Paul Auerbach and simulation expert Dr. Rebecca Smith-Coggins, professors in the Stanford University School of Medicine’s Department of Emergency Medicine, this realistic simulation will allow you to learn and practice potentially life-saving medical techniques, including wound care, control of bleeding, and splinting. All of these skills will come into play as you plan your next hiking or camping expedition.
Watch a video of the Emergency Medicine Simulation
The National Association of Secondary School Principals has placed this program on the 2018-19 NASSP List of Approved Contests, Programs, and Activities for Students. | <urn:uuid:49b3f2b9-0a77-41be-ad9f-6b540cf8b29a> | CC-MAIN-2019-18 | https://www.envisionexperience.com/explore-our-programs/national-youth-leadership-forum-explore-stem?utm_medium=DM&utm_source=DM&utm_term=EXS1196&utm_content=STU&utm_campaign=EXS1196_DM_STU&purpose=GC&show_form=true | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-18/segments/1555578553595.61/warc/CC-MAIN-20190422115451-20190422141451-00314.warc.gz | en | 0.923112 | 408 | 2.96875 | 3 |
Physicist and chemist Michael Faraday is credited for having said, "There's nothing quite as frightening as someone who knows they are right." But when it came to electromagnetism, Faraday got a lot of things just right. The scientist, born on September 22, 1791, in south London, made scientific discoveries and advancements that are present in almost all of the electronics we deal with today. Specifically, Faraday was a pioneer in the fields of electromagnetism and electrochemistry.
In 1831, Faraday made the huge discovery of electromagnetic induction. This is the principle behind the electric transformer and generator, devices that are often used today. Discovering electromagnetic induction was a huge step in making electricity a tangible, practical, and powerful new technology, instead of just a curious concept. He was partly responsible for creating the words electrode, cathode, and ion. He also invented the Faraday cage, which is a shield that blocks electricity from affecting what's inside the cage. This technology is present in MRI machines, microwaves, and cables and is even responsible for the suits that power linemen wear. Learn more about Faraday's amazing scientific advancements in the videos below. | <urn:uuid:9780bac7-a601-4579-bda4-3b759a27267a> | CC-MAIN-2018-22 | https://curiosity.com/topics/thank-physicist-michael-faraday-for-your-electronics-curiosity | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-22/segments/1526794864648.30/warc/CC-MAIN-20180522073245-20180522093245-00008.warc.gz | en | 0.972201 | 241 | 3.75 | 4 |
Immunosuppressive drug shows promise in treatment of eye disorder
... professor of ophthalmology.
Physicians gave the drug to 84 patients, of whom 61 percent had uveitis (intraocular inflammation), 17 percent had scleritis
(inflammation of the outer wall of the eye), 11 percent had mucous membrane pemphigoid (a condition causing scarring of the eyelids) and 11 percent ha...
Scleritis in Medical Definition
... - Exophthalmos - Enophthalmos
Conjunctivitis - Pterygium - Subconjunctival hemorrhage
Sclera and cornea
- Keratitis - Corneal ulcer - Snow blindness - Thygeson's superficial punctate keratopathy - Fuchs' dystrophy - Keratoconus - Keratoconj...
Scleritis in Medical Dictionary
is a serious inflammatory disease that affects the white outer coating of the eye, known as the sclera. The disease is often contracted through association with other diseases of the body, such as Wegener's granulomatosis or rheumatoid arthritis; it can also... Overview: ...
...of episcleritis are not well understood. ... Dogs with focal episcleritis develop a raised, pink, smooth, painless, firm, tumor-like mass. ... scleritis
and Episcleritis - PatientPlus. Information written by our expert authoring team, consisting of independent GPs, doctors working for producers of GP... | <urn:uuid:e86167ff-63e4-4474-81ba-48070fbc325a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bio-medicine.org/tag/Scleritis/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706298270/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121138-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.85283 | 318 | 3.109375 | 3 |
Birds, animals, reptiles, insects and marine creatures; diverse species, biologically complex. Their beauty beguiling, their ability to survive in an increasingly hostile world environment; a source of wonder.
What we know about other species and those that didn’t make it to hop, fly, slither, swim or walk into the 21st century began with the work of scientific illustrators. Travelling to the far corners of the Earth as part of exploratory forces they braved the discomfort and danger of searching for the new world to document its flora and fauna, arriving home (if, indeed they did) with drawings remarkable in their detail and anatomical correctness.
Alternatively, illustrators worked from specimens (sometimes live, mostly dried skins) delivered to them by explorers or their wealthy patrons who wanted the unique plants and creatures of the new world documented for their information and amusement.
Melbourne Museum’s, The Art of Science Exhibition, open daily, until 1 Feb 2015, hours:10:00 am – 5:00 pm, spans the last 300 hundred years to modern day.
It celebrates the work of scientific illustrators, who combined artistic skill with an accomplished eye for scientific observation.
The exhibition displays the best of the museum’s collection of natural history artworks: rare books from the 18th and 19th centuries, field sketches from early colonial exploration of Australia’s wildlife, and contemporary photographic records – a hugely informative entertaining show.
For the last 150 years Museum Victoria has engaged scientific illustrators to record the disparity of species of the natural world.
These illustrations form a bridge between art and science; a bridge that is central to scientific research.
The exhibits have been carefully selected to show the history and technical evolution of scientific art illustration of the natural world.
It begins with the display of a volume of Albertus Seba’s Thesaurus, on show from the Museum’s Natural History collection – a rare beautiful exhibit.
Albertus Seba (1665-1736), a Dutch pharmacist, zoologist and collector moved to Amsterdam and around 1700, opened a pharmacy by the harbour. Seba asked sailors and ship surgeons to bring exotic plants and animal products he could use for preparing drugs. Seba also started to collect snakes, birds, insects, shells and lizards in his house. He developed a collection of natural specimens and in 1734 published a Thesaurus of animal specimens with splendid engravings.
Carl Von Linnaeus (1707-1778), was a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist who laid the foundations for modern scientific species classification. In 1735 Linnaeus visited Seba twice – Seba’s collection and Thesaurus became the basis on which he began the development of his classification system.
The exhibition uses Audubon’s magnificent portraits of hunting raptors and Gould’s exquisite portraits of native birds. During the 19th century, an era fascinated by natural history, John James Audubon and John Gould used print making media to bring to world attention the glorious colours and seemingly infinite variety of Planet Earth’s avian species.
These finely drawn, brilliantly coloured images were scientifically invaluable and the prints became immensely popular as objects of curious splendid phenomena.
They remain so today.
A favourite from the exhibition is John Gould’s Kea from his Birds of Australia series – a hand coloured lithograph on paper, the lifelike depiction, delicacy of line and soft hued background, sublime in execution. Fish Hawk by Audubon another grand thrilling exhibit.
Audubon and Gould’s sumptuous works do not overshadow the work of illustrators who on a smaller scale perhaps, recorded wildlife in the Australian colonies of the nineteenth century.
Inaugural Professor of Natural Science at the University of Melbourne and the director of the National Museum of Victoria from 1856, Frederick Mc Coy aimed to publish a natural history of Victoria: Prodromus of the zoology of Victoria; figures and descriptions of the living species of all classes of the Victorian indigenous animals.
Mc Coy’s project began in 1858 and continued for almost four decades. He engaged the best artists in the colony, among them Arthur Bartholomew.
Bartholomew’s painstakingly detailed water colour paintings of Victorian frogs, displayed in the exhibition, perfectly capture the foot pads, hands and rough squishy dampness of these amazing creatures – an anatomically accurate scientific record of the species.
The publication of the Prodromus, a huge undertaking, included the work of naturalists and scientific illustrators: Ludwig Becker, John James Wild, Theresa Poole, Frederick Schoenfeld, James Ripper and Edward Gilks.
Pages from the Prodomus are on display in the exhibition and while the publication took a long time to come to fruition and was expensive both financially and professionally for those involved, it was critically acclaimed and is acknowledged today as one of the Melbourne Museum’s finest publications.
Research into Australia’s long-extinct species has demanded new illustration techniques. Palorchestes was a large marsupial that browsed on shrubs. The first fossils discovered were thought to be those of a giant kangaroo, but it became clear that the bones discovered belonged to an animal quite different from any living creature.
Palaeo–illustrator Peter Trusler, reconstructed the head of Palorchestes from extensive research. On display in the exhibition, the result, Palorchestes Azael, skull, (alkyd oil on gesso over paper) is quite extraordinary.
Composing an image of the skull from several angles, Trusler drew versions with muscle tissue, eyes, lips and nose to create a complete picture of this intriguing animal. The effect is amazing; akin to a sculptural piece copied from specimens found at an ancient burial ground.
Contemporary museum practice has embraced digitalisation of images and there is a delightful hands or fingers on display panel which allows at the touch of an image of a butterfly’s egg to see the egg morph into a fully developed butterfly.
This digitalised exhibit, Butterflies of Victoria, which makes use of digital macro photography techniques, is the combined work of Ross Field, Simon Hinkley and Ken Walker.
To whet your appetite for the exhibition this informative great fun butterfly panel can be viewed from the Museum’s website.
Ross Field is an honorary associate of the museum and an entomologist dedicated to documenting each life stage of every Victorian butterfly species.
His passion has taken him to the top of many hills, along riverbanks and through parklands in pursuit of female butterflies as they lay their eggs.
Simon Hinkley’s extreme close-up photographs of Ross’s egg collection are just a small fraction of the images that have been captured for his exhaustive guide to our butterflies.
This important exhibition, curated by John Kean, showcases the Melbourne Museum’s archived treasury of scientific art illustration.
It also documents its ongoing commitment to preservation, scientific research and engagement of illustrators to record the diversity of the world’s eco systems.
Vital aids to past and present scientific research, I have barely touched on the exhibits to see and wonder at in The Art of Science exhibition – artistry that has evolved from the early days of pencil and paper to the sophisticated techniques of the 21st century to document creatures of the natural world.
Great show, take the family… a must see.
Janet Walker, Special Features Victoria, The Culture Concept Circle, 2014
Ref: Some of the above was drawn from the excellent notes to be found on the Melbourne Museum’s website pertaining to The Art of Science exhibition. | <urn:uuid:cd67a7b7-aaa8-4cc8-b757-209c691046ea> | CC-MAIN-2018-43 | https://www.thecultureconcept.com/melbourne-museums-the-art-of-science-exhibition-review | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-43/segments/1539583512411.13/warc/CC-MAIN-20181019145850-20181019171350-00137.warc.gz | en | 0.932532 | 1,600 | 3.390625 | 3 |
Yosemite Valley, carved by glaciers and the Merced River, came to public attention in the 1860s, through the journalistic efforts of a Scottish immigrant named John Muir. He wrote countless articles describing the wonders of Yosemite, raising awareness that helped contribute to the eventual preservation of the area for generations to come.
Yosemite is not America’s first National Park. The Yosemite wilderness and Mariposa redwood grove were designated as protected wilderness areas in 1864, with legislation signed by President Abraham Lincoln. But Yellowstone National Park was created a full eighteen years before Yosemite.
The original wilderness did not include Yosemite Valley and its world-famous landmarks—El Capitan, Half Dome and Yosemite Falls. The park as we know it was expanded after Teddy Roosevelt asked John Muir to guide him on a camping expedition to Yosemite in 1903.
Their night in the Mariposa Grove inspired one of Teddy’s most memorable quotes, in which he compared his night in the grove to “lying in a great solemn cathedral, far vaster and more beautiful than any built by the hands of man.” Muir lobbied the president to expand the park to include lands already in California’s possession, and in 1906, President Roosevelt signed a law that brought the Yosemite Valley under federal jurisdiction.
Here at Pendleton, we’re dismayed to write this, but domesticated sheep were once the primary threat to Yosemite. One threat? Shepherds who set meadow-fires to promote the growth of more edible grasses for their far-ranging flocks. The sheep caused trouble, too, destroying sub-alpine meadows and passing diseases to the native bighorn sheep. This prompted naturalist John Muir to call them “hoofed locusts.”
The original Yosemite Park Rangers were Buffalo Soldiers. According to the Yosemite National park website:
Buffalo Soldiers, like their white counterparts in U.S. Army regiments, were among the first park rangers, in general, and backcountry rangers, in particular, patrolling parts of the West…Approximately 500 Buffalo Soldiers served in Yosemite National Park and nearby Sequoia National Park with duties from evicting poachers and timber thieves to extinguishing forest fires. Their noteworthy accomplishments were made despite the added burden of racism.
You can read the entire (fascinating) history, listen to a podcast and watch a video of a modern-day re-enactor who works in Yosemite here: Yosemite’s Buffalo Soldiers .
Another item of interest? The Buffalo Soldiers inspired the traditional Park Ranger hat. Many were Spanish-American War veterans who had shielded themselves from tropical rains of Cuba and the Philippines by pinching their high-crowned, broad-brimmed hats into symmetrical quadrants. This distinctive peak was known as the “Montana Peak” on the home front, and eventually became part of the National Park Service ranger uniform.
Some Yosemite numbers:
Over 4 million visitors arrive each year to experience the 747,956 acres of wilderness, on 840 miles of hiking trails.
The mountains at Yosemite national park are still growing at a rate of 1 foot per thousand years.
Yosemite Falls is one of the tallest falls in the world, 2425 feet in height. That means in 1000 years, it will be 2426 feet tall, but of course we won’t be around to see that.
There are three Sequoia groves in Yosemite. Sequoias are the largest living things on the planet, with some reaching 300 feet in height, living for 3,000 years.
At 4000 feet high, El Capitan is the largest block of granite in the known world.
Are you ready for your own adventures? We’d love to come along. And remember, your purchase of our National Park Collection helps support preservation and restoration of America’s Treasures.
Yosemite Blanket photos: Allie Taylor @alliemtaylor | <urn:uuid:9ccfa52e-e0a0-46f6-86a4-39b72ef68568> | CC-MAIN-2019-35 | https://blog.pendleton-usa.com/2016/08/01/taking-a-blanket-home-with-a-pendle10park-explorer-yosemite-national-park/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-35/segments/1566027314852.37/warc/CC-MAIN-20190819160107-20190819182107-00544.warc.gz | en | 0.948103 | 823 | 3.734375 | 4 |
BKSB Basic, Key and Functional skills assessments
This is one of many Harvard references to useful online references that I used in the Level 5 Maths ADTLLS, Meeting a learner’s needs / case study assignment (Part of Module 1: Approaches to Mathematics learning and teaching).
BKSB. (2008), Interactive Initial Assessment. Viewed 29 October 2008, http://www.bksblive.co.uk
Here’s how I used the reference in my essay:
IA (initial assessment) in September showed conflicting results (appendix A). On-screen numeracy IA (BKSB, 2008) suggested that student X was working towards E2 (Entry 2) whereas paper-based IA (Tools Library, 2008) described X as ‘working towards Entry 1’ for both literacy and numeracy. Such disparate results are unsurprising: BKSB assessment includes audio and non-readers can access each question.
The other reference in this excerpt is:
Tools Library. (2008), Skills for Life Assessment Materials, Standard Initial Assessment (literacy and numeracy). Viewed 29 October 2008, http://www.excellencegateway.org.uk/toolslibrary
See our separate Tools Library listing for more information. | <urn:uuid:d1d7060c-0abb-4a6f-ab57-2724f67b21a2> | CC-MAIN-2014-52 | http://www.skillsworkshop.org/node/3624 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-52/segments/1418802770324.129/warc/CC-MAIN-20141217075250-00090-ip-10-231-17-201.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.891319 | 265 | 3.25 | 3 |
Francis LaFlesche was the son of the last Omaha head chief. He eventually became an ethnologist for the Bureau of American Ethnology at the Smithsonian Institution. Among many notable accomplishments, his effort to capture and preserve a record of tribal culture yielded hours of recordings of Osage chants and ceremonies that would otherwise have been lost forever. The Library of Congress, which now holds the recordings, considers LaFlesche’s Osage work “very probably the most exhaustive documentation of complete Indian ceremonies ever produced.”
The book belonged to Ken Hale, who for decades was among the most distinguished (and well-loved) members of MIT’s faculty. Famous for his ability to learn languages easily, thoroughly, and with astonishing speed, Hale was a professor of linguistics specializing in the languages of indigenous populations in Australia, Central America, and the American Southwest. Toward the end of his career, he was working with New Englanders on preserving the language of the Wampanoag tribe, among others.
Like LaFlesche, Hale was deeply committed to rescuing endangered languages – and cultures – from oblivion. As Hale himself put it: “The loss of local languages and of the cultural systems which they express, has meant irretrievable loss of diverse and interesting intellectual wealth. Only with diversity can it be guaranteed that all avenues of human intellectual progress will be traveled.”
Known for his humility and warmth as well as for his brilliance, Ken Hale was also a determined activist. When he died in 2001, at the age of 67 and just two years after his retirement, he was remembered by Institute Professor Noam Chomsky as “a person of honor and courage, who dedicated himself with passion and endless energy to protecting the rights of poor and suffering people throughout the world.”
Hale was born in Chicago but moved to Arizona at the age of six; while in high school, he happened to room with a Hopi boy. He learned the boy’s language, and found his life’s work. LaFlesche was born on a bleak reservation, the son of a tribal chief. To state the obvious, these two men came to their callings from vastly different backgrounds.
They also worked in different ways and in different venues, and of course they never met: LaFlesche died a few years before Hale was born. Yet the passion they shared was in certain ways all but identical: they were both deeply committed to saving something they knew was precious and, as each of them keenly understood, extremely fragile. Both LaFlesche and Hale devoted their lives to preventing the extinction of specific systems of cultural expression – appreciating, as they did, the unique capacity of each culture’s language to convey that culture’s own particular way of perceiving the universe.
Francis LaFlesche’s Dictionary of the Osage Language sits in the open stacks of the Humanities Library, bound in a plain library-cloth cover that was placed on it to protect the equally plain paper wrapper in which it was originally issued. It’s among the hundreds of books Ken Hale gave to the MIT Libraries, and bears his signature. The book wasn’t produced to be fancy; it’s a product of the U.S. Government Printing Office. Yet this most unprepossessing of volumes still manages to be among the MIT Libraries’ most resonant objects. | <urn:uuid:e2202c23-8310-4aba-9843-bb4fda12c27b> | CC-MAIN-2014-35 | http://libraries.mit.edu/150books/2011/03/19/1932/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-35/segments/1408500832538.99/warc/CC-MAIN-20140820021352-00020-ip-10-180-136-8.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977333 | 710 | 3.03125 | 3 |
Cumulative product of a vector
x=[1 2 5 10], then answer must be [ 1 2 10 100]
If you like this problem, please like it below(Request)
The Hitchhiker's Guide to MATLAB
03 - Matrix Variables 5
Area of an equilateral triangle
Side of an equilateral triangle
Write a code that will follow the equation y = x * (x + x) * x.
Compute LOG(1+X) in natural log
Find difference of two set as per example
Is it column vector?
Find out sum of all elements of given Matrix
Generate vector according to sign of vector
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Contact your local office | <urn:uuid:340a3995-50fd-4865-b817-0f693c02852e> | CC-MAIN-2019-51 | https://nl.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/cody/problems/2874?s_tid=prof_contriblnk | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-51/segments/1575540553486.23/warc/CC-MAIN-20191213094833-20191213122833-00166.warc.gz | en | 0.806852 | 215 | 2.859375 | 3 |
As a resident adviser, or RA as it is more commonly known, is an upperclassman who is available to college students living in the dorms and resident halls to offer them advice. There is no doubt that incoming freshmen may feel more comfortable talking to an RA than they would an older adult in a sterile on-campus housing office, so peer-to-peer guidance can be very valuable to them.
Importance of the RA’s Job
It is important to note that schools have different names for their resident assistants. There are some campuses that use the term “resident adviser” while others use the term “resident assistant.” Other campuses may use the abbreviation “CA,” meaning “community adviser” or “community assistant.”
It is usually the responsibility of the resident assistants (RA) to oversee a specific floor in a dormitory, but in the case of larger dorms, they may also be responsible for a wing of the floor rather than the whole floor. There are usually upperclassmen living on the floor who are available in shifts for the other students in times of need and who play an important role in building a sense of community and assisting them with a variety of concerns. If a resident assistant is unavailable for an urgent matter, students can turn to others in their dorm for assistance if one is unavailable.
An RA may be one of the first students that a college freshman meets on move-in day, and he or she may be the first person they meet. A resident advisor can answer move-in day questions for anxious students and their equally concerned parents, and their experience on campus is invaluable to new freshman who have many things to learn about the college experience. In order to become RAs, students apply to the program and undergo extensive interviews and training in order to ensure they are prepared for the majority of situations that may occur.
What a Resident Adviser Does
The resident adviser is a person who demonstrates great leadership skills, demonstrates compassion, and is trained on how to solve the problems of a diverse group of students.
The role of the Residence Advisor is to supervise dorm life, plan social events, and watch out for homesick freshmen. The guidance counselor can provide students with a sympathetic ear and practical advice about how to deal with academic, social, medical, or personal problems that they might be experiencing.
There are also RAs responsible for mediating disputes between roommates and enforcing rules in residence halls. A student who is intoxicated or under the influence of drugs may wish to call campus security or seek medical attention if they are in an emergency situation.
In summary, the RA should be someone students can turn to for help and someone they can trust if they need it, as well as someone they can trust. If an RA cannot solve a student’s problem or feels that more help is needed, they can direct them to the campus support center where they can find more information about how to resolve the problem.
A resident assistant’s job is not solely concerned with resolving conflicts between residents. As well as to ensure college students have fun, relieve stress in a healthy manner, and have a good time in college, they are also there to ensure they have fun in college. As a good RA, you will notice when a student seems uncomfortable or unhappy, and you will reach out in a way that is unobtrusive but supportive in order to offer assistance in an unobtrusive way.
In addition to setting up movie or game nights to break up finals week, RAs may also organize holiday parties and other fun activities to bring their residents together as a way of increasing their sense of belonging.
Who Can Be an RA
In most colleges, RAs are required to be upperclassmen; however, some colleges may consider sophomores who are well qualified for the position.
It is important to note that the application process for becoming a resident advisor is rigorous because it is a very important position. Having the responsibilities of a resident adviser require a kind of person who is understanding, flexible, and stern enough to be able to handle the responsibilities that come with the position. The process also requires a great deal of patience on your part.
As a college student, you may be considering applying for an RA position because it is a great way to gain experience, and it looks good on a resume, too. Leaders who are able to solve real-world problems in the workplace are valued by employers.
It is important to note that RAs are compensated for their time as they are considered part of the campus workforce. In most cases, this includes free room and board as well as other benefits, although some colleges may offer additional benefits as well. | <urn:uuid:0fb23570-a9f6-4bdb-84f9-cab4441d28fd> | CC-MAIN-2023-23 | https://lifeeducationpoint.com/college-dorm-life-what-is-an-ra/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-23/segments/1685224655244.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20230609000217-20230609030217-00450.warc.gz | en | 0.970394 | 963 | 2.640625 | 3 |
The Dahomean religion was practiced by the Fon people of the Dahomey Kingdom. The kingdom existed until 1898 in what is now the country of Benin. Slaves taken from Dahomey to the Caribbean used elements of the religion to form Vodou and other religions of the Afro-Caribbean diaspora.
Mawu and LisaEdit
Lisa (male) and Mawu (female), married twin siblings of Nana Buluku, are the creator spirits, occasionally combined as Mawu-Lisa, an androgynous spirit. Mawu-Lisa created the world and made it orderly, then made plants, animals, and humans; the entire process took four days.
- The first day, Mawu-Lisa created the world and humanity;
- The second day the earth was made suitable for human life;
- On the third day, humans were given intellect, language, and the senses;
- Finally, on the fourth day, mankind received the gift of technology. | <urn:uuid:27f16ff4-6bd5-4f83-9d7d-a20dd6168efa> | CC-MAIN-2019-22 | https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dahomey_mythology | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-22/segments/1558232257781.73/warc/CC-MAIN-20190524224619-20190525010619-00187.warc.gz | en | 0.946623 | 208 | 3.1875 | 3 |
Have you ever betrayed someone who trusted you; alternatively, have you ever been betrayed by someone in whom you had placed your confidence? Brutus, Judas, Benedict Arnold–these names have come down to us and are remembered not for good things they did, and surely they did do good things, but instead because of their acts of betrayal. Disloyalty on the part of a friend can usher in some of life’s darkest days.
Marcus Junius Brutus (85-42 BCE) was a key conspirator in the plot to assassinate Julius Caesar. He was an active participant in Caesar’s murder at a meeting of the Roman Senate on March 15, 44 BCE. The role of Brutus in the death of Caesar is considered especially egregious by many. Earlier, Brutus had supported Pompey in the war against Caesar. Following Pompey’s defeat, Caesar pardoned Brutus. Brutus was able to participate in Caesar’s murder precisely because Caesar had spared his life.
In his book Caesar: The Life of a Colossus, Adrian Goldsworthy describes Caesar’s fight against his killers and the final moments of his life.
The dictator struggled with them to the end, trying to fight or force his way out. Marcus Brutus stabbed him once in the groin, and some claimed that when he saw Servilia’s son he stopped struggling and spoke one last time, saying ‘You too, my son’ – sadly there is no direct evidence for Shakespeare’s version of et tu Brute. Then the dictator covered his head with his toga and collapsed, falling next to the pedestal of Pompey’s statue. There were twenty-three wounds on his body.Goldsworthy, Adrian. Caesar: The Life Of A Colossus (p. 619). Orion. Kindle Edition.
Like many an ideologue before and after him, Brutus justified his behavior by wrapping it within an ethical cloak. He would argue that he killed Caesar to save the Roman Republic from a man who would be King, a dictator. Following the military defeat of Brutus and the republican cause in 42 BCE, Brutus committed suicide. The republican cause was lost.
When we speak of someone’s intentions, we are on slippery ground. Even when a person tells us their purpose in doing or not doing something, we can never be sure. Perhaps, they are deceiving us, or what’s worse themselves. In the final analysis, all we can do is see what they have done, their actions. Whatever his reasons were, Brutus helped stab Caesar to death. As a result, the name of Brutus, according to Wikipedia’s entry for him: “…has since become synonymous with acts of intimate public betrayal or treason, and is perhaps only rivaled in this regard by the name of Judas.”
To be betrayed is to experience one of life’s most difficult challenges. When the betrayal comes at the hand of someone trusted, a parent, a spouse, a child, or a friend, it is especially painful. When someone close proves untrue, the result can be devastating.
Israel’s second king, King David, experienced betrayal even at the hands of his own sons. He was also played false by men that he had believed were good friends. In Psalm 55, he writes about one such “friend.”
For it was not an enemy that taunted me,
Then I could have borne it;
Neither was it mine adversary that did magnify himself against me,
Then I would have hid myself from him.
But it was thou, a man mine equal,Psalm 55:13-14, JPS 1917
My companion, and my familiar friend;
We took sweet counsel together,
In the house of God we walked with the throng.
To experience such treachery is agonizing. It is not surprising that it engenders an almost overwhelming desire to run away, to escape, to find peace. Even kings can feel this. David writes:
And I said: ‘Oh that I had wings like a dove!
Then would I fly away, and be at rest.
Lo, then would I wander far off,
I would lodge in the wilderness. Selah
I would haste me to a shelterPsalm 55:7-9, JPS 1917
From the stormy wind and tempest.’
Ultimately, David finds relief from the anguish of betrayal in his relationship with what he considers to be the one rock in his life, God. The German musician Felix Mendelssohn beautifully set David’s psalm to music.
All the best | <urn:uuid:ef091cd2-8783-416d-94e0-a588f72ce417> | CC-MAIN-2021-17 | https://gbavraham.com/2020/06/05/wings-like-a-dove/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-17/segments/1618038464045.54/warc/CC-MAIN-20210417192821-20210417222821-00021.warc.gz | en | 0.97485 | 973 | 3.265625 | 3 |
Pottos are found in areas of thick rainforest vegetation. They can live in a variety of habitats from coastal and lowland forest to mid-altitude montane forest and can inhabit primary or secondary forest growth. They occupy forest from sea level to 2089 m elevation. Normally pottos are found in trees that are 5 to 30 m tall. ("Potto", 1999; Kingdon, 1997; Nekaris and Bearder, 2007; Ravosa, 2007)
Pottos are sexually monomorphic. Pottos have long, slender bodies and limbs with forelimbs and hindlimbs of nearly equal length. They have large eyes and small, round ears that lack fur. Their coat is dense and varies from shades of brown to grey. They also possess features found in other living strepsirrhines such as a moist nose, dental comb, and a toilet claw. With the exception of the sharpened toilet claw on the reduced second digit of the hind feet, all other nails are flattened. The index finger is vestigial. The reduced second digits on the hands and feet and the opposable pollex and hallux create an excellent grip on arboreal supports. Other adaptations for prolonged grip include highly flexible wrist and ankle joints and the presence of vascular bundles in the limb vessels that allow blood circulation to contracted muscles while the animal is immobile (retia mirabilia). Pottos also possess a “scapular shield” consisting of elongated spines of the cervical vertebrae that extend above the contour of the animal’s body. The spines are covered by thick skin and fur. Patches of vibrissae are also dispersed in this area of the fur. The “scapular shield” area is believed to function in defense against predators and other pottos, and possibly to stimulate genital secretions in mates. Adult weights range from 600 to 1600 g, with smaller pottos occupying the warmer, low elevation habitats and larger pottos occupying the cooler, high elevation habitats within their range (Bergmann’s rule). Head and body measurements range from 305 to 390 mm with a tail length of 37 to 100 mm. Throughout their range, pottos vary regionally in body mass, body size, pelage, and color of eyeshine. ("Lorises, Pottos, and Galagos", 1999; "Potto", 1999; Bearder, et al., 2003; Kappeler, 1995; Kingdon, 1997; Nekaris and Bearder, 2007; Pimley, et al., 2005; Ravosa, 2007)
Males have home ranges that overlap those of several females, suggesting pottos are polygynous or promiscuous. When male and female pottos meet they may perform courting rituals that involve licking, mutual grooming with claws and teeth and scent-marking each other. These rituals are usually performed while both are hanging upside down from a branch. ("Lorises, Pottos, and Galagos", 1999; "Potto", 1999)
Breeding season varies with region in pottos. Pottos from the central part of their range give birth between August and January, so that the time of greatest fruit abundance occurs during weaning. The duration of the ovarian cycle in females is 37 to 39 days, but the duration of sexual receptivity is not known. One offspring is born each year in breeding females after a gestation period of 193 to 205 days. At birth, pottos weigh between 30 and 52 g. Offspring are generally weaned at 120 to 180 days. Pottos reach adult size and weight at 8 to 14 months old, and become sexually mature at 18 months. Infant pottos will initially grow at a rate of 3.19 grams per day. ("Potto", 1999; Dixson, 1995; Estes, 1991; Nekaris and Bearder, 2007)
Infants are altricial at birth, but are comparatively well-developed when compared to other primates because they have to climb to the mother’s belly and cling to her fur without any maternal handling. Offspring cling to their mother’s fur for the first 3 to 8 days and are rarely carried. As the infant grows, the mother will “park” the infant by leaving it hanging on a hidden tree or branch at night while she forages. The infant nurses during the day while the mother sleeps. At 3 to 4 months of age offspring will accompany the mother during foraging by riding on her back or following behind her. Offspring learn how to feed by grabbing food and prey items from their mother, and examining it with a head-cocking behavior before consumption. Male offspring will sleep with their mothers until they disperse at 6 months old. Females sleep with their mothers until they are 8 months old, and then will inherit part of their mother’s home range. ("Potto", 1999; Bearder, et al., 2003; Estes, 1991; Nekaris and Bearder, 2007)
Males and females defend home ranges large enough to provide ample foraging opportunities. Female home ranges must be large enough to support the female and her young, they are generally 6 to 9 hectares in size. Males defend larger home ranges in order to overlap with those of several females, from 9 to 40 hectares. Both males and females aggressively defend their territories against same sex conspecifics. Population densities have been estimated at 8 to 10 pottos per square kilometer. ("Lorises, Pottos, and Galagos", 1999; "Potto", 1999)
Pottos use chemical cues extensively to communicate. They leave urine trails and secretions from glands under the tail on branches to mark territory and communicate information on their reproductive state. They use a toxic or noxious glandular secretion to deter predators. Pottos have a distinct odor that some observers have called "curry-like." They have several vocalizations, the most common being a female contact call to young that sounds like "psic." Pottos have excellent vision in low light in order to navigate and find food at night. ("Lorises, Pottos, and Galagos", 1999; "Potto", 1999)
Pottos are primarily frugivorous, but they also commonly eat animal prey and plant gums. Because there is seasonal variation in food availability, gums are generally consumed in dry seasons, while animal prey and fruits are more readily available during wet seasons. Pottos eat fruits of the genera Ficus, Musanga, Myrianthus, Parinari, Pseudospondias, and Uapaca. They generally eat slow-moving arthropods or insects that other animals find unpalatable such as ants, foul-smelling beetles, caterpillars with irritant spines, poisonous millipedes, and spiders. They also eat snails, slugs, eggs, fungi, and insect larvae. Occasionally they will kill small vertebrate prey, such as bats or birds. Although pottos compete with many other species in the same niche for food (such as bush babies), they have adapted to eating foods that other animals leave behind such as unpalatable insects. They also have developed comparatively strong jaws for their size to eat larger, tougher fruits and large, stale chunks of plant gum. Pottos locate insects by scent and capture them with a rapid grab with their hands or mouths. Their reduced index fingers help them grasp and capture prey. Pottos have a highly expandable stomach, allowing them to eat large quantities of food and hold up to 8 percent of their body weight. This reduces the chance of predation by allowing them to eat quickly in fruiting trees with sparse vegetation, then retreat to trees with dense foliage to digest and rest. ("Potto", 1999; Estes, 1991; Kingdon, 1997; Nekaris and Bearder, 2007; Pimley, et al., 2005)
The main anti-predator strategy for pottos is crypsis. Cryptic behavior in pottos includes nocturnal activity, small body size, cryptic coloration, using little vocal communication, maintaining small group sizes, possessing the ability to remain immobile for extended periods of time without fatigue (using retia mirabilia), and using slow, steady, and silent locomotion. They usually stay hidden in dense vegetation so as to not be detected by predators. If confronted by a predator, they will exhibit their defense posture which consists of grasping a branch with all four limbs, tucking the head down below their shoulders between the forelimbs, arching the back, and presenting the scapular shield. They will then bare the teeth and repeatedly bite the arboreal support they are grasping. If the predator does not retreat, the potto will then charge forward, trying to knock the predator off the branch. In extreme danger, the animal will let go of its branch and fall to the ground. Perodictus potto is one of the few nocturnal prosimians that do not use leaping to escape from predators. When parked infants are left alone by their mothers, the mother will apply a salivary liquid to her offspring by grooming it with her tooth comb. This liquid applied to the infant repels predators, and it is thought that it may possess some kind of toxin. This toxic or noxious secretion may also be used to protect adults from predation. Known predators of pottos are African palm civets (Nandinia binotata), although these civets are primarily frugivorous. (Alterman, 1995; Crompton and Sellers, 2007; Estes, 1991; Nekaris, et al., 2007)
As frugivores, pottos are instrumental in seed dispersal. They are also a source of prey for their predators.
Pottos are hunted for their meat by humans, and are occasionally taken for the pet trade. Humans also benefit from seed dispersal by pottos. (Nekaris and Bearder, 2007)
There are no known adverse effectson humans.
The main threats to potto survival in the wild are predation, deforestation, and human hunting. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species considers pottos “Lower Risk/Least Concern” and they are listed under CITES Appendices II and III. However, there are few studies that have effectively documented potto population size. Pottos (and other nocturnal prosimians) are impacted more severely than other arboreal primates by deforestation and human development because forests are usually cleared during the day while pottos are asleep in the trees. Due to their slow locomotion and their tendency to freeze when threatened, they are easily burned or chopped down with the trees. (Butynski, T. and Members of the Primate Specialist Group 2000, 2007; Nekaris and Bearder, 2007; "UNEP-WCMC Species Database: CITES-Listed Species", 2008)
Tanya Dewey (editor), Animal Diversity Web.
Kristen McCann (author), Michigan State University, Pamela Rasmussen (editor, instructor), Michigan State University.
living in sub-Saharan Africa (south of 30 degrees north) and Madagascar.
uses sound to communicate
young are born in a relatively underdeveloped state; they are unable to feed or care for themselves or locomote independently for a period of time after birth/hatching. In birds, naked and helpless after hatching.
Referring to an animal that lives in trees; tree-climbing.
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
having markings, coloration, shapes, or other features that cause an animal to be camouflaged in its natural environment; being difficult to see or otherwise detect.
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
A substance that provides both nutrients and energy to a living thing.
an animal that mainly eats fruit
An animal that eats mainly plants or parts of plants.
offspring are produced in more than one group (litters, clutches, etc.) and across multiple seasons (or other periods hospitable to reproduction). Iteroparous animals must, by definition, survive over multiple seasons (or periodic condition changes).
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
active during the night
an animal that mainly eats all kinds of things, including plants and animals
the business of buying and selling animals for people to keep in their homes as pets.
the kind of polygamy in which a female pairs with several males, each of which also pairs with several different females.
having more than one female as a mate at one time
rainforests, both temperate and tropical, are dominated by trees often forming a closed canopy with little light reaching the ground. Epiphytes and climbing plants are also abundant. Precipitation is typically not limiting, but may be somewhat seasonal.
remains in the same area
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
uses touch to communicate
Living on the ground.
defends an area within the home range, occupied by a single animals or group of animals of the same species and held through overt defense, display, or advertisement
the region of the earth that surrounds the equator, from 23.5 degrees north to 23.5 degrees south.
uses sight to communicate
reproduction in which fertilization and development take place within the female body and the developing embryo derives nourishment from the female.
breeding takes place throughout the year
1999. Lorises, Pottos, and Galagos. Pp. 493 in R Nowak, ed. Walker's Mammals of the World, Vol. 1, 6 Edition. Baltimore and London: The Johns Hopkins University Press.
1999. Potto. Pp. 498-500 in R Nowak, ed. Walker's Mammals of the World, Vol. 1, 6 Edition. Baltimore and London: The Johns Hopkins University Press.
UNEP - WCMC. 2008. "UNEP-WCMC Species Database: CITES-Listed Species" (On-line). Accessed August 30, 2008 at http://www.cites.org/eng/resources/species.html.
Alterman, L. 1995. Toxins and Toothcombs: Potential Allospecific Chemical Defenses in Nycticebus and Perodicticus. Pp. 413-424 in L Alterman, G Doyle, M Izard, eds. Creatures of the Dark: The Nocturnal Prosimians. New York: Plenum Press.
Bearder, S., L. Ambrose, C. Harcourt, P. Honess, A. Perkin, E. Pimley, S. Pullen, N. Svoboda. 2003. Species-Typical Patterns of Infant Contact, Sleeping Site Use and Social Cohesion among Nocturnal Primates in Africa. Folia Primatologica, 74: 337-354.
Butynski, T. and Members of the Primate Specialist Group 2000, 2007. "Perodicticus potto" (On-line). IUCN Redlist of Threatened Species. Accessed August 30, 2008 at http://www.iucnredlist.org/search/details.php/16629/summ.
Crompton, R., W. Sellers. 2007. A Consideration of Leaping Locomotion as a Means of Predator Avoidance in Prosimian Primates. Pp. 127-145 in S Gursky, K Nekaris, eds. Primate Anti-predator Strategies. New York: Springer Science + Business Media LLC.
Dixson, A. 1995. Sexual Selection and the Evolution of Copulatory Behavior in Nocturnal Prosimians. Pp. 93-118 in L Alterman, G Doyle, M Izard, eds. Creatures of the Dark: The Nocturnal Prosimians. New York: Plenum Press.
Estes, R. 1991. The Behavior Guide to African Mammals. California: University of California Press.
Kappeler, P. 1995. Life History Variation among Nocturnal Prosimians. Pp. 75-92 in L Alterman, G Doyle, M Izard, eds. Creatures of the Dark: The Nocturnal Prosimians. New York: Plenum Press.
Kingdon, J. 1997. The Kingdon Field Guide to African Mammals. New Jersey: Princeton University Press.
Nekaris, A., S. Bearder. 2007. The Lorisiform Primates of Asia and Mainland Africa: Diversity Shrouded in Darkness. Pp. 24-45 in C Campbell, A Fuentes, K MacKinnon, M Panger, S Bearder, eds. Primates in Perspective. New York: Oxford University Press.
Nekaris, K., E. Pimley, K. Ablard. 2007. Predator Defense by Slender Lorises and Pottos. Pp. 222-240 in S Gursky, K Nekaris, eds. Primate Anti-predator Strategies. New York: Springer Science + Business Media LLC.
Pimley, E., S. Bearder, A. Dixson. 2005. Social Organization of the Milne-Edward's Potto. American Journal of Primatology, 66: 317-330.
Ravosa, M. 2007. Cranial Ontogeny, Diet, and Ecogeographic Variation in African Lorises. American Journal of Primatology, 69: 59-73.
Zimmerman, E. 1995. Acoustic Communication in Nocturnal Prosimians. Pp. 311-330 in L Alterman, G Doyle, M Izard, eds. Creatures of the Dark: The Nocturnal Prosimians. New York: Plenum Press. | <urn:uuid:9dd06aa2-2069-4048-987b-eb27a42d69ca> | CC-MAIN-2014-41 | http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Perodicticus_potto.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-41/segments/1410657120446.62/warc/CC-MAIN-20140914011200-00263-ip-10-196-40-205.us-west-1.compute.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.918856 | 3,846 | 4 | 4 |
A Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter (PICC) is a form of intravenous access that can be used for prolonged periods of time. Using a tip locator device (ultrasound location) and maximum barrier precautions, the catheter is inserted in the basilic, brachial, or cephalic vein in the upper arm and advanced toward the heart with the tip resting in the distal superior vena cava or cavoatrial junction. Tip location is confirmed via standard chest X-ray.
PICCs vary in length from 35 – 60 cm and are usually made of flexible polyurethane. They may have one, two, or even three lumens for multiple simultaneous infusions, if necessary.
PICCs are often indicated for:
- Long-term antibiotic therapy
- Total parenteral nutrition
- Hyperosmolar, vesicant or irritating solutions
- Limited venous access
- Simultaneous medication administration
Advantages of PICCs over other forms of central venous access:
- Longer dwell time
- Lower chance of infection
- Less post-insertion potential complications
- Variety of insertion settings
Vascular Access services provided:
- PICC lines
- Tip location technology
- Peripheral IV support
- PICC line removal
- Suturing services
- Education provided
*Accredited by the Community Health Accreditation Program (CHAP), a designation shared by only the best providers. | <urn:uuid:d4c3c844-086e-426a-98c7-9d022d46c6f5> | CC-MAIN-2021-04 | https://www.qmxmobilehealth.com/services/piccvascular-access/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-04/segments/1610703550617.50/warc/CC-MAIN-20210124173052-20210124203052-00098.warc.gz | en | 0.871406 | 311 | 2.640625 | 3 |
Earlier this month, a young roof insulation installer was killed when a a staple used to fix aluminium reflective insulation pierced an electrical cable . Another person helping with the work suffered burns and electrical shock. At another installation site in Brisbane, the homeowner got zapped when he leaned against a metal awning on the back deck of his house after a foil reflective insulation was installed . An electrician detected a 240-volt charge running through the insulation to sarking in the roof and walls and the roof gutters, awnings and poles, all because the foil insulation was stapled into a power cable that was switched off at the time.
The federal government's Home Insulation Program
The subsidies have boosted the amount of roof insulation installed and Australia is moving towards the government's vision of having Energy Efficient Homes. However, the high demand has also attracted a number of inexperience installers to the industry, and their shoddy work is putting homes and lives at risk. Inadvertently, the program seems to be contributing to an alarming spike in roof space fires and electrical risks. Homeowners should be aware of potential electrical hazards that may be caused by unsafe roof insulation and know the ways to protect yourself from these dangers.
Fire Risk from roof insulation
- Insulation should never be too close to downlights and their transformers, electrical cables or exhaust fans. Though most insulation is heat-resistant to some extent it can still ignite if it directly covers electrical cables or devices and is exposed to the heat generated for long periods of time
- Minimum clearance required is 50mm around incandescent lamps or 100mm if located next to structural timber, and 200mm for halogen lamps
- Downlight guards or other physical fire-resistant barriers should be installed before the insulation is put in [Update: Covers on downlights are now mandatory]
- Blow-in or loose-fill insulation should be secured properly (usually by spraying an adhesive solution) to prevent movement. Else this can jam blades of an exhaust fan, for e.g., and cause overheating
- A roof fire is not usually detected by a smoke alarm since the smoke is above the alarm. Homeowners are often unaware of the fire until the damage has been done, and embers fall through air-conditioning ducts or the roof collapses. This makes prevention of any potential fire risk even more important
Electrical shock risk from roof insulation
- This specifically applies to conductive type of roof insulation such as aluminium foil reflective insulation [Update: Government's new safety guidelines include a ban on the use of metal fasteners on foil insulation]
- Check that the insulator takes adequate care when installing near electrical equipment including cables, light fittings and ceiling fans, etc
Choose a registered roof insulation installer and licensed electrician
- Select your installer only from the government provided Installer Provider Register
- If in doubt or worried about your roof insulation installation, arrange for an inspection by a licensed electrical contractor
Looking for electrical supplies? Check out these bestsellers... | <urn:uuid:68e7f327-13d8-412e-8f21-bac71ad813e2> | CC-MAIN-2017-17 | http://www.eppingelectrical.com/2009/10/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-17/segments/1492917122933.39/warc/CC-MAIN-20170423031202-00075-ip-10-145-167-34.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.935154 | 615 | 2.59375 | 3 |
Capitalism brings out the best in people. It is often portrayed as an amoral battlefield for the conflict of interests between the poor and the rich. Unethically unrestrained, for the haves to do as they wish to the have-nots. However, this economic, social, and political system is thoroughly structured with ethical norms and inherent laws. Theft, which is ironically pinned as capitalism’s cardinal sin, is rejected entirely. In fact, it is based upon the principle of earning the rewards of value creation and innovation. This principle leads to further ethical implications that undoubtedly furthers the virtues of the human species and advances society.
The actuality that capitalism has advanced the quality of life and material well-being of societies across the globe can hardly be disputed. This essay, however, will not focus on this impressive aspect of the system, but on the ethical virtues of capitalism. To illustrate these virtues, a discussion on voluntary cooperation, human action, and a moral argument of capitalism, will be used. All economic, social, and political systems have their iniquities. However, I will argue that capitalism’s virtues do not only outweigh these iniquities, but if left unrestrained, can eliminate these problems.
Oscar Wilde, in his 1891 essay “The Soul of a Man under Socialism” promotes his desire of collectivism by suggesting that by converting private property into public wealth, substituting cooperation for competition, society will be restored to its proper condition of a thoroughly healthy organism, and insure the material well-being of each member of the community. He does add a caveat that claims this can only be possible as long as individualism is at its focus. He also acknowledges that if the socialism is authoritarian, and armed with economic and/or political power, the state of man will be worse than how it is under capitalism.
My question is when, in history, has the state not been armed? The state has always coerced its people through economic, political, or military armament. It is the only way the state can exist! Murray Rothbard explains that “groups of men calling themselves “the government”…have attempted—usually successfully—to gain a compulsory monopoly of the commanding heights of the economy and society.” To further illustrate, “…the crucial monopoly is the State’s control of the use of violence: of the police and armed services, and of the courts—the locus of ultimate decision-making power in disputes over crimes and contracts.” This coercion, that is hardly ethical in theory or in practice, is the means in which collectivism run by a state can sustain itself.
Wilde writes this in a time where the industrial revolution was in full swing and the transition of farm life toward a life of mass production and machinery was filled with a perception of serfdom to the owners of capital. However, this mass urbanization was not brought upon the people through coercion, but voluntarily. It was through individual choice that laborers would subject themselves to these working conditions. The benefits of earning the fruits of your labor outweighed the costs a life of stagnation and poverty that existed before. It was also a time that, as Ayn Rand points out, that the concept of man as an individual, independent and free, was foreign to the roots of Europe. Capitalism, during this time, is what ended serfdom in the political arena, but ironically, was reluctant to leave the minds of the intellectuals.
Capitalism is what brought forth the true implementation of voluntary cooperation. Where individuals now had the opportunity to choose how to make use of his or her resources, i.e. mind and labor, and the rewards. It is not merely an economic system that efficiently allocates resources to the highest bidder, but a social system that recognizes and respects individualism. Compared to any other system, in practice, this system banishes the use of physical force from human relationships as a means to cooperate.
All human relationships are voluntary in a capitalist system. It allows individuals to choose whether or not they would like to cooperate with others. This beautiful component of the market is not what is ethical. It is that ethical norms can be conveyed through voluntary interaction. The right to agree or disagree with a person is what is ethical. Although there are ethical norms, ethics vary from person to person. Through voluntary association, unethical practices are diminished due to discretionary noncooperation.
Using another facet of Wilde’s contemplations, he rightfully claims that disobedience is what has advanced society. Yet, this idea becomes juxtaposed with a collectivist society in which property is publicly owned because it punishes any minority that does not agree with the majority. As said before, a socialist system requires a ruling authority that controls not only the means and distribution of production, but the ethics and desires of its people. Although we may sometimes see capitalist systems with little political freedom, we can never see a socialist system with true political freedom. Every action would require approval of the majority, or of the state. What ruling authority would allow any media time to criticize the government? Is this ethical? The answer to that question is a resounding no. The freedom to disagree with the government or any individual can only be permitted in a society where voluntary cooperation is present.
The first line of Mill’s “Of Individuality” says, “If all mankind minus one, were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind.” In a collectivist society, the Individual disappears, and dissenting opinions must be silenced. This silencing of the individual, or minority, is in essence, blatant theft of not only the individual’s opinion, but of society and its posterity.
In any social system, there is a foundation of some variety of a theory of ethics. The “common good,” has many times been used as the moral justification for the social system. However, more often than not, this justification has created tyrannies that enslave dissident minorities, or individuals, to what the authorities claim is “the common good.” Ayn Rand describes three types of ways to describe what is good. There is the subjective, intrinsic, and the objective theory of moral values. The intrinsic theory claims that things or actions are inherently good (or evil), and pays no value to the subjectivity or relativity of those transacting with the things or actions. The subjectivist theory claims that thing or action’s value is determined by man’s consciousness, created by, “his feelings, desires, and intuitions,” independent of reality. The objective theory depends on the evaluation of the facts through man’s reasoning processes, and that the value of the good is “an aspect of reality in relation to man,” which is discovered, not invented, by man. In essence, the foundational inquiry behind the objective theory is, “Of value to whom and for what?”
The objectivist theory of value is the only theory that cannot work through force and coercion. The subjectivist and intrinsic theories may have some voluntarism within, but tyrannical groups use both, as they pay no attention to the relation of the good or service to each individual. Through these theories of value, those in power must force-feed individuals their own subjective or intrinsic beliefs of value for there to be a common understanding amongst the ruled. However, with the objectivist lens, it is through voluntary cooperation that value is determined. Capitalism is the only realistic system that offers that option and deems it unquestionably ethically superior. In order for a product or action to be deemed “good”, it is through noncompulsory reasoning of the individual, which adheres to the inherent right of the individual and power of the mind.
Summarizing from Mises’s analysis of, “Human Action,” there are three conditions that make people act. The first condition is that a person is content and satisfied. At this state, he does not and will not do anything as he is content in his is state. The second condition is where the person feels a sense of unease and discomfort. This is the state we commonly recognize as humans, which always leads to us wanting to go from discomfort to comfort. However, there is a third condition that is required in any human action, which is that there is some “purposeful behavior” that can alleviate the person from the sense of uneasiness that will lead to a state of contentment, which leads us back to the first condition. This three-step process goes into every move a person makes. From getting out of bed, to writing a novel, to purchasing a bicycle, to running for president—no matter how miniscule or grand the action is, all human action requires touching on all three of these conditions.
Capitalism is the only system that does not distort the natural processes of human action. It allows people to be people, to seek happiness, absent of coercion. The relevance of this simple explanation of human action is to demonstrate that when human action is left unabated, and allowed to go through its natural processes within the natural objectivist’s lens, we see society progress faster than if we were to control the actions of humans.
Because of Eve’s decision to take a bite of the apple from the tree of knowledge, humans have persistently pursued knowledge. In this pursuit, which has left humans in this constant state of unease, knowledge has been obtained, translated into physical form, traded, judged, and chosen, be it either material goods or ideas. To boot, these goods and ideas have spilled over and have elevated the human species, along with the entire world, to great heights. Capitalism is the only system that leaves the processes of human action unfettered and has allowed the creation of philosophical literature, corn, planes, shoes—virtually anything we can imagine along with what there is to come! There is no question that these products have benefitted the world, but the question is has it made us better people?
It has. The moral meaning behind the economic law of supply and demand says that the value of someone’s work or product is determined by the voluntary approval of those willing to reciprocate the trade with their work or product. This means that due to the voluntary nature of the free market, consumers and producers, all performing within their natural processes of human action, require the best from each other. Producers want the best consumers. Employers want the best employees. Employees want the best employers, and so on. This is what makes capitalism ethically superior to any other system that attaches itself to a collective or an altruistic premise. It requires individuals to support their own life, in which they do not expect others to support them and vice versa.
To expand on the spillover effect that benefits all levels of ability and intellect, those at the top that create these products only get a fraction of what is deserving for the efforts, no matter how large the profits and fortunes. Meaning, the exchange of ideas and knowledge that comes from a capitalist system, is shared with everyone for the rest of generations— compared to the retail store cashier, who gets paid much more in proportion to the effort given and value created for the world.
Many may deem this unethical and exploitative, but it is quite the contrary. The products created by those at the top of the ability spectrum benefit everyone below them in a much higher proportion because of the unlimited value that knowledge and ideas bring to the world. To quote Adam Smith, the father of economics, “It is not very unreasonable that the rich should contribute to the public expense, not only in proportion to their revenue, but something more than in that proportion.” When Smith says “should” he doesn’t mean through coercion, but as a matter-of-fact that they indeed do contribute greatly to society just by the value they have created through the natural process of human action. Ayn Rand would call “the men of the mind” the most important contributors the world that can only exist through capitalism.
Capitalism is Truly Moral Making The Best People
Capitalism is a system in which the individual’s rights to life, liberty, and property are under legal protection. This is what legal philosopher Lon Fuller claims allows for the morality of aspiration to flourish. When a society is based off the morality of aspiration, the best in people come out. Fuller explains that this class of morality is depicted by the ancient Greek philosophy of excellence, challenging ideals, and exists at the highest ranks of human achievement. Interestingly, the word “virtue” comes from the vocabulary of the morality of aspiration.
The capitalist system is the most just system as it provides the institutions for self-directedness and purposefulness. When these rights are protected, free will becomes key. The only way someone can be ethical or morally virtuous is if he voluntarily, and freely, chooses to be. Having the ability to choose, is what is virtuous.
No societal system can make people bad or good, however, but in order for there to be truly good people, freedom must reign. Similar to the analogy that in order for there to be light, there must be dark, the option to be immoral must be present for one to do determine whether the person is being ethical or morally virtuous. Capitalism is the system that allows this to take place. Of course, there are members of the society that choose ethically questionable or immoral actions, but that exists in any societal system. When one chooses to be morally virtuous in a capitalist system, one knows that it is the truest version of virtue that can exist.
To conclude my arguments for why I think capitalism brings out the best in people, I would like to speak on behalf of my grandparents. Growing up, I was introduced to the horrors of a command and control economy from the stories my mother would share with me about my grandfather being imprisoned as a political prisoner in Cuba for sixteen years. My other grandfather was also imprisoned for six years as a political prisoner. Why?
As a youngster I would question, “Well did they do something bad?” “Were they immoral?” My mother would answer; “They stood up for what they believed to be right.” This does not answer the ethical question of whether their actions were morally or ethically questionable. It is true that both those for the revolution and those opposed had strong dispositions toward their respective ideologies, however it was straightforward which side was the aggressor. When and individual, group, or government must force their subjective morality upon others in order to reach consensus, rights are infringed upon, and what is left is an injustice.
My family was able to move to the United States in 1980. By 1987, they would get to experience one of the greatest economic growth periods for a nation at peace, where freedom to pursue your own happiness and prosperity was at the forefront. Since then my family has been able to enjoy not only the material prosperity that capitalism in the United States has been able to offer, but has made them the best they can be. This system has pushed my family in ways that has unquestionably lifted them to the highest ranks of human achievement. This does not mean they are wealthy by any means, though it has allowed them to pursue their interests and goals in a peaceful, virtuous manner.
What good is it to grow your wings if you are not able to fly? Capitalism offers the gift of flight.
- Wilde, Oscar, The Soul of a Man Under Socialism
- Rothbard, Murray, The Ethics of Liberty
- Mises, Ludwig von, Human Action
- Palmer, Tom, The Morality of Capitalism
- Younkins, Edward, Capitalism, The Only Moral Social System
- Rand, Ayn, Atlas Shrugged
- Rand, Ayn, Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal
- Mill, John Stuart, Of Individuality | <urn:uuid:995d1d8f-501f-4ca7-a3f4-e118841ed9bd> | CC-MAIN-2019-39 | https://reasonableconomics.com/2016/04/10/capitalism-offers-the-gift-of-flight/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-39/segments/1568514571027.62/warc/CC-MAIN-20190915093509-20190915115509-00186.warc.gz | en | 0.964249 | 3,316 | 2.953125 | 3 |
Concrete is often thought of as a great green material, but one thing it’s not great as is a paved surface. It's almost entirely impermeable and contributes to unwanted water runoff. Filtercrete is on the scene to solve that problem – it’s a unique porous material that allows air and water to pass through…
Filtercrete’s material contains tiny holes that allow air and water to pass through and filter into the soil. As water drains through Filtercrete it is cleansed of pollutants, and then evaporates or is absorbed into the soil below. Because of its porous nature and light color, Filtercrete reduces the urban island heating effect, which helps keep the ambient air temperature cool unlike typical black asphalt. Additionally, while water and ice typically cause concrete to crack over time, Filtercrete maintains that the voids in the material will help it remain intact. This in turn will cut down on future repairs that commonly occur with standard concrete and asphalt during freeze-thaw cycles.
Filtercrete is a great paving and driveway alternative – for more information visit the Ozinga Green Building website.
(Images via Ozinga) | <urn:uuid:6c0e95d9-e493-4662-8ca0-7c73796c5f46> | CC-MAIN-2015-40 | http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/filtercrete-by-ozinga-pervious-98896 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-40/segments/1443737931434.67/warc/CC-MAIN-20151001221851-00134-ip-10-137-6-227.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933182 | 234 | 2.59375 | 3 |
Many years ago in middle school, long before personal computers were popular, I decided to take a typing class as an elective. Most people couldn’t understand why I simply didn’t take another PE class instead, and to tell the truth I don’t know why either. But I successfully finished the class with some good typing skills, and then didn’t look at another keyboard again for years. Who knew that one day my professional career would revolve around a keyboard for everything from engineering tasks to writing PCB design articles like this one. As it turned out, I made a good choice that benefited me greatly later on.
We often don’t realize how important our choices are in life. Some are obviously more important than others, but they all have an impact on our future even if we can’t see it right away. One of the choices that designers and engineering managers may have to make is which EDA tool sets they are going to use for PCB design. This choice will have a big effect on the productivity of your company, so the decision must be made carefully. With so much to consider, let’s take a moment to examine some of the key points that you should be looking for, and some of the problems that you will want to avoid.
The Problems with EDA Tools Throughout PCB Design History
Printed circuit board design was accomplished for many years using transparent mylar, black tape, and sticky dots to create circuitry images that would create the PCB copper etch. This method was adequate for the PCB technology of the times, but was quickly outdated as PCB design requirements increased. Then a new technology of using computers to design circuit boards appeared, and soon everyone was asking what are EDA tools? There were several problems that designers had to cope with though on those systems, some of which are still lingering today.
The main problem was with the capability of the tools. Those early tools didn’t have the horsepower of today’s systems both in computer resources and display capabilities. One example is power planes that wouldn’t be displayed accurately, and instead had a simple “X” marks the spot where a thermal relief connected a pin to the plane. Although many of these early features have been updated or discontinued, you can still find remnants of these problems today in tool algorithms that don’t quite deliver all of the functionality that you need.
Another problem was how many EDA design tool vendors there were to pick from. Most of them would specialize in one function over another making a mix of the tools a necessary evil. Your schematic capture might be on one system, while your layout on another. It was not at all unusual for companies to have multiple design tools in use to cover all of their bases. This was obviously an expensive solution and a difficult process to manage with every tool having their own database formats to translate.
Even within some systems, the database formats would be different between the tools making data synchronization between the two difficult. Sadly, some of these problems still exist, such as finding tools that will work well together. But fortunately there are tools that have conquered these problems making them the better choice.
Starting with a great schematic capture tool is critical in your EDA tool set
The Key Points to Look For in PCB Design Tools
Let’s take a look at what some of the most important PCB design features are that you should have in your EDA tools:
A Full Set of PCB Design Tools: There are some systems on the market today that still give you only partial coverage with the tools that you need to work with. To be fully prepared for the task of designing printed circuit boards, you should find a vendor that offers the following in their EDA tools list:
Libraries: Some vendors provide library translation capabilities, while others provide a starter library to work with. The best EDA tool vendors, however, will have a library system that you can link to in order to download the symbols, models, and footprints you need.
Schematic Capture: This is where you will be doing your PCB engineering, and it needs to be an easy to use tool that can handle the most complex circuitry.
Simulation: Designers no longer have the luxury of being able to build multiple prototypes to debug their circuitry. Engineers need SPICE tools now to simulate these circuits in order to save time and money on their designs.
Layout: To design the PCB, designers need layout tools that can handle all of the different design technologies that they will encounter including high density, high speed, RF, and flex designs. To do this takes a full-feature layout tool that also has the necessary features for creating manufacturing output files.
Analysis: Designers can no longer afford waiting for prototypes to iron out the signal integrity problems of their designs. They need advanced analysis tools to identify high speed design problems before boards are built.
Tools That Work Together: Some EDA tool packages have not been designed to work together, and therefore require extra effort to synchronize them. You need a set of EDA tools that will easily allow you to go in and out of a SPICE simulator while doing schematic capture, or quickly conduct analysis while doing PCB layout.
Support and Training: This often gets overlooked before the acquisition of a new set of EDA design tools, and potentially leaves the new users stuck with tools that they don’t understand. You need to choose a vendor that has training and support available that is easy to connect with in order to answer any questions. Having other resources available such as online training, FAQ’s, and user support groups is a big plus as well.
Being able to easily open additional tools from layout is an important feature of your EDA tools
EDA Tool Tips That Will Make You a Successful PCB Designer
One of the best things that you can do is to research EDA tool vendors and find out which one has a proven track record of success that you can trust. With tools from a vendor like this, you can quickly get to work. Don’t be afraid to ask questions; get on that support line or hunt up those user groups to get the answers you need. Use these resources to learn your tools inside and out so that you will know exactly how to get the most performance out of your system.
There are a lot of EDA tool vendors out there to choose from, and one of the most trusted names is Cadence. With years and years of experience providing the highest levels of technology in PCB design systems today, Cadence knows exactly what PCB designers like you are looking for. OrCAD PCB Designer is a high level PCB design system that has all of the different feature rich design tools within it that you need to produce the best results.
If you’re looking to learn more about how Cadence has the solution for you, talk to us and our team of experts.
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Dehydration occurs when you use or lose more fluid than you take in, and your body doesn't have enough water and other fluids to carry out its normal functions. If you don't replace lost fluids, you will get dehydrated.
Common causes of dehydration include vigorous exercise, especially in hot weather; intense diarrhea; vomiting; fever or excessive sweating. Not drinking enough water during exercise or in hot weather even if you're not exercising also may cause dehydration. Anyone may become dehydrated, but young children, older adults and people with chronic illnesses are most at risk.
You can usually reverse mild to moderate dehydration by drinking more fluids, but severe dehydration needs immediate medical treatment. The safest approach is preventing dehydration in the first place. Keep an eye on how much fluid you lose during hot weather, illness or exercise, and drink enough liquids to replace what you've lost.
Mild to moderate dehydration is likely to cause:
- Dry, sticky mouth
- Sleepiness or tiredness — children are likely to be less active than usual
- Decreased urine output
- No wet diapers for three hours for infants
- Few or no tears when crying
- Dry skin
- Dizziness or lightheadedness
Severe dehydration, a medical emergency, can cause:
- Extreme thirst
- Extreme fussiness or sleepiness in infants and children; irritability and confusion in adults
- Very dry mouth, skin and mucous membranes
- Little or no urination — any urine that is produced will be darker than normal
- Sunken eyes
- Shriveled and dry skin that lacks elasticity and doesn't "bounce back" when pinched into a fold
- In infants, sunken fontanels — the soft spots on the top of a baby's head
- Low blood pressure
- Rapid heartbeat
- Rapid breathing
- No tears when crying
- In the most serious cases, delirium or unconsciousness
Unfortunately, thirst isn't always a reliable gauge of the body's need for water, especially in children and older adults. A better indicator is the color of your urine: Clear or light-colored urine means you're well hydrated, whereas a dark yellow or amber color usually signals dehydration.
When to see a doctor
If you're a healthy adult, you can usually treat mild to moderate dehydration by drinking more fluids, such as water or a sports drink (Gatorade, Powerade, others). Get immediate medical care if you develop severe signs and symptoms such as extreme thirst, a lack of urination, shriveled skin, dizziness and confusion.
Treat children and older adults with greater caution. Call your family doctor right away if your loved one:
- Develops severe diarrhea, with or without vomiting or fever
- Has bloody or black stool
- Has had moderate diarrhea for 24 hours or more
- Can't keep down fluids
- Is irritable or disoriented and much sleepier or less active than usual
- Has any of the signs or symptoms of mild or moderate dehydration
Go to the nearest hospital emergency room or call 911 or your emergency medical number if you think a child or older adult is severely dehydrated. You can help prevent dehydration from becoming severe by carefully monitoring someone who is sick and giving fluids, such as an oral rehydration solution (CeraLyte, Pedialyte, others), at the first sign of diarrhea, vomiting or fever and by encouraging children to drink plenty of water before, during and after exercise.
Dehydration occurs when there isn't enough water to replace what's lost throughout the day. Your system literally dries out. Sometimes dehydration occurs for simple reasons: You don't drink enough because you're sick or busy, or because you lack access to safe drinking water when you're traveling, hiking or camping.
Other dehydration causes include:
- Diarrhea, vomiting. Severe, acute diarrhea — that is, diarrhea that comes on suddenly and violently — can cause a tremendous loss of water and electrolytes in a short amount of time. If you have vomiting along with diarrhea, you lose even more fluids and minerals. Children and infants are especially at risk. Diarrhea may be caused by a bacterial or viral infection, food sensitivity, a reaction to medications or a bowel disorder.
- Fever. In general, the higher your fever, the more dehydrated you may become. If you have a fever in addition to diarrhea and vomiting, you lose even more fluids.
- Excessive sweating. You lose water when you sweat. If you do vigorous activity and don't replace fluids as you go along, you can become dehydrated. Hot, humid weather increases the amount you sweat and the amount of fluid you lose. But you can also become dehydrated in winter if you don't replace lost fluids. Preteens and teens who participate in sports may be especially susceptible, both because of their body weight, which is generally lower than that of adults, and because they may not be experienced enough to know the warning signs of dehydration.
- Increased urination. This may be due to undiagnosed or uncontrolled diabetes. Certain medications, such as diuretics and some blood pressure medications, also can lead to dehydration, generally because they cause you to urinate or perspire more than normal.
Anyone can become dehydrated if they lose too many fluids. But certain people are at greater risk, including:
- Infants and children. Infants and children are especially vulnerable because of their relatively small body weights and high turnover of water and electrolytes. They're also the group most likely to experience diarrhea.
- Older adults. As you age, you become more susceptible to dehydration for several reasons: Your body's ability to conserve water is reduced, your thirst sense becomes less acute, and you're less able to respond to changes in temperature. What's more, older adults, especially people in nursing homes or living alone, tend to eat less than younger people do and sometimes may forget to eat or drink altogether. Disability or neglect also may prevent them from being well nourished. These problems are compounded by chronic illnesses such as diabetes, dementia, and by the use of certain medications.
- People with chronic illnesses. Having uncontrolled or untreated diabetes puts you at high risk of dehydration. But other chronic illnesses, such as kidney disease and heart failure, also make you more likely to become dehydrated. Even having a cold or sore throat makes you more susceptible to dehydration because you're less likely to feel like eating or drinking when you're sick. A fever increases dehydration even more.
- Endurance athletes. Anyone who exercises can become dehydrated, especially in hot, humid conditions or at high altitudes. But athletes who train for and participate in ultramarathons, triathlons, mountain climbing expeditions and cycling tournaments are at particularly high risk. That's because the longer you exercise, the more difficult it is to stay hydrated. During exercise, your body may lose more water than it can absorb. With every hour you exercise, your fluid debt increases. Dehydration is also cumulative over a period of days, which means you can become dehydrated with even a moderate exercise routine if you don't drink enough to replace what you lose on a daily basis.
- People living at high altitudes. Living, working and exercising at high altitudes (generally defined as above 8,200 feet, or about 2,500 meters) can cause a number of health problems. One is dehydration, which commonly occurs when your body tries to adjust to high elevations through increased urination and more rapid breathing — the faster you breathe to maintain adequate oxygen levels in your blood, the more water vapor you exhale.
- People working or exercising outside in hot, humid weather. When it's hot and humid, your risk of dehydration and heat illness increases. That's because when the air is humid, sweat can't evaporate and cool you as quickly as it normally does, and this can lead to an increased body temperature and the need for more fluids.
Dehydration can lead to serious complications, including:
- Heat injury. If you don't drink enough fluids when you're exercising vigorously and perspiring heavily, you may end up with a heat injury, ranging in severity from mild heat cramps to heat exhaustion or potentially life-threatening heatstroke.
- Swelling of the brain (cerebral edema). Sometimes, when you're getting fluids again after being dehydrated, the body tries to pull too much water back into your cells. This can cause some cells to swell and rupture. The consequences are especially grave when brain cells are affected.
- Seizures. Electrolytes — such as potassium and sodium — help carry electrical signals from cell to cell. If your electrolytes are out of balance, the normal electrical messages can become mixed up, which can lead to involuntary muscle contractions and sometimes to a loss of consciousness.
- Low blood volume shock (hypovolemic shock). This is one of the most serious, and sometimes life-threatening, complications of dehydration. It occurs when low blood volume causes a drop in blood pressure and a drop in the amount of oxygen in your body.
- Kidney failure. This potentially life-threatening problem occurs when your kidneys are no longer able to remove excess fluids and waste from your blood.
- Coma and death. When not treated promptly and appropriately, severe dehydration can be fatal.
You're likely to start by seeing your or your child's doctor. However, in some cases when you call to set up an appointment, the doctor may recommend urgent medical care. If your child or an adult who you care for is showing signs of severe dehydration, such as lethargy or reduced responsiveness, seek immediate care at a hospital.
If you have time to prepare for your appointment, here's some information to help you get ready, and what to expect from the doctor.
What you can do
- Write down any symptoms you're (or the person you're caring for) is experiencing, including any that may seem unrelated to the reason for which you scheduled the appointment. If you or the person you're caring for has been vomiting or has had diarrhea, the doctor will want to know when it began and how frequently it's been occurring.
- Write down key personal information, including any recent trips you've taken or life changes you've made. Also include a description of your typical daily diet and any foods you've recently eaten that you suspect may have caused illness. In addition, your doctor will want to know if you or the person you're caring for has recently been exposed to anyone with diarrhea.
- Make a list of key medical information, including other conditions you or the person you're caring for is being treated for and the names of the medications being taken. Include on your list prescription and over-the-counter drugs, as well as any vitamins and supplements.
- Write down questions to ask your doctor.
For dehydration, some basic questions to ask the doctor include:
- What's causing these symptoms?
- What kinds of tests are needed?
- What treatment do you recommend?
- How soon after treatment will there be improvement?
- Are there any activity or dietary restrictions?
- Is there anything I can do to prevent a recurrence of dehydration?
- I have these other health conditions. Do I need to change the treatments I've been using?
- What steps can I take to prevent this from happening again?
- Are there any brochures or other printed material that I can take home with me? What websites do you recommend visiting?
What to expect from your doctor
Your doctor is likely to ask you a number of questions, such as:
- When did the symptoms begin? What were you doing?
- How frequently have you been experiencing loose bowel movements or vomiting?
- How recently have you urinated?
- Are you able to keep down any food or drink?
- Do you also have other symptoms, such as abdominal cramping, fever, headache or muscle aches? How severe are these symptoms?
- Has there been blood in your stools?
- Have you recently eaten any food that you suspect was spoiled?
- Has anyone gotten sick after eating the same food that you did?
- Have you recently been exposed to someone who you know was experiencing diarrhea?
- What medications are you currently taking?
- Have you recently traveled to another country?
- Do you know what your or your child's weight was before symptoms started?
What you can do in the meantime
If your child is sick, continue offering him or her small amounts of an oral rehydration solution containing electrolytes (Pedialyte, others) while you wait for your appointment. Ask your doctor to recommend the amount and frequency. Don't try to replenish fluids in a child with only water, which doesn't treat the electrolyte imbalance associated with dehydration in children, and may make symptoms worse. If you or another adult is sick, try to replenish fluids with water, an oral rehydration solution or a sports drink (Gatorade, Powerade, others).
Your doctor can often diagnose dehydration on the basis of physical signs and symptoms such as little or no urination, sunken eyes, and skin that lacks its normal elasticity and resilience when pinched. If you're dehydrated, you're also likely to have low blood pressure, especially when moving from a lying to a standing position, a faster than normal heart rate and reduced blood flow to your extremities.
To help confirm the diagnosis and pinpoint the degree of dehydration, you may have other tests, such as:
- Blood tests. Blood samples may be used to check for a number of factors, such as the levels of your electrolytes — especially sodium and potassium — and how well your kidneys are working.
- Urinalysis. Tests done on your urine can help show whether you're dehydrated and to what degree.
If it's not obvious why you're dehydrated, your doctor may order additional tests to check for diabetes and for liver or kidney problems.
The only effective treatment for dehydration is to replace lost fluids and lost electrolytes. The best approach to dehydration treatment depends on age, the severity of dehydration and its cause.
Treating dehydration in sick children
Your doctor can offer specific suggestions for treating dehydration in your child, but some general guidelines include the following:
Use an oral rehydration solution. Unless your doctor advises otherwise, use an oral rehydration solution such as Pedialyte for infants and children who have diarrhea, vomiting or fever. These solutions contain water and salts in specific proportions to replenish both fluids and electrolytes. They're also designed for easier digestion. Oral rehydration products are readily available in most drugstores, and many pharmacies carry their own brands. Begin giving fluids early in the course of an illness instead of waiting until the situation becomes urgent.
Be sure to give enough solution. Your doctor may suggest specific amounts, depending on your child's age and degree of dehydration, but a general rule of thumb is to keep giving liquids slowly until your child's urine becomes clear in color. When your child is vomiting, try giving small amounts of solution at frequent intervals — try a spoonful or so every few minutes, for instance. If your child can't keep this down, wait 30 to 60 minutes and try again. Room temperature fluids are best.
- Continue to breast-feed. Don't stop breast-feeding when your baby is sick, but offer your baby an oral rehydration solution in a bottle as well. If you give your baby formula, try switching to one that's lactose-free until diarrhea improves — lactose can be difficult to digest during diarrhea, making diarrhea worse. Never dilute formula more than the instructions advise. Your doctor may suggest substituting an oral rehydration solution for the formula for a short time.
- Avoid certain foods and drinks. The best liquid for a sick child is an oral rehydration solution — plain water doesn't provide essential electrolytes, and although sports drinks replenish electrolytes, they replace those lost through sweating, not through diarrhea or vomiting. Milk, caffeinated beverages, fruit juices or gelatins don't relieve dehydration and may make children's diarrhea symptoms worse.
Treating dehydration in sick adults
Most adults with mild to moderate dehydration from diarrhea, vomiting or fever can improve their condition by drinking more water or other liquids. Certain liquids, such as fruit juices, carbonated beverages or coffee, can make diarrhea worse.
Treating dehydration in athletes of all ages
For exercise-related dehydration, cool water is your best bet. Sports drinks containing electrolytes and a carbohydrate solution also may be helpful. There's no need for salt tablets — too much salt can lead to hypernatremic dehydration, a condition in which your body not only is short of water but also carries an excess of sodium. Avoid drinking carbonated beverages, such as colas or other types of soda.
Treating severe dehydration
Children and adults who are severely dehydrated should be treated by emergency personnel arriving in an ambulance or in a hospital emergency room, where they can receive salts and fluids through a vein (intravenously) rather than by mouth. Intravenous hydration provides the body with water and essential nutrients much more quickly than oral solutions do — something that's essential in life-threatening situations.
To prevent dehydration, drink plenty of fluids and eat foods high in water such as fruits and vegetables. Letting thirst be your guide is an adequate daily guideline for most healthy people. Fluids can be obtained not just from water but also from other beverages and foods. But, if you're exercising, don't wait for thirst to keep up with your fluids.
Under certain circumstances, you may need to take in more fluids than usual:
- Illness. Start giving extra water or an oral rehydration solution at the first signs of illness — don't wait until dehydration occurs. And although they might sound appealing, traditional "clear fluids" such as ginger ale or other sodas contain too much sugar and too little sodium to replenish lost electrolytes.
Exercise. In general, it's best to start hydrating the day before strenuous exercise. Producing lots of clear, dilute urine is a good indication that you're well hydrated. Before exercising, drink 1 to 3 cups (0.24 to 0.70 liters) of water. During the activity, replenish fluids at regular intervals and continue drinking water or other fluids after you're finished.
Keep in mind that drinking too much not only can cause bloating and discomfort but also may lead to a potentially fatal condition in which your blood sodium becomes too low (hyponatremia). This occurs when you drink more fluids than you lose through sweating.
- Environment. You need to drink additional water in hot or humid weather to help lower your body temperature and to replace what you lose through sweating. You may also need extra water in cold weather if you sweat while wearing insulated clothing. Heated, indoor air can cause your skin to lose moisture, increasing your daily fluid requirements. And altitudes greater than 8,200 feet (2,500 meters) also can affect how much water your body needs. If dehydration occurs when you're exercising in hot weather, get into a shady area, recline, and start drinking water or a sports drink. Young athletes should be encouraged to let their coaches know if they're having symptoms of dehydration.
Feb. 12, 2014
- Dehydration in children. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merckmanuals.com/professional/pediatrics/dehydration_and_fluid_therapy_in_children/dehydration_in_children.html?qt=&sc=&alt=. Accessed Aug.19, 2013.
- Somers MJ. Clinical assessment and diagnosis of hypovolemia (dehydration) in children. http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed Aug. 17, 2013.
- Sterns RH. Etiology, clinical manifestations, and diagnosis of volume depletion in adults. http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed Aug. 17, 2013.
- Diarrhea. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/diarrhea/. Accessed Aug. 18, 2013.
- Popkin BM, et al. Water, hydration, and health. Nutrition Reviews. 2010;68:439.
- Selecting and effectively using hydration for fitness. American College of Sports Medicine. http://www.acsm.org/docs/brochures/selecting-and-effectively-using-hydration-for-fitness.pdf. Accessed Aug. 16, 2013.
- Rodriguez NR, et al. Position of the American Dietetic Association, Dietitians of Canada, and the American College of Sports Medicine: Nutrition and athletic performance. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. 2009;41:709.
- Montain SJ. Hydration recommendations for sport 2008. Current Sports Medicine Reports. 2008;7:187.
- Thomas DR, et al. Understanding clinical dehydration and its treatment. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association. 2008;9:292.
- Niescierenko M. Advances in pediatric dehydration therapy. Current Opinion in Pediatrics. 2013;25:304.
- Canavan A, et al. Diagnosis and management of dehydration in children. American Family Physician. 2009;80:692.
- Sterns RH. General principles of disorders of water balance (hyponatremia and hypernatremia) and sodium balance (hypovolemia and edema). http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed Aug. 17, 2013. | <urn:uuid:affec05a-92ca-4af0-a575-111a9d20000f> | CC-MAIN-2014-52 | http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dehydration/basics/risk-factors/con-20030056?p=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-52/segments/1418802768169.20/warc/CC-MAIN-20141217075248-00123-ip-10-231-17-201.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946094 | 4,530 | 3.90625 | 4 |
Legumes are a food group rich in B vitamins, and contain different beneficial minerals like calcium, potassium and magnesium. The findings showed that among the different subtypes of legume, participants who had a higher consumption of lentils - one serving per week - had a 33 per cent lower risk of developing the disease.
Legumes also contain sizeable amounts of fibre and are regarded as a low-glycemic index food, which means that blood glucose levels increase only slowly after consumption.
The effect of replacing half a serving per day of foods rich in protein or carbohydrates, including eggs, bread, rice and baked potato, with half a serving per day of legumes was also associated with a lower risk of Type 2 diabetes, said Nerea Becerra-Tomas, researcher at the Universitat Rovira i Virgili in Spain.
Due to these unique nutritional qualities, eating legumes regularly can help improve human health. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) had declared 2016 as the international year of legumes to raise people's awareness of their nutritional benefits.
Type 2 diabetes is a chronic condition that affects the way the body processes blood sugar (glucose) and affected more than 400 million adults in 2015 worldwide. For the study, published in the scientific journal Clinical Nutrition, the team examined 3,349 participants at high risk of cardiovascular disease but without Type 2 diabetes. | <urn:uuid:22e6aaac-9329-44cf-bc8b-35a583763055> | CC-MAIN-2023-14 | https://food.ndtv.com/health/eating-legumes-may-reduce-diabetes-risk-by-35-per-cent-1675791 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-14/segments/1679296949642.35/warc/CC-MAIN-20230331113819-20230331143819-00754.warc.gz | en | 0.933459 | 286 | 3.609375 | 4 |
Real Natures and Familiar Objects
In Real Natures and Familiar Objects Crawford Elder defends, with qualifications, the ontology of common sense. He argues that we exist—that no gloss is necessary for the statement "human beings exist" to show that it is true of the world as it really is—and that we are surrounded by many of the medium-sized objects in which common sense believes. He argues further that these familiar medium-sized objects not only exist, but have essential properties, which we are often able to determine by observation. The starting point of his argument is that ontology should operate under empirical load—that is, it should give special weight to the objects and properties that we treat as real in our best predictions and explanations of what happens in the world. Elder calls this presumption "mildly controversial" because it entails that arguments are needed for certain widely assumed positions such as "mereological universalism" (according to which the sum of randomly assembled objects constitutes an object in its own right).
Elder begins by defending realism about essentialness (arguing that nature's objects have essential properties whose status as essential is mind-independent). He then defends this view of familiar objects against causal exclusion arguments and worries about vagueness. Finally, he argues that many of the objects in which common sense believes really exist, including artifacts and biological devices shaped by natural selection, and that we too exist, as products of natural selection. | <urn:uuid:82679731-d004-416c-a2bf-47392bf3197c> | CC-MAIN-2022-27 | http://cognet.mit.edu/book/real-natures-and-familiar-objects | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-27/segments/1656103034877.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20220625065404-20220625095404-00214.warc.gz | en | 0.958644 | 293 | 2.65625 | 3 |
A hammertoe is a toe that's curled due to a bend in the middle joint of a toe. Mallet toe is similar, but affects the upper joint of a toe. Otherwise, any differences between hammertoe and mallet toe are subtle. Both hammertoe and mallet toe are commonly caused by shoes that are too short or heels that are too high. Under these conditions, your toe may be forced against the front of your shoe, resulting in an unnatural bending of your toe and a hammer-like or claw-like appearance. Relieving the pain and pressure of hammertoe and mallet toe may involve changing your footwear and wearing shoe inserts. If you have a more severe case of hammertoe or mallet toe, you may need surgery to experience relief.
Hammer toe results from shoes that don?t fit properly or a muscle imbalance, usually in combination with one or more other factors. Muscles work hammertoe in pairs to straighten and bend the toes. If the toe is bent and held in one position long enough, the muscles tighten and cannot stretch out. Some other causes are diabetes, arthritis, neuromuscular disease, polio or trauma.
The most obvious symptom of hammer, claw or mallet toe is the abnormal toe position. This is usually combined with pain: the abnormal foot position leads to excessive friction on the toe as it rubs against any footwear which can be extremely painful. Corns & Calluses: repeated friction can result in the formation of a foot corn or callus on top of the toes. Stiffness, the joints become increasingly stiff. In the early stages, the toes can usually be straightened out passively using your hands, but if allowed to progress, the stiffness may be permanent.
Hammer toes may be easily detected through observation. The malformation of the person's toes begin as mild distortions, yet may worsen over time - especially if the factors causing the hammer toes are not eased or removed. If the condition is paid attention to early enough, the person's toes may not be permanently damaged and may be treated without having to receive surgical intervention. If the person's toes remain untreated for too long, however the muscles within the toes might stiffen even more and will require invasive procedures to correct the deformity.
Non Surgical Treatment
Apply a commercial, nonmedicated hammertoe pad around the bony prominence of the hammertoe. This will decrease pressure on the area. Wear a shoe with a deep toe box. If the hammertoe becomes inflamed and painful, apply ice packs several times a day to reduce swelling. Avoid heels more than two inches tall. A loose-fitting pair of shoes can also help protect the foot while reducing pressure on the affected toe, making walking a little easier until a visit to your podiatrist can be arranged. It is important to remember that, while this treatment will make the hammertoe feel better, it does not cure the condition. A trip to the podiatric physician?s office will be necessary to repair the toe to allow for normal foot function. Avoid wearing shoes that are too tight or narrow. Children should have their shoes properly fitted on a regular basis, as their feet can often outgrow their shoes rapidly. See your podiatric physician if pain persists.
Until recently, wires were used for surgical correction. In this technique, one or more wires are inserted into the bone through both the affected joint and a normally healthy toe joint, and the end of the toe. These wires stay in place for four to six weeks, protruding from the end of the toes. Due to the protruding wire, simple things such working, driving, bathing and even sleeping are difficult while these wires are in place. During this recovery period, patients often experience discomfort during sleep and are subject possible infection. | <urn:uuid:0e2bb6ef-ae99-4d81-94c7-d08063468f4f> | CC-MAIN-2018-09 | http://casimiraumphlett.hatenablog.com/entry/2015/06/27/231109 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-09/segments/1518891812584.40/warc/CC-MAIN-20180219111908-20180219131908-00243.warc.gz | en | 0.9364 | 767 | 3.015625 | 3 |
California Dreaming: Japanese-American History
This is part of the documentary a unknown person directed, shot and edited. This person focused on a specific Japanese-American group in Southern California and collected their experience. It’s a story of tenacity. If you like it, let this person know, more for collaboration!
Japanese American history is the history of Japanese Americans or the history of ethnic Japanese in the United States. People from Japan began emigrating to the U.S. in significant numbers following the political, cultural, and social changes stemming from the 1868 Meiji Restoration. Japanese immigration to the Americas started with immigration to Hawaii in the first year of the Meiji period in 1868.
The Hilo Japanese Immigrant’s Assembly Hall. Built in 1889, today located in Meiji Mura museum, Japan.
Although Japanese castaways such as Oguri Jukichi and Otokichi are known to have reached the Americas by at least the early 19th century, the history of Japanese Americans begins in the mid nineteenth century.
- 1841, June 27 Captain Whitfield, commanding a New England sailing vessel, rescues five shipwrecked Japanese sailors. Four disembark at Honolulu, however Manjiro Nakahama stays on board returning with Whitfield to Fairhaven, Massachusetts. After attending school in New England and adopting the name John Manjiro, he later became an interpreter for Commodore Matthew Perry.
- 1850. Seventeen survivors of a Japanese shipwreck are saved by the American freighter Auckland off the coast of California. In 1852, the group is sent to Macau to join Commodore Matthew C. Perry as a gesture to help open diplomatic relations with Japan. One of them, Joseph Heco (Hikozo Hamada), goes on to become the first Japanese person to become a naturalized American citizen.
- 1855: On February 8, the first official intake of Japanese migrants to a U.S.-controlled entity occurs when 676 men, 159 women, and 108 children arrive in Honolulu on board the Pacific Mail passenger freighter City of Tokio. These immigrants, the first of many Japanese immigrants to Hawaii, have come to work as laborers on the island’s sugar plantations via an assisted passage scheme organized by the Hawaiian government.
- 1861: The utopian minister Thomas Lake Harris of the Brotherhood of the New Life visits England, where he meets Nagasawa Kanaye, who becomes a convert. Nagasawa returns to the U.S. with Harris and follows him to Fountaingrove in Santa Rosa, California. When Harris leaves the Californian commune, Nagasawa became the leader and remained there until his death in 1932.
- 1869: A group of Japanese people arrive at Gold Hills, California and build the Wakamatsu Tea and Silk Colony. Okei becomes the first recorded Japanese woman to die and be buried in the United States.
- 1885: The first wave of Japanese immigrants arrives to provide labor in Hawaiʻi sugarcane and pineapple plantations and California fruit and produce farms.
- 1893: The San Francisco Board of Education attempts to introduce segregation for Japanese American children, but withdraws the measure following protests by the Japanese government.
- 1900s: Japanese immigrants begin to lease land and sharecrop.
- 1902: Yone Noguchi publishes The American Diary of a Japanese Girl, the first Japanese American novel.
- 1906: The San Francisco Board of Education successfully implements segregation for Asian students in public schools.
- 1907: Gentlemen’s Agreement of 1907 between United States and Japan results in Japan ending the issuance passports for new laborers.
- 1908: Japanese “picture brides” enter the United States.
- 1913: The California Alien Land Law of 1913 bans Japanese from purchasing land; whites threatened by Japanese success in independent farming ventures (see more timeline at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese-American_history).
Japanese American history before World War II: Japanese-American life before World War II
People from Japan began emigrating to the U.S. in significant numbers following the political, cultural, and social changes stemming from the 1868 Meiji Restoration. Japanese immigration to the Americas started with immigration to Hawaii in the first year of the Meiji period in 1868.
Following the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, Japanese immigrants were increasingly sought by industrialists to replace the Chinese immigrants. In 1907, the “Gentlemen’s Agreement” between the governments of Japan and the U.S. ended immigration of Japanese workers (i.e., men), but permitted the immigration of spouses of Japanese immigrants already in the U.S. The Immigration Act of 1924 banned the immigration of all but a token few Japanese.
The ban on immigration produced unusually well-defined generational groups within the Japanese American community. Initially, there was an immigrant generation, the Issei, and their U.S.-born children, the Nisei Japanese American. The Issei were exclusively those who had immigrated before 1924. Because no new immigrants were permitted, all Japanese Americans born after 1924 were—by definition—born in the U.S. This generation, the Nisei, became a distinct cohort from the Issei generation in terms of age, citizenship, and English language ability, in addition to the usual generational differences. Institutional and interpersonal racism led many of the Nisei to marry other Nisei, resulting in a third distinct generation of Japanese Americans, the Sansei. Significant Japanese immigration did not occur until the Immigration Act of 1965 ended 40 years of bans against immigration from Japan and other countries.
The Naturalization Act of 1790 restricted naturalized U.S. citizenship to “free white persons,” which excluded the Issei from citizenship. As a result, the Issei were unable to vote, and faced additional restrictions such as the inability to own land under many state laws.
Like most of the American population, Japanese immigrants came to the U.S. in search of a better life. Some planned to stay and build families in the United States, while others wanted to save money from working stateside to better themselves in the country from which they had come. Before the Attack on Pearl Harbor, Japanese residents experienced a moderate level of hardship that was fairly typical for any minority group at the time.
Japanese Americans have made significant contributions to the agriculture of the western United States, particularly in California and Hawaii. Nineteenth century Japanese immigrants introduced sophisticated irrigation methods that enabled the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, and flowers on previously marginal lands.
While the Issei (1st generation Japanese Americans) prospered in the early 20th century, most lost their farms during the internment. Although this was the case, Japanese Americans remain involved in these industries today, particularly in southern California and to some extent, Arizona by the areas’ year-round agricultural economy, and descendants of Japanese pickers who adapted farming in Oregon and Washington state.
Japanese American detainees irrigated and cultivated lands near World War II internment camps, which were located in desolate spots such as Poston, in the Arizona desert, and Tule Lake, California, at a dry mountain lake bed. Due to their tenacious efforts, these farm lands remain productive today.
Internment: Japanese American internment
During World War II, an estimated 120,000 Japanese Americans and Japanese nationals or citizens residing in the United States were forcibly interned in ten different camps across the US, mostly in the west. The internments were based on the race or ancestry rather than activities of the interned. Families, including children, were interned together. Each member of the family was allowed to bring two suitcases of their belongings. Each family, regardless of its size, was given one room to live in. The camps were fenced in and patrolled by armed guards. For the most part, the internees remained in the camps until the end of the war, when they left the camps to rebuild their lives.
World War II Service: Japanese-American service in World War II
Many Japanese Americans served with great distinction during World War II in the American forces.
Nebraska Nisei Ben Kuroki became a famous Japanese-American soldier of the war after he completed 30 missions as a gunner on B-24 Liberators with the 93rd Bombardment Group in Europe. When he returned to the US he was interviewed on radio and made numerous public appearances, including one at San Francisco’s Commonwealth Club where he was given a ten-minute standing ovation after his speech. Kuroki’s acceptance by the California businessmen was the turning point in attitudes toward Japanese on the West Coast. Kuroki volunteered to fly on a B-29 crew against his parent’s homeland and was the only Nisei to fly missions over Japan. He was awarded a belated Distinguished Service Medal by President George W. Bush in August 2005.
The 442nd Regimental Combat Team/100th Infantry Battalion is one of the most highly decorated unit in U.S. military history. Composed of Japanese Americans, the 442nd/100th fought valiantly in the European Theater. The 522nd Nisei Field Artillery Battalion was one of the first units to liberate the prisoners of the Nazi concentration camp at Dachau. Hawaiʻi Senator Daniel Inouyewas a veteran of the 442nd. Additionally the Military Intelligence Service consisted of Japanese Americans who served in the Pacific Front.
On October 5, 2010, the Congressional Gold Medal was awarded to the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the 100th Infantry Battalion, as well as the 6,000 Japanese Americans who served in the Military Intelligence Service during the war. | <urn:uuid:cf451541-a572-40f5-a2fd-94ce5c475130> | CC-MAIN-2018-34 | http://purehistory.org/japanese-americans/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-34/segments/1534221210249.41/warc/CC-MAIN-20180815181003-20180815201003-00618.warc.gz | en | 0.960492 | 2,008 | 3.53125 | 4 |
Man-in-the-middle attacks have been one of the most notorious cyber threats that have been wreaking havoc to enterprises for years. This sort of attack is often difficult to combat because attackers operate in a highly stealthy manner, making it less noticeable to two individuals communicating over the Internet.
Detection is the key. Researchers from Facebook and Carnegie Mellon University have joined forces to build a system that security professionals and even regular Internet users can employ to detect man-in-the middle attacks.
Although the tool is not so recent as it has been under development for quite some time, Facebook was able to demonstrate it on its own network and concluded that could also be applied to other large enterprises. The technology was able to identify 6,845 tampered certificates from more than 3 million SSL connections during the course of the experiment.
Man-in-the middle attacks have been known to target corporate data, so it was not surprising when Facebook and Carnegie Mellon University researchers found that majority of the attack incidents occurred to commercial organizations. But governments and financial institutions have not been spared also from its wrath.
MITM attacks operate to redirect Web traffic through a malicious server in order to view or change a data in transit before it reaches the recipient. It takes place between a Web server and a browser. Even when the traffic between these two end points is protected by an SSL protocol, or more commonly called encrypted, attackers have a way to intercept the certificates in order to secretly join the communication line.
In order to spot changes in certificates, the researchers combined Web pages that are made accessible to select Facebook users with a Flash applet, which skirted the social network’s browser protocol and transmitted data contained in certificates to the researchers’ server.
IT security departments will be most interested in this method in order to monitor instances of man-in-the-middle attacks on users of its their corporate websites. It will also help a lot to protect stakeholders within an organization by ensuring that internal traffic between employees are not tampered.
There are also risks associated with anti-virus software tools installed on computers or cloud platforms, the research revealed. That is so because these products are built to serve as proxies that facilitate the flow of Internet traffic, and they are also sometimes susceptible to attacks. When this anti-virus software system deploys certificates instead of the browser’s certificate, the browser becomes incapable of authenticating certificates. | <urn:uuid:629f4044-ae77-4530-84c5-f0febcc8f2b1> | CC-MAIN-2016-50 | https://www.techwalls.com/facebook-carnegie-mellon-university-found-way-block-man-middle-attacks/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-50/segments/1480698541692.55/warc/CC-MAIN-20161202170901-00185-ip-10-31-129-80.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962224 | 492 | 2.921875 | 3 |
Sodium Chondroitin Sulfate – a natural substance that
can help protect your joint cartilage.
Chondroitin Sulfate is a molecule, which occurs naturally in the body. It is an important component of cartilage - the tough connective tissue that cushions the joints. The molecule was discovered in the cartilage of cows in 1861 by a German chemist, Fischer.
Chondroitin Sulfate is a muco-polysaccaride (glucosaminoglycan) with a high viscosity and the N-acetylgalactosamine as repeated link and with a sulfate group pr. disaccharide unit. The most frequently found muco-polysaccarides in the body are Chondroitin-4-Sulfate and Chondrotin-6-Sulfate. They are present in both bones and connective tissues.
Chondroitin Sulfate has several functions. It delivers nutrients to the joint cartilage, helps to inhibit the enzymes that decompose the joint cartilage and speeds up the formation of a new joint cartilage. As a result, the elasticity and plasticity, which are the functions of the joint cartilage can be maintained through the use of Chondroitin Sulfate.
In recent years, research has made great progress, and its various functions including actions on the joint of the knee has become elucidated one after another. As a result, it is now considered an essential substance for the maintenance of healthy joints.
The consensus of expert and industry opinions supports the use of Chondroitin Sulfate and its common partner agent, glucosamine, for improving symptoms, stopping - or possibly reversing - the degenerative process of osteoarthritis. For more information, visit Chondroitin Web. | <urn:uuid:dc89fbe8-c85b-4969-806b-b683bffe556f> | CC-MAIN-2019-04 | https://www.zpd.dk/chondroitin-sulfate/what-cs/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-04/segments/1547583680452.20/warc/CC-MAIN-20190119180834-20190119202834-00624.warc.gz | en | 0.923787 | 378 | 3.265625 | 3 |
Egyptian Trail Question 2
Read carefully to access Question 3
Ancient Egypt lasted for thousands of years and it existed concurrently (at the same time as) with lots of other civilisations such as Ancient Sumer, Indus Valley, the Shang Dynasty, the Ancient Greeks and the Ancient Romans. Because Ancient Egypt existed at the same time as these other civilisations, they had contact with many of them through trade and war. The pyramids that Egypt is famous for were built in the earlier part of its history, from around 2630 BC to around 1525 BC. The timeline above starts at 3100 BC when Egypt came together and ends in 322 BC when Alexander the Great (a Macedonian/Greek general) invaded Egypt and it started becoming more Greek.
Question 2: Which word means 'living at the same time as'? | <urn:uuid:82c94d83-1e52-494a-9356-793e1478b567> | CC-MAIN-2022-40 | https://www.history-rocks.com/egyptian-trail-2/egyptian-trail-question-2 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-40/segments/1664030333455.97/warc/CC-MAIN-20220924182740-20220924212740-00252.warc.gz | en | 0.957078 | 167 | 3.640625 | 4 |
PA prime minister Salam Fayyad has controversially attended the Herzliya conference on Israel's security. In his speech, he stated the oft-cited position that the Palestinian Arabs "only want to live in dignity on 22% of historic Palestine."
We have gone into detail a number of times about the fact that "historic Palestine" certainly includes significant portions to the east of the Jordan river.
But to make it easy for Fayyad, I would like to ask him which tribes were part of "historic Palestine" and which were not?
According to Robinson and Smith in their survey of Palestine in the 1830s and 40s, the tribes around the Jordan Valley at the time included the the Ka'abineh, the Rashaideh, the Ta'amirah, the Mas'udy, the 'Abbad, the Amir, the 'Abbadin, and the Mushalikhah, the ' Adwan, Ibn Ghiiniim, Beni Hasan, the Baharat, the 'Ajarimeh, Beni Sukhr, and Beni Hamideh. Some were to the east and some to the west. Which ones are "Palestinian?"
The Palestine Exploration Fund's survey of eastern Palestine in the 1880s mentions that the Adwan tribe is the strongest tribe east of the Jordan, along with their rivals the Beni Sakhr, and the Hameidi (who would sell their corn in Jerusalem.)
However, the Adwan clan is mentioned in a recent study as being "Palestinian." And the earlier Robinson/Smith study talks about Adwan members who were in Jericho.
So a reasonable person would conclude that the Arab tribes from a mere 150 years ago often fought with and allied with each other depending on the political atmosphere of the day, were often nomadic (many tribes had originally come from as far away as Yemen,) did not think of the Jordan as any sort of political boundary, and did not consider themselves "Palestinian" in the least (the Beni Sakhr stretched up from the eastern part of the Jordan valley to the Hauran area of today's Syria.)
So, Mr. Fayyad, which tribes were "Palestinian"? Specifically, are the Adwans your people? And if they are - why do you say that "historic Palestine" is strictly to the west of the Jordan, using a country boundary that simply didn't exist until the 20th century?
If you care so much about your historic rights, why do you ignore the illegal Jordanian usurpation of your "historic" land?
More to the point - why is the definition of "Palestinian" land, since 1964, always exactly congruent with land controlled by Jews? | <urn:uuid:f36f8995-4216-4c0a-8c3e-676f0a781697> | CC-MAIN-2015-06 | http://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2010/02/fayyad-invokes-historic-palestine.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-06/segments/1422115869404.51/warc/CC-MAIN-20150124161109-00221-ip-10-180-212-252.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977086 | 557 | 2.765625 | 3 |
3-D imaging draws new picture of Golgi during cell division
BETHESDA, Md. – Resolving a fundamental question in cell biology and showing off the powers of new high-resolution 3-D imaging, National Institutes of Health (NIH) scientists have discovered where the Golgi apparatus, which sorts newly synthesized proteins for transport inside and outside the cell, goes when it disassembles during cell division, according to research presented at the American Society for Cell Biology annual meeting in New Orleans.
Conventional microscopy techniques only allow biologists to watch as the Golgi dissolve into tiny “puncta” and an unresolvable haze. But powerful new imaging techniques allowed the NIH researchers – Dr. Dylan Burnette, Dr. Prabuddha Sengupta and Dr. Jennifer Lippincott-Schwartz of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) – to follow the Golgi through its “choreographed disassembly process,” which now appears tightly linked to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) during cell division.
Cell division by mitosis is the complicated yet critical process by which a mother cell divides into two daughter cells. But first, the mother cell has to pack up her cellular household contents, disassembling and dividing up everything for her soon-to-be-formed daughters.
Despite exhaustive study, mysteries about cell division remain.
How cells manage division has been exhaustively studied for over a century, and yet basic mysteries remained. Scientists knew that some organelles such as the ER are pulled apart before division but keep their tubular membrane structure intact. Other organelles such as the Golgi go to pieces after the prophase of mitosis through choreographed disassembly.
But where does the Golgi go once it is in pieces? To answer the question, the NIH researchers started with two plausible theories: In the ER-linked hypothesis, the Golgi puncta and enzyme haze are closely held by the ER; in the non-ER-linked model, the puncta and haze float about on their own, waiting for cytokinesis, when the two daughter cells separate and the Golgi body reappears as stacks of membrane-bound cisternae, ready to sort proteins from the reassembled ER.
Powered by their new imaging technologies, which gave them far greater resolution than previously possible, the researchers saw clear support of the ER-linked model: The enzyme haze stuck close to ER markers, and the puncta clustered near ER exits.
For a second line of proof, the NICHD researchers followed up with a pharmacologically based trapping assay that showed Golgi enzymes being held tightly by the ER during mitosis. The results indicate that Golgi enzymes redistribute into the ER during mitosis, and that they must follow an ER export pathway to reform the Golgi at the end of mitosis.
This study not only resolves a basic cellular question but also shows what new solutions await as these new technologies give us keener vision and sharper tools. | <urn:uuid:54d8a063-6fcb-4b05-8760-1ab358911046> | CC-MAIN-2015-06 | http://www.photonics.com/Article.aspx?AID=55953 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-06/segments/1422120453043.42/warc/CC-MAIN-20150124172733-00085-ip-10-180-212-252.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94918 | 632 | 2.828125 | 3 |
Born Gaius Octavius and also known as Octavian, Augustus Caesar is famous for transforming the Roman Republic, marred by civil wars, into a stable monarchic Empire which would last for around 1400 years. Rising to prominence after the death of Julius Caesar, Octavian became consul and then a part of the Second Triumvirate. After defeating Mark Antony at Actium in 31 AD, he became the undisputed ruler of the Roman Empire and was conferred with the title Augustus in 27 BC. He ruled for a period of 41 years from 27 BC till his death in 14 AD. Know more about the family, life, rise to power, important battles, reign and death of Augustus Caesar through these 10 interesting facts.
#1 He was the nephew of Julius Caesar
Augustus was born Gaius Octavius Thurinus on 23 September 63 BC at Ox Head on Palatine Hill in the city of Rome. He was named after his father Gaius Octavius, who was the first in their family to become a Roman senator and who also served as governor of Macedonia. Augustus’s mother, Atia, was the daughter of Julia Caesaris, sister of Julius Caesar. After the death of her husband in 59 BC, Atia married Lucius Marcius Philippus, a former governor of Syria. It was his maternal grandmother, Julia Caesaris, who was primarily responsible for raising young Octavius. He delivered her funeral oration at the age of twelve in 51 BC.
#2 Octavius gained political prominence as he had been named by Caesar as his heir
In 47 BC, Octavius went to Hispania (modern-day Spain) to fight alongside Julius Caesar. He was shipwrecked along the way and had to cross enemy territory, but was able to reach Caesar’s camp. His bravery impressed his uncle and when Caesar was back in Rome, he named Octavius as his heir and successor in his will. Octavius was completing his academic and military studies in Apollonia, Illyria, when Julius Caesar was killed on 15th March 44 BC. Caesar had no living legitimate children under Roman law. Octavius secured official recognition as Caesar’s adoptive son and took his uncle’s name Gaius Julius Caesar. However, to avoid confusion, historians refer to him as Octavian from 44 BC till he was conferred the title Augustus in 27 BC.
#3 He was elected consul on 19 August 43 BC at the age of nineteen
Caesar had appointed Mark Antony as his co-consul. Consul was the highest elected political office of the Roman Republic. Antony refused to acknowledge Octavian as Caesar’s legitimate heir alleging that Octavian had earned his adoption through sexual favors. Allies of Caesar, including many in the Senate, rallied behind Octavian against Antony. They inducted him as senator on 1 January 43 BC and gave him the power to veto along with other consuls. The conflict led to the battles of Forum Gallorum and Mutina in which Octavian defeated Mark Antony and forced him to retreat to Gaul. As the consuls who commanded the Senate’s forces were killed in battle, Octavian held sole command of their armies and later coerced the Senate to grant him the vacant consulship in August 43 BC.
#4 Octavian was part of the Second Triumvirate which ended the Roman Republic
Instead of waging further war against Antony, Octavian made an alliance with his rival. On 27th November 43 BC, Octavian, Antony and another of Caesar’s principal supporters, Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, formally split Rome’s provinces between them and established a three man dictatorship to govern Rome with Antony given the East, Lepidus Africa and Octavian the West. The alliance between them is known as the Second Triumvirate and its enactment officially ended the Roman Republic and started its transformation into an autocratic Empire. To further cement the alliance of Octavian and Antony, Octavian’s elder sister, Octavia, married Mark Antony in October 40 BC.
#5 He eliminated his political enemies through proscriptions
The Second Triumvirate lasted for two five-year terms, from 43 BC to 33 BC. The three triumvirs made a list of their political enemies and set in motion proscriptions which led to the execution or banishment of around 300 senators and 2,000 members of the class below the senators, the equites or knights. Rewards were given as incentive for Romans to capture those who were proscribed, while the assets of the proscribed were seized by the triumvirs. Antony and Octavian also declared civil war to avenge Julius Caesar’s assassination. Under the leadership of Mark Antony, they won the two battles of Philippi in October 42 BC against Caesar’s assassins Brutus and Cassius, both of whom committed suicide.
#6 He became Rome’s undisputed ruler after defeating Mark Antony in 30 BC
In 36 BC, a dispute arose among Lepidus and Octavian over who had authority over the recently acquired island of Sicily. The forces of Lepidus defected to Octavian, who then deprived Lepidus of his triumviral office and forced him into retirement. In 41 BC, Mark Antony had begun an affair with the famous Egyptian queen Cleopatra. In 32 BC, Antony divorced Octavian’s sister Octavia. In response Octavian declared war on Cleopatra. After decisive victory for Octavian at the Battle of Actium in September 31 BC, Cleopatra and Antony withdrew to Alexandria. Octavian besieged the city and defeated their forces in Alexandria on 1 August 30 BC – after which Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide.
#7 Augustus founded the Roman Empire in 27 BC and became its first Emperor
On 16 January 27 BC, the Roman Senate gave Octavian the title of Augustus (the illustrious one). At the same time, Augustus outwardly showed that he had restored full power to the Roman Senate thus making Rome a Republic again. However Augustus was the de facto autocratic ruler of the Roman Empire. By law, he held a collection of powers granted to him for life by the Senate, including supreme military command. The Senate only controlled five or six legions compared to twenty under Augustus. This led to the first phase of the Roman Empire which lasted from 27 BC to 284 AD known as the Principate. The Principate was marked by the emperors maintaining the illusion of continuance of the Roman Republic.
#8 He was an administrative genius who initiated Pax Romana
Augustus Caesar’s victory at Actium in 31 BC brought the lengthy civil wars in the Roman Republic to an end and transformed the decaying republic into a stable monarchic regime. It initiated a period of relative peacefulness in the Roman Empire which lasted for over two centuries till 180 AD and is known as Pax Romana (Roman Peace). Augustus implemented reforms in numerous fields including coinage, taxation, religion and administration which greatly increased Rome’s net revenue, provided stimulus to trade leading to prosperity, and contributing prominently to Pax Romana. Also, many building projects were completed during his reign including an excellent network of roads to connect his empire.
#9 He married three times but only had one child
In 40 BC, Augustus married Clodia Pulchra, stepdaughter of Mark Antony. The marriage proved to be short and was never consummated. Augustus divorced Clodia in 40 BC and married Scribonia the same year. His second marriage is also considered an unhappy one, though through it he would have his only child, Julia the Elder. Augustus divorced Scribonia in 39 BC, the very day Julia was born. Augustus married Livia Drusilla on 17th January 38 BC. The third marriage of Augustus is considered to be successful and lasted till his death in 14 AD. Augustus gave Livia the unprecedented honor of ruling her own finances and dedicated a public statue to her. Tiberius, Livia’s son from a previous marriage, succeeded Augustus Caesar as emperor and ruled the Roman Empire from 14 AD till his death in 37 AD.
#10 The month of August is named after Augustus
Augustus Caesar died on 19th August 14 AD in the town of Nola in Campania, Italy. It is said he died in the same room in which his father had died. His health had been in decline in the months before his death. His last words are famous as, “I found Rome a city of bricks and left it a city of marble”. Augustus ruled over the Roman Empire for 41 years from 27 BC to 14 AD. He is one of the longest reigning Roman Emperors and considered by many as the greatest. He was deified after his death and both his adoptive surname, Caesar, and his title Augustus, became the permanent titles of Roman Emperors for fourteen centuries. The eighth month was renamed August in his honor in 8 BC. It is said Augustus chose the month because it was the time of several of his great triumphs, including the conquest of Egypt. | <urn:uuid:7352862c-70f7-4685-ad93-1d04de9fbc96> | CC-MAIN-2019-47 | https://learnodo-newtonic.com/augustus-facts | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-47/segments/1573496669422.96/warc/CC-MAIN-20191118002911-20191118030911-00419.warc.gz | en | 0.986376 | 1,916 | 3.5625 | 4 |
Hardware/Software- Often the most common factor deterring teachers from integrating technology into the classroom is the lack of hardware and software necessary to make true technology integration attainable. Many classrooms suffer from few computers, slow computers, limited internet connectivity, broken hardware, or incorrect software. A lack of appropriate hardware and software makes technology integration extremely difficult, but still doable. Strategies outlined in the sections below will hopefully generate ideas for activities that can be utilized in a classroom even with limited hardware and software.
Economics- To sucessfully incorporate beneficial technology requires a large amount of money. Money to purchase the newest and most up to date computers, the latest hardware/software, and on-site specialist to train personnel and keep computers working are limited.
Professional Development- Another large problem with technology integration is the lack of professional development directed towards integrating technology into the classroom. Most teachers recognize the benefits of technology integration, but are unequipped to present instructional information via technology to their classes.
Construction Time- To successfully incorporate beneficial technology requires a large amount of time for production and preparation. A webquest, for example, may take several hours for even an experienced teacher to program, identify links, and upload to the internet. Often, even installing and setting up software is tedious and time consuming, leading many teachers to avoid technology integration completely.
Limited Familiarity- Depending on the age of your students and how accessible computers are in their lives, limited familiarity with technology amongst students could be a major stumbling block in technology integration. It is difficult to provide instruction using computers when students have low familiarity with basic applications like using a mouse, saving a file, etc.
Time in Curriculum to Add Technology- Curriculum guides are so tight that it is hard to add anything, many assignments involving creativity have been cut out of curricula. Today's drive for time on task in the classroom limits the amount of time available to integrate new technology into existing programs.
Blogs and Discussion Boards- These are more effective to have students do from home, unless you are able to bring your students into the lab everyday. This is a unrealistic expectation for schools who have one or two small labs that are being utilized for large percentages of the day. Home bound technology assignments mean that some students, those who do not have access to the technology would be at a great disadvantage, and would be unable to complete required assignments.
Podcasts- Podcasts are a great way to have students do reports, however there are limits on what you are allowed to do with students if you want to post anything on the internet because of privacy and protection issues, as well as parental permission. Others types of tools that are affected by this are: blogs and pictures.
One to One Programs- With the rise of one-to-one programs and wireless laptops/tablets many of these problems listed above are resolved and new ones have arisen. Student familiarity becomes less of an issue and is compounded by "toy versus tool" issues.
Professional Training-Training students and teachers (even administrators) in the disciplines necessary for appropriate computer use becomes a primary responsibility of schools with ubiquitous computing. See http://www.aalf.org/Resources/Default.aspx for more resources.
Internet Safety- Training students to be aware of the safety issues of the internet world would be necessary. Cyber bullies, pedophiles, scams, and identify theft are major issues when introducing students to the web. | <urn:uuid:1d32122b-8caa-4624-8fcf-02f7e29df4f1> | CC-MAIN-2016-36 | http://schoolcomputing.wikia.com/wiki/Issues_and_Barriers_to_Integrating_Technology | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-36/segments/1471982292181.27/warc/CC-MAIN-20160823195812-00062-ip-10-153-172-175.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94532 | 697 | 3.1875 | 3 |
Will Global Warming Ruin Christmas?
With a scientifically proven warming trend on the rise, Christmas might become a backyard barbecue party in a few decades.
But wait, why is there snow in certain places on Earth where cold weather was not a particular feature, to begin with? No, global warming is not a hoax. Here is some info that might debunk some myths and clear things up for you.
The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has been analyzing data running back 200.000 years using ice core information and weather data from the 19th and 20th centuries. As the greenhouse gas release for most of our history was rather low, the temperature has fluctuated, but essentially remained the same for the first period considered. In what concerns the period from 1971 to 2020, their data suggests that it is getting warmer at an unprecedented rate.2016 is the hottest year on record, beating last year’s record which was held by 2015, and being the 40th year in a row with abnormally high global temperatures. Each of the first six months of 2016 set a record as the warmest respective month globally in the modern temperature record, which dates to 1880, according to scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York.
The six-month period from January to June was also the planet’s warmest half-year on record, with an average temperature of 1.3 degrees Celsius (2.4 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than the late nineteenth century. To place the findings in a historical context, scientists usually compare temperatures with “normal” temperatures averaged over a 30-year stretch, usually from 1961 to 1990.
According to the US National Climatic Data Center, part of NOAA, if you are under 30 years old, you never lived through a year where the average surface temperature of our planet was below average. People who are 60 years old had a completely different Earth in terms of climate.
So we need to face it. The climate has already changed.
a key factor in temperature rises is the severely increased CO2 level in the atmosphere. And we all know where that comes from – in a nutshell, pollution. There has been a 142 percent increase in CO2 levels compared to those at the start of the Industrial Revolution in the 1800s. The greenhouse gases form a layer in the atmosphere that acts as a thermal blanket, absorbing the heat reflected from the earth. Afterward, it radiates back, further increasing the Earth’s surface even more. The warmer climate will probably lead to more evaporation and precipitation overall, but in individual regions, it will vary, some becoming wetter and others dryer.Of course, there is also a CO2 cycle that has been going on for millions of years. The CO2 is taken out of the air by mixing with the water in the atmosphere and forming carbonic acid. That accounts for the rather acid pH of the rain, which doesn’t exactly have a neutral value of 7, but a rather 5.5 value. Further on, it reacts with rocks, breaking them down and helping soil formation. There have been high and low peaks in the level of CO2 with extremely large variations, but speaking on a large geological scale.
That means that there have been rises of 5 to 8 degrees Celsius in the past, but over the course of millions of years, meaning that the ecosystems had time to adapt, and managed to do so, as only a few species have gone extinct in those periods. So even if the course of the geological cycle is kept, as in the increase of CO2 is cyclical, its speed has, for a long while now, reached pathological values and the issue needs to be seriously addressed.
The consequences are pretty clear: the water cycle gets damaged. And that happens in time. As the oceans absorb heat, the water molecules expand and thus the sea levels rise. On land, the heat waves generated droughts in South Africa, China, and Brazil, and some parts of the United States and increased rainfalls in parts of Russia, the United States, Japan, Argentina, and many others. India, alongside New Zealand and Western Europe, received fewer rainfalls.
Some notable mentions are also that the United States has gone through rather harsh winters and Antarctica gained ice, 560,000 square kilometers of it, to be precise, setting a new record, compared to the previous years. So there’s more sea ice now than the 1981 to 2010 average levels.
But still, Antarctica is losing ice at an unprecedented rate across most of the continent. Ice has increased in East Antarctica and the interior of West Antarctica, but other parts of it are still melting.
A lot of them.
A study made by NASA explains that the melting glaciers have been depositing freshwater, that once with the melting of the glacier got released. Summoning one’s basic knowledge of middle-school physics, one deduces that freshwater has a higher freezing point than the saltwater of the Southern Ocean.
So the paper concludes that the top layer of water surrounding Antarctica has been diluted by the massive quantity of freshwater released, which freezes more easily today. That accounts for the ice accumulation that has been reported to increase each decade from around 1975.
Now let’s get some facts straight. According to the dictionary, the word ’weather’ refers to the state of the atmosphere at a given time and place, whereas ’climate’ is weather over time and thus climate change is about long-term weather changes of the planet, such as the evolution of the ice caps, sea levels, changes in rainfall pattern and so on.
A study conducted by Yale University helps to better discern between the two terms, global warming and climate change. Although they are often used synonymously, it appears that the term ’climate change is 20 years older than ’global warming.
As it turns out, the two terms generate different interpretations among the general public, ’global warming’ having a bigger impact upon people, as it strongly increases one’s concerns, worries, and emotions towards potential harmful effects. The study revealed that the term ’climate change’ was more closely linked with weather phenomena such as storms and felt less emotional and less of a threat. So by choosing to specifically use one of these terms, it can virtually change the outlook of the audience over this huge issue.
Next on the list are some geographical phenomena that normally occur and need to be acknowledged to further understand the warming trend. El Niño and La Niña are complex weather patterns resulting from variations in ocean temperatures in the Equatorial Pacific. La Niña is the cold phase and El Niño the cold warm.
The oceans have a great capacity to store heat, providing inertia against temperature fluctuations. This basically means that it takes longer for great spans of water to warm or cool over time. And as it gets carried by the winds, a year with a stronger El Niño will impact the weather for a longer period of time than that needed for the phenomenon to actually take place.
The video below helps to better understand the big picture:
[Source: National Ocean Service]
The next phenomenon is the Polar Vortex, which is basically a large mass of extremely cold air that is trapped near the polar caps by the so-called polar night jet. The low height, low-pressure characteristics determine a counterclockwise circulation and that’s why it’s called a vortex.
It is present throughout the air but because in winter the temperature drops, the air becomes colder, thus denser and it shrinks. And depending on the conditions, these „Vortex slips” upon the northern American continent can occur, causing bitterly cold winters.
But harsh conditions in winter do not disprove global warming, such as the existence of night does not disprove sunlight. Global warming refers to the planet as a whole. For example, in the past decade, Europe and Russia were much hotter than average. India was cooler than average. Australia was way warmer and so on.
The global temperatures will vary over long-term periods, thus the consequences will become more and more visible only after certain time spans.
And there are a couple of radical consequences that need to be seriously addressed. Apart from the mainstream aspects that I already mentioned, climate change has already lead to some particular anomalies, some of which were unexpected:
I. Increase in volcano eruptions. As the sea level rises, the distribution of weight on the Earth’s crust shifts from land to sea and might lead to unexpected cataclysms. Volcanoes are known to have a great impact on the climate. Millions of years ago, volcanoes used to be the biggest source of CO2 release in the atmosphere, so an increase in the number of eruptions in our times that already experience a great deal of CO2 emissions would not exactly be something desirable.
II. Suffocation of seawater. With the ice melting that occurs at the poles earlier and earlier in the summer, more sunlight will get to certain seafloor areas that were accustomed to dark conditions of living and thus irrevocably transform and potentially damage the ecosystems, that consist of various seaweed, worms, sponges, invertebrates. Over the years, this long exposure to light might push ecosystems from invertebrate-dominated to algae-dominated.
III. Awakening deadly diseases. Climate change is thought to revive frozen microbes caught in the Siberian permafrost and other areas of the Arctic circle. Rising temperatures defrost the soil in the summer and unleash the spores that subsequently get carried by the wind and are capable of infecting people and animals anew.
This could also happen for life-threatening bacteria like the bubonic plague or smallpox, or for the type of microbes that are enhanced by warmer media. In August 2016, there was an anthrax outbreak in Siberia that resulted in 20 people contracted it. This is caused by the Bacillus anthracis that occurs naturally and infects an estimated 2.000 people each year. It was concluded that the microbe strain from 2016 was exactly the one that killed 1 million reindeer back in the 20th century when these kinds of outbreaks were a rather commonplace thing in Siberia. This was possible due to the extremely resistant spores of the microbe and the low temperatures that basically refrigerated it over the decades. The animals were buried by the local population in approximately 7000 burial zones and since then, there were no notable outbreaks, the last one happening in 1941.IV. Damaging biocrusts. Ubiquitous organisms like microbes, lichens, and mosses form biocrusts that anchor the soil, especially in desert regions, preventing it from erosion. They also have a critical role in cycling carbon and providing nitrogen in the soil, helping desert plants thrive. The distribution of these microbes is likely to be altered due to climate change, resulting in bigger deserted fields, exposing other areas to drought and food shortage.
V. Climate refugee crisis. In 2015 alone, we lost 5 islands in the Pacific Ocean due to rising sea levels. Islands like Tuvalu and Kiribati suffered and a significant part of the population was forced to move to other islands. It is estimated that 414 US cities and many others around the globe might have the same fate in the foreseeable future.
VI. Last, but not least, though definitely relevant, climate change is making it harder to breathe. According to the National Ocean and Atmospheric Association, more frequent, intense, and longer-lasting extreme weather events could exacerbate many of the conditions that trigger asthma. This disease is the third cause of hospitalization in children and the past year reports show a 30% increase in child cases of this sort. Obama also addressed the issue when he debated the link between his daughter’s preschool asthma attacks and climate change. Climate change has raised ground levels of ozone, a toxic compound of smog. When inhaled, it can cause chest pains, trouble when breathing, and even increase asthma attacks. This also happens in big cities.
Intense traffic leads to bigger CO2 emissions and, when combined with other pollutants, can heavily irritate the lungs and cause a predisposition to cardiovascular diseases. Bigger CO2 emissions also lead to shorter winters and thus a longer growing season for pollen-producing plants and other strong allergens, largely affecting how allergies manifest. So no one gets left out.
Of course, there is no single solution to this.
No matter the number of causes or consequences, it is decisive to first acknowledge the problem and be aware of how it can affect you. There are people that already took action on large scales, constantly trying to combat the effects of global warming, but everything starts with the first change at an individual level. Many famous people including actors (Arnold Schwarzenegger, Leonardo DiCaprio) musicians like Bon Jovi or Incubus, basketball players (Steve Nash), skaters as Tony Hawk, supported charities and foundations that help the environment.
The Union of Concerned Scientists is helping advance science-based solutions for a healthy, safe, and sustainable future and discussed some solutions.
Reusability Is The Key
Boosting energy efficiency to power our homes and cities could save a great deal of energy and money if used in a more productive way. Also, one cannot emphasize enough how implementing renewable energy on a greater scale will help our environment. Being proven to reduce pollution, affordable, and create new jobs, solar panels, geothermal and eolian energy are extremely competent means to harvest energy with the least damage to our Earth.
Low-Carbon and Zero-Carbon Technologies
Developing low-carbon and zero-carbon technologies alongside greening transportation and a drastic decrease in the use of fossil fuel are essential to hinder the effects of climate change. Key action steps include: not building any new coal-burning power plants, initiating a phased shutdown of coal plants starting with the oldest and dirtiest, and capturing and storing carbon emissions from power plants. There have been major breakthroughs in developing such technologies but there is still ongoing research to reach the best solution.
Ensuring sustainable development. Each and every country plays a role to some extent in this matter, therefore each should bring their contributions to the problems of climate change and their responsibilities and capacities to confront it.
A variety of solutions are at hand, such as managing forests and agriculture so as to hinder illegal deforestation and agriculture emissions (that represent up to 30% percent of the world’s heat-trapping emissions), helping rural and urban zones to make the transition to low-carbon development pathways and aid the adaptations for further impacts of climate change. The further pursuit of this is worthwhile and will turn out highly beneficial for the population.
The whole of science is nothing more than a refinement of everyday thinking – Albert Einstein | <urn:uuid:3096765b-bf98-4389-ae6a-a6b1ee182f65> | CC-MAIN-2021-43 | https://neutrondev.com/will-global-warming-ruin-christmas/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-43/segments/1634323588246.79/warc/CC-MAIN-20211028003812-20211028033812-00401.warc.gz | en | 0.950438 | 3,030 | 3.140625 | 3 |
Walk through any of the Technion’s campuses, and you’ll find dozens and dozens of faculty members dedicated to research projects that push the boundaries of their fields.
The Technion is committed to making sure research that can change the world reaches consumers as quickly as possible.
Technion Technology Transfer (T3) is the unit that identifies the most promising research and helps bring it from the lab to the marketplace. T3 helped commercialize a drug for early-stage Parkinson’s, known as Azilect to consumers. And the new Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center, or T-Hub, serves as an umbrella for entrepreneurial ventures that encourage students and faculty members to think bigger and bolder about how their research can be applied.
It’s no wonder 2019 was a record-breaking year for Israel’s economy. Thanks to the Technion’s efforts to nurture entrepreneurs and bring their research to life, Israel is seeing more venture capital revenue, more exports, and double the number of “unicorn” businesses — privately held companies with a valuation of $1 billion or more.
Here are just a few of the researchers and breakthroughs powering this economic revolution.
Professor Marcelle Machluf and NanoGhosts
Shrinking tumors from within
The dean of the Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering at the Technion, Prof. Machluf launched her own startup earlier this year to market what she calls NanoGhosts.
Despite medical advances, brain tumors — particularly those originating from metastatic melanoma — have a grim prognosis for patients. Experts have long struggled with how to deliver therapeutic agents safely to the brain.
Prof. Machluf has created a novel targeted drug carrier, made from the outer membrane of human mesenchymal stem cells. These stem cells have been found to stick to cancerous cells and help them hide from the immune system, enabling tumor cells to grow unchecked. By emptying these stem cells of their content, rendering them “ghosts,” shrinking, and loading the new nanosized cell membrane with cancer-fighting drugs, these cells can be injected into the bloodstream. From there, they merge with the tumor, delivering medication that kills cancerous cells from within.
Animal trials of NanoGhosts have been extremely impressive thus far. One injection led to an 80% to 85% reduction in tumor size. Prof. Machluf is adapting NanoGhosts to pass the blood–brain barrier and has started to look at the technology for possible use in lessening the level of infection in COVID-19 patients.
Two years ago, the Israel Science and Technology Ministry named Prof. Machluf’s research as one of Israel’s 60 most impactful developments.
Professor Shulamit Levenberg and Aleph Farms
Lab-grown meat that tastes like the real thing
Prof. Levenberg, dean of the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering and the Stanley and Sylvia Shirvan Chair in Cancer and Life Sciences, used her expertise in tissue engineering to develop an innovative solution to the looming food crisis: real steak grown from cow cells that avoids killing animals and significantly reduces the impact on the environment.
Her lab-grown meat begins with isolating the cells responsible for regenerating and building muscle tissues in cows. Prof. Levenberg then uses a proprietary 3D platform to grow the cells and develop a beef product that is close in taste, texture, and structure to the real thing.
Unlike meat substitutes that are plant-based, Prof. Levenberg’s meat comes from beef cells — just with a dramatically lower environmental and more humane footprint. And because the meat is grown in the lab, there’s no need for antibiotics, reducing the risk of foodborne illnesses.
This research has been developed into the highly successful startup Aleph Farms, where Prof. Levenberg serves as the company’s chief scientific officer. Last year, it raised nearly $12 million in financing to expand its work even further.
Associate Professor Shai Shen-Orr and CytoReason
Big data meets biology
Many drugs tested successfully on mice fail in human clinical trials. And even when clinical trials are successful, they can be extremely lengthy and expensive. Prof. Shen-Orr, head of the Technion’s Systems Immunology and Precision Medicine Lab, has a solution.
By bringing together big data with biology, Prof. Shen-Orr is able to predict how an individual will react to a particular drug and develop a personalized medication. CytoReason is the world’s first and only machine-learning platform that can map someone’s immune system at the cellular level and understand how they will react to different diseases — and treatments.
CytoReason could revolutionize cancer immunotherapy as well as autoimmune, neurodegenerative, and infectious disease research by making research more efficient and delivering more personalized treatments. Prof. Shen-Orr and CytoReason are currently collaborating with top global pharmaceutical companies like GlaxoSmithKline and Pfizer, as well as the U.S.-based Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy.
Prof. Shen-Orr has also developed a way to gauge an individual’s “immune age” — a more accurate measure of health than chronological age that can better pinpoint one’s risk for infection and chronic diseases such as cancer and heart disease.
Technion researchers at the Nancy and Stephen Grand Technion Energy Program have developed a new hydrogen production technology that is greener and would improve production efficiency from 75% to 98.7% as compared with hydrogen production from natural gas.
Most hydrogen produced today is used in fertilizers and refineries. But as the world moves toward cleaner power sources, hydrogen will play a huge role as a renewable energy source for powering our electric cars and heating our homes.
The Technion team’s technology uses electrochemical–thermally activated chemical (E-TAC) water splitting to generate hydrogen. E-TAC decouples the hydrogen molecules from the oxygen molecules. Since the process happens through a spontaneous chemical reaction rather than an electrical current, the process is much more energy efficient. It’s cheaper, too: Researchers expect the cost of equipment to produce hydrogen through E-TAC will be about half of that used in existing technologies.
H2Pro was created to commercialize this innovative hydrogen production technology. The company was given an exclusive license by the Technion to commercialize the product and to date has raised nearly $5 million in a campaign led by Hyundai.
The Gift of Security
Celebrating NASA Scientist & Alum Eliad Peretz
Honoring Ed Satell
Today’s Chicago Innovators, Tomorrow’s Emerging Leaders | <urn:uuid:699fce35-a76e-4270-856a-e0a44b58b703> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | https://ats.org/our-impact/innovations-from-technion-labs-from-research-to-the-marketplace/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233506339.10/warc/CC-MAIN-20230922070214-20230922100214-00056.warc.gz | en | 0.933971 | 1,397 | 2.8125 | 3 |
Vitamin B3 - Benefits, Deficiency Symptoms And Food Sources
Alternative name :: Niacin, Nicotinic Acid, Niacinamide
What is Vitamin B3?
Vitamin B3 is also known as niacin. Pellagra was once a relatively common disease in the United States. Characterized by anxiety, chronic diarrhea, dermatitis, dizziness, headaches, progressive dementia, weakness, and weight loss, pellagra was most often observed among poor individuals, especially those who existed on a corn-based diet. Not until 1942, however, was the nutrient responsible for preventing pellagra discovered. Named niacin, or vitamin B3, the vitamin-which is not found in corn-was added to enriched flour and other commercially made products, making the disease virtually nonexistent today.
Vitamin B3 is necessary for red blood cell formation and blood circulation, lowers cholesterol and is a vasodilator. It assists in the maintenance of skin, nerves, and blood vessels.
Benefits of Vitamin B3
Vitamin B3 contributes to more than 50 vital bodily processes. Like other B vitamins, it helps the body metabolize carbohydrates, fats, and proteins and is necessary for the production of hydrochloric acid, which is used in food digestion. The vitamin is involved in the normal secretion of bile and stomach fluids. Vitamin B3 regulates blood sugar levels, is needed in the synthesis of sex hormones, and detoxifies the body of certain drugs and chemicals. It is necessary for normal mental functioning.
Vitamin B3 is needed for proper circulation and healthy skin. It is involved in the normal secretion of bile and stomach fluids, and in the synthesis of sex hormones. Niacin lowers cholesterol and improves circulation. It is helpful for schizophrenia and other mental illnesses, and is also a memory enhancer.
Recommended Dosage of Vitamin B3
The minimum Recommended Dosage Allowance of Vitamin B3 are :-
Because of the extreme nausea that accompanies large doses of niacin, there are few reported cases of individuals taking enough niacin to overdose.
Excessive Intake of Vitamin B3
Dosages of Vitamin B3 over 50 to 100 mg can cause temporary flushing in some individuals. Taking more than 500 mg Vitamin B3 daily for several months at a time may cause liver damage. For that reason, people with hepatitis or other liver disease should consult a doctor before taking large amounts of Vitamin B3.
Special Intake of Vitamin B3
Individuals who drink alcohol daily have increased needs for vitamin B3. Because they do not metabolize the vitamin efficiently, elderly people and individuals with hyperthyroidism also need higher levels of vitamin B3.
Deficiency Symptoms of Vitamin B3
Pellagra is a disease caused by niacin deficiency. Other symptoms of Vitamin B3 deficiency include canker sores, dementia, depression, diarrhea, dizziness, fatigue, halitosis, headaches, indigestion, insomnia, limb pains, loss of appetite, low blood sugar, muscular weakness, skin eruptions, and inflammation.
Rich Food Sources of Vitamin B3
Vitamin B3 and niacinamide are found in beef liver, brewer's yeast, broccoli, carrots, cheese, corn flour, dandelion greens, dates, eggs, fish, milk, peanuts, pork, potatoes, tomatoes, wheat germ, and whole wheat products.
Herbs that contain niacin include alfalfa, burdock root, catnip, cayenne, chamomile, chickweed, eyebright, fennel seed, hops, licorice, mullein, nettle, oat straw, parsley, peppermint, raspberry leaf, red clover, rose hips, slippery elm, and yellow dock.
A flush, usually harmless, may occur after the ingestion of niacin supplements; a red rash appears on the skin and a tingling sensation may be experienced as well. Usually, these symptoms last only a few minutes. There are two forms of this vitamin: niacin (or nicotinic acid) and niacinamide. In the form of niacinamide, it does not cause flushing. However, niacinamide does not have all the same properties of niacin. Specifically, it is not effective for lowering blood cholesterol.
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Disclaimer: Material provided on vitamins-minerals-supplements.org website is provided for educational purposes only. It is not intended to treat, diagnose, cure, or prevent any disease. Always take the advice of your doctor before undertaking any diet, exercise, or other health program. We will not be liable for any complications, or other medical accidents arising from the use of any information on this web site. | <urn:uuid:4e5de2e8-9439-4fa9-ac72-08dda1433de2> | CC-MAIN-2017-17 | http://vitamins-minerals-supplements.org/vitamins/vitamin_b3.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-17/segments/1492917122167.63/warc/CC-MAIN-20170423031202-00404-ip-10-145-167-34.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.896122 | 1,010 | 2.9375 | 3 |
The increase in high school and university graduates experienced in the second half of the last century can be observed in the generation born prior to the 1980s. This explains why the graph shows a significant incidence of population aged between 25 and 34 years with higher education qualifications. This indicator is very similar to that of the United States, one of the countries with the highest percentage of young people with higher education qualifications in the world. Despite this, the two countries differ greatly in the basic education (primary education and first phase of secondary education levels attained). The graph shows clearly that Spain is far behind the United States in the proportion of young people who have attained a level of intermmediate eduaction (secondary 2nd phase and post-secondary education). It is worth highlighting that this difference has decreased in the last ten years, although only slightly.
Why are young people unable to access home ownership?
Employment precarity is an obstacle to accessing home ownership for young people. Rental, which is more expensive, or family solidarity are the main alternatives for setting up a home.
Women and men, consumption and production over the life course. An unequal relationship
A large difference exists between the productive activity of men and women, especially when the latter are mothers and devote considerable time to managing the household and caring for children and dependent elders.
The challenge for the Youth Guarantee
Numerous diagnoses exist relating to the increase in youth unemployment caused by the economic crisis. The article reflects on the effectiveness of policies generated according to these diagnoses and, especially, on the European Recommendation of the Youth Guarantee.
Low education level, low labour force participation
The economic crisis has affected the labour market for young people in Spain, especially for those with a low level of education. This situation needs to be reverted to avoid many under-30s ultimately suffering from exclusion.
The unequal impact of social exclusion in Spain (2007-2013)
Between the years 2007 and 2013, the difficulties faced in employment, housing and health worsened considerably in Spain. This article by the Social Observatory of "la Caixa” reflects on the problems that have intensified social exclusion which affects, above all, the younger population.
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***This will be a rather long post and I will most certainly have to take breaks***
I want to post some information concerning the creation of the Old Testament and the” modern day” viewpoint of biblical scholars concerning the
origins of the Torah, or Pentateuch. This is an addition to my previous comment on history being a product of the winners.
With Rome being the ultimate winner.
This will hopefully give some insight into modern day Zionism and how it is being used by Rome to manipulate the Middle East into following the
playbook toward a world government that is also know as the revelation of St. John.
Please know that this is not what I BELIEVE but it is the modern biblical scholar’s viewpoint and the official version backed by Rome by way of the
Also know that I will only be discussing the Torah, or the Pentateuch, and how it has been fractured by Roman historians, such as Titus Flavius
Josephus, in order to create the very servile Abrahamic faiths while also splitting them so as to divide and conquer.
Another classic Roman Strategy.
The Torah was long believed, and is still so by most devotees, to be written solely by Moses. This viewpoint began to change in the 18th and 19th
century BCE due to the volume of doublets that are present in the Torah.
A doublet is a form of textual analysis in literature that consists of contradictory statements concerning the same story, which is also found in the
same text (i.e. creation in the bible… Eve is created from Adams rib in one account but then she is created at the same time as Adam in other
accounts. Moses is referred to in 3rd person several times in the Torah. The Torah accounts for the death of Moses and also accounts for events post
Due to these doublets the Torah went through 4 basic stages concerning the theory of its creation.
1) Moses wrote the Torah
2) Moses wrote the Torah with later additions
3) Moses wrote the Torah but with very severe editing along with revisions and additions
4) Moses did not in any way write the Torah (this is the modern day belief of mainstream biblical scholars)
This new theory of the origin of the Torah was put forth by Julius Welthausen in the middle 19th century and it states that the Torah is a combination
of a various sundry of oral traditions that were compiled by two prominent historians.
Jeremiah along with his scribe Baruch is said to be the author of Deuteronomy and Ezra is said to have compiled the writings of three other groups of
texts into the final version of the Torah.
These texts are known as the J, E, and P texts.
The earliest of these are the J and the E texts.
The J texts stand for Jehovah (Southern Kingdom) and the E texts stand for Elohim (Northern Kingdom). At the time of the creation of the oral
tradition concerning these texts, the Kingdom of Solomon was split into the Northern and the Southern Kingdoms, with the Northern Kingdom called
Israel and dominated by the Shiloh priests (their God was known as Elohim and is plural in the bible not singular because it is a combination of the
God of Canaan, El and the Godheads of Egypt, Isis and Ra).
The Southern Kingdom was known as Judah and it was dominated by the Aaronid priests who worshiped the god known as Jehovah. Although both groups were
a part of the same Kingdom they were not on good terms. Their beliefs were similar thus the doublets found in the Torah, but they literally worshiped
different Gods in their own mind. (Not too dis-similar to the Civil War fought between the states).
The Jehovah texts were the oral tradition of the Aaronid priests and the Elohim texts were the oral tradition of the Shiloh priests. These texts were
passed onto the followers for the same reason that all religions are created….
(BTW... most biblical scholars now believe that David and Solomon were the product of myth and were never REAL people. **MYTH**)
In 722 BCE Assyria conquered the Northern Kingdom and the Israelites were then forced to move to the Southern Kingdom, or Judah.
In order to maintain the social order, the Jehovah and the Elohim oral traditions were combined, but the Shiloh priests are forced to take a back seat
to the Aaronid priests due to location.
In order to compensate for this, the Shiloh priests create the laws known as the P texts, or Priestly texts.
This is a "newly minted" oral tradition consisting of rules that the Israelites must obey while in Judah. They are a reaction to the Shiloh priests
becoming subservient to the Aaronid priests; however, in 715 BCE King Hezkiah takes the throne in Judah and decides to centralize the religion of the
land by combining the J, E, and P oral traditions.
These texts were recognized and obeyed as religious law until the actual writing of the book of Deuteronomy by Jeremiah and Baruch around 600 BCE.
This written book was then combined with the oral tradition of the J, E and P texts after the fall of the second temple to Babylon in 587 BCE.
Ezra was said to have arrived with the first "official" combined version of the WRITTEN Torah in 458 BCE. It was official because the Jews at the time
were living under the rule of the Persians and the King of Persia at the time, Antaxerxes, deemed Ezra as the high priest to teach to Jews in Babylon
the word of their God.
And it is always for the same reason.... SOCIAL CONTROL.
Must take break but onto Rome in the next post.
edit on 11/13/2010 by Josephus23 because: (no reason given) | <urn:uuid:32a031a1-a88a-417a-a9a6-b3abaa09c10a> | CC-MAIN-2015-27 | http://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread564758/pg137 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-27/segments/1435375097710.59/warc/CC-MAIN-20150627031817-00148-ip-10-179-60-89.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971907 | 1,225 | 2.625 | 3 |
The researchers characterize their new technique as a neat solution to the
"needle in a haystack" problem of nanoscale microscopy, but it's more
like the difference between finding the coffee table in a darkened room either
by walking around until you fall over it, or using a flashlight.
In a new paper,* a group from JILA—a joint venture of the National
Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Colorado—finds
tiny assemblies of biomolecules for subsequent detailed imaging by combining
precision laser optics with atomic force microscopy.
The atomic force microscope (AFM) has become one of the standard tools of nanotechnology.
The concept is deceptively simple. A needle—not unlike an old-fashioned
phonograph stylus, but much smaller with a tip at most only a couple of atoms
wide—moves across the surface of the specimen. A laser measures tiny deflections
of the tip as it is pushed or pulled by atomic scale forces, such as electrostatic
forces or chemical attraction. Scanning the tip back and forth across the sample
yields a three-dimensional image of the surface. The resolution can be astonishing—in
some cases showing individual atoms, a resolution a thousand times smaller than
the best optical microscopes can achieve.
Such amazing sensitivity incurs a technical problem: if your probe can image
an object of, say, 100 square nanometers, how exactly do you find that object
if it could be nearly anywhere on a microscope stage a million times that size?
That's not an unusual case in biological applications. The brute-force answer
is, you scan the probe back and forth, probably at a higher speed, until it
runs into something interesting. Like the coffee table in the dark, this has
problems. The AFM tip is not only very delicate and easy to damage, but it can
be degraded by picking up unwanted atoms or molecules from the surface. Also,
in the biosciences, where the AFM is becoming increasingly important, research
specimens usually are "soft" things like proteins or membranes that
can be damaged by an uncontrolled collision with the tip. One solution has been
to "label" the target molecule with a small fluorescent compound or
quantum dot, so that it lights up and is easy to find, but that means chemically
altering the subject, which may not be desirable.
Instead, the JILA team opted to use a flashlight. Building upon an earlier
innovation for stabilizing the position of an AFM tip, the group uses a tightly
focused, low-power laser beam to optically scan the area, identifying target
locations by minute changes in the scattered light. This laser is scanned across
the sample to form an image, analogous to forming an AFM image.
The same laser—and detection technique—is used to locate the AFM
tip. Hence, the laser serves as a common frame of reference and it's relatively
straightforward to align the optical and the AFM image. In experiments with
patches of cell membrane from single-cell organisms,** the group has demonstrated
that they can locate these protein complexes and align the AFM tip with a precision
of about 40 nanometers. Relying solely on scattered light, their technique requires
no prior chemical labeling or modification of the target molecules.
"You solve a couple of problems," says NIST physicist Thomas Perkins.
"You solve the problem of finding the object you want to study, which is
sort of a needle in a haystack problem. You solve the problem of not contaminating
your tip. And, you solve the problem of not crashing your tip into what you
were looking for. This prevents damaging your tip and, for soft biological targets,
not damaging your sample." And, he says, it's much more efficient. "From
a practical perspective, instead of my grad student starting to do real science
at 4 p.m., she can start doing science at 10 a.m."
* A.B. Churnside, G.M. King and T.T. Perkins. Label-free optical imaging of
membrane patches for atomic force microscopy. Optics Express. Vol. 18, No. 23.
Nov. 8, 2010.
** The team used "purple membrane," which is cell membrane from certain
single-cell organisms and contains bacteriorhodopsin, a protein that captures
light energy. Bacteriorhodopsin is embedded in purple membrane and is a common
protein for research in the biosciences. | <urn:uuid:4d1cd706-10d5-473d-b4c0-722e6586e0bd> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.azonano.com/news.aspx?NewsID=20428 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560279410.32/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095119-00539-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.900793 | 967 | 3.328125 | 3 |
History 115 class notes
These notes provide easy to understand guide to the lecture for History 115 or any World War Two History class. Contains notes on global perspective including notes on all participants in the war. Features Churchill, Roosevelt, Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini and more. Notes start pre ww2 in an overview and continue to just before the end of the war. | <urn:uuid:97f663a2-19e3-4893-b312-5d2b57feb0ee> | CC-MAIN-2018-17 | https://www.stuvia.com/notes/int/university-of-victoria | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-17/segments/1524125947705.94/warc/CC-MAIN-20180425061347-20180425081347-00255.warc.gz | en | 0.788179 | 74 | 2.765625 | 3 |
Can air pollution reduce mountain snowpacks? The answer appears to be yes, based on a research project involving ATDs Steve Cohn and Bill Brown, along with scientists at the Desert Research Institutes Storm Peak Laboratory in Steamboat Springs. The Inhibition of Snowfall by Pollution Aerosols project, funded by an NSF grant, has found evidence that heavy concentrations of aerosols, or airborne particles, prevent falling snow from gathering much rime ice. This occurs because increasing the number of aerosols decreases the size of cloud droplets (which are the source of rime ice) and smaller droplets cannot adhere easily to falling snow. As a result, a storm will leave more moisture in the atmosphere instead of depositing it on the groundwhich can significantly reduce snowfall totals in some upslope areas. The researchers, including principal investigators Randolph Borys and David Lowenthal of the Desert Research Institute, set up ATDs Multiple Antenna Profiler Radar (MAPR) near Steamboat Springs to determine wind speed and direction and to measure changes in the snow intensity with height. For more on this project, see www.atd.ucar.edu/rtf/projects/snowfall.
John Braun and Chris Rocken (GST) are working on a water vapor tomography project as a follow-up to last summers IHOP (International H2O Project) field experiment. One of IHOPs goals was to improve warm season rainfall prediction, an especially difficult forecast for models to make accurately. Using data from existing and supplemental networks of GPS (Global Positioning System) stations, John and Chris are focusing on a few cases of convective storms from May and June of 2002 in the Oklahoma/Kansas region. The GPS data recreate water vapor density fields and comprise three-dimensional information about the distribution of vapor in a given region. The research helps identify areas where a convective storm, such as a thunderstorm, has enough water vapor to potentially form rain or severe weather. Chris and John hope this information will allow researchers to define, study, and model the three-dimensional water vapor field and how it evolves during rainfall events. Eventually, this could help improve both nowcasting and weather prediction. For more on IHOP, see www.atd.ucar.edu/dir_off/ projects/2002/IHOP.html. For a map of the GPS locations, see www.gst.ucar.edu/~braunj/ihop.html.
NCAR scientists, as well as researchers from such institutions as the University of Michigan and NASA, are working on the Sun-Earth Connection project. A team from HAO, including Maura Hagan, Gang Lu, Art Richmond, Ray Roble, Stan Solomon, and Qian Wu, is studying the upper atmospheric effects of April 2002 coronal mass ejections (massive explosions in the outer atmosphere of the sun) and the accompanying solar flares. While the effects of solar activity on Earth have been well established, this multi-institutional project is tracking the complete Sun-Earth system during ejections for the first time. Coronal mass ejections can set off geomagnetic storms in Earths atmosphere, disrupting communications and other sensitive electronics systems and affecting ozone and other atmospheric chemicals. Project researchers are hoping to quantify particle and energy transfers and magnetic fluctuations that accompany coronal mass ejections and solar flares.
Thermohaline circulation in the oceans (the movement of water driven by temperature and salinity variations) plays an important role in global climate. But the circulation patterns have varied over time, with the North Atlantic Deep Water circulation stronger now than it was 21,000 years ago during a period known as the Last Glacial Maximum. CGDs Bette Otto-Bliesner and a team of University of WisconsinMadison scientists, including lead author Sang-Ik Shin, used the Community Climate System Model at NCAR to explore why the patterns have changed. They found that, during the Last Glacial Maximum, a combination of strong westerly winds and sea ice drifting from the Southern Ocean equatorward enhanced the Antarctic Bottom Water current, helping it to penetrate farther into the North Atlantic. The research not only sheds light on the reasons for shifting ocean circulation but also provides evidence that NCARs model can accurately capture past climate trends.
ESIGs Mickey Glantz has written a primer, Climate Affairs, that details his vision for multidisciplinary academic programs on climate and society. The wide-ranging book, published this spring by Island Press, draws on atmospheric science, history, international law, and other disciplines to illustrate how climate affects virtually all aspects of our lives. It makes a powerful case for policy makers to take climate into account when they make decisions because this will reduce the scope of climate-related disasters. The concept of a climate affairs course of study has stirred considerable interest overseas. The Asian Institute of Technology in Bangkok is creating a climate affairs program, and universities and governmental organizations in China, Japan, and Malaysia, including the United Nations University in Tokyo, also are developing climate affairs classes. For background on climate affairs, see www.esig.ucar.edu/alerts/alert4.pdf. | <urn:uuid:7211c438-4ba3-4dc1-ac4f-d5ce62829bb6> | CC-MAIN-2015-14 | http://www.ucar.edu/communications/staffnotes/0308/short.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-14/segments/1427131297831.4/warc/CC-MAIN-20150323172137-00201-ip-10-168-14-71.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.925829 | 1,058 | 3.40625 | 3 |
No two multilingual families are the same and children learn their languages differently, but some things that parents of bilingual children experience seem to be universal. As a parent bringing up your child to speak more than one language, you…
1. Become more aware of your native language
Because you know that your child will grow up learning to speak both your language and another one or two, you become more conscious about your own native language. If not before, then when your child starts asking you Why? questions about words and their meanings and forms. When the kids learn to write, you are faced with even more questions – unless you are lucky to speak a language which is spelled exactly as it is pronounced (Finnish parents have it so easy, and I do not envy the English!)
2. Improve your own skills in another language
Not only do you learn more about your own language, but you will also improve your skills in any other language your child learns. I would never have learnt any Punjabi had I not picked it up alongside my girls – now I can follow a simple conversation and even make myself understood about everyday topics. I would recommend any parent to try and pick up at least a bit of every language spoken in the family. This way it is easier to communicate when the whole family is together. Also is prevents feelings of being left out of a conversation.
3. Will get corrected by your child
Your child will get better than you at a language you both learn – and you will find yourself being corrected by the very same kid that you have just been teaching the language. Their pronunciation will also be way better than yours. It’s just the way the world goes, and that’s fine.
4. Worry a lot
All of us as parents worry about all sorts of things when we raise our children. Having to do it in more than one language adds one more dimension to the worry spectrum. Will we be able to do it? What if bilingualism isn’t the right choice? How will we do it? What if we confuse our child with the many languages? What if the child will not learn any language properly? What if the child doesn’t want to speak a language? What will others say? What will happen when the child goes to school? – the list of potential worries is endless. Make sure you learn about the myths surrounding bilingual children to get rid of at least some of your worries!
5. Are always on the look-out for language resources
Especially if you are the minority language parent, you are all the time trying to find books, magazines, websites, toys, playdates and other sources of language exposure for your child. Passing on a minority language is no easy task and you need all the help you can get to support your child learn and maintain the language. An old, tattered book which is handed down to you from a relative becomes a treasured item on your child’s bookshelf and gets pride of place next to all other books in your language. Finding a website with cool kids’ games in your language can make your day. And oh, the joy of finding another child of a similar age and with the “right” language for your little one to play with!
6. Become creative
Then there are the moments when you feel that your child is not getting enough exposure to a language and you need to come up with some new ways to increase it. You ask other parents for advice, start play groups, create your own books and toys, make recordings, save money so you can go on more trips, find games… I am constantly in awe of all the great ideas parents have come up with to make sure to keep all their children’s languages alive.
7. Are very proud
A child’s first word is always music to a parents ear (even if it doesn’t happen to be the equivalent to ‘mummy’ or ‘daddy’), but for a parent raising a bilingual child, the moment when the child says something in the other language is arguably even more exciting. It works! This wonderful little brain has managed to make sense of all the language it has been exposed to, and can at a very young age produce something that others can understand – it’s nothing short of a miracle. Your pride rises to another level when you notice how your child communicates with grandparents, relatives and friends – a fantastic achievement for the whole family!
What else have you noticed that you have in common with other parents with bilingual children?
May the peace and power be with you. Yours, Rita © Rita Rosenback 2019
Never miss a post! Sign up to the Multilingual Parenting newsletter and I will send you a recap of the week’s posts every Sunday. Every second week you will receive a more extensive issue with links to research articles and interesting posts from other writers, as well as handy tips and ideas! Want to read more like this? My book Bringing up a Bilingual Child is available on Amazon and in well-stocked bookshops. Do you have a specific question? You can send it to our team of Family Language Coaches and we will reply in a Q&A (questions are answered in order of arrival). If you are interested in tailor-made family language coaching, please, contact me and I will send you a proposal. | <urn:uuid:a1e15058-065e-44e7-b8e2-5c495154db77> | CC-MAIN-2020-29 | http://multilingualparenting.com/2014/08/20/7-things-happen-parents-raising-bilingual-child/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-29/segments/1593655906214.53/warc/CC-MAIN-20200710050953-20200710080953-00000.warc.gz | en | 0.955594 | 1,111 | 2.796875 | 3 |
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