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TWENTY years ago the world was on the verge of a nuclear confrontation. Late at night on Oct. 24, 1973, American troops all over the world were put on alert. Defcon (or Defense Condition) III, the highest state of armed forces readiness for peacetime conditions, was declared in the name of President Nixon. The US decision to move to Defcon III during the Yom Kippur War is well known.
Secretary of State Henry Kissinger received a message from Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev stating that Moscow was contemplating unilateral military steps in the Middle East. Mr. Kissinger hastened to inform the president of this message. According to Kissinger, he tried to reach Mr. Nixon at 9:50 p.m., but Alexander Haig told him that the president had retired for the night and refused to wake him.
As a result, a National Security Council meeting without the president and vice president commenced at 10:40 p.m. At about 11:30 p.m., a decision on Defcon III was adopted. Secretary of Defense James Schlesinger instructed Adm. Ernest Mourer, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to go ahead with enhanced readiness. In the course of the meeting, a message to Mr. Brezhnev in Nixon's name was drafted. The meeting lasted 3 1/2 hours.
``We decided that going to Defcon III could not be noted quickly enough by Soviet decisionmakers,'' wrote Kissinger in his memoirs. This turned out to be a huge miscalculation. Very soon after Admiral Mourer announced the readiness condition, Soviet intelligence reported Defcon III. At 11:30 a.m., Moscow time, an extraordinary meeting of the Politburo was held in the Kremlin. As a head of the Foreign Ministry department, I attended the meeting. It was one of the most important of all Politburo meetings held in connection with the Yom Kippur War. Almost all of the Soviet leaders took part in the discussion.
Marshal Andrei Grechko, the Minister of Defense, and Yuri Andropov, the head of the KGB, informed the participants of Defcon III. Brezhnev expressed his indignation at the fact that the Americans had prepared their troops for military action. He and his colleagues characterized Nixon's decision as irresponsible.
``The Americans say we threatened them, but how did they get that into their heads? What has that to do with the letter which I sent to Nixon?'' asked Brezhnev. His opinion was that the emphasis in the letter was on joint Soviet-American action in accordance with the understanding reached during Kissinger's visit to Moscow several days earlier.
As for the measures the Soviet Union should take in response to Defcon III, opinions differed. Some recommended reciprocating with a Soviet military alert. Mr. Andropov said, ``We should have responded to mobilization with mobilization.''
Mr. Grechko's position was the toughest. He insisted that measures should be taken mainly in the military sphere, and he recommended in particular that an order be given to recruit 50,000-70,000 men in the Ukraine and in the northern Caucasus. His view was that, in order to save Syria, Soviet troops should occupy the Golan Heights.
The participants realized that the central issue was whether the Soviet Union was prepared to confront the US and engage in a large-scale war. Most answered this question with a definite ``No.'' Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko said, ``We should not take the road of sending our troops; that would mean confrontation with the United States.'' Others added, ``We shall not unleash the Third World War.'' Prime Minister Alexei Kosygin rejected absolutely the idea of sending Soviet troops to the Middle East. He said, ``The United States will not start a war, and we have no reason to start it.'' Even Grechko agreed that the Soviet army was not ready for immediate military action. He said that no necessary preparatory work had been done.
When the discussion was at its height, Brezhnev suddenly asked, ``What about not giving any response to the American nuclear alert?,'' and noted, ``Nixon became too nervous; let us cool him down.'' Such an alternative was welcomed by most of the Politburo members. How could they have known that the president had been asleep?
The main reason for the Kremlin's calm response to the American nuclear alert was Soviet unpreparedness for military action. The general staff did not plan such action, and the Politburo never approved military intervention in the Middle East war.
In addition, a Soviet propaganda show was to begin on Oct. 25: ``The World Congress of Peaceloving Forces.'' Over 3,000 delegates from over 70 countries were arriving in the Soviet capital. As the ``greatest peace lover,'' Brezhnev had to make a lengthy statement. A hawkish decision, accompanied by a military demonstration, could have ruined the whole performance.
Kissinger later wrote that he and his colleagues had to respond to the Soviet proposal in a manner that would shock them into abandoning their threatened or planned unilateral move. Actually, the principal result of the US decision was that the Soviet postponed Brezhnev's statement at the Congress for one day. He made the statement on Oct. 26.
Following the decision not to respond to Defcon III, Brezhnev sent a calm reply to Nixon, and on Oct. 25, about 8 a.m. in Washington, the Politburo meeting adjourned.
What would have happened had the Soviets responded to Defcon III with a nuclear alert and initiated military action in the Middle East or elsewhere? In this case, Kissinger would have been forced to inform the president of a nuclear alert all over the globe. Thankfully, that did not happen. The Opinion/Essay Page welcomes manuscripts. Authors of articles we accept will be notified by telephone. Authors of articles not accepted will be notified by postcard. Send manuscripts by mail to Opinions/Essays, One Norway Street, Boston, MA 02115, by fax to 617 -450-2317, or by Internet E-mail to OPED@RACHELCSPS.COM. | <urn:uuid:faaba70b-46f1-454e-9f04-aee67063525e> | CC-MAIN-2016-50 | http://www.csmonitor.com/1993/1103/03191.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-50/segments/1480698542765.40/warc/CC-MAIN-20161202170902-00332-ip-10-31-129-80.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973736 | 1,275 | 2.59375 | 3 |
Peanut allergy can be successfully treated so that you or your child will be able to eat peanut, and not have an allergic reaction.
Over the past few years, patients of every age, 8 months to adult, have been successfully desensitized to peanut. This is done by a technique in which peanut protein is administered, under tight medical supervision, to train a patient’s immune system to tolerate peanut. This treatment is known as oral immunotherapy, or OIT.
With peanut OIT, there are two possible outcomes, both of which are beneficial compared to peanut avoidance:
- Peanut desensitization: As long as the patient is taking daily oral doses of the peanut allergen, he or she will not have allergic reactions to peanuts. All of our patients have reached the goal of peanut desensitization.
- Peanut tolerance: When a patient has reached the goal of peanut tolerance they do not have to eat peanuts daily and they are still able to eat peanuts without having a peanut allergy reaction. This outcome is more difficult to achieve but the long-term benefits make it a more desirable outcome.
After eating the peanut allergen for several years, enough time to cause profound changes in the immune system, we will check to see if you have reached this stage of peanut tolerance. To check on this we would stop you daily peanut allergen consumption and challenge you with a dose of peanut under medical supervision.
If you would like to learn more about peanut allergy treatments or OIT, please contact us for an appointment. | <urn:uuid:e7373b1b-cbad-4bb9-859b-8691df734dfd> | CC-MAIN-2019-35 | http://www.georgegottliebmd.com/service/peanut-allergy/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-35/segments/1566027318952.90/warc/CC-MAIN-20190823172507-20190823194507-00037.warc.gz | en | 0.962412 | 317 | 2.890625 | 3 |
Symptoms of Heart Failure
Symptoms of heart failure can sometimes be hard to identify. If left untreated, you may experience a variety of symptoms, including:
- Shortness of breath, even when lying down
- Dry, hacking cough (most often when lying flat)
- Fatigue and lack of energy
- Loss of appetite
- Rapid weight gain
- Trouble sleeping
- Abdominal bloating
In more severe cases of heart failure, you will have congestion in your lungs, and swelling in your legs and feet. This is why heart failure is sometimes called congestive heart failure.
Stages of heart disease
The American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association have developed a system to help you better understand the stages of heart failure. The staging system includes specific treatments targeted to each stage. Understanding the staging system can help you have a meaningful conversation with your health care provider as you plan your care.
You may have heart failure risk factors, including high blood pressure, coronary disease, diabetes, drug or alcohol abuse or a family history of cardiomyopathy (diseases of the heart muscle). Since you have some risk, now is an ideal time to take preventive action to ward off more serious heart disease or failure, even if you do not have active heart disease or symptoms.
In spite of not showing symptoms, you may already have heart disease of some kind, including a structural heart disorder, and you may be able to take steps to reduce your risk of developing symptoms.
You have heart disease, with some prior or current heart failure symptoms. At this stage, you can work with your physician to control your symptoms.
You have advanced heart disease (also known as end-stage heart failure), with symptoms that are still active, despite medical treatment. You may be eligible for advanced treatment procedures, such as ventricular assist devices or heart transplantation.
For patients who have Stage C or Stage D heart failure (presence of symptoms), doctors often classify patients’ heart failure according to how severe their symptoms are. Below is the most common classification system, the New York Heart Association (NYHA) Functional Classification. The NYHA Functional Classification system places patients in one of four categories based on how much they are limited by their heart failure symptoms during physical activity.
No symptoms and no limitation in ordinary physical activity.
Mild symptoms and slight limitation during ordinary activity. Comfortable at rest.
Marked limitation in activity due to symptoms, even during less-than-ordinary activity. Comfortable only at rest.
Severe limitations. Experiences symptoms even while at rest. | <urn:uuid:b2e48adb-eb2a-425d-8b25-57461e900ef5> | CC-MAIN-2018-30 | https://www.nm.org/conditions-and-care-areas/cardiovascular-care/center-for-heart-failure/heart-failure/symptoms | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-30/segments/1531676589237.16/warc/CC-MAIN-20180716080356-20180716100356-00615.warc.gz | en | 0.933527 | 532 | 3 | 3 |
|A variety of marine worms
from Das Meer, M.J. Schleiden (1804–1881).
They are generally found in a marine environment. There are more than 10,000 known species in this class. They are ancient animals, dating back to 518 million years ago. They are first found in the early Cambrian fossil beds of Sirius Passet in Greenland.
Each of their body segments has some fleshy protrusions that stand out. These 'parapodia' have many bristles, which are made of chitin. This is different from the Oligochaeta, which are similar in form, but only have a few bristles.
Description[change | change source]
Polychaetes are segmented worms, generally less than 10 centimetres (3.9 in) in length, although ranging at the extremes from 1 millimetre (0.039 in) to 3 metres (9.8 ft). They are often brightly coloured, and may be iridescent or even luminescent.
Each segment bears a pair of paddle-like parapodia, which are used for movement. In many species, the parapodia, well supplied with blood vessels, act as the worm's primary respiratory surfaces. Bundles of bristles stick out from the parapodia.
Some bristle worms have poison bristles. The bristles will break off in the skin of a predator that tries to pick up the animal and sting the predator painfully.
The head, or prostomium, is relatively well developed, compared with other annelids. It is forward over the mouth, which lies on the animal's underside. The head normally includes two to four pair of eyes, although there are some blind species. These eyes are fairly simple structures, capable of distinguishing between light and dark. Some species have large eyes with lenses that may be capable of real vision.
The head also includes a pair of antennae, tentacle-like palps, and a pair of pits lined with cilia, known as "nuchal organs". These latter appear to be chemoreceptors which help the worm seek out food.
Ecology[change | change source]
The mobile forms tend to have well-developed sense organs and jaws, while the stationary forms lack them, but may have specialized gills or tentacles used for respiration and deposit or filter feeding, e.g., fanworms.
A few groups have evolved to live in terrestrial environments, but are restricted to humid areas. Some have even evolved tubes that open inwards from the skin which work like simple lungs, absorbing oxygen from the air and allowing release of waste gases.
- Notable polychaetes
- One notable polychaete, the Pompeii worm (Alvinella pompejana) is endemic to the hydrothermal vents of the Pacific Ocean. Pompeii worms are among the most heat-tolerant metazoan animals known.
- A recently discovered genus, Osedax, includes a species nicknamed the "bone-eating snot flower".
- Another remarkable polychaete is Hesiocaeca methanicola, which lives on methane clathrate deposits.
- Lamellibrachia luymesi is a cold seep tube worm which reaches lengths of over 3 meters, and may be the most long-lived animal at over 250 years old.
- A still unclassified multi-legged predatory polychaete worm was identified only by observation from the underwater vehicle Nereus at the bottom of the Challenger Deep, the greatest depth in the oceans, near 10,902 m (35,768 ft) depth. It was about an inch long visually, but the probe failed to capture it, so it could not be studied in detail.
Bristle worm diet[change | change source]
Most bristle worms are scavengers, but some are good predators, eating fishes and coral. Others like to eat algae. They are usually found hiding in reefs and rocky places. They crawl along the sea floor or the bottom of a tide pool, looking for something to eat.
References[change | change source]
|Wikispecies has information on: Polychaeta.|
- Morris S.C. & Peel J. S. 2008. The earliest annelids: Lower Cambrian polychaetes from the Sirius Passet lagerstätte, Peary Land, North Greenland. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 53: 137.
- Barnes, Robert D. 1982. Invertebrate zoology. Philadelphia, PA: Holt-Saunders International. pp. 469–525. ISBN 0-03-056747-5.
- James, William D.; Berger, Timothy G.; et al. 2006. Andrews' Diseases of the skin: clinical dermatology. Saunders Elsevier. ISBN 0-7216-2921-0
- "'Zombie worms' found off Sweden". BBC News. 18 October 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/4354286.stm. Retrieved 12 February 2010.
- Accessed Oct. 8, 2009 Geography of the ocean floor near Guam with some notes on exploration of the Challenger Deep. | <urn:uuid:97ac9c0e-6db5-4c62-a630-322bcc3b4bf2> | CC-MAIN-2015-40 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polychaete | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-40/segments/1443737898933.47/warc/CC-MAIN-20151001221818-00033-ip-10-137-6-227.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.895021 | 1,098 | 3.875 | 4 |
There is often residual pain after surgical amputation. Some of the most common reasons for an amputation are: trauma, such as vehicle accidents or combat injuries, and complications from diabetes or vascular disease. In most cases involving non-amputation surgery, patients have some post-surgical pain which is a normal part of the healing process. The pain usually lessens as tissues repair themselves. In cases of surgical amputation, however, the decrease of pain may not be the case. Certainly there is the typical reduction in acute post-surgical pain, but amputees often continue to experience lingering sensations. Those sensations may be painful, but they aren’t always. Some patients simply describe the sensations as annoying and strange.
There are different types of sensations reported by amputees. Each may be treated in a different manner. It is important for a patient to describe the sensations to his or her doctor in order to get the most beneficial medication or therapy.
Phantom pain or phantom sensations are so named because it feels as though the missing limb still exists. Often this occurs with arm and leg amputations, but it is not uncommon for mastectomy patients to have sensations where the breast was removed. Reports of phantom pain following amputation date back to the Civil War, where surgeons documented a rate of as high as 90% of amputees reporting the sensations. More advanced surgical techniques have reduced this amount, but the number is still as high as 70%, and in some cases the phantom pain can be severe. Most amputees experience some sort of phantom sensations within the first six months after the surgery.
“Telescoping” is an odd sensation where the missing limb is still in place, but feels as though it has been shrunken to a very small size, like a collapsed telescope. This sensation is very common and is not associated with pain..
RESIDUAL LIMB PAIN
This type of post-amputation discomfort occurs in the remaining part of the limb, or “stump”. Because nerves are cut at the site, it is possible that a neuroma can develop. Also prosthetics can cause pain at the residual limb site.
MANAGING PAIN AFTER AMPUTATION
There are several different techniques used to manage post-amputation pain, depending on the level of discomfort and type of pain. The techniques include but are not limited to very specialized forms of physical therapy, local injections, oral analgesics, and brain or nerve stimulation and therapy.
Surgeons and post-surgical medical staff should make the amputation patient aware that these post-amputation sensations are common and that there are ways to address them. This is less of a problem than it used to be. It was once common for patients to not seek help for phantom pain, as they were logically aware that the limb no longer existed and were fearful that a medical provider might question their sanity. Thankfully, this is no longer an issue, as the well-known side effects are heavily documented.
I’m Ed Smith, an East Sacramento personal injury attorney with the most informative and comprehensive accident site on the internet, www.AutoAccident.com. If you or someone you know has been injured in an automobile accident due to the negligence of another driver, please feel free to call me for free and friendly advice at (916) 921-6400. If you are outside of the Sacramento region, call toll free at (800) 404-5400. | <urn:uuid:998ace05-7f96-4e29-926f-a4c68ccd7b2d> | CC-MAIN-2019-43 | https://www.sacramentoinjuryattorneysblog.com/pain-after-surgical-amputation/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-43/segments/1570986707990.49/warc/CC-MAIN-20191020105426-20191020132926-00148.warc.gz | en | 0.959723 | 710 | 2.546875 | 3 |
Safety standards have been made in order to protect workers in excavation and trenching.
Construction jobs which involve excavation and trenching are very risky. Nearly two workers die every month and hundreds sustain injuries while performing these tasks. So specific standards have been laid down for the safety of the workers.
About Excavation and Trenching
Any depression, cut, trench, or cavity made by man in the earth’s surface by removing earth is an excavation. A trench is a narrow excavation which is made under the ground and is deeper than its width and is 15 feet wide at the bottom.
A protective system is mandatory for a trench which is 5 feet or deeper. However, the excavation in stable rock may be exempted from this rule. It is obligatory for trenches which are 20 feet or more deep to have a protective system which is specifically designed for that trench by a certified engineer.
While designing the protective system the soil classification, water content of the soil, the depth of the cut, changes brought about by the weather or climate, the surcharge loads, and the other operations being carried out nearby should be kept in mind.
Some of the commonly used protective systems are:
Benching – In this the sides of the trench are cut into a number of steps or horizontal levels. There are vertical surfaces between the levels.
Sloping – Sometimes the trench wall is cut back at an angle which is inclined away from the area being dug.
Shoring – In order to prevent the soil from moving different types of supports like aluminum hydraulic are installed.
Shielding – This involves the use of trench boxes and other supports to avert soil cave-ins.
Rules to be followed while working near an excavation or trenching site:
- Employees who work in a trench should have safe access and egress. In trenches which are dug up to 4 feet or more the ladders, ramps, or steps should be located at least within 25 feet for all workers.
- 0Heavy equipment should be kept at a distance from the edges of the trench.
- The excavated soil and other surcharge loads should be kept at least 2 feet away from the edges of the trench.
- Before the workers start digging they should be familiar with the whereabouts of the underground utilities.
- In trenches which are more than 4 feet deep, the presence of atmospheric hazards like low oxygen, dangerous fumes, and poisonous gases should be detected by conducting tests.
- Trenches should be checked before starting the work in every shift.
- They should also be inspected after a rainstorm.
- In fact, the trench should be carefully checked after any occurrence which can change the conditions in the trench.
- The workers should not perform their work under any load or material which has been suspended or raised at a height.
All this can help reduce the accidents and protect the workers from injuries. All this can be taken care of by employing services of a professional St. Louis trench shoring company.
St. Louis Trench Shoring Company
Luby Shoring was established in 2015 by Steve Luby. He grew up with construction equipment, spending summers helping in the parts department at his family’s business, Luby Equipment Services. Steve continued working in the industry and was a part of senior management in Luby Equipment’s sales department until he saw the need for expanding the shoring business. | <urn:uuid:aba089a0-2d0c-4909-8c0a-13ee03718e8b> | CC-MAIN-2019-35 | https://lubyshoring.com/excavation-trenching-safety-top-priority-construction-sites/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-35/segments/1566027316075.15/warc/CC-MAIN-20190821152344-20190821174344-00119.warc.gz | en | 0.9584 | 691 | 3.75 | 4 |
Kashmir, the lovely paradise on earth, is a place that is a melting pot of cultures. People from Persia, Tibet, North Asia, Central Asia and other parts of the world have come, been conquered by its beauty and stayed. It is only to be expected that such ethnic diversity would also promote the culture and reflect in the arts and crafts of the region. Kashmiri
Handicrafts are unique and some of them, like pashmina shawls, highly prized throughout the world. Another factor that promotes extensive handicrafts apart from culture is the weather and the cold winters may partly be responsible for people staying and working indoors. Carpet-making is an arduous, time consuming task and Kashmir carpets, following the Persian styles, are a case in point.
Kashmir is known for its handicraft items such as carpets, shawls, silk, crewel stitched and embroidered fabrics, wood carvings in walnut wood, papier mache products, wall hangings, silver and bronze craft, namdas or rugs and basketry.
This craft has been in existence since centuries and received a boost during the Mughal rule, ascribed to Emperor Akbar’s fondness for this raiment. At the basic level you can find affordable woolen shawls, distinguished by the use of pure wool and exquisite embroidery work. Pashmina shawls, for which Kashmir is so famous, are definitely a step up. Hair of the rare mountain Ibex, found in high altitudes of Ladakh, is used to make these shawls. These pashmina shawls when embroidered exquisitely, can be quite expensive. You can find cheaper versions with blends of rabbit hair and lamb wool. A full length, completely pashmina is known as “Jamawar” and becomes a family heirloom. This is not the last word in shawls. Beyond, you have the Shahtoosh, said to be so fine, it can pass through a ring. The hair of the Tibetan antelope is used to make shahtoosh that commands fabulous prices. The cost is due to the fact that only hair from around the throat region shed by antelopes while grazing is used. Collecting this hair is a painstaking process, and it takes a long time to put together sufficient quantities.
Silkworms are grown on mulberry trees that grow in the valley and yarn is produced from cocoons. Yarn is used to make sarees and garments but a major portion goes into the making of Kashmiri Carpets.
Carpets came to Kashmir from Persia and unique to Kashmiri carpets is that they are knotted, not tufted as is done elsewhere. The Persian origins can be seen in the designs woven into the carpets. Carpets made here use silk or wool or a mixture of both knotted into a base fabric. The higher the number of knots per square inch, the richer it is with a rich, piled, texture. Kashmiri carpets can be light and muted in colors but the single or double knotted characteristics give it value and make it a highly prized product worldwide.
This is yet another outstanding handicraft of Kashmir. Crewel is a distinctive form of embroidery done using chain stitches with a pointed hook to form a solid, thick pattern that gives an embossed effect. Kashmiri designs are typically floral and may be muted pastels or richly colored in vivid hues. The underlying fabric is thick cotton, linen or even jute and yarn used for embroidery is usually wool. Crewel fabrics are used for cushion covers, duvets, bed sheets, curtains and furnishings, widely popular across the world rather than in India.
Papier mache products are made of paper pulp mash mixed with glue and cast into moulds. Such products are light in weight, can be given any form or shape and are rigid and tough too. What distinguishes Kashmiri papier mache is the elaborate paintings on the papier machine products. Expensive papier machine articles may have intricate painting done by artists and may even involve the use of pure gold powder in the paint. Vases, boxes, frames and figurines are just a few of the products made using papier mache, with a typical Persian or arab flavor in design as well as paint and choice of color combinations.
Namdas are like rugs. What differentiates Kashmiri Namdas is that they are not woven or knotted but are made by felting or layering wool or wool and cotton mix or even acrylic fiber followed by rich embroidery to make it colorful and appealing.
Craftsmen of Kashmir have developed unique geometries and use of locally available material growing in water bodies to weave baskets. Willow is a favorite material as is bamboo and Kashmiri designs are quite distinctive as compared to those from the south or north-east.
Walnut wood is the choice of material for a variety of wood carvings made in Kashmir, ranging from statues and figurines to objects of every day use and furniture. The most highly prized walnut wood carvings are almost black in color, made from walnut wood sourced from the tree’s root. Carvings generally use flower and natural motifs as well as lattice work. Walnut wood carvings of Kashmir are not varnished but are waxed to bring out the smooth grain.
Copper and Silver Ware
Kashmiri silverware is exquisite, reminiscent of something out of the Arabian Nights, with their unique floral motifs. You can find hand beaten samovars, plates and other utensils made of copper but with a unique shape and engravings of floral motifs. You can find engraved or even embossed articles and copper vessels with inlay and enamel work that serve functional purposes while being highly aesthetic.
If and when you do visit Kashmir, you would have a hard time deciding which mementos to pick as souvenirs of your trip given the richness and depth of crafts here. If you can afford it, a pashmina should be high on your list or it could be an exquisite carpet that will last for generations. At the very least you could pick up a couple of silver ware or walnut carvings and some crewel fabrics. | <urn:uuid:ce39b687-c404-4387-9522-fd6880c89495> | CC-MAIN-2019-39 | http://www.kashmirtourpackage.org/kashmir-handicrafts.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-39/segments/1568514574265.76/warc/CC-MAIN-20190921043014-20190921065014-00252.warc.gz | en | 0.953704 | 1,319 | 2.71875 | 3 |
Archaeological excavations have provided the first substantiation that a farmland estate in Sicily boasts a history which reaches back over a thousand years. Numerous finds demonstrate the continuous use of the land complex as a nexus of settlement and economic and religious life between the 5th and 16th century. The findings are the result of two projects of the Austrian Science Fund FWF which comprise the first in-depth archaeological exploration of Sicily's Byzantine period. The projects' findings are now accessible to the public in the Krahuletz Museum in Eggenburg, Austria.
Sicily is popular and not only for travellers to Italy. Its strategic location has garnered the attention of various historical superpowers. While the ancient era saw the island dominated first by the Greeks and later the Roman Empire, in the High Middle Ages it was the centre of the Norman state in Southern Italy. The full four centuries of Byzantine rule prior to that are less well known not least due to the fact that the period has been the subject of little scientific analysis. Thanks to two projects at the Institute for Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies at the University of Vienna, however, important data has now been brought to light regarding settlement activity during this epoch, as well as the period's economic and religious history.
From Farmland to Heavenly Consecration
For ten years the two projects focused their attention on farmland in the northeastern Sicilian village of Torrenova (some 120 kilometres west of Messina) that demonstrably served as a monastery between the 12th and 16th centuries: San Pietro di Deca. A portion of the construction, which belonged to the former monastery, has survived to this day: an octagonal domed building known as Conventazzo survived changing times thanks to numerous modifications.
On the whole, there are suggestions of continuous use from Late Antiquity until the early modern era. "Using a single building complex, we've been able to make significant contributions to the reconstruction of Sicily's rural economy. Although previously there were few written sources indicating continuous use, our excavations and the analysis of the finds have now provided the archaeological evidence," says Prof. Ewald Kislinger, who heads up both projects.
Investigations commenced in 2001 with a detailed exploration of the site using the most advanced ground-penetrating radar. The georadar allows the non-invasive identification of hidden building structures under the soil. In fact, at the time, the team led by Prof. Kislinger was even able to demonstrate the presence of a church and a former Roman villa rusticafrom Late Antiquity. The finds were subsequently exposed over the course of several excavation campaigns.
A Church Squared
Thanks to numerous building remains, the church was able to be dated to the early Norman period (from the year 1061 onward). To the surprise of the entire team, subsequent work even revealed the apse of an older building probably with ritual function dating from Late Antiquity. The project work proved that the Conventazzo constituted the essential link between the church complex and the villa rustica. As Prof. Kislinger explains: "From the Romans to the Byzantines to the Normans and concluding with the Spanish period in Sicily, we have found vestiges of human settlement in S. Pietro di Deca. This demonstrates continuity and change at this farmland estate over a millennium."
Numerous coin finds vividly demonstrate the once bustling activity at the estate, with the finds related to the monastery's yearly fair, which written sources document until 1585. Overall, the finds (among others, from some forty excavated graves) offer a first glimpse into the lives of the rural population of an island whose historical analysis previously applied primarily to the upper class.
Thanks to the two FWF projects, the local population has also been given new insight into their own history, which has provided impetus to present the finds as tourist attractions and thus extending San Pietro di Deca's centuries-long tradition of economic exploitation into the 21st century.
Explore further: Actor Johnny Depp immortalized in ancient fossil find | <urn:uuid:5fb0b3a5-1f14-447d-a8f3-c12d932acb7a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://phys.org/news/2012-05-ages-proof-thousand-years-sicilian.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698222543/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095702-00067-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957537 | 827 | 3.21875 | 3 |
Excavation is the process of transplanting, moving and digging up the earth soil for numerous purposes such as building drainage channels, installing new utilities and clearing a plot of land. It is the act of digging up something from the earth’s crust.
If you are handling such a project of excavating the soil for specific reasons, then it is essential to know that there several safety steps to take when executing your work. These safety steps help to ensure the protection of your workforce and getting the job done correctly. Earthmoving is a risky business. Accidents can occur in the process which may lead to injuries or even fatalities. Below are the several excavation safety do’s and don’ts steps to take;
- Assess the site for any potential hazards
Before you carry out any excavation work, do remember to assess the site for utilities such as power lines, water lines, gas pipes, and other underground utilities. You can ask the local district authorities in your workplace for maps of the various utility lines located in the area. By doing this, you will be able to avoid damaging the important utility lines for neighboring properties.
- Wear proper safety clothes
Before anybody enters a trench, they should ensure that they are wearing safety boots with toecaps and protective high-visibility clothes not forgetting to mention hard hats. By wearing the hard hat and safety boots, you can rest assured of being secured from things falling into the trench. Wearing high-visibility clothing will make you visible enough for workers operating the heavy machines to be cautious.
- Keep heavy machines away from the edge of the excavation site
At the excavation site, you should take extra precautions when you are operating heavy machines. Ensure that they are not moving too close to the edges of the site because they create vibrations which may cause earth to collapse suddenly.
- Carry out atmospheric testing
Before going into the trench for work, you should carry out an atmospheric test to check for dangerous gasses or toxic fumes. These toxic fumes and gasses can sink into the bottom of excavated areas and accumulate. Therefore causing the bottom level of the excavated areas to become dangerously low in oxygen.
- Prepare for emergencies
Workers at the excavation site should be ready for any accidents. Create a list of emergency contact lines for local firefighters, medics, and law enforcement. You should also have all the details of a utility company for cases where you damage or break a water or gas pipe.
- Pile up excavated soil on the edge of the trench
You need to be careful when excavating an area. Do not clutter soil on the trench’s edges because it may fall back into the trench. Not only does this risk injury of workers, it also means you will be once again removing this soil. Keep the excavated spoil and other materials at least 2 feet away from the trench edges.
- Block exits or entrances in an excavated area
In an excavated area, constructed exits and entrances ensure the mobility of workers and materials. If the excavated area has more than a depth of 4 feet, then it is advisable to construct an exit and entrance of about 20 feet.
- Forget to warn others about the excavation work in progress
When you are commencing an excavation work, do not forget to keep caution signs or warnings to alert people staying in the area. If the work is progressing in a public space, then ensure that there is enough signage placed to indicate that the work is occurring. You can also build barriers or fences to prevent a passerby from falling into the excavated area.
- Work under suspended or raised loads
Do not work under suspended or raised loads. They can slip, and fall anytime and this can cause severe injuries for any workers below. When you are moving the loads with a crane, action caution.
- Fail to check on the excavated area regularly
It is usual to neglect your responsibilities to inspect the area. Especially, when you have been working for hours. Before you begin work, you should carry out daily inspections in the excavated area for any signs of collapse, weak soil or any specific dangers at this particular site. These inspections should be thorough.
By following these few safety steps, you can rest assured of performing a perfect work. | <urn:uuid:69f9b5b7-d194-4f81-aa9e-e768ce9aef43> | CC-MAIN-2019-26 | http://www.e4meohio.org/tag/construction/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-26/segments/1560627998376.42/warc/CC-MAIN-20190617043021-20190617065021-00094.warc.gz | en | 0.934912 | 870 | 3.34375 | 3 |
Explore the Bible Series
June 15, 2008
Background Passage: Acts 6:1-8:3
Lesson Passage: Acts 6:8-15; 7;51-60
In 1993, John Piper published Let the Nations Be Glad: The Supremacy of God in Missions. In my judgment, this is Piper’s finest work. A few years ago I read this book with great interest, in part, because of a chapter entitled “The Supremacy of God in Missions Through Suffering”. The book recounts several stories of incredible suffering for the sake of the gospel, and, interspersed throughout the chapter, Piper lists six reasons God appoints suffering for his servants. I recount this list for your prayerful consideration and encourage you to read this helpful, thought-provoking work.
I. Resolution of a Church Conflict (6:1-7)
A. A dispute about relief of the poor (v. 1): As we have observed, the early church took great care to meet he needs of the poor in their number, and they did so a significant personal cost. However, the increasing number of converts made difficult the distribution of the resources. The Hellenistic Christians (probably a reference to Greek-speaking Christians) complained that their widows were overlooked. The text gives no indication of deliberate neglect; nevertheless, the church needed to address the needs of these women.
II. The Witness of Stephen (6:6-8:3)
falsely accused (6:6-15): Several years had passed since Pentecost, and the
church’s witness apparently remained confined to
B. Stephen’s defense (7:1-53): This is, by far, the longest address in the Book of Acts. Stephen summarized the history of the Jewish people, in part, to demonstrate that he had not repudiated his Jewish background.
covenant with Abraham (vv. 1-8): Stephen recounted God’s gracious dealings with
Abraham: the call to Canaan, the promise of a son, the judgment of
dealings with Joseph (vv. 9-16): The Lord used Joseph to relocate
3. God’s covenant with Moses (vv. 17-43): Stephen briefly summarized God’s miraculous deliverance of Moses and the Lord’s remarkable plan for emancipation of the Jews from Egyptian bondage.
erection of Solomon’s
5. The application of Stephen’s sermon (vv. 51-53): As Stephen concluded his address, he turned his attention to the religious leaders. He sharply accused the Jews of killing the prophets and crucifying the Just One of God. They had, according to Stephen, received the law of God, but they had not kept the Lord’s precepts.
III. The Martyrdom of Stephen (7:54-8:3)
A. The angry response of the crowd (v. 54): The crowd was “cut to the heart”, a term that, according to Curtis Vaughan, denotes fury (Same term used in 5:33). Also, Luke said the crowd “gnashed at him with their teeth”. Again, this phrase expresses deep, angry emotional response to Stephen’s sermon.
B. Stephen’s vision (vv. 55-56): Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, saw a vision of the glory of heaven and Jesus standing at the right hand of the Father.
death (vv. 57-60): The enraged crowd surged forward and seized Stephen. They took him outside the city to stone
persecution of the church (8:1-3): Stephen’s execution scattered the early
church. Many fled from | <urn:uuid:28fb61b3-065b-496d-9dac-f3bfd34abb13> | CC-MAIN-2014-42 | http://www.founders.org/ss/explore/061508.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-42/segments/1414119652530.43/warc/CC-MAIN-20141024030052-00237-ip-10-16-133-185.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.927456 | 773 | 2.75 | 3 |
Copyright gives the creator of an original 'work of literature, science or art' the exclusive right to publish and/or duplicate it. For example, if you have written a book or created a work of art, you will want to prevent others from publishing or duplicating your work without your permission. Copyright is established automatically as soon as a work is created, provided that said work is original.
Ancillary rights protect performances by performing artists, producers of phonograms, first recordings of films and broadcasting organizations. Registering a copyright creates a clearer and, if challenged, more defensible right. | <urn:uuid:008e5a73-c28a-4f60-9e04-1d1387000dbe> | CC-MAIN-2018-51 | https://www.bip.sx/other-ip-rights/copyright | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-51/segments/1544376823674.34/warc/CC-MAIN-20181211172919-20181211194419-00538.warc.gz | en | 0.929887 | 120 | 3.09375 | 3 |
From the early 1970s to 1986, the Brain virus was recognized as the first to attack the MS-DOS foundation, so viruses kept popping up.
In March 1988, the first antivirus software came out. to detect and track brain viruses and keep diskettes virus free. However, a virus called Cascade was discovered shortly after in Germany, the first to be encrypted. That is, a virus consists of code that cannot be changed or deleted. Until 1990, a large number of antivirus software appeared. In 1993, the emergence of a virus called “SatanBug” was frightening, especially in Washington, DC. As a result, industry helped the FBI find and write, and the writers were still kids. After the Windows 95 operating system came out in 1995, antivirus companies didn’t worry that they were no longer needed. The reason is, the virus that attacks the DOS-based boot sector operating system at that time did not seem to have any effect on Windows 95. But in the same year, a macro virus appeared that worked in the Microsoft Word environment, and was no longer DOS-based. The following year, macro viruses appeared under various names: Concept, Boza, Laroux. And in 1999, a macro called Melissa was developed that used Microsoft Word to infect computers and other computers via the Microsoft Outlook and Outlook Express email programs.
Antivirus software is software used to protect, detect, and remove viruses from computer systems. Antivirus software is also known as virus protection software. This application can find out whether a computer system has been infected with a virus. Usually, the software runs in the background and performs a scan on all files that are accessed (when they are opened, modified, or saved). Antivirus software – The latest antivirus software detects more than viruses. Antivirus programs are now also capable of detecting spyware, rootkits, and other malware. Not only that, antivirus software now comes with a firewall to protect computers from hackers and antispam to prevent spam and/or viruses from entering the user’s inbox.
Antivirus is divided into two types according to its users, namely home users and network/company users. For home users, the antivirus software runs as usual. For network versions, antivirus software can scan client computers and network drives. Also, the process of updating client computers on the network does not have to come directly from the Internet. Client computers can perform updates directly from the network server.
Antivirus is based on how to get it etc;
(1). Free antivirus software: Antivirus software you get for free
(2). Trial Antivirus: Free but time limited antivirus.
(3). Antivirus Donation: Antivirus obtained through donations
(4). Paid Antivirus: Antivirus is obtained through purchase. In general, antivirus works as follows: Use a database of virus signatures to detect. The way this antivirus works is a method widely used by traditional antivirus software, using a small portion of the virus code that has been analyzed by the antivirus vendor for signs of virus presence and grouping them by type, size, size, etc. Damage and other categories. other.
This method is fast and reliable enough to detect viruses that have been analyzed by antivirus vendors, but new viruses cannot be detected until a new virus signature database is installed on the system. Virus databases can be obtained from anti-virus manufacturers, and are generally available free of charge by downloading or subscribing | <urn:uuid:4900855a-2d6d-4dfe-aa90-b0ccc04333a3> | CC-MAIN-2022-21 | https://www.bitdefendercentralhub.com/history-of-computer-antivirus/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-21/segments/1652662541747.38/warc/CC-MAIN-20220521205757-20220521235757-00124.warc.gz | en | 0.953456 | 724 | 3.078125 | 3 |
A Baker's cyst is a pronounced swelling on the back of the knee caused by an abnormal collection of fluid. It is also known as a popliteal cyst. The knee contains sacs of fluid (bursa) that help cushion the joint. Arthritis and knee injuries can lead to a Baker's cyst.
A Baker’s cyst is a swelling on the back of the knee caused by the build-up of fluid inside sacs called bursa between the two heads of the gastrocnemius (calf muscle). The symptoms are usually mild unless in the rare situation the cyst bursts or extends down into the calf muscles. A Baker’s cyst is also known as a popliteal cyst.
The knee is a hinge joint between the thigh bone and shin bones. The entire joint is enclosed inside a tough capsule lined with a membrane and filled with lubricating synovial fluid. Extra capsules or sacs of fluid, known as bursa, cushion the joint and help reduce the friction between tissues caused by movement.
When the knee produces too much synovial fluid, the excess fluid causes the bursa behind the knee to expand and bulge. Common causes of Baker’s cyst include arthritis, infection, torn knee cartilage and other knee injuries.
Symptoms of a Baker’s cyst
Often there are no symptoms and the cyst can remain unnoticed. If symptoms do occur, they can include:
- a pronounced soft lump or swelling on the back of the knee that looks most obvious when the person is standing
- a sensation of pressure in the back of the knee joint
- persistent pain or aching
- restricted mobility of the knee joint
- a sensation of tightness at the back of the knee when the leg is straightened.
Causes of a Baker’s cyst
Some of the common causes of Baker’s cyst include:
- injury – trauma or injury to the knee that can cause a build-up of fluid (effusion), which triggers baker’s cyst
- torn cartilage – usually affecting the cartilages (known as menisci) that bolster the knee joint on both sides
- arthritis – particularly rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis of the knee joint
- infection – which locally can cause fluid retention around the knee joint
- unknown causes – baker’s cysts can sometimes develop in children for no apparent reason.
Complications of a Baker’s cyst
A person may be less inclined to seek medical help for a Baker’s cyst if the symptoms are mild, which they generally are. However, if left untreated, complications can develop that may include:
- The cyst continues to grow, causing the symptoms to worsen.
- The cyst may extend down into the calf muscles (dissection).
- The cyst may burst and cause bruising on the ankle of the affected leg, due to leaked fluid.
Diagnosis of a Baker’s cyst
A Baker’s cyst is diagnosed using a number of tests, including:
- physical examination
- medical history
- joint x-ray – this will not show the cyst, but can show the presence of arthritis in the knee joint that may be causing the problem
- shining a light through the cyst (transillumination) – this can determine that the mass is filled with fluid
- magnetic imaging resonance (MRI)
Treatment for Baker’s cyst
Baker’s cysts don’t always require active treatment as they can resolve on their own. Sometimes they will only require observation over time by the treating doctor.
If treatment is required, options for treatment can include:
- treatment of the underlying cause, such as medication for arthritis or surgery for torn knee cartilage
- temporarily avoiding activities that aggravate the knee joint
- physiotherapy, which may comprise of activity modification advice, heat or ice treatment, the use of crutches, and exercises to maintain mobility and strength of the knee
- cortisone injections to reduce inflammation in the knee joint
- inserting a needle into the cyst and draining off the fluid if the cyst is large enough
- in severe cases, surgery to remove the cyst entirely if conservative treatments are ineffective
- a conservative approach of watching and waiting is recommended with children – the condition commonly subsides on its own without active treatment.
Prevention of a Baker’s cyst
Knee joints are prone to injury during sporting activities. Preventing knee trauma can reduce the risk of a Baker’s cyst developing in the first place or recurring after treatment.
- Warm up the knee joints and soft tissue by gently going through the motions of your sport or activity, and stretching the muscles before commencing your sport or activity.
- Wear supportive footwear appropriate to your activity.
- Try to turn on the balls of your feet, rather than through your knees to help avoid knee injuries.
- Cool down after sport by performing gentle and sustained stretches.
- If you injure your knee, stop your activity immediately, apply ice packs to treat the swelling and seek medical advice.
Where to get help
- Your doctor
- Sports medicine professional
- Australian Physiotherapy Association Tel. (03) 9092 0888
- Arthritis and Osteoporosis Victoria, Tel. (03) 8531 8000 or 1800 263 265
Things to remember
- The knee contains sacs of fluid, called bursa, that help to cushion the joint and reduce friction between the structures around it.
- A Baker’s cyst is a pronounced swelling on the back of the knee, caused by the abnormal collection of fluid inside the bursa.
- Treatment may include physiotherapy treatment, drawing off the fluid with a needle, cortisone injections, treating the underlying cause or surgery to remove the cyst.
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Last reviewed: November 2014
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Content on this website is provided for education and information purposes only. Information about a therapy, service, product or treatment does not imply endorsement and is not intended to replace advice from your qualified health professional. Content has been prepared for Victorian residence and wider Australian audiences, and was accurate at the time of publication. Readers should note that over time currency and completeness of the information may change. All users are urged to always seek advice from a qualified health care professional for diagnosis and answers to their medical questions.
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Copyight © 1999/2015 State of Victoria. Reproduced from the Better Health Channel (www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au) at no cost with permission of the Victorian Minister for Health. Unauthorised reproduction and other uses comprised in the copyright are prohibited without permission. | <urn:uuid:9349f282-1348-4b98-9996-61f9349e93e2> | CC-MAIN-2015-06 | http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Baker's_cyst | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-06/segments/1422115891802.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20150124161131-00171-ip-10-180-212-252.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.928514 | 1,582 | 3 | 3 |
A few minutes every morning is all you need.
Stay up to date on the world's Headlines and Human Stories. It's fun, it's factual, it's fluff-free.
The backstory: Giant pandas are revered symbols in Chinese culture. In fact, nearly every giant panda in the world really belongs to China and is considered “on loan” to other countries. Well, in the 20th century, they started catching global attention. But, things weren't looking great for the species. Habitat loss and poaching pushed these black-and-white creatures to the brink of extinction. China stepped up by creating the first-ever panda reserves in the 1960s.
In the 1970s, China made headline-making "panda diplomacy" moves, gifting pandas like Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing to the US as a goodwill gesture. With ongoing conservation efforts and international cooperation, the giant panda population has been showing signs of improvement. Giant pandas were re-classified as "vulnerable" instead of "endangered" in 2021.
The development: Chinese archaeologists just made a major discovery – they found a complete giant panda skeleton inside the tomb of an ancient Han dynasty emperor that dates back over 2,000 years. The discovery suggests that the panda may have been ritually sacrificed to accompany Emperor Wen of Han, who reigned from 180 to 157 BC, into the afterlife following his death.
This skeleton was found in the tomb in China’s Shaanxi province, which used to be the capital of China. The panda remains were in a satellite pit right next to the tomb, facing it. It's a groundbreaking find that sheds light on ancient Chinese burial practices. They’ve previously found a giant panda skull in Wen’s tomb, but this is the first time they’ve found a complete skeleton.
The Shaanxi royal tombs have also revealed other wild animals, like an Asian tapir, tigers, yaks, a red-crowned crane, a peacock, a snub-nosed monkey and a tortoise, all buried alongside Emperor Wen and his mother, Consort Bo. Researchers think these rare and wild animals were reserved for the tombs of emperors, empresses and the emperor's mother, implying their importance in ceremonial contexts. They also say these creatures might have been offerings from southern China.
"Based on the discovered panda skeletal remains, the panda should belong to the Qinling subspecies," said Hu Songmei, a researcher at the Shaanxi Academy of Archaeology, to the cover.cn.
"Based on the current number of subsidiary pits and the identified animal species, it still appears to be a royal garden feature, rather than being specifically buried with giant pandas due to personal preference," said Cao Long, a researcher at the Shaanxi Academy of Archaeology.
“Pandas are very much associated with China in the American mind, and they are, of course, adorable,” said Kurt Tong, a former US consul general to Hong Kong and Macau and now a partner at the Asia Group to SCMP last year. “This makes them a potent and positive symbol of China, which the PRC uses for soft-power diplomacy. Holding an event about pandas now is a way for the Chinese embassy to say ‘We want to see happier days,’ despite all the tension between the capitals and America’s concern about China’s impact.” | <urn:uuid:642672b8-b786-4b84-b4be-7465577dac71> | CC-MAIN-2024-10 | https://themilsource.com/2023/08/08/2-000-year-old-giant-panda-skeleton-chinese-tomb/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-10/segments/1707947474482.98/warc/CC-MAIN-20240224012912-20240224042912-00006.warc.gz | en | 0.957109 | 734 | 3.53125 | 4 |
Researchers from North Carolina State University, Lund University in Sweden and the University of Hyogo in Japan have retrieved original pigment, beta-keratin and muscle proteins from a 54 million-year-old sea turtle hatchling. The work adds to the growing body of evidence supporting persistence of original molecules over millions of years and also provides direct evidence that a pigment-based survival trait common to modern sea turtles evolved at least 54 million years ago.
Tasbacka danica is a species of sea turtle that lived during the Eocene period, between 56 and 34 million years ago. In 2008 an extremely well-preserved T. danica hatchling was recovered from the Für formation in Jutland, Denmark. The specimen was less than 3 inches (74 millimeters) long. In 2013 paleontologist Johan Lindgren of Lund University uncovered soft tissue residues from an area located near the sea turtle’s left “shoulder.” He collected five small samples for biomolecular analysis.
The shells of modern sea turtle hatchlings are dark colored – this pigmentation gives them protection from aerial predators (such as seagulls) as they float on the ocean surface to breathe. Since turtles are reptiles, and therefore cold-blooded, the dark coloration also allows them to absorb heat from sunlight and regulate their body temperature. This elevated body temperature also allows more rapid growth, reducing the time they are vulnerable at the ocean surface.
The T. danica hatchling specimen appeared to share this coloration with its living counterparts. The researchers observed round organelles in the fossil that could be melanosomes, pigment-containing structures in the skin (or epidermis) that give turtle shells their dark color.
To determine the structural and chemical composition of the soft tissues Lindgren collected and see if the fossil sea turtle did have a dark colored shell, the researchers subjected the sample to a selection of high-resolution analytical techniques, including field emission gun scanning electron microscopy (FEG-SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), in situ immunohistochemistry, time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), and infrared (IR) microspectroscopy.
Lindgren performed ToF-SIMS on the samples to confirm the presence of heme, eumelanin and proteinaceous molecules – the components of blood, pigment and protein.
Co-author Mary Schweitzer, professor of biological sciences at NC State with a joint appointment at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, performed histochemical analyses of the sample, finding that it tested positive against antibodies for both alpha and beta-keratin, hemoglobin and tropomyosin, a muscle protein. TEM, performed by University of Hyogo evolutionary biologist Takeo Kuriyama, and Schweitzer’s immunogold testing further confirmed the findings.
In the end, the evidence pointed to these molecules as being original to the specimen, confirming that these ancient turtles shared a pigmentation-based survival trait with their modern-day brethren.
“The presence of eukaryotic melanin within a melanosome embedded in a keratin matrix rules out contamination by microbes, because microbes cannot make eukaryotic melanin or keratin,” Schweitzer says. “So we know that these hatchlings had the dark coloration common to modern sea turtles.
“The data not only support the preservation of multiple proteins, but also suggest that coloration was used for physiology as far back as the Eocene, in the same manner as it is today.”
This article has been republished from materials provided by North Carolina State University. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.
Johan Lindgren, Takeo Kuriyama, Henrik Madsen, Peter Sjövall, Wenxia Zheng, Per Uvdal, Anders Engdahl, Alison E. Moyer, Johan A. Gren, Naoki Kamezaki, Shintaro Ueno, Mary H. Schweitzer. Biochemistry and adaptive colouration of an exceptionally preserved juvenile fossil sea turtle. Scientific Reports, 2017; 7 (1) DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-13187-5 | <urn:uuid:1fc19c09-dd20-45ab-abba-2485a6cf3246> | CC-MAIN-2020-45 | https://www.technologynetworks.com/analysis/news/survival-trait-evolution-shown-in-54-million-year-old-sea-turtle-293360 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-45/segments/1603107902683.56/warc/CC-MAIN-20201029010437-20201029040437-00116.warc.gz | en | 0.908315 | 887 | 3.71875 | 4 |
Global Volcanism Program | Image GVP-12210
The Kurub edifice covers much of this May 2019 Planet Labs satellite image mosaic (N is at the top), with the darker area approximately 9 km in diameter. This broad area is composed of lava flows and vents, with sand filling the central crater. It is located south of Erta Ale, within the Saha Plain of Ethiopia.
Satellite image courtesy of Planet Labs Inc., 2019 (https://www.planet.com/).
Copyrighted image used with permission. All Rights Reserved. Contact photographer for any usage requests. | <urn:uuid:cf6add12-f486-4152-ae3b-c3f3c96f579b> | CC-MAIN-2023-23 | https://volcano.si.edu/gallery/ShowImage.cfm?photo=GVP-12210 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-23/segments/1685224649193.79/warc/CC-MAIN-20230603101032-20230603131032-00338.warc.gz | en | 0.919742 | 125 | 2.515625 | 3 |
We've reported on the use of nanotechnology to develop better composites, fault-detecting paint, and energy-harvesting wearable fabric. It's also a methodology for developing devices that assemble themselves. Though many of those efforts have used carbon nanotubes, Harvard University's Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering has harnessed DNA to create self-assembling nanodevices.
The emerging field of DNA nanotechnology is being explored for building tiny, programmable structures for diverse applications. So far, most research has focused on what's called DNA origami. This method uses a long biological strand of DNA as a backbone. Smaller strands are bound to its segments to create different shapes.
Single-stranded tiles (SSTs) made of short strands of interlocking DNA can be programmed to assemble themselves into precisely designed shapes, including letters, numbers, and emoticons.
(Source: Wyss Institute at Harvard University)
Researchers at the Wyss Institute took a different approach. A team led by Peng Yin, a Wyss core faculty member and assistant professor of systems biology at Harvard Medical School, used short synthetic strands of DNA to build complex nanostructures. These interlocking building blocks, called single-stranded tiles (SSTs), can be programmed to assemble themselves into precisely designed shapes.
Each SST consists of a unique 42-base DNA strand that folds into a 3nm x 7nm tile and binds to four local neighbors during self-assembly if they have complementary DNA sequences. Through a series of these interlocking connections, a group of SSTs can assemble themselves into different shapes. (You can watch a slideshow presentation with audio narration here.)
The researchers created more than 100 different designs (including numbers, letters, and Chinese characters) out of these tiles to demonstrate the DNA assembly method. For a single structure 100nm long, they used hundreds of tiles.
As synthetically based materials, the SSTs could have some important applications in medicine. They could organize themselves into drug delivery machines that maintain their structural integrity until they reach specific cell targets. Because they are synthetic, they can be tailored to be highly biocompatible.
The researchers, including Wyss postdoctoral fellow Bryan Wei and graduate student Mingjie Dai, say the approach is simple, versatile, and robust. They envision it as being developed for nanoscale devices for highly targeted drug delivery, among other applications.
The National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Office of Naval Research, and the Wyss Institute supported this research. | <urn:uuid:bd5da91f-6cd2-4392-b6f7-e0ee4f12700d> | CC-MAIN-2015-48 | http://www.designnews.com/author.asp?section_id=1392&doc_id=245069 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-48/segments/1448398451648.66/warc/CC-MAIN-20151124205411-00058-ip-10-71-132-137.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94135 | 525 | 3.984375 | 4 |
Christian stories for children are a great way to teach how kids around the world live. Children love hearing about the daily lives of their peers who live internationally.
Our Christian stories for children present topics like:
You’ll read first-hand accounts from children living in desperate circumstances. These stories will show how children can be content even when life is difficult.
Christian stories for children are a practical way to instill compassion for the issue of worldwide poverty. This magazine will make it possible for you to share accurate and first-hand stories from children around the globe.
See what sponsored kids play at their Compassion centers!
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Step inside bedrooms of kids around the world! What do you see?
Surf’s up! These kids in Brazil are making waves.
These Compassion-sponsored kids don’t need a lot of toys to be happy or have fun.
Check out their favorites >
Edwin, an elephant keeper in Kenya, was in Compassion’s program when he was little. See how he cares for God’s creatures!
These kids in the Philippines used to swim across a dangerous river just to get to school. Now a canoe helps them start their journey.
It’s important for children in the developing world to learn skills so they can earn money when they’re older.
The story of Ku, a bird who was born without feathers and can't fly, was adapted from an ancient Mexican fable.
Read this fable >
How much do you know about school in Brazil? Photos show you what a day is like for 8-year-old Emidio, from the moment he wakes up to the time he gets ready for bed.
Learn more about life in Brazil >
Read how doctors helped fix Fatao’s heart.
These kids were bullied and teased — just because they are different. But they found help.
Check out some instruments that children play at Compassion centers around the world.
With toilets, sinks and showers, bathrooms meet a lot of important needs. But many kids who live in poverty don’t have bathrooms.
Learn more >
Health care is not available to many of the poorest children around the world, but Compassion-sponsored kids get the care they need.
Take a look! >
Meet a girl in the Philippines who loves to teach — especially about Jesus.
Malaria is a disease that kills children living in poverty in Africa. But it's a disease that can easily be prevented.
Learn more about malaria >
School is an important part of God's plan for kids. Read the prayers of five Compassion-sponsored children.
Read powerful prayers
from kids >
For the poorest kids in many countries, getting to school is hard. But they can still have fun crowding onto boats and bikes.
Learn more about how kids get to school around the world >
See what life is like for students in countries such as India, Kenya and the Philippines.
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"Thanks for fixing my heart!" - Fatao, a Compassion-assisted child from Burkina Faso | <urn:uuid:73d0d8d0-7590-4b2b-abe2-02e66dd02cf9> | CC-MAIN-2015-06 | http://www.compassion.com/christian-stories-for-children.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-06/segments/1422115862207.44/warc/CC-MAIN-20150124161102-00100-ip-10-180-212-252.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942548 | 979 | 2.65625 | 3 |
Why Is America Polarized? The Answer May Surprise You
To escape the rich, we must escape their mobs.
No established democracy in recent history has been as deeply polarized as the U.S.
It’s almost a commonplace to say that Americans are politically polarized. “At each other’s throats” would be more accurate. A recent study from the Carnegie Endowment has — no surprise — found as much. (See “What Happens When Democracies Become Perniciously Polarized?”) From their report:
The rise of an “us versus them” mindset and political identity in American sociopolitical life is evident in everything from the rise of highly partisan media to the decline in Americans’ willingness to marry someone from the opposing political party. Even more concerningly, these dynamics are contributing directly to a steep rise in political violence.
Again, no surprise.
The article’s scary conclusion: “Placing the United States’ struggles with pernicious polarization in a broader context yields a deeply troubling picture. … Reducing the threat of pernicious polarization to democracy requires deliberate, urgent action. Or, as this research suggests, American democracy itself may cease to be.”
This observation is both very troubling and, as I said, a commonplace. We live indeed at a time when “everything new is old again,” a time that’s tucked between the start of a world-historical collapse and stories about it that sound too old to be new.
Writers in the serious world are taking note, of course, even if others aren’t. Witness this piece by Yascha Mounk in The Atlantic, which leads him to conclude, “No established democracy in recent history has been as deeply polarized as the U.S.”
Once more, no surprise to anyone living here, or indeed, to anyone living in range of competent news.
The Cause of Our Current State
The cause of our fall to this state, however, is harder to discern, at least according to the mainstreamers at Carnegie or The Atlantic. Mounk, for example, handles the causes this way: “But if many citizens come to believe that letting the other side rule poses a threat to their well-being, even their lives, they may no longer be willing to accept the outcome of an election they lose.”
Apparently, citizens just “come to believe” that Republicans or Democrats are existential threats to life, or democracy, or both. Many politicians, indeed, are threats to both life and democracy, but our fellow citizens too? Are they also to be hated and feared?
Apparently so, according to this far-right pastor:
We’ve also been exposed to similar invectives on the left, from people who have said both publicly and privately that Trump voters are Putin lovers, or that anti-maskers and -vaxxers deserve what they get.
As an example of the former, consider this from a recent Newsweek: “While a significant majority of Americans agree that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was not justified, Republicans are more likely to hold an unfavorable view of President Joe Biden than they are of Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to a new poll.”
I’m not arguing the yes or no of that statement; I’m pointing out that Newsweek, a liberal establishment publication, decided to print it. The implication is clear — Republican voters love Putin.
God's Spies by Thomas Neuburger is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
As an example of the latter, the anti-vaxxer animus, Howard Stern has been as clear as anyone, and echoes the sentiments of many who say the same thing less publicly:
Howard Stern said on the Jan. 19 episode of his Sirius XM radio show “The Howard Stern Show” that hospitals across the U.S. should not admit patients who are unvaccinated against COVID (via Uproxx). Stern has often used his radio show to speak out against anti-vaxxers, but he was more blunt than ever when he told listeners this week, “If it was up to me, anyone unvaccinated would not be admitted to a hospital. At this point, they have been given plenty of opportunity to get the vaccine.”
“… It’s time for you to get it [the vaccine]. Now, if you don’t get it, in my America, all hospitals would be closed to you. You’re going to go home and die. That is what you should get. Absolutely.”
Again, he’s not talking about the well-bought leaders of the Republican Party. He’s talking about their voters — all of them.
Howard Stern is not paid to say this (though Newsweek may be in a much more subtle way), any more than the preacher linked to above is paid to speak his anti-Democrat wisdom with such force.
So where does these invectives come from? Are they just “in the air”?
Johnny Mack Brown and the Great American Mob
In fact, these ideas are “just in the air,” if by “the air” we mean “the air we listen to.”
Consider the old-time Westerns, the ones with Tex Ritter, Hopalong Cassidy and Johnny Mack Brown.
In many of these shows there’s a scene where a mob of angry townspeople gather outside the jail calling for the hanging death of some usually innocent prisoner caged inside. The mob is always large and exceptionally mean. Their anger is palpable and universal.
Then the sheriff, the movie’s hero or someone allied with him, would go outside to deal with the threat. Would he accuse them all of wickedness and threaten to take their own lives if they attack? Sometimes.
But mostly he picks the mob apart. “Sara,” he’d say to one woman. “You came to this valley poor, and now you and Jim” — her husband, standing beside her — “are good and decent folk. Do you really want to go outside the law, the law that keeps this valley safe for you and your kids?”
Sara (and Jim) would look down, ashamed, and back away from the others. One by one, the sheriff would isolate members of the mob, peel its parts away, until only a few, the mob’s true leaders and its angry core, remained. Not enough people to actually storm the jail, not with the deputy inside, the one with the shotgun. The mob was beaten and the threat is gone.
Most mobs are like this — a few instigators, people who will never let go of the cause, surrounded by many who are far less committed than they, but momentarily caught up, swollen by the atmospheric anger of the rest. Remove that atmosphere and most people will return to “normal” — exactly the right word, since “normalize to groups” is what human beings do best. It’s why, in fact, we survived as long as we have. Rugged individuals die alone. Groups, united by a common culture and mind, breed and live on, however strange that mind may appear to a neighboring tribe caught up in its own group thought.
The Evil That Men Do
This leads to two ideas.
The first is that we all — the lefties and the right — should treat the opposite mob as teachable, not intractable; as fixable, not fixed. Farmer Sara in the example above was screaming for violent death, a hanging death, until she wasn’t, until she normalized to a different group — the town’s mind, not the mob’s. Or, to say it differently, she came to her senses.
In 2016 there are many stories of angry, change-seeking voters not sure whether to cast a Trump ballot or a Sanders one in states with open primaries. Not all Trumpists are, at their core, like the worst; just as not all Democrats (or liberals) are, at their core, like the ones satirized in the Phil Ochs song:
Each of us lives on a line that contains our worst and best selves. And most of us move along it, from better to bad and back, embarrassingly often. Almost no one is cemented permanently to her worst presentation. For the left, this means that treating the 47% of the country that voted for Trump as racist lost-cause fools is not only wrong, it’s also itself a self-fulfilling lost-cause prophecy.
But the second idea that leads from our mob analogy is even more important, since it answers the question, “How did we get this way?” The fact is, we’re as divided as we are because the division is funded and manufactured.
Liberal voters are told from dawn to dusk by their well-paid, in-house media that the other side is, in a word, evil, though the accusation, as befits that crowd, is much more cleverly put. (See the Newsweek article above for a small example; watch MSNBC at any hour of the day for a larger one.)
Similar examples from the right — or worse ones yet — are endlessly available:
In fact, the American Right has financed a decades-long project — has been doing so, in fact, for almost 50 years — to make sure that Farmer Sara and her husband not only stay with the mob, but are emotionally rewarded daily for doing so.
Put simply, our mobs are manufactured, especially the ones on the Right (though liberals are catching up), and the output of that manufacturing is, as noted above, the reason the country will fail.
As things stands today, the country is becoming ungovernable, except in the “rich rule us all” sense that oligarchies always share. It’s certainly ungovernable by the people, and has been for a while. Our participation in these manufactured mobs ensures that the blame for this falls, not on the manufacturers where it truly belongs, but on the mobs themselves, gathered precisely to scream distracted in each other’s face.
As long as those mobs exist, and as long the rich that swell the ranks of each are allowed to inflame us all against us all, for just that long will democracy fail in America, and we will be the cause. To escape the rich, we must escape their mobs, and encourage others to escape them with us. | <urn:uuid:e3274a0f-0f2d-473e-bfca-b8fa110b693a> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://neuburger.substack.com/p/why-is-america-polarized-the-answer | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573399.40/warc/CC-MAIN-20220818185216-20220818215216-00526.warc.gz | en | 0.964932 | 2,255 | 2.5625 | 3 |
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A thorough investigation into the economics of other developed countries like United States, Canada and Germany seem to point to the direction that federalism is harmonious with the Nations growth or development. There seems to be a consensus among scholars of fiscal federalism that decentralization of spending responsibilities in federal states bring about economic development (See Boadway and watts, 2004, Kincaid, 2001; Oates, 1999; Ter-Minassian, 1997; Watts, 2003).
(That fact that Nigeria is not among the world wealthiest economics). Fundamentally, Nigeria as a case study), Scholars argue that some of the factors that affect the economic performance of many of the poor federations include the absence of a functional federal system. In other words, the manner in which a federal system is operated affects the political and economic performance of federal state and vice versa.
In federations, fiscal imbalances occur because constituent units hardly have enough resources to match their expenditure. But irrespective of how they occur, imbalances must be corrected in order for the federation to continue to exist, and this may take the form of intergovernmental transfers which have the capacity to enable or limit government in the discharge of their responsibilities.
Nigeria fiscal federalism, just like those of other federations is principally characterized by the sharing of fiscal resources amongst the different tiers of government that make up the federation. However, the country’s social and economic disparity has continually rendered the issue of revenue allocation the most controversial aspect of the country’s federal system. Presently, no single fiscal theory has yet been developed to ensure equitable distribution of revenue in a federal system; Federations adopt principles that seem to favour their individual circumstances, and most importantly, they ensure that their fiscal systems are designed in such a way that economic development is realized and sustained. In an ideal and close-knit federations, such revenue sharing formula as the principle of need and of equalization are predominant, while loose federations like Nigeria are always predisposed to the principle of derivation, which is the method of distributing centrally generated revenue to constituent units in relation to the contribution made by a unit in relation to the contribution made by a unit to the country large revenue, in Nigeria derivation means, in addition to the regular federal statutory transfer, some proportion of the revenue collected from federating unit is returned to the government of that unit. In Nigeria, fiscal federalism is aimed at ensuring a balanced federation, economic development of national unit; so the argument goes, how has the country fiscal federalism performed in this aspect?
To what extent can Nigeria’s fiscal federalism be said to have achieved its objectives?
2. Problem statement
Fiscal federalism is the dynamic interaction between different tiers of government. It poses questions as to how the nature of financial relations in any federal system affects the distribution of the nation’s wealth. Nigeria is beset with structural imbalance, and true federalism implies that component units should freely pursue their own development.
Revenue sharing in Nigeria, has witnessed a plethora of reviews, as evidenced by various committees and commissions instituted in this regard, yet no reliable formula has been evolved in meeting the country’s yearnings and aspirations (Teidi, 2003:39). Such experienced deficiencies
have triggered off many untoward actions, particularly among the sub-national governments that complain of fiscal imbalance (Okeke, 2004:28). The statutory allocations from the Federation Account, even when it is disbursed, result into zero allocation for some of the federating units to run their affairs (Yusuf, 2008:1). Disharmonious fiscal federalism reflects on low level of political maturity and inability to allow true federalism to evolve without undue politicization.
Nigerian federalism is fraught with the external imposition of arrangement and political will, amongst others. Revenue allocation among various units of government in Nigeria is replete with agitations, controversies and outright rejections due to the nature of politics in vogue. Sec. 149 (7) of the 1979 Constitution provides for state-local government fiscal relations, while Section 162 (5) of the 1999 Constitution regards local government as an extension of the state tier, this leads to disharmonious fiscal federalism. The 1977 Aboyade Technical Committee on population was illogical as the principle of national interest it recommended defied particular interpretation in the prevailing circumstances in Nigeria. Moreover, the 2005 Political Reform Conference was stalemated because; delegates from South-South Region staged a walk out on the issue of fiscal
imbalance. Financial relations of the component units of any federation should bring about federal progress and productivity. In Nigerian federation however, it appears as if fiscal federalism brings disharmony among the federating units, and this reduces the productive capacity of the federation
as an entity.
6. Theoretical Framework
The Theoretical framework for the paper is “System Relations Approach to Inter-governmental Relation (IGR)” as propounded by Chin (1969), and cited in Olugbemi (1980). The systems model provides a comprehensive framework for identifying, coping with and integrating the institutional, behavioral and management dimensions of IGR. Furthermore, the systems model has a potential for resolving the allocation controversies which bedevil inter jurisdictional relationships.
The theory is conceived as an organized purposeful whole, composed of structurally and functionally identifiable though inter-related parts and delineated by identifiable boundaries from the suprasystem (environment) in which it is embedded. Ackoff (1972) states that the emergence of systems construct marked an important transition from the mechanistic conception of social reality which sought to explain a phenomenon from the stand point of its component units to holistic view parts
in terms of a whole. He sees a system as a whole which cannot be taken apart without the loss of its essential characteristics which include:
i. A set objective which the entity seeks to achieve, without which it cannot exist.
ii. A hierarchy of inter-dependent units among which the system objectives are divided for national development.
iii. Specificity of sub system roles, each system has a defined and specialized role in the realization of the total purpose(s) of the unitary whole and sub-system roles are mutually reinforcing.
iv. An input transforming technology which refers to the processes and techniques by which resource inputs extracted from within and outside the system are transformed into outputs which themselves have implications for system persistence and effectiveness through feed-back mechanism.
v. A boundary that excludes the plethora of other systems and defines the threshold of transactions among the universe of systems.
OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
This paper intends to project the character of Nigeria’s Fiscal federalism with a view to using the system as a yard stick to measure the National economic development performance of the Nigerian federation. To achieve this, the following objectives would be tackled.
1. To examine political and economic rational to revenue sharing in Nigeria
2. To access the underlying imperative of fiscal federalism in Nigeria’s development in Nigeria
3. To examine how inter-governmental relations have been handled in Nigeria
4. To measure the level of hope for both human and infrastructural development in the country via revenue distribution.
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SIMILAR POLITICAL SCIENCE FINAL YEAR PROJECT RESEARCH TOPICS
1. THE MARGINALIZATION OF WOMEN IN POLITICS AND ITS EFFECTS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF WOMEN IN IGABI LOCAL GOVERNMENT OF KADUNA STATE.» CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND OF STUDY In all human societies exists marginalization whereby individuals or groups considered undesirable ar...Continue Reading »
» Abstract By its very nature, electoral malpractice is a subversion of the constitution and the democratic form of government instituted by the Constit...Continue Reading »
» CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary defines corruption as a dishonest or illegal behaviour, es...Continue Reading »
» ABSTRACT Democratic governance is a desired system of government that offers the electorates the dividends of democracy. It is a system where the free...Continue Reading »
» ABSTRACT The study is to appraise the role of government in poverty alleviation in Nigeria with a special reference to National Poverty Eradication Pr...Continue Reading »
» ABSTRACT Nigeria is one of those countries that operates a federal system of government alongside with the western world. Given the territorially deli...Continue Reading »
» Abstract The virus of ethnicity has been one of the most definitive causes of social crisis, injustice, nequality and religio political instability in...Continue Reading »
» CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the study The menace of domestic violence on national security can never be over emphasis seeing to the fac...Continue Reading »
» Abstract The research work examined the concept of Electoral Violence as perceived by some analysis of democratic elections. It traced the history of ...Continue Reading »
» CHAPTER ONEGENERAL INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY The quest for quality leadership and good governance is the aspiration of citizens in most...Continue Reading » | <urn:uuid:a87063e4-fd8d-4c62-9dca-fcc00ca0c4c4> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | https://codemint.net/political-science/system-relations-approach-to-inter-governmental-relation-igr-as-propounded-by-chin-1969-and-cited-in-olugbemi-1980/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233510994.61/warc/CC-MAIN-20231002100910-20231002130910-00223.warc.gz | en | 0.915794 | 2,029 | 3.015625 | 3 |
This course teaches you to understand the main ideas of texts written in clear standard German on familiar topics related to work, studies, and leisure activities.
Starting date: 9th December Ending date: 18th March
Duration: 50 hours
Location: Elduaien-Irun. Jose Ramon Agirretxe Alkate Jauna Plaza 1-3
Telephone: 654 51 44 52
This course teaches you to understand the main ideas of texts written in clear standard German on familiar topics related to work, studies, and leisure activities. Upon the completion of the course you will be able to speak about facts, experiences and interests, express opinions, and defend your points of view with ease and confidence.
The general objective of the course is to consolidate the expressive skills and the communicative competence. As a result, the students are expected to express themselves in a natural and spontaneous manner, in addition to writing simple texts on basic and familiar topics of common interest.
- Be able to understand medium difficulty conversations in standard German.
- Understand texts written in standard, everyday language or related to one’s work activities.
- Be able to construct and connect sentences in a simple way in order to describe facts and experiences orally.
- Be able to write simple and coherent texts on a range of everyday topics related to the students’ interests following a linear sequence of elements.
This German course is designed to help you learn through practice as you will be introduced to a series of realistic personal and professional situations, which will allow you to assimilate relevant grammar and vocabulary in a natural and intuitive way. | <urn:uuid:90e38058-f2a3-4c36-a0ea-af9f54e58b54> | CC-MAIN-2021-10 | https://www.elduaien.com/en/german-b1-course | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-10/segments/1614178368431.60/warc/CC-MAIN-20210304021339-20210304051339-00588.warc.gz | en | 0.917766 | 328 | 3.03125 | 3 |
Today, I’m sharing a simple version of spring STEM activities for the youngest members of your household. This flower dissection lesson plan is perfect for preschoolers and kindergarteners.
The best part?
It only requires flowers (and a magnifying glass, if you happen to have one handy!), so it qualifies as a no-prep STEM activity. It’s the perfect addition to your spring STEM activities!
Flower Dissection Lesson Plan
This simple science activity encourages scientific exploration during flower dissection. This activity can be done with all ages, but preschoolers and kindergarten kids will have the most fun with this science activity.
Try this in a science center, or set it up for one of your spring science lessons.
What are the Best Flowers to Dissect?
There are a lot of flowers to dissect, but the best flowers to dissect are flowers that have distinct parts and that are not poisonous!
Any flower with distinct petals, leaves, stems, and other parts of the flower are useful for dissecting.
We dissected an oleander flower in this activity, but you can also try dissecting a rose, a tulip, a buttercup, a dahlia, a daisy, a hyacinth, or any other type of flower you can get your hands on.
Parts of a Flower Diagram
The American Museum of Natural History has a detailed diagram of the parts of a flower. Take a look at this diagram before dissecting your flower and compare the parts of your flower with their diagram.
You can even print the flower diagram and use it alongside your flower dissection experiment.
Flower Dissection for Kids
This flower dissection activity works really well as part of a larger part of a flower lesson. You can make this 3D parts of a flower model after dissecting your flower to solidify the knowledge learned in this lesson!
Supplies for the Flower Dissection Activity
This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.
- Magnifying glass (affiliate)
- Flowers (if you have more than one kind, that is even better)
- Parts of a flower diagram (we used this one)
How to Dissect a Flower
Before starting our flower dissection activity, Bo and I examined the diagram and talked about the parts of a flower.
I didn’t go into as much detail as the diagram with her, as she wouldn’t have understood all of the vocabulary. I stuck to fairly simple names for the flower parts, like pollen, stems, petals, etc.
I instructed Bo to take apart the flower (gently) and examine the pieces one at a time. We then compared how our flower was different from the picture.
The biggest difference between our flower and the example diagram was that our flower didn’t have filaments or any visible pollen.
Bo also found out that by rubbing the flowers across the base of the box, she could use the petals as paint. I wasn’t as thrilled with this discovery as she was.
More Ways to Learn with Flowers
Flower Coloring Mixing Activity for Preschoolers
Magnifying Glass Discovery Tray | <urn:uuid:b699e387-9688-4b95-bc4b-01b16107095a> | CC-MAIN-2023-23 | https://www.steamsational.com/flower-dissection-science/?fbclid=IwAR0g1RTSinL64rfJPWYQQY1Q7Naq-GIQ_Q-37utLQBg0VK32S3GEjSL5kPE | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-23/segments/1685224644867.89/warc/CC-MAIN-20230529141542-20230529171542-00778.warc.gz | en | 0.930152 | 655 | 3.609375 | 4 |
PHILADELPHIA — Scientists have associated three signaling pathways in cells with the risk of getting breast cancer, opening the door for someday developing a drug that might prevent the disease.
Drugs that may lower some people's risk of getting cancer — called chemoprevention drugs — should be tested for how well they target these pathways, now that the pathways are known to lead to disease, researchers said.
It would be hard to measure the success of a preventive drug without knowing what the drug was acting on, because no one can be sure they would get cancer without it, the scientists noted.
The discovery that these pathways are linked to the development of breast cancer could be used to gauge the success of chemoprevention drugs in clinical trials, said study researcher Dr. Victoria Seewaldt, director of the prevention program at the Duke University Comprehensive Cancer Center.
If scientists had never found these specific pathways, Seewaldt said, the only way to evaluate a chemoprevention drug would be through an unwieldy clinical trial. Researchers would have to "round up 10,000 to 20,000 women for five years, and give them one dose of one drug, and then see if there are problems" — too long a time for too small a result.
"The problem with that," she said of such a drug trial, "is everyone gets cancer differently, and we have no idea why it fails if it does."
By finding a drug that lowers the rate of signaling in these three pathways, it could be possible to lower the risk of breast cancer, Seewaldt said.
To try to find signaling pathways, Seewaldt and fellow researchers tested the network of signaling molecules in the cells of 100 women who had a high risk of breast cancer.
By finding how the signaling molecules interact, it's possible to see the impact that a chemoprevention drug would have on activity of the pathways, Seewaldt said.
As an illustration, she said there are many ways to go from Philadelphia to New York City. A roadblock (a cancer prevention drug) could be put up on one of the routes, but the traveler (a "smart" pre-cancer cell) could bypass the roadblock by using another route.
That's why it's important to see, in detail, why some signaling pathways go wrong, Seewaldt said.
"We need to know the biology" in order not to undertreat or overtreat patients, Seewaldt said.
With the knowledge of the pathways, a future drug could target and inhibit cell proliferation and invasion, she said.
The study was presented here at the Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research Conference, held by the American Association for Cancer Research.
- The 10 Deadliest Cancers and Why There's No Cure
- 3 Lifestyle Choices Lower Breast Cancer Risk, Regardless of Family History
- Breast Cancer: Symptoms, Prevention and Treatment
This article was provided by MyHealthNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience. | <urn:uuid:d0441136-59d1-4383-9ccd-52aa7ef8812b> | CC-MAIN-2015-40 | http://www.livescience.com/11101-breast-cancer-prevention-drugs-target-aim.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-40/segments/1443737893676.56/warc/CC-MAIN-20151001221813-00177-ip-10-137-6-227.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959257 | 622 | 2.890625 | 3 |
Click here to watch the TEDTalk that inspired this post.
In a recent TEDTalk, "How to make stress your friend", Dr. Kelly McGonigal provides evidence from research studies that stress isn't bad for you. In fact, negative effects of stress appear only in those who believe that stress is bad. By changing the way you think about stress, you can reduce the negative impact of these physiological reactions. Also, Dr. McGonigal suggests turning to others for support or giving support to others can lessen the negative impact of stress.
It's gratifying to know that the findings from health psychology corroborate the usefulness of the cognitive behavioral therapy. In a nutshell, cognitive behavioral therapy aims to challenge maladaptive thinking patterns and to develop healthier, more effective perspective and behaviors. Hence, Dr. McGonigal's interventions of seeing the stress response in a positive light and turning to others for support are consistent with what cognitive behavioral therapists have been doing for years. The evidence that these approaches can reduce the negative effects of stress and associated mortality is a welcomed bonus!
Many clients seek out cognitive behavior therapy to gain control over their anxiety and other unpleasant emotions. "I want to stop feeling anxious when I meet new people" or "I don't want to feel so stressed out when I try to speak up for myself." These goals are common and are not surprising. Who wants to feel their bodies gearing up to "fight or flight" where the heart races, blood pressure spikes, breathing becomes shallow and irregular, face flushes, and hands become clammy? No one does, especially when these physical sensations are out of proportion to situations that trigger them.
Clients are often surprised when I tell them that the anxiety or "stressed feelings" are not inherently bad for you. In fact, feeling stressed can be an indication that we are challenging ourselves. Challenge is good; it allows us to develop a sense of competence, boost our self-esteem, and feelings of mastery. Avoidance, on the other hand, relieves stress temporarily but can also give us a false sense of security.
By seeking out opportunities and challenges, you are being proactive in practicing this new perspective on stress. -- Kathariya Mokrue, PhD
I'd like to add a few things to the lessons and interventions from Dr. McGonigal's talk:
1 -- SLOW DOWN: It can be difficult to override the primitive, instinctive emotional response to stress with balanced thinking. The reason for this is that our "primitive" brain areas are located in a different site than our "evolved" neo-cortex which is responsible for reason and planning. The communication between these two areas is not direct. But if you slow down the "fight or flight" activation a bit, you will be able to access more helpful perspectives. One way to slow down is to use diaphragmatic breathing for at least 20 cycles. When the volume of the stress reaction is turned down, you'll be able to think more reasonable thoughts about your situation.
2 -- PRIME YOURSELF FOR STRESS: By seeking out opportunities and challenges, you are being proactive in practicing this new perspective on stress. You can seek out situations that normally activate your stress response, prime yourself for stress by saying "I will feel stressed and anxious because I am challenging myself," "This is a good sign that I am developing confidence and mastery in this situation," and "Feeling stressed/anxious doesn't mean I've failed." It is through consistent practice that you will learn to shift your thinking about your stress response. Once you develop more competence and mastery around a particular situation, then you'll start to believe that stress is good for you too.
Ideas are not set in stone. When exposed to thoughtful people, they morph and adapt into their most potent form. TEDWeekends will highlight some of today's most intriguing ideas and allow them to develop in real time through your voice! Tweet #TEDWeekends to share your perspective or email tedweekends@huffingtonpost.com to learn about future weekend's ideas to contribute as a writer. | <urn:uuid:73f74500-4629-427a-8061-f2e4c164ebf4> | CC-MAIN-2020-05 | https://www.huffpost.com/entry/embrace-the-positive-potential-of-stress_b_4319794 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-05/segments/1579250610919.33/warc/CC-MAIN-20200123131001-20200123160001-00297.warc.gz | en | 0.956554 | 846 | 2.734375 | 3 |
The lottery is a form of gambling in which a prize, typically money or goods, is awarded by drawing numbers. It is the most popular form of gambling in many countries. The draw is held once or twice a week and the prizes are often large. The draw is controlled by laws, rules and regulations. It is a public service and helps to raise money for public projects. The rules and regulations of the lottery vary by state. Some have no rules, while others are complex and require extensive oversight.
Lottery has a long history and is widely used in different cultures. It has been used as a way to raise money for public projects, including schools, hospitals, and bridges. In the United States, the Continental Congress voted in 1776 to establish a lottery to help finance the American Revolution. Privately organized lotteries have been popular as a means to raise money for a variety of purposes, including building colleges. Lotteries have also been used to raise funds for political campaigns.
In modern times, lotteries are heavily promoted through television and other media. Almost all states have one or more lotteries. In addition, many companies run their own national or regional lotteries. Some have online versions of their lotteries. Online lotteries allow people to place bets on upcoming draws. Many of the same rules and regulations apply to online lotteries as they do to traditional ones.
The growth in lottery revenues has led to a number of problems, however. First, it has led to a rapid expansion into new games and increased promotion. While this has generated additional income, it also has led to a lack of focus on the core mission of the lottery: raising money for public causes. Second, it has resulted in a decline in lottery participation among lower-income groups. This has raised questions about whether the lottery is truly a public service or simply a tax-free way for people to gamble.
There are some people who claim to have a special system for winning the lottery. These systems involve choosing certain numbers or purchasing tickets at specific stores or times of day. They are not based on sound statistical principles. Instead, they are based on the assumption that certain numbers or combinations of numbers are luckier than others. Moreover, these systems tend to ignore the fact that winning the lottery is random. While a certain set of numbers may be more lucky, they are no more likely to win than any other set.
Despite these issues, most states continue to fund lotteries. The reason is that lotteries are a classic example of public policy being made piecemeal and incrementally, with little overall overview. Furthermore, state officials quickly become accustomed to having a steady stream of money. As a result, they have developed a reliance on these sources of revenue and tend to ignore the problems that this creates. In addition, the lottery has the added advantage of attracting a broad base of voters, which increases its political support. | <urn:uuid:bb4fdf70-7b4d-4ee1-bad6-1213adf018ff> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | https://trusscosmetics.com/what-is-the-lottery-3/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233510603.89/warc/CC-MAIN-20230930050118-20230930080118-00501.warc.gz | en | 0.977683 | 596 | 3 | 3 |
The brain is amazing! But it can be a bit monotonous. It is unable to focus on one thing for too long and can easily get tired and unfocused. Therefore your brain is in great need of regular relaxation to recover.
Short breaks, good sleep, and activation are needed to let your brain recharge its batteries.
In this article, we go through the brain's need for recovery, and how you can do it.
Table of Contents
A Stressed Brain Don’t Work Properly
A brain that is never allowed to rest will quickly become less productive than one that receives regular breaks.
The brain is also very vulnerable to stress and reacts both physically and mentally. It means that rest and recovery are extra important during hectic periods.
If you are stressed for a long time and rarely relax, the brain will continue to send out stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol, even if you try to relax and unwind.
Your Brain Needs Balance
By creating a good balance between activity and recovery, you will be better equipped to cope with working at a high pace and stress, for a longer period, without being harmed.
5 Tips To Relax Your Brain
1. Take short breaks during your day
Take a short break or a micropause when you feel tired and lose your focus.
It may be enough to look out the window, put on some relaxing tunes, chat with a colleague or take a walk in the office.
It allows your head to relax, and it has time to recover for a while before it is time to work again.
2. Watch something relaxing
Start a video with some relaxing sounds or music to immerse yourself in for a while.
By looking at a forest walk or a waterfall, you don't need to think. You give your head a break.
By just letting go of your task at hand, looking at something relaxing, can clear your mind and make you feel energized.
We have a wide selection of both long and short videos for relaxation, on our youtube channel. ◳
3. Deep breathing exercises
Deep breathing is a technique for relaxation that gives your brain a needed break. But it can also help you cope with stress and at the same time provide you with numerous health benefits.
It triggers the release of endorphins, which improves feelings of well-being and provides pain-relief.
4. Make sure you sleep properly
When you sleep both the body and the brain get the recovery needed. Both physiological and biological, to help you with your everyday challenges.
Research shows that too little sleep ◳ increases the risk of obesity, hypertension, diabetes, depression, heart attack, and stroke.
Try to go to bed in time at night to give your brain and your body the recovery it needs.
5. Be active - get moving
Our brain is the organ that is most affected by physical activity and completely loves when we move.
When we exercise, our brain sends good signals to our body, such as calming oxytocin, serotonin, and the mood-boosting hormone dopamine.
A workout or a walk at lunch can make you come back to work both happier and more focused.
Conclusion: Don’t Forget To Take Care Of Your Brain
Your brain is tremendously important. You can't forget to take care of it every day! Micropauses, exercise, and sleep are what the brain loves.
With the right focus, anything is possible. So give your brain a break and feel the energy! | <urn:uuid:e0ecc98a-136f-4ddd-b3da-b2f0a2d2038c> | CC-MAIN-2022-27 | https://www.careomnia.com/brain-relaxation | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-27/segments/1656103877410.46/warc/CC-MAIN-20220630183616-20220630213616-00424.warc.gz | en | 0.944903 | 725 | 2.859375 | 3 |
Understanding the Blue Moon
The idea or concept that two Full Moons in a month is what defines a Blue Moon is a mistake, according to this Sky and Telescope article. The article says the original definition of a Blue Moon referred to 4 Full Moons in one season. The article also indicates a season is defined as the time between a Solstice and Equinox or an Equinox and Solstice. (See Table below)
From the perspective of Solstices and Equinoxes, there are four seasons in a year and generally three Full Moons occur in each season. This means there are usually 12 Full Moons per year. This is why the word month comes from the word Moon or Moonth, because it take 29.5 days for the Moon to return to another Full Moon phase (or any Moon phase for that matter). This suggests that our secular calendar actually does recognize that they are at least 12 Full Moons each year. Looking at this from the perspective of the Gregorian Calendar that was instituted in 1582 the years that have two Full Moons in a month are the years that also have 13 Full Moons in a calendar year.
In the year 2012 there are 13 Full Moons in the Calendar year from January 1 to December 31 with two Full Moons in the month of August. In 2013 there are only 12 Full Moons in the calendar year from Jan 1 to Dec 31. However, from December Solstice 2012 to December Solstice 2013 there are 13 Full Moons with four Full Moons in one season, happening between the June Solstice and the September Equinox.
Based on the above article in Sky and Telescope describing the original meaning of once in a Blue Moon as having four Full Moons in one season, the year 2013 most closely fits the definition. In addition to the four Full Moons in a season, 2013 also features two consecutive Full Moons in the same sign. On July 22 there is a Full Moon at zero Aquarius and on August 21 there is another Full Moon at 28 Aquarius. More about this in a moment. (Also see table below)
Different Types of Blue Moons
In more recent times, the term Blue Moon has been used to describe the occurrence of two Full Moons in a calendar month. This way of defining a Blue Moon comes from a 1940’s article that appeared in Astronomy magazine suggesting the definition of a Blue Moon was the second Full Moon in a calendar month. This is an event that occurs approximately every three years.
July 2015 featured 2 Full Moons, one on July 1 in Capricorn and the second on July 31 in Aquarius. The last time there were two Full Moons in a calendar month was August of 2012 and the next time it will happen is January 2 and 31 and March 1 and 31 of 2018 (due to February being a short month so there is actually no Full Moon in February of 2018). This pattern recurs about every 33 months or 33 Full Moons so just under three years with of course the exception of 2018 due to February being a short month.
Interestingly, two Full Moons in a month, or four Full Moons in a season, occur with the same frequency about every 2.7 years. (See the tables below) However, four Full Moons in a season has greater astronomical significance than two Full Moons in a calendar month.This is because the months as outlined in our Gregorian Calendar are NOT astronomically based but rather begin arbitrarily on a date called January 1 so our calendar begins at a time that is not connected to either a Solstice or Equinox. It is also not connected to the lunar cycle.
The Gregorian calendar does however fixate our awareness on a linear way of tracking time through days, weeks, months and years. These dates have been assigned names and numbers and it works brilliantly as a linear way of tracking time. (More to be shared in a future article or in the Celestial Timings).
There is another speculation that the original term Blue Moon may have come from the bluish tinge the Moon gets when viewed through smoke. In this case, the theory is that someone saw the Moon appearing quite blue through the smoke of a large distant fire (like a forest fire) and therefore the term Blue Moon was a literal description of how the Moon looked. Naturally that would also be a rare occurrence. In fact, it would be the rarest occurrence of all the definitions of a Blue Moon.
Here is a 2012 YouTube from Nasa on Blue Moons produced by volcanos and fires. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HRKl0fa2dg
Two Consecutive Full Moons in the Same Sign
There is another way the Full Moon (or any phase of the Moon for that matter) fits the 2.7 year pattern. This configuration isn’t talked about as much but is just as significant as the other patterns, and that is when there are two consecutive Full Moons in the same sign. This only occurs when the first Full Moon is in Zero or One degree of the sign and the next Full Moon is in 28 or 29 degrees of the same sign.
As already mentioned above, July 22, 2013 there is a Full Moon at 00 degrees and 16 minutes of Aquarius. The following month on Aug 21 there is another Full Moon at 28 degrees and 11 minutes of Aquarius. This exact configuration happened one day later in July and August of 2002 with the Moon very close to the same degrees that are occurring in 2013.
Note: This nearly exact recurrence is tracking the 19 year nodal cycle at its half way point. (A topic for another article)
Blue Moon Mystique
The common factor to all these variations of a Blue Moon, either as seen through smoke, or the number of Full Moons in a season, or two Full Moons in a month, or two consecutive Full Moons in the same sign, is they captivate and inspire our imagination.
When we understand the pattern of what is happening then we can intentionally tune into the magic, getting the most out of the opportunity these Timings represent. One of the opportunities any Full Moon provides is a chance to experience greater illumination of our essential divine nature regardless of whether or not it is a so-called Blue Moon.
From the perspective that we inform the mysteries as much as they inform us, what we put our attention and intention on becomes meaningful. Since there is a lot of collective attention on the phenomenon of two Full Moons in a month, (even though its not astronomically significant) it has the effect of taking on greater significance as a result.
Noticing the Pattern
Below are tables of the various types of Blue Moon dates to ponder. These tables clearly show the pattern of about 2.7 years for all the above variations, except for the one that has to do with seeing the Moon through smoke.
One way to work with this information and the dates below is to notice if any of these Timings were especially significant in your personal experience. Also worth noticing is if there were significant events in the world that happened around any of the prior so-called Blue Moon times?
In tracking this personally, I had a profound experience with a group down in Peru during the December 2002 Full Moon – Blue Moon of four Full Moons in a season (see table below) that was beyond the beyond of anything I had experienced previously. (Here is a more mytho-poetic version of that time )
In July 2004, there were two consecutive Full Moons in a calendar month. At the time of the second Full Moon during another Full Moon ceremony I was a part of, I had an illumination about a personal situation that had been especially challenging. This Timing also coincided with a powerful Pluto transit to my natal Moon, so the Full Moon activation was a part of that cycle and it turned out to be a further catalyst for an initiatory process I was already experiencing, meaning the two factors were working together to help support my journey and may not have had anything to do with the fact that it was the second Full Moon of the month.
This suggests that knowing your cycles and participating in Full Moon ceremonies can help further what ever initiation cycles are going on for you. I have noticed the Full Moon often activates a personal part of my own chart regardless of whether it is a so-called Blue Moon.
The Full Moon Effect Lasts at least Three Days and 3 Nights
Experientially the Moon appears full for three nights, the day before, the day of and the day after the exact Full Moon. Shamanically speaking this suggests the potency of the Full Moon Window lasts for at least three days. Many cultures including the Hawaiians (Hawaiian Moon Calendar article) worked with every possible phase of the Moon in its 29.5 day cycle before it returns to a particular Moon phase and they considered the Moon to be in its full phase for 4 days and nights.
The Hawaiians use 29 and sometimes 30 phases of the Moon, giving each phase its own special name and indications like when it was a good time to fish, or to plant, or to get married, or to stay home.
Is 12 or 13 the Most Sacred Number of the Moon?
In recent years, there have been many articles and books claiming that the number 13 is the most sacred number for the Moon. However, the Moon actually intimately connects with the numbers 12, 13 and 19.
If you are tracking the Moon return to a certain zodiacal degree, say zero Capricorn, it will return to that degree every 27.3 days. If you divide 27.3 into 365 days in a year – the closest whole number is 13. That means the Moon will cross that point or any other starting point 13 times each year.
If you are tracking the Moon phases from Full Moon to Full Moon or any other phase (i.e. New Moon to New Moon or First Quarter Moon to First Quarter Moon) it returns every 29.5 days. If you divide 29.5 into 365 the closest whole number is 12. That is why there are 12 months (moonths) in a year.
It is important to realize the number 13 for the Moon is NOT what most people think it is. There are NOT 13 Full Moons every year regardless of whether you are tracking a calendar year, or a seasonal year – from one December Solstice to the next. Actually more often than not there are only 12 Full Moons a year. That is why both 12 and 13 are sacred numbers, or sacred patterns for the Moon.
Additionally, the 19 year pattern or cycle of the Moon is significant to our personal experience especially when we are turning 19, 38, 57, 76, and 95. This 19 year Moon cycle is related to Nodes of the Moon and the Eclipses…stay tuned for future articles on this subject. The point here is that there is more than one sacred number for the Moon, as the Moon has many patterns that are worth knowing and understanding, because these patterns do play out in our personal and collective experience.
Blue Moon Dates Based on 4 Full Moons in a Season
(13 Full Moons from Dec Solstice to the next Dec Solstice)
|2000||4th Full Moon in a Season||Mar 20, Apr 18, May 18, Jun 17|
|2002||4th Full Moon in a Season||Sep 21, Oct 21, Nov 20, Dec 19|
|2005||4thFull Moon in a Season||Jun 22, Jul 21, Aug 19, Sep 18|
|2008||4thFull Moon in a Season||Mar 21, Apr 20, May 19, Jun 18|
|2010||4th Full Moon in a Season||Sep 23, Oct 23, Nov 21, Dec 21 +eclipse|
|2013||4th Full Moon in a Season||Jun 23, Jul 22, Aug 19, Sep 19|
|2016||4th Full Moon in a Season||Mar 23, Apr 22, May 21, Jun 20|
|2018/2019||4th Full Moon in a Season||Dec 22, Jan 21, Feb 19, Mar 19|
|2021||4th Full Moon in a Season||Jun 24, Jul 24, Aug 22, Sep 20|
|2024||4th Full Moon in a Season||Jun 22, Jul 21, Aug 19, Sep 18|
|2027||4th Full Moon in a Season||Mar 22, Apr 20, May 19, Jun 18|
|2029||4th Full Moon in a Season||Sep 22, Oct 22, Nov 21, Dec 20|
|2032||4th Full Moon in a Season||Jun 23, Jul 22, Aug 21, Sep 19|
|2035||4th Full Moon in a Season||Mar 23, Apr 22, May 22, Jun 20|
|2038||4th Full Moon in a Season||Mar 21, Apr 19, May 18, Jun 17 +eclipse|
|2040||4th Full Moon in a Season||Jun 24, Jul 24, Aug 22, Sep 20|
13 Full Moons in Solar Year (Dec Solstice To Dec Solstice)
next occurs in 2016 (last occurrence was 2010 and 2013)
01. 2015 Dec 25 Cancer
02. 2016 Jan 23 Leo
03. 2016 Feb 22 Virgo
04. 2016 Mar 23 Libra eclipse
05. 2016 April 21 Scorpio
06. 2016 May 21 Sagittarius
07. 2016 Jun 20 Sagittarius
08. 2016 Jul 19 Capricorn
09. 2016 Aug 18 Aquarius eclipse
10. 2016 Sep 16 Pisces eclipse
11. 2016 Oct 15 Aries
12. 2016 Nov 14 Taurus
13. 2016 Dec 13 Gemini
Full Moon Dates Based on Two Full Moons in a Calendar Month
|Nov 2001||2 Full Moons/Month||November 1 and 30|
|Jul 2004||2 Full Moons/Month||July 2 and 31|
|May 2007||2 Full Moons/Month||May 2 and 31|
|Dec 2009||2 Full Moons/Month||December 2 and 31|
|Aug 2012||2 Full Moons/Month||Aug 2 and 31|
|Jul 2015||2 Full Moons/Month||July 2 and 31|
|Jan 2018||2 Full Moons/Month||January 2 and 31 with no Full Moon in February AND
March 1 and 31
|Oct 2020||2 Full Moons/Month||October 1 and 31|
Two Consecutive Full Moons In The Same Sign
(No Taurus, Gemini, Leo, or Cancer)
|2000||Feb 19||00 Virgo 51||2000||Mar 20||29 Virgo 53|
|2002||Jul 24||00 Aquarius 18||2002||Aug 22||29 Aquarius 39|
|2005||Jun 22||00 Capricorn 51||2005||Jul 21||28 Capricorn 47|
|2008||Apr 20||00 Scorpio 43||2008||May 20||29 Scorpio 27|
|2010||Sep 23||00 Aries 15||2010||Oct 23||29 Aries 33|
|2013||Jul 22||00 Aquarius 06||2013||Aug 21||28 Aquarius 11|
|2016||May 21||01 Sagittarius 14||2016||Jun 20||29 Sagittarius 33|
|2019||Mar 21||00 Libra 29||2019||Apr 19||29 Libra 27|
|2021||Jul 24||01 Aquarius 26||2021||Aug 22||29 Aquarius 37|
|2024||Jun 21||01 Capricorn 07||2024||Jul 21||29 Capricorn 09|
|2027||Apr 20||00Scorpio 37||2027||May 20||29 Scorpio 14|
|2029||Aug 24||01 Pisces 12||2029||Sep 22||29 Pisces 57|
|2032||Jul 22||00 Aquarius 30||2032||Aug 21||28 Aquarius 34|
|2035||May 22||00 Sag 57||2035||Jun 20||29 Sag 20|
|2038||Mar 21||00 Libra 33||2038||Apr 19||29 Libra 29|
|2040||Jul 24||00 Aquarius 48||2040||Aug 22||29 Aquarius 53| | <urn:uuid:f01d144a-fe32-4dcd-ab99-62afc069cb4e> | CC-MAIN-2018-05 | http://shamanicastrology.com/archives/107/comment-page-1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-05/segments/1516084887077.23/warc/CC-MAIN-20180118071706-20180118091706-00053.warc.gz | en | 0.938623 | 3,356 | 3.453125 | 3 |
Sexual abuse toward children and adolescents is a stark reality worldwide. A common misperception about child sexual abuse CSA is that it is a rare event perpetrated against girls by male strangers in poor, inner-city areas. To the contrary, CSA is a much too common occurrence that results in harm to millions of children, boys and girls alike, in large and small communities, and across a range of cultures and socioeconomic backgrounds. These acts are perpetrated by many types of offenders, including men and women, strangers, trusted friends or family, and people of all sexual orientations, socioeconomic classes, and cultural backgrounds. CSA encompasses many types of sexually abusive acts toward children, including sexual assault, rape, incest, and the commercial sexual exploitation of children.
58,333 Sexual Abuse Premium High Res Photos
Child Sexual Abuse
Violence against children includes all forms of violence against people under 18 years old. For infants and younger children, violence mainly involves child maltreatment i. Boys and girls are at equal risk of physical and emotional abuse and neglect, and girls are at greater risk of sexual abuse. As children reach adolescence, peer violence and intimate partner violence, in addition to child maltreatment, become highly prevalent. Violence against children can be prevented. Preventing and responding to violence against children requires that efforts systematically address risk and protective factors at all four interrelated levels of risk individual, relationship, community, society. According to this plan, WHO in collaboration with Member States and other partners, is committed to:.
Abuse Victim Stock Photos and Images
In our series of Letters from African journalists, Zeinab Mohammed Salih writes about the horrific racial abuse black people experience in Sudan. As anti-racism protests swept through various parts of the world following African-American George Floyd's death in police custody in the US, Sudan seemed to be in a completely different world. There was little take-up in Sudan of the hashtag BlackLivesMatter.
Hi there! Sign in Create an account Buy images Sell images. Contact us sales alamy. Share Alamy images with your team and customers. | <urn:uuid:7e196520-9d88-4c61-bfd5-a6a1f74cfd79> | CC-MAIN-2021-39 | https://campmicha.com/cartoon/teen-african-girls-abuse-pictures.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-39/segments/1631780054023.35/warc/CC-MAIN-20210917024943-20210917054943-00154.warc.gz | en | 0.949385 | 425 | 3.0625 | 3 |
project was accomplished through work in the summer of 2008 with Dr. Michael
Berkeley and Mexico Medical Missions. The project was based mainly at a free
clinic for the indigenous Tarahumara —Hospital Misión Tarahumara—that Dr.
Berkeley runs through Mexico Medical Missions. The Tarahumara are one of the
few remaining indigenous tribes in North America.
The community consists of approximately 80,000 people in the Copper Canyon
area in the state of Chihuahua in Northern Mexico. Poverty, malnutrition, and lack of
access to care have lead to TB incidence rates at 200 active cases per 100,000
Tarahumara. This is a rate that is equivalent to rates found in Africa, Peru and Russia where high HIV prevalence
facilitates high TB infection rates; however, HIV is virtually non-existent in
the tribe. The project goal was to determine if there were other factors
that were contributing to the Tuberculosis problem and to explore solutions
that could combat the TB epidemic in the Copper Canyon.
This project can largely
be divided into three entities: epidemiological
research, needs assessment and grant writing. The research was an study
designed to elucidate characteristics of TB infection in the Tarahumara
community. The two main factors that we studied are how malnutrition can affect
non-pulmonary TB and whether or not Mycobacterium bovis or other species of TB
are a significant cause of TB in the region. The needs assessment evaluated the
pacity to treat and included data from the epidemiological study. Ultimately,
the need for an alternative approach to TB prevention and treatment is apparent
in the Copper Canyon region. This has led me into a
grant writing project for a “Tarahumara
My mentor, Dr. Berkeley, is looking for 1-2 students to continue work on a
Tuberculosis project or on a project aimed at Infant and Maternal Mortality or
on Malnutrition in the Tarahumara tribe.
Website : www.mexicomedical.org
For more information, contact email@example.com. | <urn:uuid:c8b98ce2-c0f5-437d-ac05-6e73cadef756> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | https://sites.google.com/site/ucdsgh/Home/Projects/tuberculosis-in-the-copper-canyon--mexico | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988721555.54/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183841-00027-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938802 | 454 | 2.578125 | 3 |
Creature Found in Phoenix Zoo Pond
According to Wikipedia: “The alligator snapping turtle is the largest freshwater turtle in North America, the alligator snapper keeps to primarily southern U.S. waters, while the smaller, more aggressive common snapper inhabits lakes and streams from South America to Canada. These turtles can remain submerged for three hours. Typically only nesting females will venture onto open land. The Alligator Snapping Turtle is characterized by a large, heavy head, and a long, thick shell with three dorsal ridges of large scales giving it a primitive appearance reminiscent of some of the plated dinosaurs.”
The Phoenix Herpetological Society says that this creature does not belong in Arizona. They feel that it was an exotic pet for someone. More than likely they didn’t want the responsibility of taking care of it and dump it in the zoo’s pond. No one knows how long it has been in there but have the feeling it made meals of ducks, fish and other turtles leaving in the pond.
Apparently the zoo’s pond seems to be a dumping ground for unwanted exotic creatures. The workers have found approximately 600 non-native turtles living in the pond over the past four years alone. This particular creature is not only dangerous for the beings living in the pond but those visiting the zoo. | <urn:uuid:718ae1f2-8791-45f2-bdce-ba434781639f> | CC-MAIN-2019-22 | http://www.echoesofthesouthwest.com/2010/05/creature-found-in-phoenix-zoo-pond.html?showComment=1275242229874 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-22/segments/1558232256227.38/warc/CC-MAIN-20190521042221-20190521064221-00304.warc.gz | en | 0.948291 | 271 | 2.765625 | 3 |
On March 8, 2010, Procter & Gamble Co. announced a voluntary recall of two flavors of Pringles potato crisps, in response to a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommendation to the food industry to recall all foods containing certain lots of a recalled flavor enhancer. The flavor enhancer ingredient, hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP), may have been contaminated with Salmonella. Pringles flavors affected by the recall include:
The Pringles recall is the latest announcement in an industry-wide ingredient recall of all foods containing HVP manufactured by Basic Food Flavors, Inc., a Las Vegas-based manufacturing plant. HVP is a flavor enhancer used in many processed foods and spices.
During an inspection of the Basic Food Flavors facility in January 2010, FDA investigators discovered unsanitary equipment, poor drainage, and standing pools of liquid that tested positive for Salmonella.
Though there have been no reports of Salmonella-related illness so far, more than 50 product recalls have been issued to protect consumer safety. Products affected by the recall include chips, dips, sauces, soups, salad dressings, onion rings, stews, gravy, snack mixes, and others.
Salmonella can cause serious and potentially fatal infections in children, elderly people, and those with weakened immune systems. In others, Salmonella infection can cause abdominal pain, fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, and vomiting, and in some cases could lead to arthritis, endocarditis, or arterial infection. | <urn:uuid:ab08682a-3556-4593-b069-c658ebd8299b> | CC-MAIN-2014-42 | http://www.consumerwatch.com/news/2010/03/10/pringles-potato-crisps-recalled-procter-gamble.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-42/segments/1414119658026.51/warc/CC-MAIN-20141024030058-00265-ip-10-16-133-185.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.927536 | 318 | 2.578125 | 3 |
IN 1619 an English captain sailing past Cape Cod reported that the Massachusetts shore was “utterly void”. The Indians “died in heapes as they lay in their houses” confirmed an English merchant. By killing much of the population of the Wampanoag confederacy, the epidemic that raged from 1616-19 made possible the first permanent European settlement in north America, that of the Pilgrim Fathers in 1620. The Indians had caught the illness, thought to have been viral hepatitis, from prior contact with Europeans, probably captured French sailors.
Europeans have been exporting their maladies throughout history. They seem to be doing it again, but in a new way. In the past, the problem was infection. Now, illnesses associated with Western living standards are the fastest growing killers in poor and middle-income countries. Chronic disease has become the poor world's greatest health problem.
For many in the West, diseases are a bit like birds: everyone gets them but poor countries have more exotic species. Rich-country maladies are things like heart disease, cancer and diabetes: “chronic” conditions often resulting from diet or physical inactivity. Developing countries suffer more lurid and acute infections: malaria, tuberculosis, measles, cholera. HIV/AIDS is unusual in that it affects rich and poor alike. But otherwise, poor countries are presumed to have their own health problems. The sixth of the United Nations' millennium development goals (a sort of ten commandments of poverty reduction adopted in 2000) is concerned with infections only—the ailments of poverty. The progress report issued last month half way through the millennium programme's 15-year course tracks HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis. Combating chronic disease is not part of what the UN calls its “universal framework for development”.
Yet the distinction between illnesses of affluence and illnesses of poverty is misleading as a description of the world and doubtful as a guide to policy. Heart disease—supposedly an illness of affluence—is by far and away the biggest cause of global mortality. It was responsible for 17.5m deaths worldwide in 2005. Next comes cancer, another non-infectious sickness, which caused more deaths than HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria put together (see chart 1). Chronic conditions such as heart disease took the lives of 35m people in 2005, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO)—twice as many as all infectious diseases.
If you look at lower-middle income countries, such as China, or upper-middle income ones, like Argentina, you find that what kills people there is the same as in the West (see chart 2). Four-fifths of all deaths in China are from chronic sicknesses. That is also true of countries as varied as Egypt, Jamaica and Sri Lanka.
The main difference between these countries and rich ones is that chronic illnesses are more deadly there. Five times as many people die of heart disease in Brazil as in Britain, though Brazil is not five times as populous. Rich countries have become better at dealing with chronic conditions: death rates from heart disease among men over 30 have fallen by more than half in the past generation, from 600-800 per 100,000 in 1970 to 200-300 per 100,000 now.
This has not happened in middle-income countries. In 1980 the death rate for Brazilian men was below the rich-country average (300 compared with 500-600). Its death rate has not changed—and is now higher than all but a few rich countries. Russia is worse off. In 1980 its death rate was 750 per 100,000. Now it is 900, about four times as high as most rich countries.
It may not seem surprising that upper-middle income places such as Russia suffer from “Western” ailments. But chronic diseases are mass killers in the poorest nations, too. Indeed, the only unusual thing about these countries is that they suffer from infections as well as chronic disease: a double burden. Chronic diseases were responsible for over 12m deaths in countries with annual incomes below $750 a head in 2005—almost as many as were caused by communicable ones. Africa is the only continent where infectious illnesses cause more deaths than the non-communicable kinds.
Chronic diseases are becoming deadlier and more burdensome to the poor. By 2015, says the World Bank, these ailments will be the leading cause of death in low-income countries. They already account for almost half of all illnesses there and impose substantial economic costs.
People in poor countries get chronic diseases younger than in the West. There, chronic conditions bear heavily upon the old. Not so in poor and middle-income nations. Death rates for those between 30 and 69 years of age in India, Russia and Brazil are two or three times higher than in Canada and Britain. Almost half of deaths from chronic problems in developing countries occur in people below 70.
As a result, the poor suffer from chronic illnesses longer and are more likely to die of them. The death rate from chronic disease in poor countries is obviously higher than in rich countries; more surprisingly, it is often higher than the death rate from infections. India, Pakistan, Nigeria and Tanzania all have roughly the same death rate for cardiovascular disease: 400 per 100,000. That is at least twice as high as the Western norm and, at least in India and Pakistan, more than four times the average death rate from infections (in Nigeria and Tanzania, HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis are still deadlier).
Chronic disease bears down especially hard on working adults, imposing a heavy economic burden. Families in poor countries are much more likely than in the West to spend their savings looking after a chronically ill relative, or to pull children out of school to act as nursemaids.
In short, developing countries suffer more from “rich world maladies” than the rich world itself. Overall in 2005, only a fifth of deaths attributable to “illnesses of affluence” (chronic conditions) actually took place in the most affluent nations. Three-quarters happened in poor or lower-middle-income ones.
Why are poor countries so vulnerable to the diseases of the rich? And why does public attention and aid money ignore them and focus on infections?
The simplest explanation for chronic diseases' increasing importance is that people in poor countries now live long enough to suffer them. Thanks to better sanitation, more food and improved public health, average life expectancy in low and middle-income countries has risen from 50 in 1965 to 65 in 2005. The increase in the poorest countries was proportionately greater: from 47 to 63. There are now more old people around to be vulnerable to chronic maladies.
At the same time, because of increased health spending and safer water, infectious diseases have declined relative to chronic ones. International financing for malaria control has increased more than tenfold in the past decade. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, with its $33 billion endowment, concentrates largely on infections. As a result, the incidence of tuberculosis, measured by the number of new cases per 100,000, has fallen slightly. In Africa fatal malaria cases among children under five (the main victims) fell between 1960 and 1995, though the decline has since levelled off. The WHO reckons that deaths from infections will decline by 3% over the next ten years. So more people in poor places will survive infections in their dangerous childhoods to reach an age when they are susceptible to heart attacks and cancer.
Since chronic disease among the poor is not the preserve of old age, another part of the explanation for its increasing importance must lie in the harmful things middle-aged folk do. Of these, smoking and unhealthy eating are most important.
Around 300m Chinese men smoke. In China, Egypt, Indonesia and Russia, people spend 5-6% of their household income on cigarettes—far more than the share in rich countries. Smoking and its associated ailments are still rising in poor countries, even while they fall in rich ones.
Middle-income countries are also experiencing extraordinary levels of obesity. According to one study, half of all households in Brazil contain at least one obese person; the share is three-quarters in Russia. According to another, Mexico is the second fattest nation among the 30 (mostly rich) countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, after America. It has the highest rate of diabetes among large countries, with 6.5m diabetics in a population of 100m. Not coincidentally, Mexicans are among the biggest swiggers of fizzy drinks in the world. Coke and tacos, anyone?
Obesity affects rich countries, of course: it is a symptom of affluence and urbanisation. But it is occurring much earlier than anyone had expected in middle-income places. Obesity among children there used to be unheard of. Last year China's vice-minister for health, Wang Longde, said more than a fifth of Chinese children between seven and 17 who live in cities are overweight—a proportion that presumably reflects not only the wealth of China's urban elite but the amount of money they lavish on their “little emperors” (the single children they are limited to by China's one-child policy).
Yet despite all the evidence that chronic disease is the world's biggest health problem, most poor countries focus on infectious disease and their health policies are usually based on the idea that infections should be controlled before chronic conditions. These choices no doubt partly reflect bureaucratic inertia at health ministries and investment in fighting infections by medical charities and drugs firms.
Not just statistics
It is true that there are better reasons why poor countries might want to concentrate on infections despite the growth of chronic disease. Infectious illnesses are usually simpler to deal with than chronic ones, requiring inoculation campaigns rather than long-term care, changes of lifestyle and the uphill work of public education. Moreover, if you inoculate a child against malaria, you considerably reduce his or her chances of dying from that disease, since most deaths from malaria occur among children under ten. If you lower someone's risk of getting a heart condition at 50, you might well find they get it at 60. The disease can only be managed.
Still, it can be managed better: the contrast between death rates from heart attacks (falling in the West, rising elsewhere) shows that. Stalin said a single death is a tragedy, a million deaths, a statistic. But millions of avoidable deaths are millions of tragedies. Chronic disease is already the biggest problem for poor and middle-income countries. To concentrate so much on infections is to add to the health burden of the next generation in what are already the world's poorest, unhealthiest places. | <urn:uuid:8b305750-2529-44d5-9b77-8c0cc4b52d9a> | CC-MAIN-2015-11 | http://www.economist.com/node/9616897/recommend | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-11/segments/1424936464876.43/warc/CC-MAIN-20150226074104-00065-ip-10-28-5-156.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961601 | 2,191 | 3.453125 | 3 |
Even though you're good at it, even though you're famous for it, even though you earn big money doing it, can an artist do so much of a particular type of painting that he grows sick of them, even though their popularity demands he continue? That was the predicament in which John Singer Sargent found himself shortly after the turn of the century as wealthy European dowagers and their debutante daughters practically lined up outside his front door in an effort to join the elite group of rich and famous society ladies to be portrayed by perhaps the most successful portrait painter in history. He came to despise the "paughtraits" for which they heaped obscene amounts of money upon him to paint, referring to many of them from the latter part of his career as "mug shots."
This was not the only difficulty Sargent faced. Coupled with the fact that his portraits had ceased, even in his own eyes, to be great art; was the uprising known as "modern art." His style and subject matter came to appear dated as compared to the work of Picasso, Matisse, even as compared to a painter from his own generation--Monet. Critics declared him passe`. His work was that of another century. He sought refuge painting murals. Today, even though they were painted in England, his mural work can be found in numerous public buildings in the Boston area. He often journeyed to Boston to supervise their installation. So great was his reputation, he was even known to demand changes in the architecture to accommodate them.
Sargent died suddenly in 1925 as he once more prepared to depart London for America, this time to supervise the installation of a series of murals in Boston's Museum of Fine Arts. Today, these works are being prepared to augment the biggest retrospective of his work ever mounted--113 paintings. They come to Boston June 23 through September 26, 1999, following an initial showing in Washington starting May 31. Included in the show will be the infamous portrait of the American-born Paris socialite, Judith (Virginie) Gautreau. It was this daring depiction of a pasty-white dilettante in a sleek black dress with it's scandalous cleavage and slipped shoulder-strap that drove Sargent from Paris to London in 1884. Sargent eventually sold this painting to the Museum of Modern Art in New York, insisting upon the title "Madame X." He described his subjects as having a complexion of "...uniform lavender or blotting paper color all over." (She is said to have regularly ingested small amounts of arsenic to keep it this way.) Her mother told Sargent, "My daughter is lost--everyone in Paris is making fun of her. My son-in-law will have to challenge you to a duel." Sargent is said to have joked in response, "Every time I paint a portrait I make at least one enemy." | <urn:uuid:8790f823-7d3c-493b-b333-8b6dba5a8d8f> | CC-MAIN-2017-39 | http://www.jimlaneart.com/Artyfacts/2-22-99.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-39/segments/1505818693459.95/warc/CC-MAIN-20170925220350-20170926000350-00160.warc.gz | en | 0.988856 | 596 | 2.59375 | 3 |
Location: Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory
Project Number: 1245-13610-028-15
Start Date: Aug 01, 2010
End Date: Sep 10, 2013
This project objective will be addressed in three phases: 1) Starting with a simple existing baseline system - based on a simple linear surface model modern and Kalman filtering – define and construct alternative systems based on more complex data assimilation and/or land surface modeling techniques. Potential data assimilation alternatives include the use of an Ensemble Kalman filter or Particle filtering techniques. Alternative land surface model techniques include the range of complex land surface models currently implemented within the NASA Land Information System. 2) Test the modified system using existing remote sensing datasets and evaluate the degree to which various systems are able to correct satellite-base precipitation to match aggregated rain gauge observations of short-term precipitation accumulations. 3) Prototype the identified system for the eventual availability of NASA Soil Moisture Active/Passive mission soil moisture measurements by running the system using L-band based soil moisture retrievals obtained from the European Space Agency (ESA) Soil Moisture/Ocean Salinity mission. | <urn:uuid:bf1d2c9d-61d9-42df-81e0-4b66af546b4a> | CC-MAIN-2014-10 | http://www.ars.usda.gov/research/projects/projects.htm?accn_no=419708 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-10/segments/1394678705728/warc/CC-MAIN-20140313024505-00054-ip-10-183-142-35.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.828706 | 236 | 2.59375 | 3 |
La Correcta Formulación Del Costo De Capital Aplicada a Flujos De Caja Finitos Y Perpetuidades Para La Valoración De Empresas Por Métodos De Descuento De Flujos De Fondos Y Métodos De Creación De Valor (The Correct Formulation of the Cost of Capital Applied to Finite Cash Flows and Perpetuities for Companies Valuation by Methods of Discounted Cash Flows and Methods of Value Creation)
61 Pages Posted: 16 Jul 2013 Last revised: 24 May 2021
Date Written: July 14, 2013
There are various valuation methodologies applicable to both the financial evaluation of projects as to the valuation of companies. First, have developed methods of Discounted Cash Flows (DCF), which allow discounting, or bring to present value, a series of projected future cash flows over time. In subsequent years, have developed methods of Value Creation (VC), which assess the differences existing between the market value of assets, versus its book value. The difference between these two values is what is known as the creation of value.
However, when applying each existing methodology have been presented inconsistencies and contradictions in the obtained value which have led to the erroneous conclusion that each method provides a different market value. Such inconsistencies occur because of a topic that is not analyzed with the relevant scientific and mathematical rigor in traditional Corporate Finance books: the cost of capital.
The key to achieve a consistency of value in all the methods of both DCF as of VC is to use the correct formulation of Cost of Capital. The value of the company or project does not change only by the simple fact of use one method or another. Therefore, there must be consistency among all the methods when using the appropriate discount rate.
In the following pedagogical note is presented, through a series of equations and demos, the different expressions of cost of capital applicable to finite cash flows and to perpetuities, allowing to get the same result of market value for all the methods of valuation. In addition, it will be mathematically proved that the methods of Value Creation match in their result with the methods of Discounted Cash Flow.
Note: Downloadable document is in Spanish.
Keywords: Cost of Capital, Discounted Cash Flows, Value Creation, Tax Shield, Unlevered Beta, Cost of Equity, Traditional WACC, Adjusted WACC, Free Cash Flow, Capital Cash Flow, Equity Cash Flow, Adjusted Present Value, Economic Value Added, Cash Value Added, Net Value Added, Investment Recovery and Value Add
JEL Classification: G12, G31, G32, H25, M10, M21, M41
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation | <urn:uuid:fc7b7431-93ea-451e-863a-30e51e233a41> | CC-MAIN-2022-21 | https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2293727 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-21/segments/1652662519037.11/warc/CC-MAIN-20220517162558-20220517192558-00484.warc.gz | en | 0.893012 | 566 | 2.875 | 3 |
Virtual Tour of Pendennis Castle
Use the virtual tour below to explore Pendennis Castle.
You can navigate around the castle via the circular windows, and then select the ‘i’ symbols to find out about specific features. The tabs (top right) and circular red icons provide another way of navigating to particular areas of interest.
Find out more about Pendennis Castle
A Soldier Writes from Pendennis
John Glasson Thomas wrote fond letters to a friend, Gertie Brooks, when he was posted to Pendennis Castle during the First World War. Read excerpts for insights into his wartime life.
A history of Pendennis Castle
Read the full 400-year history of Pendennis Castle, from its Tudor origins, through the Civil War siege, to its role in the First and Second World Wars.
The Tudor period saw the gradual evolution of England’s medieval army into a larger, firearm-wielding force supported by powerful ships and formidable gun forts. | <urn:uuid:4c0be9ef-058c-49c3-9d48-3d76ab181fa9> | CC-MAIN-2021-39 | https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/pendennis-castle/history-and-stories/virtual-tour/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-39/segments/1631780058222.43/warc/CC-MAIN-20210926235727-20210927025727-00247.warc.gz | en | 0.886982 | 202 | 2.640625 | 3 |
Whenever I speak to audiences about the science of learning, as I’ve been doing a lot this fall, one topic always comes up in the Q&A; sessions that follow my talk: learning styles. Learning styles—the notion that each student has a particular mode by which he or she learns best, whether it’s visual, auditory or some other sense—is enormously popular. It’s also been thoroughly debunked.
The scientific research on learning styles is “so weak and unconvincing,” concluded a group of distinguished psychologists in a 2008review , that it is not possible “to justify incorporating learning-styles assessments into general educational practice.” A 2010 article was even more blunt: “There is no credible evidence that learning styles exist,” wrote University of Virginia cognitive scientist Daniel Willingham and co-author Cedar Riener. While students do have preferences about how they learn, the evidence shows they absorb information just as well whether or not they encounter it in their preferred mode.
This doesn’t mean, however, that teachers and parents should present material to be learned in just one fashion. All learners benefit when information is put forth in diverse ways that engage a multitude of the senses. Take, for example, a program that teaches math using music. At Hoover Elementary School in Northern California, a group of third-graders learned to connect the numerical representation of fractions with the value of musical notes, such as half-notes and eighth notes. Fractions are notoriously difficult for young students to grasp, and a failure to catch on early can hobble their performance in math into middle and high school. Clapping, drumming and chanting gave these pupils another avenue through which to understand the concept.
Called “Academic Music,” the program was designed by San Francisco State education professor Susan Courey and three colleagues. Courey recently reported on the results of Academic Music in the journalEducational Studies in Mathematics . After six weeks of music-based teaching, students scored 50 percent higher on a fractions test than students in the same school who attended conventional math classes. Children who started out with less fraction knowledge responded well to the musical instruction, Courey writes, “and produced post-test scores similar to their higher achieving peers.”
The lesson here: The “learning style” that teachers and parents should focus on is the universal learning style of the human mind, and two characteristics of it in particular.
First, students benefit from encountering information in multiple forms. They learn more, for example, from flashcards that incorporate both text and images—charts, graphs, etc.—than from cards that display text alone.
Second, students’ interest is kept alive by novelty and variety, so regularly turning away from textbooks and blackboards is key. As long as the new activity genuinely informs the students about the academic subject at hand, clapping a math lesson—or sketching in science class, or acting during story time—can help every student to learn better.
One more thought about learning styles: instead of dividing learners into categories such as visual, auditory, and kinesthetic, a classification I find much more useful is the one proposed by historian and educator Ken Bain, author of the | <urn:uuid:b4437262-0d58-490a-9cda-81a9bd13740a> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/article/the-science-of-smart-forget-about-learning-styles-heres-something-better/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573667.83/warc/CC-MAIN-20220819100644-20220819130644-00057.warc.gz | en | 0.953678 | 666 | 3.875 | 4 |
Winter Solstice Webcast - 2008
The expected Winter Solstice illumination of the passage and chamber at Newgrange was streamed live on the internet by the OPW (Office of Public Works).
Unfortunately it was a dull damp morning at Newgrange on December 21st, the shortest day of the year. Cloudy skies prevented the sun's rays from illuminating the passage and chamber of the 5000 year old mound at Newgrange. The OPW had to incorporate clips from the 2007 webcast into the live 2008 webcast.
Full achieve videos of Solstice 2007 and Solstice 2008 are available online.
Both achieve videos are about one hour long, here is a six minute Compilation of the 2007 Solstice by Victor Reijs.
Newgrange is best known for the illumination of its passage and chamber by the winter solstice sun. Above the entrance to the passage at Newgrange there is a opening called a roof-box. This baffling orifice held a great surprise for those who unearthed it. Its purpose is to allow sunlight to penetrate the chamber on the shortest days of the year around the winter solstice.
At dawn, from December 19th to 23rd, a narrow beam of light penetrates the roof-box and reaches the floor of the chamber, gradually extending to the rear of the passage. As the sun rises higher, the beam widens within the chamber so that the whole room becomes dramatically illuminated. This event lasts for 17 minutes, beginning around 9am.
Newgrange's accuracy as a time-telling device is remarkable when one considers that it was built 500 years before the Great Pyramids and more than 1,000 years before Stonehenge. The intent of its builders was undoubtedly to mark the beginning of the new year. In addition, it may have served as a powerful symbol of the victory of life over death.
Each year the winter solstice event attracts much attention at Newgrange. Many gather at the ancient tomb to wait for dawn, as people did 5,000 years ago. So great is the demand to be one of the few inside the chamber during the solstice that there is a free annual lottery (application forms are available at the Visitor Centre). Unfortunately, as with many Irish events that depend upon sunshine, if the skies are overcast, there is not much to be seen. Yet all agree that it is an extraordinary feeling to wait in the darkness, as people did so long ago, for the longest night of the year to end.
There's no light in sight for Gormley as M3 protesters cast a cloud over winter solstice
An article by Eimear Ni Bhraonain of the Irish Indpendent - Monday December 22nd 2008.
Hundreds of winter solstice watchers were left disappointed yesterday as the sun failed to shine on Newgrange. Dull weather prevented the light shining into the 5,000-year-old burial chamber as dawn broke on the shortest day of the year.
Environment Minister John Gormley -- one of 19 VIPs and lottery winners allowed entry to the Neolithic chamber -- didn't get the blame for the sun failing to shine at the ancient Co Meath site. But the Green Party leader was heckled over his failure to reroute the M3 motorway from historic cultural sites at the Tara and Skryne Valley.
"When you come out Minister John Gormley, will your hands be untied?" shouted Heather Buchanan, from Co Meath. "He talks about sacred land but he doesn't practise what he preaches. I want to know what his intentions are going into the chamber, what does he hope to achieve by entering the chamber? What does he feel coming out of the chamber, I'd love to know, I'm sure the whole nation would love to know that."
Others among the eclectic gathering, who were attempting to meditate before sunrise, accused Ms Buchanan of "ruining" the event. "Later on, you could have had your chance, but now you've ruined the whole morning for me. Talk to him [John Gormley] afterwards. Don't ruin it for everybody else," said one woman.
When Mr Gormley emerged from the passage tomb, he was confronted for a second time by two protestors. In response to their criticisms, he told the Irish Independent that he had "no problem" with them but added it was not the "right place".
"It's a day which requires people to meditate and that, I don't think, is actually appropriate. It's not the place to shout, that's my view," he said. Justice Minister Dermot Ahern was also among the chosen few to enter the monument. Although the ray of light failed to show, he said the experience was "fascinating".
It was Mr Ahern's first time inside the tomb, despite him living only 20 minutes away in Dundalk. "The last time I was here, I was a child and I didn't get in," he added. Hundreds of people travelled from across the country to attend the event, which was also enjoyed by tourists from the US, England, France and the Netherlands.
Noirin Rooney "stayed up all night" to make the journey from Co Tipperary. "We're here to greet the new dawn, the return of the light," she said. Christine Deady from Co Cork described the experience as "very special". "I'm pretty sure that this is a spiritual momentum, it's the vortex of the year. Also I know that it being the darkest day of the year, for a lot of healers, and people of that persuasion, it's the New Year. This is like New Year's Eve in the spiritual world. I think this means more than the 31st of December," she added.
It was a romantic occasion for one couple, Ed Lyne from Co Kerry and his fiancee Magda Kiarszys, who were celebrating their anniversary at the event. "We got engaged last year on the 21st. We thought we'd come down to see what it was like."
Eimear Ni Bhraonain
Boyne Valley ToursPrivate Tours by Limousine or Mercedes-Benz Minivan. Pick up and return to your accommodation or cruise ship. Suggested day tour: Brú na Bóinne Visitors Centre and Newgrange, the 10th century High Crosses and Round Tower at Monasterboice, Hill of Tara the seat of the High Kings of Ireland, Bective Abbey and Trim Castle the largest Anglo-Norman castle in Ireland. More ...
Setting Sun AlignmentsThe Winter Solstice Setting Sun illuminates the chamber at the nearby Dowth mound and at the cairn on Slieve Gullion in Co. Armagh.
Amazon derives a significant percentage of its sales from affiliates called Amazon Associates, selling Books, CD, Music, DVDs, Electronics and Video Games. Apparel and Accessories like Levi Jeans, Beauty products Amazon started out selling books online. | <urn:uuid:183b941b-26f8-4d63-b407-250e6256454d> | CC-MAIN-2014-41 | http://www.newgrange.com/webcast_08.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-41/segments/1410657136896.39/warc/CC-MAIN-20140914011216-00171-ip-10-234-18-248.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970243 | 1,443 | 2.984375 | 3 |
Windows TabControl is a useful control that allows you display multiple dialogs tabs on a single form by switching between the tabs. A tab acts as another Form that can host other controls. Figure 1 shows an example of TabControl in Visual Studio .NET, which allows you to switch among multiple files using the tabs.
In this tutorial, I will explain how to create and use a TabControl in your Windows applications with C#.
Adding a TabControl to Form
The simplest way to create a TabControl is using Visual Studio .NET. I create a Windows Form application using Visual Studio .NET and add a TabControl from Toolbox to the Form by dragging the TabControl to the Form. After that I resize and reposition TabControl according to the Form size. The Form Designer adds the code for TabControl for you. If you see the code, you will notice once private variable of type System.Windows.Forms.TabControl as following:
private System.Windows.Forms.TabControl tabControl1;
The System.Windows.Forms.TabControl class represents a TabControl in .NET. Now if you see the InitializeComponent method generated by the Form Designer, you will see the code for TabControl such as setting TabControl location, name, size and adding the TabControl to the Form controls. See Listing 1.
private void InitializeComponent()
this.tabControl1 = new System.Windows.Forms.TabControl();
this.tabControl1.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(8, 16);
this.tabControl1.Name = "tabControl1";
this.tabControl1.SelectedIndex = 0;
this.tabControl1.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(352, 248);
this.tabControl1.TabIndex = 0;
this.AutoScaleBaseSize = new System.Drawing.Size(5, 13);
this.ClientSize = new System.Drawing.Size(368, 273);
this.Name = "Form1";
this.Text = "Form1";
Figure 1 shows an example Understanding the TabControl and TabPage class
A TabControl is a collection of tab pages and a tab page is the actual control that hosts other child controls. TabPage class represents a tab page.
TabControl class represents a TabControl. This class provides members (properties, methods, and events) to work with the TabControls. Table 1 lists the TabControl properties.
|Alignment ||Area of the control where the tabs are aligned.|
|Visual appearance of the control's tabs.|
|A way that the control's tab pages are drawn.|
|HotTrack ||Value indicating whether the control's tabs change in appearance when the mouse passes over them.|
|ImageList ||The images to display on the control's tabs.|
|Size of the control's tabs.|
|Multiline || A value indicating whether more than one row of tabs can be displayed.|
|Amount of space around each item on the control's tab pages. |
|Returns the number of rows that are currently being displayed in the control's tab strip.|
|The index of the currently-selected tab page.|
|SelectedTab ||Currently selected tab page.|
|The value indicating whether a tab's ToolTip is shown when the mouse passes over the tab.|
|The way that the control's tabs are sized.|
|TabCount || Number of tabs in the tab strip.|
|TabPages ||Returns the collection of tab pages in this tab control.|
Adding TabPage to a TabControl
Now I will add few tabs to the TabControl with the help of Properties window of TabControl. The Properties window has a property called TabPages, which is a collection of TabPage controls (see Figure 2). A TabPage represents a page of the TabControl that can host child controls.
Figure 2. TabPages property of TabControl
Now if you click on TabPages property in Property window, it launches TabPage Collection Editor (see Figure 3) where you can add a new page or remove existing pages by using Add and Remove buttons. You can also set the properties of pages by using the right side properties grid. As you can see from Figure 3, I add two pages and set their properties.
Figure 3. Adding Tab pages to a TabControl
After adding two pages to TabControl, the final Form looks like Figure 4.
Figure 4. A Form with two Tab pages
Adding and Removing a TabPage to TabControl Programmatically
You can add and remove Tab pages to a TabControl using the TabControl.TabPages.Add and TabControl.TabPages.Remove methods. The following code snippet adds a new page to the TabControl programmatically:
TabPage newPage = new TabPage("New Page");
tabControl1.TabPages.Add(newPage); After adding the page, the new TabControl would look like Figure 5.
Figure 5. Adding a Tab page programmatically.
The Remove method of TabPageCollection class (through TabControl.TabPages) removes a page by name or index from the page collection. The following code snippet removes "New Page" from the collection:
TabPage newPage = new TabPage("New Page");
tabControl1.TabPages.Remove(newPage); The RemoveAll method removes all the pages from the collection.
Adding Controls to a TabPage
Adding controls to a TabPage is similar to adding controls to a Form. Make a page active in the Form Designer and drag and drop controls from Toolbox to the page. I add a Label, a TextBox, and a Button control to Settings page of TabControl and change their properties. The final page looks like Figure 6.
Figure 6. Adding controls to a Tab page
Controls are added to a page by using TabPage.Controls.Add method. Now if you see the code generated by the designer, you will notice the following code:
this.SettingsPage.Controls.Add(this.label1); Using the same code, you can even add controls to a TabPage programmatically.
Access Controls of a TabPage
All controls of a TabPage are local to a Form and accessible from the Form without adding any additional functionality. For example, the following code sets the Text property of the TextBox on Preferences Tab page:
Getting and Setting Active Tab Programmaticall
You can get and set an active tab of a TabControl programmatically using the SelectedTab property of TabControl. For example, the following code snippet sets PreferencePage as active tab:
this.tabControl1.SelectedTab = this.PreferencesPage; | <urn:uuid:1e50749b-4cf5-4328-a03b-4dbe69cf318a> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.c-sharpcorner.com/article/working-with-windows-tabcontrol-with-C-Sharp/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988722653.96/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183842-00071-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.755375 | 1,411 | 2.734375 | 3 |
Refinery neighbors hope to breathe easier after air pollution study
Light beams, mirrors will be used for first time to collect air quality dataFebruary 13, 2015 Updated: February 13, 2015 11:15pm
Across Avenue R from Valero Energy Corp.'s Houston refinery sits Hartman Park, a tree-lined island roughly as long and as wide as a city block. There are swing sets, two tennis courts and an infield scratched out of its expanse.
Beyond center field, in the northeast corner of the decades-old park, is its newest fixture: a high-tech lamp mounted atop four stories of scaffolding. The equipment is part of a monthlong project, set to launch as soon as Monday, to gather real-time data on harmful air pollution in Manchester, a working-class and predominantly Hispanic neighborhood just outside Loop 610 East.
Researchers say the government-funded study will be the first to use light beams and mirrors to create three-dimensional maps of the air pollution over a neighborhood next to a refinery. The images should show the size and movements of a plume and help to pinpoint its source, said Jay Olaguer, director of the air quality program at the Houston Advanced Research Center, which is coordinating the project with some universities and state =and local agencies.
"This is literally a CAT scan" of the air, Olaguer said. "It will lead to more transparency."
To read this article in one of Houston's most-spoken languages, click on the button below.
The study comes as the Environmental Protection Agency considers the first new regulations in nearly two decades to reduce air pollution from the nation's 150 major oil refineries. The proposed rules, scheduled to be in finalized in April, would force operators to upgrade controls for storage tanks and to reduce emissions from flares, which burn off gases to relieve pressure during startup, shutdown or maintenance.
Monitoring benzene levels
The regulations also would require refineries for the first time to monitor and report fence-line levels of benzene, a cancer-causing chemical they release into the air. Industry officials in Texas have told the EPA that the changes are unnecessary because the public is adequately protected by the state's monitoring networks.
Some environmental groups, meanwhile, have argued that the proposal does not go far enough because benzene levels will be reported over six months, not in real time. They also questioned whether stationary fence-line monitors are the right approach because a lot of pollution can drift over them without detection.
"If the benzene plume drifts overhead or a few feet from the monitor to the right or left, the monitor will detect very little benzene or even none at all," said Neil Carman, a former industrial plant inspector for the state who now works for the Sierra Club's Lone Star chapter. "This kind of monitoring data is very limited."
Regulators and refiners also have used hand-held infrared cameras to spot leaks, employed vans and aircraft to chase plumes and canisters to capture pollution samples in the neighborhoods, among other strategies. But all of them have limitations - expense, labor time or the lag time in data analysis.
The Houston Advanced Research Center's project differs from conventional approaches because it's multidimensional and operates continuously but does not require around-the-clock staffing. It also can provide air quality data within seconds.
Light and mirrors
The new technique is designed to measure air pollution by bouncing a light beam off a mirror, typically located 1 or 2 kilometers away, and capturing the light on its return. The light changes in composition as it passes through certain gases and thus gives scientists clues as to what is in the air.
Researchers mounted mirrors on towers and bridges to produce a grid with seven light paths over the Manchester neighborhood. The coverage should provide enough data to produce three-dimensional maps of the pollution. Vans equipped with air quality monitors also will move around the coverage area to measure benzene and other pollutants at ground level.
"This is the next generation of instruments," said Jochen Stutz, an atmospheric chemist at the University of California at Los Angeles and one of the lead researchers on the project. "If we can convince EPA that this is a good idea, maybe this is deployable."
The multi-layered study also involves exposing cultured human lung cells to air samples collected by a research team from the University of Houston.
Researchers chose Manchester for the project in part because it is one of the worst places in Texas for emissions of benzene, a known carcinogen that is a part of crude oil and gasoline.
In 2000, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality added the area and some surrounding communities to a watch list because of high concentrations of the air pollutant. Levels were so high in 2005 that one scientist told the Houston Chronicle that living in the neighborhood would be like "sitting in traffic 24-7."
Drop in pollutant reported
Manchester, one of the oldest neighborhoods in Houston, is boxed in by a freeway, a rail yard and the refinery. The midsize plant began operations in 1942, with San Antonio-based Valero acquiring it in 1997.
The refinery's benzene emissions have dropped by 56 percent, from 19,231 pounds in 2005 to 8,486 pounds in 2013, according to self-reported data to the EPA. Valero attributes the improvement to additional pollution controls at the plant.
But environmentalists and neighbors say benzene levels are still too high. Chronic exposure even to low concentrations can be harmful over time, studies show, prompting the EPA's new push for monitors on the fence lines of refineries.
Valero doesn't measure emissions levels at the Houston refinery's edges unless there is an unforeseen release of pollution during startup, shutdown, equipment malfunctions and maintenance.
Yudith Nieto, who lives in Manchester, said the neighborhood doesn't need another study to show that residents are breathing unhealthy air. But she hopes the experiment will encourage more regulatory action by providing greater detail about pollution levels.
"What worries me about the project is that nothing more will come out of it," she said. "We need next steps for safer and cleaner practices." | <urn:uuid:937dfaaf-59ed-4e2f-bc5c-3df6a3e821e1> | CC-MAIN-2018-13 | https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/science-environment/article/Refinery-neighbors-hope-to-breathe-easier-after-6079972.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-13/segments/1521257645830.10/warc/CC-MAIN-20180318165408-20180318185408-00027.warc.gz | en | 0.948492 | 1,252 | 2.8125 | 3 |
Imperfections found on the surface of a Diamond.
describes how well a diamond reflects white light.
is a unit of weight measurement used for weighing diamonds. One carat equals 0.2 grams or 200 milligrams. 142 carats equals one (1) avoirdupois ounce.
measures the degree of visibility of surface blemishes or internal inclusions of a diamond.
Minor inclusion appearing milky rather than dark or ash like, only minimally detracting from the stone's appearance.
measures the tint or internal color of a diamond, ranging from colorless to light brown or yellow.
refers to the upper domed surface above the girdle of a cut diamond. The angle of the crown between the girdle and the table is considered acceptable at between 30.0-37.0 degrees. Crown height is considered acceptable when between 11.0-16.2% of the girdle's diameter.
CT or CTS
Stands for total carat weight of singular stone.
Indicates the total diamond carat weight of the jewelry item.
is the end point of the pavilion, finer being considered better, however a sharp point is susceptible to chipping.
refers the shape (round, square, emerald, pear, oval, marquis, etc.) and proportions of a cut diamond.
is the vertical height of the diamond from the table to the cutlet. Considered acceptable when between 57.0 to 65.0% of the girdle's diameter.
Diamond appears to be free of surface blemishes and inclusions to the naked eye. Diamonds graded SI-2 or better will appear to be eye clean.
are the small polished plane surfaces of a cut gem stone. A brilliant (round), full-cut diamond has 56 facets, while stones under 3 points can have as few as 16 (single cut).
Refers to the quality of the diamond's polish and symmetry.
Describes the intensity and diversity of the light spectrum (rainbow colors) emanating from a diamond.
Refers to the emission of photoluminescence by a diamond detectable under a black light. Blue fluorescence can enhance a diamonds color, but other colors are considered less desirable.
refers to the edge where the crown and pavilion of a cut diamond meet, marking the maximum diameter or width of the diamond. A girdle width of between 2.0-4.0% of the girdle's diameter is considered acceptable. Too sharp or thin a girdle increases the likelihood of chipping.
is the diameter of the diamond at the point where the crown and pavilion meet. Other dimension characteristics of a cut diamond are expressed as a percentage (%) of the girdle diameter.
refers to the internal defects of a diamond, appearing as ash like flakes, cracks, clouds, or other imperfections.
Describes the diamond's cut and proportions.
is the tapered underhalf or base of a cut diamond below the girdle. The angle of the pavilion from the girdle to the cutlet is considered acceptable when between 39.7-41.7 degrees. Pavilion depth is considered acceptable when between 41.5-45.5% of the girdle's diameter.
is a unit of weight equal to 1/100 of a carat, 100 points equaling one carat, and written as 1.00 carat.
Describes the luster of a diamond's exterior finish.
Describes if the diamond is true to its desired shape and is in balanced proportions.
is the flat top surface of a cut diamond. Table diameter is considered acceptable when between 51.4-66.0% of the girdle's diameter. | <urn:uuid:445c96f7-67ca-4e04-b947-cbd3b5923e0e> | CC-MAIN-2014-15 | http://stores.ebay.co.uk/jamjo-fine-jewellery/GRADING.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-15/segments/1397609535775.35/warc/CC-MAIN-20140416005215-00541-ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.875498 | 778 | 2.6875 | 3 |
History is all around us!
It allows us to see where we came from and how the modern world, Britain and even our communities were shaped. It provides our children with an identity and can allow them to see where they fit in. ‘Ultimately there’s something in history for everyone because it’s everything that’s ever happened’! (Lipscomb 2013)
Here at St Edburg’s we aim to inspire children’s curiosity through our teaching of History by giving them unforgettable experiences and visits; exposing them to grisly stories; teaching them quirky facts, showing them quality texts and giving them the chance to explore intriguing artefacts. We take the children from Bicester and the surrounding areas in the 1960s to fiery London in 1666. They travel from Stone Age Britain, to the innovative Ancient Mayan civilisation and beyond!
Our History curriculum provides all children with the knowledge and skills they will need to be able to succeed as historians. This knowledge and skillset is built upon year after year through careful sequencing and planning. At St Edburg’s we use an enquiry approach, and each unit is planned around a big question. Every lesson within the enquiry builds towards being able to find answers for those questions using a range of skills.
We facilitate children’s learning with how to find evidence from a range of exciting sources, think critically and evaluate them, before drawing their own conclusions using their own judgement. We encourage children to ask perceptive questions to help them understand the complexity of people’s lives, the process of change, and the diversity of societies and relationships between different groups. We ensure that our History curriculum is inclusive for our students by exposing them to a diverse variety of individuals, societies, cultures and communities both within and across time periods.
We hope that by the time our children leave St Edburg’s they will be equipped with the ability to think critically and make balanced judgements. Most importantly we want them to have developed a love for learning, a passion for history and a curious mind.
Take a look at history at school in our gallery | <urn:uuid:c70f03cd-adef-4ac1-b833-8b9aadf23528> | CC-MAIN-2023-50 | https://www.st-edburgs.oxon.sch.uk/curriculum/long-term-planning/history | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-50/segments/1700679100499.43/warc/CC-MAIN-20231203094028-20231203124028-00386.warc.gz | en | 0.956376 | 436 | 3.59375 | 4 |
Aerial photography pioneer George Lawrence Jun 24 2013
In the early 1900s, photographer George Lawrence built what he called the Lawrence Captive Airship, a series of kites and wires able to hold aloft a camera mounted on a stabilizing mechanism. With his invention, he was able to take aerial photos of cities all over the country -- Brooklyn, Atlantic City, Chicago, Kansas City. You've probably seen his photos of a burnt-out San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake.
You gotta love anyone whose company motto was "the hitherto impossible in photography is our specialty". (via coudal) | <urn:uuid:9c0500e0-d19e-4225-99c8-d574f1e1ab07> | CC-MAIN-2016-30 | http://kottke.org/tag/George%20Lawrence | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-30/segments/1469257831771.10/warc/CC-MAIN-20160723071031-00146-ip-10-185-27-174.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963085 | 121 | 2.578125 | 3 |
Can a Generator Run an AC Window Unit?
Any window air conditioning unit can be powered by a generator. However, you may not be able to power many other appliances plus an AC window unit, depending on the size of the generator. Wattage is the primary unit of measurement used to determine how much a generator can handle. If you are considering purchasing a generator to power a window AC unit and additional appliances, you need to do basic math and planning to determine if the generator you choose is sufficient.
Wattage (W) is the basic unit of measurement for electric power. It is defined as amperage (current or electrical flow) multiplied by voltage (electric potential). All appliances that plug into a standard duplex receptacle in the United States operate on a nominal 120 volts (V). The actual volts present at the outlet depends on a number of factors, including the electrical utility, and the length and size of the cable feeding the outlet. However, you can reasonably expect that a properly installed duplex receptacle on a 120-V circuit has between 110 and 125 volts present. Amperage (A) varies from unit to unit.
Typical Window Unit Wattage
Window AC units have two watt ratings: starting wattage and running wattage. Starting wattage is higher because as the machine starts up and the motor begins to turn, amperage spikes as the motor draws higher current to overcome inertia and starting friction. A typical starting wattage for a window unit is 2200. Once the motor is running steadily, the amperage drops and the wattage usually is around 1500. Your unit may have different ratings. Examine the nameplate or the specifications in the manual to determine how much power your AC unit uses.
There are generators for just about any situation. The smallest generators are portable gas-powered units. The largest industrial-size generators can power a whole facility. A homeowner is likely to have either a small, portable generator or a whole-house generator. Electricians generally install a generator, which is wired to a sub-panel or the main panel, depending on its size and specifications. Connecting your generator to an electrical panel allows for more efficient and safer power distribution throughout a house.
Generators are rated according to the maximum wattage they can handle. A typical portable generator for emergency use by a homeowner might be rated 4000 to 7500 W. Whole-house standby models typically are rated 25,000 W or higher. If you are considering purchasing a generator, deciding what size to buy is not as simple as adding up the watts of the appliances you'll use. Judicious power management strategies can help maximize the potential of your generator.
Charles W. St.Clair has been writing professionally since 2003. He lives in Oakland, Calif., working as an electrician and carpenter. St. Clair holds a bachelor's degree in public policy from Emory & Henry College and a master's degree in city planning from University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, where he specialized in food system planning. | <urn:uuid:93300d47-59b2-48f6-a146-14b0a6c92524> | CC-MAIN-2021-04 | https://homeguides.sfgate.com/can-generator-run-ac-window-unit-77964.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-04/segments/1610704839214.97/warc/CC-MAIN-20210128071759-20210128101759-00746.warc.gz | en | 0.920022 | 619 | 3.125 | 3 |
You’ve stopped smoking. You have a good diet. You don’t drink a lot. You exercise. You’re nice and healthy, right? You could be doing more.
You might have been neglecting the vagus nerve. If so, the time has come to start exercising it. You’ll be healthier (and happier) as a result.
The chances are you haven’t even heard of it, but this is a nerve that is crucial to our emotional (and, it turns out, physical) well-being . . .
It’s a nerve that regulates positive emotion in our bodies and one that, according to scientists, ‘is intimately tied to how we connect to one another’. It’s a nerve that turns positive social contact into a warm feeling in our hearts and makes us feel better about our lives. It’s a nerve that, exercised correctly, has potential benefits for us all, both individually and collectively.
The bottom line here is that, following a recent research program in North Carolina, it has been found that being kind to others is good for us. Given the principles that underpin our efforts here at OM®, it should come as no surprise that this has struck quite a chord in our studio.
The scientific details we’ll spare you, in the main because they’re a little on the complicated side. But having spent time monitoring two groups of people – one of which engaged in regular Loving-Kindness Meditation (in which the focus is on warm, compassionate thoughts about yourself and others) and one of which didn’t – the researchers noted a distinct difference.
‘It (the meditation program) is like softening your own heart to be more open to others,’ explains Professor Barbara Fredrickson. The good news is that the principles involved can be applied in all our lives and that the exercises couldn’t be easier.
In stimulating the vagus nerve – which, amongst other things, helps to regulate heart rate and breathing – researchers have discovered that the risk of cardiovascular disease (and other major threats to our physical health) can be lowered. This all, remember, just from being nicer to people and exercising greater kindness.
The vagus nerve can help to release oxytocin, a hormone that is important in social bonding, into our bodies, making us feel closer and more connected to others, and boosting altruistic behavior. This all from a nerve that most people haven’t even heard of, but one that is in us all.
This is, for obvious reasons, a simplified version, an explanation for the layman, but the findings (and their significance to us all) cannot be questioned.
‘The biggest news is that we’re able to change something physical about people’s health by increasing their daily diet of positive emotion, and that helps us get at a long-standing mystery of how our emotional and social experience affects our physical health,’ adds Professor Fredrickson. ‘We’ve had a lot of indirect clues that relationships are healing. What’s exciting about this study is that it suggests that every [positive] interaction we have with people is a miniature health tune-up.’
We don’t want to labor the point, but being kind to others, exercising compassion and thinking positive thoughts makes us healthier in terms both mental and physical. It makes us happier, hopeful and more content. It makes us feel closer to others and more connected to the people around us.
This all thanks to one under-appreciated nerve, a nerve that can be exercised and strengthened just with a little love, with a positive outlook on life and with harmonious thought. Bearing such things in mind, we should all do our utmost to be nicer to each other. It’s good for us, after all. | <urn:uuid:d945485c-6957-4f9a-bf1b-97fc6055ca51> | CC-MAIN-2020-05 | https://weareallconnected.blog/2013/05/16/its-official-kindness-is-good-for-us/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-05/segments/1579250604397.40/warc/CC-MAIN-20200121132900-20200121161900-00393.warc.gz | en | 0.956152 | 804 | 2.53125 | 3 |
Cactus Feeding Moths - Introduction
The relatively recent introduction of Cactoblastis cactorum, the exotic cactus moth, into the Caribbean and subsequently into the United States has generated much research, field surveys, and efforts to prevent the spread of this species into western areas of the United States and Mexico. Other species of cactus moths, e.g., Melitara, lack the same level of destructiveness and invasiveness comparable to that of Cactoblastis. Cactoblastis has been widely studied because of its use as a biological control agent for cactus introduced into Australia, South Africa, and elsewhere. Yet much basic information on morphology, behavior, and other biological attributes are lacking for this important exotic species. The native cactus moths have been studied even less Cactoblastis, with only four signification publications on native species during the past century. Comparative information on the exotic and native cactus moths is essential for distinguishing all stages of the cactus moth from those of native species. In addition, the answers to basic questions regarding the more invasive behavior of Cactoblastis, relative to native species, cannot be answered without greater knowledge of the latter.The exotic Cactoblastis, native cactus feeding species, and related non-cactus feeding genera form a monophyletic clade within Pyralidae, subfamily Phycitinae. This web site provides basic information on genera and species of this clade of phycitine moths. More detailed information is provided for Cactoblastis, including a video illustrating the technique for preparing genitalia dissections for identifications. Bibliographies for Cactoblastis cactorum and all phycitine species in the cactus feeding clade are provided. | <urn:uuid:72757d4d-e732-4465-8d2c-53410b25eaf7> | CC-MAIN-2015-22 | http://www.mississippientomologicalmuseum.org.msstate.edu/Researchtaxapages/CactusMoths/Introduction.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-22/segments/1432207929176.79/warc/CC-MAIN-20150521113209-00104-ip-10-180-206-219.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.909728 | 373 | 3.421875 | 3 |
Named By: A. C. Daley & J. S. Peel - 2010.
Classification: Arthropoda, Dinocaridida, Radiodonta, Anomalocarida.
Species: T. borealis (type).
Diet: Filter feeder.
Size: Reconstructed to be about 70 centimetres long.
Known locations: Greenland - Buen Formation Formation.
Time period: Early Cambrian.
Fossil representation: Fossils of at least two individuals.
was first described as a possible anomalocaridid
back in 2010, but
by 2014 the genus was not only being confirmed as an
anomalocaridid, but as a filter feeder. Anomalocaridids generally
have two curving appendages that depending upon the genus, are
usually situated in front of the head. The appendages on Tamisiocaris
had many more backward facing bristles that other genera and they were
very fine forming a comb-like structure. This ‘combs’ are thought
to have been swept through the water so that small aquatic organisms
from plankton to small invertebrates were caught in them. The
appendages would then curl back around and deliver the bristles to the
mouth where they would be sucked clean of the trapped organisms.
In 2015 a new anomalocaridid named Aegiroscassis was named, and this is also thought to have been a filter feeder, and one that reached very large sizes.
- A Possible Anomalocaridid from the Cambrian Sirius Passet Lagerstätte, North Greenland. - Journal of Paleontology 84(2):352-355. - A. C. Daley & J. S. Peel - 2010.
- A suspension-feeding anomalocarid from the Early Cambrian. - Nature 507:496-499. - J. Vinther, M. Stein, N. R. Longrich & D. A. T. Harper - 2014. | <urn:uuid:96e1417e-5cb9-4f2f-b8b1-2698febacbbf> | CC-MAIN-2018-51 | http://www.prehistoric-wildlife.com/species/t/tamisiocaris.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-51/segments/1544376829399.59/warc/CC-MAIN-20181218123521-20181218145521-00378.warc.gz | en | 0.887478 | 431 | 3.390625 | 3 |
The use of Ritalin and Concerta, drugs for treating attention deficit disorders, has soared by 76 percent in one year, Health Ministry figures show.
The 2010 figures show the steepest increase since surveillance on Ritalin and Concerta marketing in Israel began in 1993. The surveillance is required since these drugs contain the active ingredient methylphenidate, which is classified in Israel as a dangerous drug.
Ritalin, a central nervous system stimulant that affects chemicals in the brain and nerves, is used to treat attention deficit disorder (ADD ) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD ). Ritalin is also used in the treatment of a sleep disorder called narcolepsy (an uncontrollable desire to sleep ).
Ministry figures recently passed on to Citizens Commission on Human Rights, a psychiatric and human rights violations watchdog, show 621 kilograms of methylphenidate were issued in 2010, compared with 352 kilograms in 2009.
Health Ministry officials say the rise reflects the growing awareness of ADD and the improvement in the drug's effectiveness in treating the disorder.
The ministry attributes the increase to adults' use of Ritalin and Concerta as well as children, and to the approval, in 2010, of raising the daily Ritalin dosage from 60 milligrams to 90.
"Until the end of 2009 the amount of Ritalin was limited to 60 mg, too little for the treatment of adolescents weighing 50-60 kgs and adults," says Professor Asher Ornoy, Head of the Dept. of Child Development in the Health Ministry.
"Since 2010 it is possible to prescribe up to 90 mg a day, which enables effective dosage and raises the consumed amount by tens of percent," he says.
Ornoy says the estimated number of Ritalin and Concerta users - 55,000 - is low compared to the number of ADD patients, which is estimated at more than 100,000.
Dr. Iris Manor, head of the ADHD unit at Geha Psychiatric Hospital, Petah Tikva, says "most of the children treated with the drug still need treatment as adults. In addition, awareness of the drug among adults who have not been diagnosed with ADD as children is growing."
The dosage difference between Ritalin and Concerta, stemming from the different mechanism of active-substance release in the body, could also explain part of the rise in the drugs' use.
Another factor is growing awareness of learning disabilities. In the past two years about a tenth of children have been diagnosed with learning disabilities at school, says Ornoy. Almost every child with learning disabilities is sent to be examined by an ADD specialist.
"In my experience, a considerable number of children sent for examination do not have an attention disorder," says Ornoy. "However, due to Ritalin's high effectiveness, the number of treated children is constantly rising," he says.
The consumption increase also reflects a ministry policy introduced two years ago, enabling family doctors and pediatricians who have undergone special training to prescribe Ritalin and Concerta.
"There is a very long wait - from about six months to a year - for diagnosis by a specialist psychiatrist or neurologist (respectively ) to begin treatment with the drug," Manor says.
The Health Ministry said "the assumption is that if the rise in Ritalin use continues in 2011 it will be relatively moderate."
Haaretz reported in July that the IDF had begun recruiting soldiers who are treated with ADD drugs. Some 5 percent of those with attention deficit disorders do not respond to Ritalin and Concerta and need alternative drugs that are not included in the state-subsidized medicines.
A study published last March by Dr. Shlomo Antebi, of the Maccabi Health Maintenance Organization, found that thousands of Israeli children are prescribed Ritalin without first undergoing an examination for accompanying psychological problems as required.
Consequently, up to 20 percent of the children are treated with Ritalin even though they do not need it, the study says.
קראו כתבה זו בעברית: עלייה של 76% בשימוש בריטלין בישראל
Want to enjoy 'Zen' reading - with no ads and just the article? Subscribe todaySubscribe now | <urn:uuid:f47e25d8-2939-46b3-ba82-2e8f42ce97eb> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.haaretz.com/israel-health-ministry-use-of-adhd-drugs-soars-by-76-in-2010-1.396957 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988720154.20/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183840-00475-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949976 | 900 | 2.65625 | 3 |
Keywords: environmental education, environmental management, waste management, stakeholders, small business, sustainable development, waste recycling, sustainability, environmental impact, waste disposal
Waste recycling: local methods for successful interaction with small business
Environmental management practices are common in large companies, but rare in small businesses even though, collectively, their environmental footprint is substantially greater. There is, therefore, a crucial need to engage small businesses in practices that reduce their environmental impact and assist sustainability. However, the management of environmental issues in small business is the domain of the owner-manager who is often resource poor, both financially and in the amount of time available to implement new sustainable practices. A survey of 139 small businesses in a light industrial area has provided an indication of the environmental footprint of small business by showing the volume of waste generated compared to the amount recycled. An intervention programme to increase recycling in this area and reduce the negative impact of these businesses has produced positive results. These results demonstrate that engaging small business in environmental management can be a catalyst both for reducing the environmental impact of small businesses, and for the implementation of local initiatives. Of critical importance in the success of the intervention was direct consultation from the outset with small business owner-managers. This consultation meant that when a barrier to recycling was identified with a particular waste item the owner-manager was provided the opportunity to agree on a solution and cooperate in the efforts to implement beneficial changes. As a consequence of the research and intervention, an increased awareness of waste disposal, recycling issues and opportunities has been created, with improved communication and cooperation between small businesses, recycling contractors and local environmental organisations. The results achieved in this pilot project could be used to direct policy to encourage and support others in this important business sector to implement effective environmental practices. | <urn:uuid:681297d3-841b-411b-9e23-810a9aecd4cb> | CC-MAIN-2016-50 | https://www.environmental-expert.com/articles/waste-recycling-local-methods-for-successful-interaction-with-small-business-82579 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-50/segments/1480698543567.64/warc/CC-MAIN-20161202170903-00342-ip-10-31-129-80.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946841 | 352 | 3.390625 | 3 |
The Festival of Science is an event organized each year in October by the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation. It allows children and adults to undergo an initiation in astronomy while participating in varies activities and workshops at the Planetarium. The popularization of this discipline is a way to show a lot of people, who seem to see this activity as an elitist one, that they are wrong!
The activity program varies according to the occasion. Last year, children were able to discover archaeological excavations during a workshop.
For adults, the topic was chaos in the Astro. They were in a room in which some objects were scattered. They were asked to look at the objects and say what they were used for and how they worked with the help of a scientific mediator.
If you want to know the basics of chemistry, this Festival of Sciences will entertain you and deepen your knowledge! | <urn:uuid:43fe515c-7f9f-4109-9b06-484dabfaca52> | CC-MAIN-2020-16 | https://www.epinal-touristoffice.com/discover/culture-heritage/planetarium/events-and-activities/the-festival-of-science | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-16/segments/1585370505550.17/warc/CC-MAIN-20200401065031-20200401095031-00420.warc.gz | en | 0.988568 | 180 | 2.625 | 3 |
Information technology will be one of the fastest-growing fields this decade as commerce has gone digital in industries across the board. While the world may not see the turn-of-the century staffing crunch that was feared during the transition to Y2K and euro conversion, the proliferation of data could outstrip the number of people being trained to manage it.
Teri Morisi, economist and branch chief at the Bureau of Labor Statistics, identifies computer occupations the BLS is tracking for growth. Included are computer and information research scientists; computer systems analysts; computer programmers; software applications developers; systems software developers; database administrators; network and computer systems administrators; computer support specialists; and information security analysts, Web developers, and computer network architects.
"All computer occupations are expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations at a rate of 14.3 percent for the 2010 to 2020 period," Morisi says. An exception is computer programming. Although it has long been a target for outsourcing, it is still expected to grow at a rate of 12 percent.
The occupation with the most job openings, software applications developers, is expected to gain 143.8 million jobs by 2020, a 27.6 percent increase, followed by systems software developers, with approximately 127,000 jobs at around a 32 percent increase. Database administrator jobs are expected to spike 30.6 percent and gain about 34,000 new positions. Computer hardware engineers, which are not classified with computer occupations, will climb 9 percent, from approximately 70,000 to 76,300 jobs. Computer and information systems managers, also not in the computer field, will grow from about 308,000 positions to approximately 364,000, an 18 percent increase.
A Ph.D. in computer science or a related field is required for most computer and information research scientist jobs. In the federal government, a bachelor's degree may be sufficient for some jobs. According to the BLS, an associate's degree could suffice for network and computer systems administrators, as well as for computer support specialists.
The term "Big Data" is generally used to describe the exponential growth of structured and unstructured data. Volume shows no sign of abating. The velocity with which it moves is approaching light speed on stock exchanges in the securities industry. There's also a much greater variety than in the past, including text, video, and audio. By some estimates, 80 percent of an organization's data is not numeric.
This data-driven sea change in the workplace has been going on at least since 1964, when IBM invented the mainframe computer, a milestone event in the conversion from manual processing of data to automation. In the mid-1960s, the New York Stock Exchange closed every Wednesday just to match buy and sell orders so trades could be settled. Trade volume spiked from 5 million shares in 1965 to 15 million in 1968. Today, in an era of high-frequency trading and 100 gig data centers, the NYSE-Euronext, as it is now known, averages in excess of 1 billion shares per day, reaching nearly 2.5 billion on June 22. Mega-volume of this kind could not have been supported by traders waving paper tickets at each other on the trading floor.
As data proliferates, one solution could be to put the ability to manage it—and the tools to manage it with—in the hands of more people who aren't IT pros.
"The fundamental assumption of Big Data is the amount of that data is only going to grow," said John Ginder, the lead of the big data analytics and the environmental science teams at the Ford Motor Company, during a July interview with ZDNet. If there is a shortage of database scientists, Ginder favors giving non-technical people tools to solve big-data problems themselves.
"That's the endpoint I'd love to see us move toward," he said, "but there aren't enough tools out there to enable us to do that yet." | <urn:uuid:9a837661-3a8a-4008-bd5c-8f5ab3e343f7> | CC-MAIN-2013-48 | http://money.usnews.com/money/careers/articles/2012/09/10/by-decades-end-big-data-will-be-bigger-than-ever?s_cid=related-links:TOP | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-48/segments/1386163066444/warc/CC-MAIN-20131204131746-00009-ip-10-33-133-15.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953041 | 803 | 2.625 | 3 |
|Credit: Destry Jaimes|
The Texas Conservation Corps was more than welcome at West after the fertilizer plant explosion.
Credit: Destry Jaimes
Within 48 hours, the Texas Conservation
Corps disaster response team was on the scene, where Heather
Kouros, in gray, helped manage American YouthWorks efforts
from temporary headquarters.
The American public made the CCC the most popular of all the New Deal programs. Principal benefits of an individual's enrollment in the CCC included improved physical condition, heightened morale, and increased employability. Of their pay of $30 a month, $25 went to their parents. Implicitly, the CCC also led to a greater public awareness and appreciation of the outdoors and the nation's natural resources, as well as the continued need for a carefully planned, comprehensive national program for the protection and development of natural resources.
During the time of the CCC, volunteers planted nearly 3 billion trees to help reforest America, constructed more than 800 parks nationwide and upgraded most state parks, updated forest fire fighting methods, and built a network of service buildings and public roadways in remote areas.
Despite its popular support, the CCC was never a permanent agency. It depended on emergency and temporary Congressional legislation for its existence. By 1942, with World War II and the draft in force, need for work relief declined and Congress voted to close the program.
Credit: Destry Jaimes
Valerie Tamburri, left, and Will Kruckeberg
drop off cases of water in a neighborhood
damaged by the April fertilizer plant
explosion in West.
The TxCC is an American YouthWorks program which allows youth, ages 17 to 28, to contribute to the restoration and preservation of parks and public lands in Texas. The only conservation corps in Texas, TxCC is a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation based in Austin, Texas, which serves the entire state. Their work ranges from disaster relief to trail building to habitat restoration. TxCC has done projects in national, state, and city parks.
The TxCC’s skills were put to the test while aiding in disaster relief in West, TX.
Less than 48 hours after the April 17 fertilizer plant explosion in West, Will Kruckeberg and Valerie Tamburri were on the scene, helping organize thousands of volunteers who seemingly descended on the town en masse to do whatever needed doing.
Credit: Destry Jaimes
When the West Fertilizer Company plant
outside West, about 20 miles north of Waco,
exploded April 17, the damage extended
across a 37-block area, including this
home on property adjacent to the plant.
Out of the chaos of pavilions piled high with overstuffed cardboard boxes, household appliances and bulging black, plastic bags, Kruckeberg had to create order. He directed volunteers as they unpacked, sorted, organized and distributed necessities to long lines of shocked and weary West citizens.
Tamburri took charge of creating a makeshift dining hall with long tables of food—much of it straight from the kitchens of West neighbors and concerned folks in nearby towns—for citizens and volunteers alike. Tamburri was amazed at how the West citizens, even some who’d lost their homes, pitched right in. “I love this town. Everyone’s so nice and willing to help,” she told Texas Co-op Power magazine.
Kruckeberg and Tamburri landed in the middle of a maelstrom, and with skills learned in the Texas Conservation Corps, they played a big role in calming the waters.
By April 23, the crowds of volunteers were mostly gone, the warehouses were clearing out, and the TxCC team could take a breather before the next phase of their work: finding long-term replacement volunteers.
Before coming to West, Tamburri had participated in disaster-relief efforts in New York City after Hurricane Sandy in February and in Baytown after Hurricane Ike in 2008. She had never fully experienced small-town culture and being embraced by its citizens like she did in West. “This has been such a positive experience. All the people of this town are great. We had people who lost everything or were injured from the blast, and they were in there volunteering, handing out food to other people. Some of them said, ‘We’re used to giving; we’re not used to receiving.’”
“I never lived in a small community, and it was really inspiring,” says Tamburri. “This is a learning experience for me. Everybody is so inviting and warm and helpful. They just jump in and do what needs to be done. You don’t have to ask them.”
For the original article from the Texas Co-op Power magazine, click here. | <urn:uuid:cb2733b5-391f-4298-805e-80e28afd4427> | CC-MAIN-2018-05 | http://tamupress.blogspot.com/2013/07/same-corps-different-name.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-05/segments/1516084886792.7/warc/CC-MAIN-20180117003801-20180117023801-00175.warc.gz | en | 0.966077 | 1,019 | 3 | 3 |
Estelle J. Townshend-Denton is a post-graduate student at the University of Waikato in New Zealand. She is currently working on a Phd on religion and foreign policy. Divergent Options’ content does not contain information of an official nature nor does the content represent the official position of any government, any organization, or any group.
Title: The Impact of Extremists in Civil War: Syria’s Shabbiha
Date Originally Written: December 9, 2017.
Date Originally Published: February 12, 2018.
Summary: Violent extremists frequently emerge when state authority breaks down within civil wars. Escalatory dynamics are particularly hard to avoid when extremist groups emerge that are embedded in the existing social framework of their identity group. In Syria the Shabbiha has grown from a trans-border criminal network to sectarian militias fighting for the regime. The Shabbiha are a significant impediment to the resolution of the Syrian civil war.
Text: Extremist groups in Syria such as the Shabbiha often emerge from existing social phenomenon. For instance, prior to the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, the Shabbiha were Allawite smugglers and racketeers that primarily operated out of the Allawite heartland in coastal Latakia. Given the poverty of the Allawite community opportunities were scarce, and Allawite young men saw a way to purchase highly sought after, but banned, Western items in Lebanon, and smuggle them back across the border into Syria. This smuggling was largely overlooked by Bashar al-Assad’s regime in return for Shabihha loyalty to the Assads.
In order to understand the Shabbiha, their place in Syrian society, and their role within the civil war, it is necessary to look into the history of the Allawite sect to which they belong. The Allawites are a Shia sect whose religion incorporates aspects of Islam, Christianity, Paganism and Zoroastrianism. The Allawites have been persecuted and marginalised throughout their history. A Syrian analyst concluded that this persecution has become built into the Allawite identity. As a result Allawites are highly security conscious.
The embattled Assad regime is primarily, but not exclusively, Allawite. The collapse of the Ottoman Empire after World War 1 provided an opportunity for the Allawites to climb out of their position at the bottom most rung of Syrian society to control the state and it’s military. The Ottoman territory had been divided up between the French and the British. The French received the mandate for the territory that was to become the state of Syria. The ruling elite in Syria had been Sunni and they were resistant to French rule. In order to subdue the Sunni resistors, the French employed a strategy of divide and rule. Thus the French created a military that consisted of minorities, including the Allawites. Soon, joining the military emerged as the key means for Allawites to climb up the social and economic ladder, and over time they came to dominate the officer class. Eventually the military emerged as what Horowitz identifies as a “significant symbol of ethnic domination.” Later, Druze and Allawite military leaders staged a coup which ultimately led to the Allawite dominated Assad regime.
Syria was relatively stable under the Assads until the “Arab Spring” of 2011, when the protests sweeping the region spread to Syria. The regimes of Tunisia and Egypt had already toppled, and most of the world predicted that the Syrian regime would be next. However, unlike the Tunisian officer class which contributed to the toppling of the Tunisian Government, the Syrian military leadership was heavily invested in the Assad regime. Furthermore the Assad regime took a lesson from the Egyptian experience and dealt decisively with the protests. As such, the Assads used the military against the protesters, working to turn the peaceful protests into an armed rebellion. The regime then developed a narrative that denied the unrest was part of the “Arab Spring” but alternatively asserted it was spawned by external actors and led by Islamist extremists.
Soon the Assad regime faced another problem. Whilst the Syrian army’s officer class was mostly Allawite, the rank and file was predominantly Sunni. Sunni were more reluctant to fire on what was emerging as a largely Sunni protest movement. The regime had Allawite crack units, but they needed to expand the loyal Allawite base of their military capacity through encouraging Allawite civilian participation in the fighting. One of the ways the Assad regime did this was through the Shabbiha, whose networks were developed and expanded into civilian militias who fought for the Assad regime. Since then, the links between the Assads and the Shabbiha have become increasingly apparent. The European Union imposed sanctions in 2011 on two of Bashar al Assad’s cousins, Fawwar and Munzir, for their involvement in the “repression against the civilian population as members of the Shabbiha.” According to a relation of the President’s cousin Rami Makhlouf, the expansion of the Shabbiha from a regime linked Allawite criminal network into an extremist paramilitary force loyal to the regime, doing the regime’s dirty work within the civil war, was planned by Makhlouf and the President’s brother Maher al Assad. The presence or absence of gangs of violent fanatics such as the Shabbiha is described by Ethnic Conflict and International Relations theorist Barry Posen as “a key determinant of the ability of groups to avoid war as central political authority erodes.” Thus the Shabbiha were a significant escalatory dynamic within the Syrian civil war.
Rhetoric from the Shabbiha accessed via the internet is sectarian, brutal, and very loyal to Bashar al Assad with mottos like “Bashar, don’t to be sad: you have men who drink blood.” With a corresponding brutality and sectarianism emerging amongst Sunni Islamist fanatics within the rebellion, the violence and rhetoric of extremists on both sides escalated the civil war. This brutality and sectarianism worked to strengthen the regime’s legitimacy as protectors of Syria’s minority religious groups against repression from the Sunni majority. The regime’s reliance on extremist sectarian militias such as the Shabbiha to support the security forces was not only responding to sectarian tension within the unrest but also heightening it.
Posen identified that extremists on both sides escalate retaliatory violence and drive up insecurity. He stated that fanatics “produce disproportionate political results among the opposing group – magnifying initial fears by confirming them….the rapid emergence of organized bands of particularly violent individuals is a sure sign of trouble.” The initial fears resulting from the historical persecution of Allawites under Sunni elites, coupled with fears of revenge on the sect as a whole for the violence of both the Shabbiha and the regime within the civil war, has mobilised the sect in defense of the Assad regime. What began as a grass-roots protest movement for the removal of the autocratic regime has escalated into a sectarian driven civil war intensified by the violent acts of both the Shabbiha and the Sunni Islamist extremists, to the advantage of the Assads.
Amor, Salwa and Sherlock, Ruth. How Bashar al-Assad created the feared shabiha militia: an insider speaks. The Telegraph. [Online] March 23, 2014. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/10716289/How-Bashar-al-Assad-created-the-feared-shabiha-militia-an-insider-speaks.html
Worren, Torstein Schiotz. Fear and Resistance: The Construction of Allawite Identity in Syria. Oslo : University of Oslo, 2007.
Whitman, Elizabeth. The Awakening of the Syrian Army: General Husni al-Za’am’s Coup and Rein, 1949: Origins of the Syrain Army’s Enduring Roel in Syrian Politics. Columbia University. [Online] April 4, 2011.
Horowitz, D.L. Ethnic Groups in Conflict. London : University of California Press, 1985.
Salih, Y. The Syrian Shabbiha and their State. Heinrich Boll Stiftung. [Online] December 21, 2012. http://www.lb.boell.org/web/52-801.html
Flamand, H.M. Syria: Brutally Violent Militaia Member tell it like it is. Global Post. [Online] June 15, 2012. http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/middle-east/syria/120614/syria-shabbiha-thug-assad-mafia-guns-smuggling-violence-houla
The Security Dilemma and Ethnic Conflict. Posen, Barry R. 1993, Survival, Vol. 35, No. 1, pp. 27-47.
Sherlock, H. A. The Shabiha: Inside Assad’s Death Squads. The Telegraph. [Online] June 2, 2012. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9307411/The-Shabiha-Inside-Assads-death-squads.html
Abdulhamid, A. The Shredded Tapestry. Syrian Revolution Digest. [Online] November 9, 2012. https://ammar.world/2012/09/11/the-shredded-tapestry-the-state-of-syria-today/ | <urn:uuid:b482d085-b77c-4c24-9d58-c519e8a0f8a2> | CC-MAIN-2019-26 | https://divergentoptions.org/2018/02/12/the-impact-of-extremists-in-civil-war-syrias-shabbiha/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-26/segments/1560627999041.59/warc/CC-MAIN-20190619204313-20190619230313-00096.warc.gz | en | 0.946475 | 2,011 | 2.59375 | 3 |
Garden Rule 02:
Some Seeds Must Be Direct Sown
2) Don't Start "x" Vegetable Seeds Indoors: Some vegetable seeds are sown directly into the ground. This is an easy way to start your crops. On the other hand, starting seedlings indoors may be advantageous. But we may fear doing so if our seed packet warns: "When to start indoors: Not recommended." Classic examples of direct sown vegetables are melons, squash, corn, beans, peas, carrots, radishes and beets. Even squash and melons may not be advised for starting indoors.
THE CHALLENGE: Certain environmental factors can inhibit the development of direct sown seeds. Cold weather hinders seeds such as corn or beans from germinating. But starting seeds indoors eliminates this issue. Have you found young emerging seedlings that were destroyed by pill bugs or other pests? A larger, established seedling may be unaffected. Sometimes a limited growing season can be a good reason to break the rules on direct sown varieties. To deal with short Summers, starting watermelons indoors might be the best way to ensure that they ripen before the Fall frost.
Video: Danver Carrots Started Indoors
in Cone-tainers (Ray Leach Tubes)
THE WORKAROUND: The key to starting problematic seeds indoors lies in optimizing 2 vital factors: 1) Pot Sizes and 2) Time to Transplant. Root vegetables such as carrots and beets will develop a long taproot. Planting the seeds in deep containers allows the roots to develop without interruption. Plants like watermelons and squash work well in wider, deeper pots. There is less root circling and a more natural development of the rooting structure.
The other crucial element for success involves knowing when to put those seedlings out into the ground. We might be used to a 6 or 8 week old seedling. This works well for peppers and tomatoes, giving them a great head start. But corn, beans, squash and melons develop very quickly in the summer heat. Try planting them out when they are 2 weeks old. They won't even know that they were started in a pot. And once they're out in the ground, the roots will stretch and develop naturally, without stunting your plant's growth.
The bottom line: We don't always have the ideal circumstances for growing our plants. To ensure the best success, we may need to start some things in containers. As long as it works, who cares? | <urn:uuid:7d6b3ba0-1870-40c4-8641-20b377e7969b> | CC-MAIN-2018-51 | http://albopepper.com/breaking-garden-rule-02--some-seeds-must-be-direct-sown.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-51/segments/1544376823738.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20181212044022-20181212065522-00555.warc.gz | en | 0.916307 | 515 | 3.515625 | 4 |
Bleeding gums are often an indication of a dental health issue, although they may simply be a sign that you’re brushing your teeth too hard. In this article, we’re exploring the potential causes of bleeding in the gums, as well as how you can prevent and treat the problem of bleeding gums.
What are bleeding gums?
Bleeding gums are usually a sign of gum disease - in fact, this is the most common symptom. However, frequent bleeding in the gums can also indicate an underlying health problem, including periodontitis (an advanced form of gum disease), leukemia (cancer of the blood), vitamin deficiency, and a lack of clotting cells (platelets).
While many people will experience bleeding gums occasionally, if you notice frequent bleeding in your gums, it’s important to see your dentist so they can assess the issue and identify the cause of the bleeding.
What can cause bleeding gums?
Brushing your teeth too hard
If you experience gum bleeding while brushing your teeth, you may be brushing too aggressively. Try using less force when brushing or switch to a softer toothbrush to avoid damaging your gums.
If you wear dentures, bleeding gums may be a sign that your dentures aren’t fitting correctly. Talk to your dentist about ensuring your dentures are the correct fit for your mouth.
Gingivitis is a disease of the gums caused by plaque buildup on the gum lines, which develops due to debris and bacteria on the surface of your teeth. Brushing your teeth removes this plaque, but if you don’t brush or floss regularly or properly, it can remain on your gums.
When plaque isn’t removed, it can harden and become tartar (calculus), which increases gum bleeding, as well as causing gingivitis. Symptoms of gingivitis include:
● Puffy (inflamed) gums
● Soreness around the gums
● Bleeding gums
eriodontal disease is an infection of the gums, jawbone and tissues that connect your teeth and gums. It occurs when gingivitis becomes advanced and can eventually lead to teeth becoming loose and falling out.
If you’re deficient in vitamins C and K, this can cause your gums to bleed more easily. If you have bleeding gums that don’t improve through better oral care, talk to your doctor about whether you may be deficient in these important vitamins.
Foods that are rich in vitamin C include:
● Orange juice and other citrus fruit juices
Foods that are rich in vitamin K include:
● Swiss chard
● Mustard greens
● Canola oil
● Olive oil
Hormonal changes in the body experienced during pregnancy can lead to bleeding gums, as well as causing gums to be more sensitive.
Certain blood-thinning medications may increase your risk of bleeding gums. These medications include aspirin, warfarin and heparin.
In rare cases, bleeding gums can be a sign of a more serious health condition, including bleeding disorders such as hemophilia and leukemia. If you experience frequent bleeding in the gums, talk to your dentist so they can identify the cause of the issue.
How can I prevent bleeding gums?
Practice good oral hygiene
Maintaining good oral hygiene practices - including brushing teeth twice a day and flossing at least once a day - is an important part of keeping your teeth and gums healthy, which will reduce your risk of bleeding.
Visit your dentist regularly for a check-up and clean
Keeping up with your six-monthly check-up and cleans at your local National Dental Care Group practice can help to keep bleeding gums at bay. Not only will you receive a thorough clean of your teeth and gums, but your dentist will also check for any oral health issues which may be causing your gums to bleed.
Use the right toothbrush
As mentioned above, if you experience bleeding while brushing your teeth, it may be a good idea to switch to a soft-bristled toothbrush. Alternatively, if you’re using a manual toothbrush, opting for an electric one may help you apply the right pressure to avoid aggravating your gums. You can talk to your dentist about how to select the best toothbrush for your needs.
See your dentist if you’re concerned about bleeding gums
If you’re worried about bleeding gums or are experiencing frequent bleeding, talk to your National Dental Care Group practitioner - they can examine your mouth, teeth and gums in order to identify any issues and establish the cause of the bleeding.
To make an appointment with your local National Dental Care Group practice, book online today. | <urn:uuid:b3119fc5-95c5-43f3-a74b-1c0784494177> | CC-MAIN-2023-50 | https://www.nationaldentalcare.com.au/article/what-causes-bleeding-gums | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-50/segments/1700679100599.20/warc/CC-MAIN-20231206130723-20231206160723-00086.warc.gz | en | 0.901475 | 999 | 3.3125 | 3 |
On September 10th, 2018, the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres delivered a major address on climate change, warning that humanity is “careening towards the abyss”. Referencing the “extreme heat waves, wildfires, storms, and floods, leaving a trail of death and destruction”, Guterres said, “I have asked you here to sound the alarm. We face a direct existential threat. If we do not change course by 2020, we risk missing the point where we can avoid runaway climate change, with disastrous consequences for people and all the natural systems that sustain us.”
Further indication that we are now at the precise tipping point regarding runaway climate change is evidenced in two recent studies published in Nature Climate Change, which reveal that the Arctic will be ice free during its summer months, within the next five years. This shrinkage is faster than the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) model predicted since models like this rely on the sea warming in a steady manner, and fail to take into account positive feedback loops. We have to face up to the realities of continuing on this path: with sea ice no longer reflecting the sunlight, the oceans will heat up even more, and the abrupt thawing of the permafrost will release ancient methane (30 x more damaging than carbon dioxide), causing irreversible and catastrophic climate change.
The Living Planet Report 2018 by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) indicates that we are facing a loss of biodiversity at a rate only seen previously during mass extinctions. There has been a 60 percent decline in the number of vertebrates since 1970. Mike Barrett, director at WWF says, “we are sleepwalking towards the edge of a cliff. If there was a 60 percent decline in the human population, that would be equivalent to emptying North America, South America, Africa, Europe, China and Oceania. That is the scale of what we have done. This is far more than just being about losing the wonders of nature, desperately sad though that is. This is actually now jeopardising the future of people. Nature is not a ‘nice to have’ – it is our life-support system.”
To step back from the cliff edge, we need to tackle the roots of inequality and our overuse of natural resources. In Bali, subak culture, based on Tri Hita Karana, a traditional philosophy that loosely translates as “the three causes of well-being: harmony among people, harmony with nature or environment, harmony with God “has created democratic and egalitarian farming practices of sharing water throughout the paddies for centuries. The solution to climate change is likely to be a balance of such Traditional Ecological Knowledge, engaging youth in the scientific/ artistic quest for truth, and mindful innovation, starting perhaps with peaceful, grassroot intervention.
While a joined-up, sharing, collective response to climate change is possible, we also face the considerably uphill challenges of denialism and wilfully negligent procedural thinking. An advert by UK supermarket Iceland sought to promote its palm oil free new products while raising awareness of the palm oil industry’s crimes against orangutans (in Bahasa Indonesia “orang hutan” – forest people), but it was not approved for broadcast by Clearcast, due to its association with Greenpeace, which Clearcast deemed a body “whose object is wholly or mainly of a political nature”. There are also economic loops that tie companies and people to ecologically unhealthy and unethical practices to maintain “shareholder profits”.
Guterres called for leadership “from politicians, from business and scientists, and from the public everywhere” as humanity faces this unprecedented ecological crisis. His call comes as scientists from all around the world are evolving their approach to sharing their findings directly with people, such as this art installation at Harvard, “Warming Warning”, and are beginning to step into social and political positions where they are directly advocating for our planet and peoples.
In 2018, a new international social movement launched with 100 academics as signatories; Extinction Rebellion, which is currently building up what it calls “mindful disruption to business as usual”, seeks to restore “the virtues of truth and the weight of scientific evidence”, and quotes John Locke in its declaration: “To love truth for truth’s sake is the principal part of human perfection in this world, and the seed-plot of all other virtues”.
How can we, as girls in science, ensure the voice of the planet is heard? How can we create a dialogue with those who are skeptical about climate change to get them on board with our collective efforts to save our planet?
Picture credit: WWF | <urn:uuid:2b369344-d92a-44c7-8dcd-68e587b7b974> | CC-MAIN-2021-10 | https://womeninscienceday.org/GirlsinScience/index.php/2018/11/25/extinction-cant-be-fixed-but-it-can-be-stopped-if-we-act-now/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-10/segments/1614178369721.76/warc/CC-MAIN-20210305030131-20210305060131-00181.warc.gz | en | 0.949448 | 974 | 3.34375 | 3 |
The ‘Hidden’ Bible
Vol: 93 Issue: 24 Wednesday, June 24, 2009
From time to time, somebody will email me with a question about the Apocrypha, or the ‘extra’ books found in certain versions of the Bible. The Douay version (approved by the Vatican) includes the Apocrypha.
So do some King James Versions, although the Apocryphal books are set apart.
First, what is the ‘Apocrypha’? The word itself is derived from ecclesiastical Latin apocrypha scripta meaning ‘hidden writings’ which was itself derived from the Greek apokruphos meaning ‘to hide away’.
The Apocryphical books of the Bible fall into two categories: texts which were included in some canonical version of the Bible at some point, like Tobit or Baruch, and other texts of a Biblical nature which have never been canonical, like the Gospel of Thomas or the Book of Enoch.
The thirteen books that are included in the Douay Version and are recognized by the Vatican are called Deuterocanonical, which literally means ‘secondary canon’.
The term was coined by the fifth-century biblical scholar St. Jerome and refers to the biblical books included as part of the Septuagint (the Greek version of the Old Testament), but not included in the Hebrew Bible.
Several works ranging from the fourth century B.C.E. to New Testament times are considered apocryphal–including Judith, the Wisdom of Solomon, Tobit, Sirach (or Ecclesiasticus), Baruch, First and Second Maccabees, the two Books of Esdras, various additions to the Book of Esther (10:4-10), the Book of Daniel (3:24-90;13;14), and the Prayer of Manasseh.
The apocrypha have been variously included and omitted from bibles over the course of the centuries. The original King James 1611 Version of the Bible included them, although collecting them together as the ‘Books of the Apocrypha’ and placing them in an appendix.
The Apocrypha consists of 15 books of Jewish literature written during the intertestamental period. The Rheims-Douay Version (1582 A.D.) lists 7 additional books, adds to Esther and Daniel, and combines the “Letter of Jeremiah” with “Baruch” — thus including 12 of the 15 apocryphal books to the Old Testament.
These same books are referred to by Protestants as the “pseudoepigrapha.”
In other words, it is not the Inspired Word of God, and as such, not part of the collection of works that Timothy says is “given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” (2nd Timothy 3:16)
The question that most often results from saying the Apocryphal Books are NOT Divinely inspired is, “Oh, yeah? How do you know?”
The best most Christians can do in reply is something like, “Well, they aren’t in MY Bible,” or try and explain that the early Church Fathers rejected them, without really being able to explain why.
Which then has you explaining why you trust the early Church Fathers so much, etc., etc. That argument usually collapses when somebody points out that there WERE early Church Fathers who cited them in their writings and listed them as Canonical.
It can be frustrating, since you don’t REALLY know.
But the most compelling reason why the Books of the Apocrypha were excluded is also the most obvious. God’s Word does not contradict itself elsewhere.
Let’s take a look at some of the legitimate reasons for rejecting the Books of the Apocrypha and see if they hold water on their own merits.
First off, (and I think this is compelling) although Jesus and the Apostles quoted extensively from Old Testament Scripture, not once did they quote from the Apocryphal books.
Ok, maybe that isn’t compelling enough for you. Try this. Reading through them, they lack both the power and the majesty of God’s Word. To one who has bathed his spirit in God’s Word, the Apocrypha just doesn’t FEEL right.
We’ve discussed many times what effect it would have on Judeo-Christianity if somebody conclusively proved that something in the Bible was wrong, historically, scientifically, medically, etc., since the Bible claims its authorship is of God and therefore without error.
If such a claim of fraud could be proved, then the Scripture would lose its authority and would join the ranks of the Book of Mormon, the Koran, the writings of Buddha or Zoroaster and become just another ‘holy book’.
It then follows that if the Apocryphal Books are Divinely inspired, they should pass the same test of inerrancy and harmonize with the rest of the Revealed Word.
But the Apocrypha contains chronological errors and statements not just contrary to established doctrine, it contains errors contrary to history.
God doesn’t make mistakes. But the Apocrypha does.
Baruch 1:2 (compared to Jeremiah 43:6-7)
Bel and the Dragon 22 (Xerxes did it); Bel and the Dragon 33
Tobit 1:4 (He could not have been “still a young man,” or even born yet. *The rebellion of the northern tribe against Jerusalem in 1 Kings 12:19-20 took place around 922 B.C.)
2 Maccabees 12:44, 45 condones prayers for the dead.
Sirach 3:34, 14, 30; 30:11-12 2; Esdras 7:7; 8:33, 36; Tobit 12:9, 8a; 14:11 all teach salvation by good works.
Tobit 6-8 teaches the use of magic in demon exorcism.
Tobit 11 teaches the use of magic in healing.
Sirach 8:19 teaches the use of magic to obtain good fortune.
Tobit 12:15 teaches of the intercession of angels (Rafael)
2 Maccabees 14:41-46 contradicts Scripture regarding suicide.
Sirach 38:16-23 (especially verses 20-21) teach mourning for the dead, also in contraction of the Canon of Scripture.
In the Prayer of Manasseh 8, it teaches of the ‘sinless’ lives of OT personalities.
Tobit 6:2-7, 16-17 describes ‘miracles’ that can best be described as just plain silly. Unless one believes that placing incense smoke on the organs of a man eating fish can ward off evil spirits. Or that a demon who fell in love with a woman killed off her last seven husbands on their wedding night.
Either the Bible is true, or it is not.
If one were to include the Books of the Apocrypha, then one could easily prove the Bible was no different than any other holy book, containing great wisdom, but also containing some ‘inconsequential’ errors.
While the other great religions of the world have sacred books, not even Muslim scholars will go so far as to say the Koran is without error and unchanged down through the centuries.
The same can be said of Buddhists, Mormons, JW’s Muslims, etc., etc. (One of Islam’s major arguments is that the Jews changed the Old Testament) Other religions also have other authorities of equal weight to their sacred writings.
Islam has imams and fatwas that are equal in authority to the Koran and its traditions and interpretations.
Buddhism has the Dalai Lama and Buddhist tradition. Mormons have revised the Book of Mormon dozens of times. The JW’s declared the world ended in 1914 and that Jesus is not God — and they have revised Scriptures to ‘prove’ it.
The Bible is unique. It remains unchanged, its claim of infallibility unchallenged, and its authority unmatched by any other religious sacred book — unless one includes the Apocrypha.
The easily-proved contradictions and historical errors contained in the Apocrypha are part of the reason that, over the years, the Catholic Church has developed its theological view that Vatican teaching and tradition are of equal weight and authority with the Bible.
It is an undeniable fact that those who trust the accepted Canon of Scripture cannot assign it equal authority to the pronouncements of men.
To argue otherwise is to deny all accepted Scripture as false, while defending the historically inaccurate and doctrinally contradictory Apocryphal books as true, since things that are different can never be the same, no matter how convincingly one tries to argue otherwise.
Why exclude the Books of the Apocrypha? One might as well ask, why not include the Koran and the Book of Mormon? Either the Bible is Divinely inspired and profitable for doctrine, for reproof, and for instruction in righteousness, or it is not.
There is no middle position. | <urn:uuid:ea3f3fe3-aa42-4915-8c5f-2a872bba3526> | CC-MAIN-2021-25 | https://omegalettercom.wordpress.com/2009/06/24/the-hidden-bible/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-25/segments/1623488538041.86/warc/CC-MAIN-20210623103524-20210623133524-00413.warc.gz | en | 0.949093 | 1,935 | 2.796875 | 3 |
Global warming is true
damaurea f. brook h. irvin g.
The main cause of global warming
The main causes climate change sun the ground to warm and the ground becomes warm and when the ground warms Co2 the suns radiation is the main cause of our climate. Global mean land temputure change from 1850 to 2011 relative to the 1951 to 1980 mean. In the U.S the mass media devoted little coverage to global warming until the drough of 1988.
let me tell you a little more ...........
Why the sun causes global warming
we can also cause global warming by polluting our air and releasing Co2 into our air. this mainly happend in the 1980's when everybody was using alot of hairspray. The hairspray had CFC's so when you use the hairspray the CFC's are being released. In 2009 the earth started getting warmer. In 2009 the earth was getting warmer because of human activity 1/4 of the U.S belived that Global warming was caused by people.. people can also pollute the air by smoke coming out of buildings of cars. | <urn:uuid:2b54451d-9545-43c1-be88-d19503a25726> | CC-MAIN-2018-09 | https://www.smore.com/x4zx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-09/segments/1518891814393.4/warc/CC-MAIN-20180223035527-20180223055527-00597.warc.gz | en | 0.947219 | 233 | 2.96875 | 3 |
The life of a flax flower is transitory: a flower lasts less than one day. But each plant makes dozens of flowers for three to four weeks, and a plot of flax in bloom looks like a reflection of the sky. Then seedpods swell to the size of a pea and turn from green to gold as the seeds inside ripen, and the plants dry out and die.
The species of flax grown for fiber and seed production is an annual called Linum usitatissimum; that’s Latin for “the most useful kind of flax.” Flax is almost always grown like a grain crop, in plots of many plants crowded close together. Each individual plant makes one or more slender, erect stems about 3 feet tall, scattered with narrow, pale green leaves about 1 inch long. The stems branch near the top to bear blue or white round, 1/2-inch-wide flowers with five petals.
Different cultivars of flax have been selected for maximum yield and quality of either fiber or oil. Farmers specialize in one product or the other, choose cultivars accordingly, and take slightly different approaches to growing and harvesting their crops. On a backyard scale, it isn’t necessary to specialize. From a flax patch about 4 feet square, you can harvest enough fiber to make a basket and enough seeds for a batch of bread or crackers.
Grow and Harvest Flax
Flax tolerates a range of soils and climates and can be grown in almost any part of the United States. Choose a site in full sun, with deep, fertile, well-drained soil, and prepare it as you would for growing vegetables or flowers. Flax grows best in cool weather, so sow it outdoors as soon as you can work the soil in spring, at the same time that you would sow peas, lettuce or other cool-weather crops. This can be as early as January or as late as May, depending on where you live.
Rake the surface of the soil to prepare a smooth, fine-textured seedbed. Measure your planned flax plot to determine its area, and plan to sow about one tablespoon of flax seeds per 10 square feet. Dust the small brown seeds with flour before sowing so that you can scatter them evenly across the surface of the plot. Then use a rake to draw the seeds down into the soil, covering them 1/4- to 1/2-inch-deep. Water gently if the soil starts to dry out before germination, which takes about 10 days.
Seedling flax plants quickly develop a good root system and need watering only if the weather is unusually warm, dry or windy. Pull out any weeds that appear before the seedlings have grown a few inches tall; after the seeds sprout, the flax plants will crowd out any weeds. Rabbits and rodents sometimes nibble flax, but it has few insect or disease problems. The only common, serious crisis in growing flax is that the tender stalks sometimes get knocked flat by hail or heavy rainstorms. If that happens, use the tines of a garden fork. They may straighten up again, or at least partially recover.
The fibers in the stem of the flax plant form a thin layer between the woody core and the outer skin or epidermis that runs all the way from the roots to the tips. The fibers have already reached their full length when the flax begins to flower, about two months after planting, but they are still thin, delicate and weak. From flowering until the death of the plant, the fibers become increasingly thicker and stronger, but also more stiff and brittle. Unfortunately, fiber quality peaks before the seeds have fully ripened. If you harvest the plants early enough (usually about three months after planting) to get top-quality fiber, you sacrifice most of the seed crop. If you wait until the seeds are ripe (about four months after planting), the fiber has become coarse. This difference in the timing of harvest is a major reason why commercial flax farmers produce either fiber or seeds but not both. Again, a hobby grower can compromise. The fiber from mature plants is too coarse for weaving fine fabrics, but it’s acceptable for making baskets or other simple craft projects.
To reap both seeds and fiber, harvest the flax about four months after planting. The leaves on the lower half or two-thirds of the stem will be turning yellow and dropping off. Most of the seedpods will have turned gold or tan; if you shake them, the seeds will rattle inside. Grasp the stems, a handful at a time, right at ground level and pull them up, roots and all. Shake the soil off the roots, lay a few handfuls of stems together side by side, and use rubber bands or string to secure them into a bundle.
Thresh Flax Seeds
Hang the bundles in a warm place with good air circulation. After a few weeks, when the stalks are stiff and dry, you can thresh out the seeds. This takes some effort: you have to crush open the pods. One method is to slide a pillowcase over the top end of a bundle, tie the case securely around the stems, then put it down on a paved driveway, sidewalk or other hard, flat surface. Beat the pods through the cloth with a block of wood, roll them with a rolling pin (push hard!), jump on the bag or drive back and forth over it with a car.
After several minutes of such activity, open the bag to confirm that most of the pods have been crushed, shake the bundle vigorously to knock out all the seeds, then pour the seeds and chaff out of the pillowcase into a bowl and start again with the next bundle. After threshing all the bundles, sift the seeds through a colander or coarse strainer to remove bits of stems and broken pods. Step outdoors in the breeze and pour the seeds slowly from one container to another to winnow away any remaining chaff or dust.
Process Flax Fibers
Processing the bundles of stems to extract the fibers for spinning is a complex task that requires simple but special tools, a lot of hard physical work, and a sense of timing and judgment that comes only from long experience. The first step, called retting, involves soaking or wetting the stems for a period of days or weeks to promote bacterial action, which separates the different layers of stem tissues and loosens the fibers. After retting, the stems are dried again, then crushed between the wooden blades of a tool called a break or brake, which breaks the woody core into short bits that fall away from the mass of fibers. Finally, the bundles are combed through metal-tined combs called hackles. The result: a smooth bundle of long, straight fibers called line flax and a pile of fluffy, tangled, shorter fibers called tow. The line flax is used to make crisp, glossy fabrics, and the tow is used for everyday goods.
Rita Buchanan is a weaver, spinner, and gardener in Winsted, Connecticut. She is the author of A Dyer’s Garden, (Interweave Press, 1995). | <urn:uuid:f72e7314-9161-4fd8-82e2-d565bd986f94> | CC-MAIN-2015-14 | http://www.motherearthliving.com/gardening/flax-growing-and-processing.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-14/segments/1427131299236.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20150323172139-00051-ip-10-168-14-71.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944249 | 1,493 | 3.5 | 4 |
The Internet provides a popular and convenient source of information and support on parenting, offering many opportunities for both peer and professional support. Recent studies have also shown that both parents and children can benefit from online parenting support.
In this chapter, we describe the current variety of online services for parents, distinguishing between peer support and professional support. Specifically we will focus on the design characteristics of these web-based resources. Since Internet technology is still rapidly developing, many new opportunities for social networking are available. The provision of multilayered interaction (many-to-many, one-tomany, one-to-one) and the use of multiple components in websites may enhance the way parents feel supported. Also, training can be added to online programs, which aims to change parental knowledge, behavior and attitude. Furthermore, we discuss experimental results from recent meta-analytic study on the effects of online parental education.
Providing an overview of the past decade, we discuss two major trends which give direction to future research and development: missing aspects of research on online social networking and inspiring opportunities for online professional support for parents. | <urn:uuid:fe969ada-853b-435b-bb3e-fe4689c24bc5> | CC-MAIN-2019-04 | http://christanieuwboer.com/blog/tag/online-parenting-support/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-04/segments/1547583680452.20/warc/CC-MAIN-20190119180834-20190119202834-00086.warc.gz | en | 0.916489 | 224 | 2.75 | 3 |
Wells County, North Dakota facts for kids
|Wells County, North Dakota|
Location in the state of North Dakota
North Dakota's location in the U.S.
|Founded||August 28, 1884|
1,290 sq mi (3,341 km²)
1,271 sq mi (3,292 km²)
19 sq mi (49 km²), 1.5%
3.3/sq mi (1/km²)
|Time zone||Central: UTC-6/-5|
Wells County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2010 census, the population was 4,207. Its county seat is Fessenden. The county was created by the 1872-73 territorial legislature and named after Edward Payson Wells, a Jamestown banker, early promoter of the James River Valley, and member of the legislature in 1881. The county government was organized on August 28, 1884. The county seat was Sykeston from 1884 to 1894, after which time Fessenden was given the title.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,290 square miles (3,300 km2), of which 1,271 square miles (3,290 km2) is land and 19 square miles (49 km2) (1.5%) is water.
- Benson County (north)
- Eddy County (east)
- Foster County (east)
- Stutsman County (southeast)
- Kidder County (south)
- Sheridan County (west)
- Pierce County (northwest)
|U.S. Decennial Census
As of the census of 2000, there were 5,102 people, 2,215 households, and 1,453 families residing in the county. The population density was 4 inhabitants per square mile (2/km2). There were 2,643 housing units at an average density of 2 per square mile (1/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 99.12% White, 0.14% Black or African American, 0.24% Native American, 0.24% Asian, 0.02% from other races, and 0.25% from two or more races. 0.29% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 59.5% were of German and 24.1% Norwegian ancestry.
There were 2,215 households out of which 25.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.60% were married couples living together, 4.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.40% were non-families. 32.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.85.
In the county, the population was spread out with 22.50% under the age of 18, 4.60% from 18 to 24, 22.70% from 25 to 44, 24.20% from 45 to 64, and 26.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 96.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.00 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $31,894, and the median income for a family was $39,284. Males had a median income of $27,277 versus $16,810 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,932. About 10.30% of families and 13.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.10% of those under age 18 and 17.90% of those age 65 or over.
As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 4,207 people, 1,943 households, and 1,223 families residing in the county. The population density was 3.3 inhabitants per square mile (1.3/km2). There were 2,481 housing units at an average density of 2.0 per square mile (0.77/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 98.9% white, 0.3% American Indian, 0.1% black or African American, 0.1% Asian, 0.0% from other races, and 0.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.5% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 65.9% were German, 25.9% were Norwegian, 6.7% were Irish, and 1.8% were American.
Of the 1,943 households, 19.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.1% were married couples living together, 5.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 37.1% were non-families, and 34.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.10 and the average family size was 2.67. The median age was 51.5 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $40,136 and the median income for a family was $52,400. Males had a median income of $38,442 versus $25,597 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,531. About 6.1% of families and 10.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.5% of those under age 18 and 17.1% of those age 65 or over.
- Bull Moose
- Crystal Lake
- Norway Lake
- Pony Gulch
- Saint Anna
- Silver Lake
- South Cottonwood
- West Norway
- West Ontario
Wells County, North Dakota Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia. | <urn:uuid:0f958b47-eb0d-4ebf-bb9f-65d17d0c12c6> | CC-MAIN-2020-40 | https://kids.kiddle.co/Wells_County,_North_Dakota | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-40/segments/1600402131412.93/warc/CC-MAIN-20201001112433-20201001142433-00348.warc.gz | en | 0.965981 | 1,258 | 2.9375 | 3 |
If you are a non-native English teacher who teaches in a non-English speaking country you will be familiar with the picture below.
Now you are smiling, aren't you? We are teachers, not dictionaries, yes, but how can your students find dictionaries, especially the monolingual ones, helpful in the learning process, when they are not in the classroom?
In this post I'd like to share with you my 5 favourite online dictionaries and I'll tell you why I like them.
What's a monolingual learner's dictionary?
It's a dictionary designed to meet the reference needs of people learning a foreign language. It deals with grammar usage and common collocations.
Why I like it: The definitions are written in simple English accompanied by clear examples. Moreover, before its definition you find the CEF level the word belongs to.
Here you are an example. As you can see you can also check the pronunciation and the forms of irregular verbs.
Why I like it: I like it for its boxes. Yes, boxes about collocations and word choice. The layout is clear and straightforward.
Here you are an example of the word remember.
Why I like it: Students can easily use it at home. The layout is simple and clear.
As you know, a word has usually different meanings according to the context it is used in. In the Macmillan Dictionary the contexts are shown in a list so the students can decide which one they are interested in. For example, there are 9 different contexts the verb to come is used in.
Moreover, I love the star system. Below every word you will find 1, 2 or 3 stars. The stars show how common the words are. 1 star indicates words which are used a lot, 2 stars indicate words which are used more and finally, 3 stars indicate words which are used the most. Below an example for the three types.
We usually think monolingual dictionaries are for students whose level is intermediate or more. However, the websites of these online dictionaries are full of resources such as language games. This game from the Macmillan Dictionary aims at the practice of irregular verbs.
What I like: Another Dictionary website full of games useful for your students at any level is the Merriam Webster. These games aim at practicing synonyms, antonyms, spelling and even your general knowledge.
I especially like its Learner's Dictionary version because students can find a lot of examples, idioms, usage tips and some differences between American and British English. For some words there is also a visual aid.
This is the entry of the word cat
What I like: Last but not the least the Oxford Learner's Dictionary. I suggest this website if you are training your students for the FCE because it si full of collocations and grammar usage notes.
To sum up, when your students are not in the classroom they can improve their language knowledge just give them the right tools. | <urn:uuid:f3e59293-ae9e-4fe2-8161-ba3e678013dc> | CC-MAIN-2017-26 | http://larissaslanguages.blogspot.gr/2014/03/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-26/segments/1498128320201.43/warc/CC-MAIN-20170623220935-20170624000935-00586.warc.gz | en | 0.944662 | 614 | 2.671875 | 3 |
Ruptures or Hernias
The most common form of a rupture or hernia is a protrusion of a portion of an internal organ through the wall of the abdomen. Most ruptures occur in or just above the groin, but they may occur at other places over the abdomen. Ruptures result from a combination of weakness of the tissues and muscular strain.
The symptoms of a rupture are as follows:
The first aid for an individual who has suffered a rupture is as follows:
- Sharp, stinging pain
- Feeling of something giving way at the site of the rupture
- Possible nausea and vomiting.
- Place the victim on his or her back with the knees well drawn up.
- Place a blanket or similar padding under the knees.
- Place the center of a cravat under the padding, bring the ends above the knees and tie.
- Never attempt to force the protrusion back into the cavity.
- Apply numbweed or a cold application to the injured area.
- Cover with a blanket.
- The victim should be transported lying down with the knees drawn up.
For more detail relating to the healing of humans, here is a neat site that might help you. The golden fire lizard will show you the way!
Sources for these pages were:
|Radcliffe, J. The New International Webster's Pocket Medical & First Aid Dictionary of the English Language. USA: Trident Press International, 1997.|
Yahoo! Yahoo! Health Encyclopedia. June 2004.
All references to worlds and characters based on Anne McCaffrey's fiction are copyright ©
Anne McCaffrey 1967, 2001, all rights reserved, and used by permission of the author.
Special thanks to Nerissa and Avonelle, who helped in the compilation of this resource. | <urn:uuid:8e4cadc2-143c-42e0-9a96-f67881bf8955> | CC-MAIN-2019-35 | http://neopianhalls.tripod.com/howto/wounds.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-35/segments/1566027330968.54/warc/CC-MAIN-20190826042816-20190826064816-00500.warc.gz | en | 0.89337 | 370 | 3.671875 | 4 |
Dead, Jerome Gilbert Miller, born December 8, 1931 and died August 7, 2015, he was an American social worker who was an authority on the reform of juvenile and adult corrections systems.
Miller was a prominent advocate for alternatives to incarceration for offenders as well as for the de-institutionalization of individuals with developmental disabilities.
His career involved university teaching, administration of juvenile justice services for three states, clinical work with offenders and advocacy for systemic change in public sector correctional services.
Jerome Miller’s work first drew national attention for his leadership in closing several juvenile reformatories in Massachusetts in the early 1970s.
Miller went on to emerge as a prominent national advocate, administrator and educator working for systemic change in public sector corrections and disability service delivery systems. He was the co-founder of the National Center on Institutions and Alternatives.
Jerome Miller’s dramatic closure of two juvenile reformatories in Massachusetts in the early 1970s launched a forty year career as a pioneering administrator, educator and advocate for alternative models for responding to offenders and developmentally disabled persons.
Miller’s capacity to articulate the need for reform, to envision models for systems transformation and ability to implement institutional change have been widely acknowledged, sometimes condemned and often praised.
Reflecting on Miller’s impact on juvenile justice reform efforts since the early 1970s, Dan Macallair, executive director of the Center for Juvenile and Criminal Justice, writes, The closing of the Massachusetts reforms schools stands as the premier event in the history of American juvenile justice reform …Miller set the course for the 21st century juvenile justice system and secured his place among history’s great reformers. | <urn:uuid:b8ddfe01-e57d-4847-9710-a24f2502f81f> | CC-MAIN-2020-29 | https://historygreatest.com/jerome-miller-revolutionized-juvenile-justice-dies-at-83 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-29/segments/1593657143365.88/warc/CC-MAIN-20200713100145-20200713130145-00090.warc.gz | en | 0.962229 | 341 | 2.90625 | 3 |
Activity 2: Concentric Circles
Activity time: 15 minutes
Materials for Activity
- Newsprint, markers and tape
- Washable fine-point color markers
- Leader Resource 1, Circle Possibilities
- Leader Resource 2, Connection Possibilities
- A copy of the Unitarian Universalist Principles and Sources (Session 1, Leader Resource 1 or a poster in your meeting space)
Preparation for Activity
- Decide how you will form groups. If you plan to give each group both of the leader resources, make copies.
Description of Activity
In this activity, participants draw concentric circles indicating the various circles and spheres within which they live. To these circles they add radii showing how they connect with the circles and spheres beyond themselves. The results look like spider webs to reinforce the meaning of the seventh UU Principle.
Explain that "concentric circles" means one circle inside another. Illustrate the point on newsprint. Put a dot in the center of the circle you have drawn and say, "Imagine that this dot is you. You are standing inside concentric circles. The first circle might be your family." (Draw a small circle around the dot.) "The second, wider circle might include your friends." (Draw a second circle around the first.) "And so on, one circle around the other, as far as you can imagine."
Divide participants into groups of three or four. Give each small group a sheet of newsprint and several markers. Invite them to start with a dot or an X in the middle to represent a single person (like one of them), then draw a series of concentric circles around the point to represent some of the groups to which they belong, such as family, schools, clubs and organizations, their community, state, nation, etc. and label each circle with very small letters. (Demonstrate the lettering on the newsprint.)
You may offer Leader Resource 1, Circle Possibilities; invite the youth to use these ideas along with their own. After about five minutes, ask the groups to add some lines to show how the person in the center connects to everything else. They can add as many such lines as they want, spacing them more or less evenly around the circles and drawing them out to the circle where they might logically go. For example, they might draw a straight line from the center to the family circle, and write the word "love" along the line; "taking care of" might go to a world or environment circle, or somewhere in a family circle. Demonstrate on your newsprint.
You might provide Leader Resource 2.
When the small groups have finished their drawings or time is running out, call them together to compare results.
- How are the drawings the same and how are they different?
- What do they look like? (If nobody suggests "webs" or "spider webs," do so yourself, and ask if what the idea of webs has to do with Unitarian Universalism. Point out, if no youth does so, that the seventh UU Principle speaks of "the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part." Many Unitarian Universalists think of a web when they think of the way we are all connected to each other and everything else in the whole universe.
- Read the seventh Principle aloud, and note that it says everybody should "respect" the interdependent web. Ask what "interdependent" means. Note that the word means that all parts of the web or all parts of existence depend on each other. Ask if youth agree with that idea. How do other parts of the web depend on them? How do they depend on other parts?
- How does the idea of responsibility fit into the seventh Principle? How does "responsibility for" connect with "belonging to" any of the concentric circles?
- Human beings are social animals, like all primates. What is the importance of belonging to groups for social animals? Are there people who don't belong to any groups at all? If so, what do you think that feels like?
- How can we make people feel connected to a group? Think of examples from your own life. How do you know what concentric circles and lines of connection to draw?
- How does your UU congregation connect people, help them feel they belong?
- Have you ever felt connected to a group that included members who denied that you belonged? What did that feel like? What does our UU faith have to say about who belongs and who doesn't? | <urn:uuid:00d6ea42-6e1a-41bc-acbd-63c7e0efe759> | CC-MAIN-2017-13 | http://www.uua.org/re/tapestry/children/riddle/session11/157375.shtml | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-13/segments/1490218190753.92/warc/CC-MAIN-20170322212950-00495-ip-10-233-31-227.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.941231 | 937 | 4.09375 | 4 |
Kim Hye-sook survived a total 28 years of brutality, overwork and near-starvation in one of North Korea’s notorious prison camps. Now she travels the world campaigning to shut them down. Kim, who escaped to South Korea in 2009, has spoken out in the US, Switzerland, Japan and other nations about her horrific experiences.
“Human lives were worth less than those of flies,” she told a US congressional panel in September last year.
Kim heads an activist group publicizing the camps and has started painting some of the scenes she witnessed, to try to help the world understand.
“I remember seeing streets filling with corpses and public executions being held everywhere,” she told a forum in Seoul late on Thursday.
“I haven’t much education, but I paint and tell the same story over and over in hopes that someday, the camps will be shut down for good,” said Kim, whose exact age is not known, but is around 50.
Kim was sent to political prisoner camp Number 18 with her family in early 1975, when she was just 13 under the principle of “guilt by association,” because her grandfather had escaped to South Korea.
She sobbed repeatedly on Thursday as she talked of her life working in a coal mine and of the fate of her family.
“My brother and mother died at the camp. I don’t know the whereabouts of my father,” she said, swallowing back tears.
Two sisters and another brother are still in the camp, as far as she knows.
Kim said most young men assigned to the mines died before aged 30 from pneumonoconiosis, a chronic respiratory disease, and only seven out of 26 in her own work squad had survived when she was released.
“I also had the disease when I came to South Korea and am almost certain I would’ve died soon if I had not been treated quickly,” she said.
She said prisoners were at the mercy of “unbelievably evil” officials, whom she termed “worse than animals.” Inmates were beaten or publicly executed for all sorts of reasons — stealing food, trying to escape and even for asking why they had been detained.
“While they never provide electricity to the people [in North Korea], they set up 4m-high wire fences with electricity flowing at all times around the camp,” she said.
After she was released in 2001 under an amnesty, Kim fled to China. She was caught and sent back to the same camp in 2007. This time, however, she knew the camp “inside out” and had 8,000 yuan (US$1,260) earned in China, which she hid by swallowing it in a tight roll. She eventually managed to escape to escape at night in her bare feet, and after another spell in China reached South Korea via Laos and Thailand.
South Korea’s state human rights watchdog and other groups say there are six such political prison camps housing a total of about 200,000 prisoners. | <urn:uuid:73915058-92a5-40e1-a31e-417d8b51c817> | CC-MAIN-2016-30 | http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2012/06/24/2003536147 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-30/segments/1469257824994.73/warc/CC-MAIN-20160723071024-00018-ip-10-185-27-174.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.987723 | 643 | 2.546875 | 3 |
A linear stratified model is used to study the response of the equatorial ocean to forcing by the wind at periods from one month to one year. Solutions are represented as double sums of vertical modes (designated by the index n) and of the various types of waves associated with each mode (designated by the index l). Waves associated with a considerable number of vertical modes contribute to the solutions. They superpose in such a way that energy and phase propagate vertically as well as horizontally. It is useful to isolate the individual contributions of various pieces of the complete solution. One way to do this isolates the response of individual vertical modes (that is, specifies a value for n, but carries out the summation over l). Pieces of the solution defined in this way tend to focus energy at specific points on the equator. These focal points, however, are not at all visible in the complete solution. Another way isolates the response due to waves of a particular type (that is, fixes a value of l, but carries out the summation over n). These pieces of the solution form well-defined beams that carry energy into the deep ocean at slopes predicted by inviscid ray theory, and they are visible in the complete solution. Solutions for zonal winds are complicated. A Kelvin beam directly forced by the wind reflects from the eastern boundary of the ocean as a set of l = 1,3,5,... Rossby beams. These beams, in turn, reflect from the western boundary as Kelvin beams. All of them reflect efficiently from the ocean surface and bottom. It is the multiple reflection of these beams from basin boundaries that makes the response so complicated. The most visible beams in the solutions are the wind-driven Kelvin beam and a reflected l = 1 Rossby beam. The response is strong at frequencies of the order of 2π years–1 (or lower), and weakens considerably at higher frequencies. Solutions for meridional winds are much simpler. At a frequency of 2π months–1 a beam of Rossby-gravity waves directly forced by the wind reflects entirely poleward along the eastern boundary as a packet of coastal Kelvin waves, since there are no Rossby waves available for this reflection. The response is strong at frequencies of the order of 2π months–1, and weakens markedly at lower frequencies.
McCreary, Julian P.. 1984. "Equatorial beams." Journal of Marine Research 42, (2). https://elischolar.library.yale.edu/journal_of_marine_research/1724 | <urn:uuid:15047de5-6604-4870-9696-74627b7b5734> | CC-MAIN-2023-23 | https://elischolar.library.yale.edu/journal_of_marine_research/1724/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-23/segments/1685224648911.0/warc/CC-MAIN-20230603000901-20230603030901-00425.warc.gz | en | 0.934255 | 524 | 3.046875 | 3 |
Many of us love exercising outdoors, to the point where we allow virtually nothing to stop us from doing so. This includes even the bitter cold, which
Many of us love exercising outdoors, to the point where we allow virtually nothing to stop us from doing so. This includes even the bitter cold, which many of us are suffering through during this time of year.
While we do have plenty of tools such as various types of protective to clothing to shield us from the cold, there still are some very serious health risks to be aware of when exercising in freezing temperatures.
Here’s what can happen to your body when the temperature drops below freezing, and how you can protect yourself from these potential health risks.
Runny Nose/Watery Eyes
One huge difference between cold and hot air besides the temperature itself, is that there is a huge difference in humidity. The body does not like breathing in dry air, which comes along with the cold temperatures.
In order two unify the air and to warm it up, your body in hells air through the nostrils and nasal passages as opposed to you breathing through your mouth. If you’ve ever tried to exercise in the cold while breathing through your mouth, you’ve probably experienced the tremendously painful sensation in doing so.
Cold air can also irritate the eyes in the same manner, and in response the eyes produce more tears to lubricate the eye. In some cases the body produces an access here, hence why many people experience tears flowing down their cheeks when they’re out exercising in the cold.
Increased Calories Burned
One benefit of living in an area where it gets cold if you’re looking to lose weight, is that the body burns more calories when we’re in colder temperatures. This comes down to simple metabolism in that the body needs more fuel to maintain our core body temperature.
Another aspect that influences calories burned in colder temperatures is that we tend to shiver, which in itself burns a little bit of calories. While this caloric burn due to shivering itself is rather negligible, in doing so it signals the body to activate the hormone irisin, which promotes fat loss.
One area over health that is affected by the cold weather which many people are not really aware of, is that we tend to experience a higher frequency of migraines during the colder winter months. This again has to do what if the bodies physiology, and how it protects itself against the cold.
In order to maintain the body’s core temperature, the body as many tools in which it can use to do so.
The body can constrict blood vessels which supply blood to the skin, which reduces the amounts of blood flow to this area. This means that less volume of blood is exposed to these colder temperatures, helping the body maintain its core temperature.
This comes along with some side effects as well, such as some individuals experiencing a higher frequency of headaches. Blood vessels supplying the skin surrounding the skull are also constricted as well, which can cause a headache.
People can experience more headaches during the cold winter months for other reasons as well, such as a change in barometric pressure. Winter storms in particular bring sudden drops in atmosphere it pressure, which can trigger headaches in many individuals.
The best thing to do if you experience a headache when exercising in the cold is to get inside to warmer temperatures as soon as possible, or at the very least provide some protection to your head if you’re going outside.
Shortness of Breath
This issue ties into the problem with runny nose and eyes, as if your nasal passages are blocked with mucus you cannot breathe through them. This is the case when we spend too much time outside in cold weather, or if were exercising in cold weather and find the need to breathe through our mouths.
Frigidaire can cause coughing, wheezing, and shortness of breath to two the effect of the frigid temperatures on our lungs. People who are smokers or who have other lung conditions such as asthma are at an even greater risk.
If you experience shortness of breath followed by chest pain and the feeling that you might vomit, may be experiencing a heart attack. Heart attacks spike during the winter months due to this issue, as well as many people shoveling snow who aren’t used to regular exercise. | <urn:uuid:dcf012fc-d063-4e94-9076-7ab2421cc748> | CC-MAIN-2020-24 | https://maxfitnesshub.com/cold-affects-body-4-telltale-signs-know/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-24/segments/1590347401004.26/warc/CC-MAIN-20200528232803-20200529022803-00422.warc.gz | en | 0.958771 | 890 | 2.859375 | 3 |
Beer is made from four basic ingredients: Barley (or other grains), water, hops and yeast. The basic idea is to extract the sugars from grains so the yeast can convert it to alcohol and CO2, creating beer.
Brewing is a combination of science and art. A brewmaster uses the basic scientific process and expresses creativity by varying the combinations of grains, hops and yeast that results in a multitude of styles.
The first step begins with a cereal grain. Although barley is the most popular, wheat, rye and other grains are also used. Once the grains are harvested, the seeds are run through a malting process. The purpose is to start the seed germinating as if it were going to grow. Germination activates starch enzymes necessary to create fermentable sugars when the yeast is added later in the process.
However, the germination must be stopped at the right time. Grain harvested out of the field usually has 10-12 percent moisture content and steeping (soaking in water) elevates it to approximately 45 percent, causing it to germinate. Left alone, it would sprout roots and grow. Once the germination is stopped, the grains are dried through kilning back to three to five percent moisture content. The last stage is roasting the grains. Maltsters – experts in creating various malted grains – determine the kind of roasting.
Mash and Lauter
Once the grains are malted, the next step is to steep them again in hot water. This process, known as mashing, activates the starch enzymes in the grain, which cause it to break down and release sugar. The water is then drained and leaves a sweet, syrupy liquid known as wort. However, there are still parts of the grains left and the next step is to lauter, or separate, the wort from the used grains.
Boiling and Adding Hops
Once wort has been created and the lautering is complete, hops and other spices are added. Hops are small pinecone-looking fruit that grows on vines and provides bitterness to balance out the sugar in the wort. Hops contain the acid isohumulone, which is measured in parts per million. The levels of this, and other acids in hops, are referred to as bitterness units. Chemists have created the International Bitterness Unit (IBU), which is measured on a scale of 1-to-100. Generally speaking, the higher the number, the more bitter the taste. Connoisseurs then speak of beer in terms as less, or more, hoppy.
Hops also have a natural preservative quality. For example, the India Pale Ale (IPA) variety – one of the most popular craft beers – originated during England’s occupation of India. Brewers in England put extra hops into the beer to preserve it on the long ocean voyage.
According to the USDA, there are more than 150 varieties of hops. The acreage of hops grown in the U.S. has increased 95.8 percent since 2012 from total acreage of 29,683 to 58,148 in 2017.
The 2016 value of production of the United States hop crop was $498 million, up 44 percent from the record 2015 value of $345 million. Most hops grown in the U.S. are in the northwest states of Washington, Oregon and Idaho. The most popular types of hops are Cascade, Simcoe, Zeus, Centennial, Citra, Willamette and Mosaic. Like grape varieties that determine the taste of wine, the type of hop and the region it’s grown influence the taste of beer.
Fermentation: Ales and Lagers
While wines are divided into two groups – red and white – beer is divided into two groups as well – ales and lagers. The type of yeast used and the fermentation process determines these two groups.
After the hops are added and the boiling is finished, the liquid goes to a fermenting vessel and yeast is added. Although there are more than 1,500 varieties of yeast, there are two different types of yeast used for craft beer: top cropping and bottom cropping.
Yeast is a living, single-cell microorganism that is classified as fungi. Once the yeast is added, it begins to break down the sugars and create both alcohol and carbonization (CO2).
Ales are fermented at a warmer temperature around 64 degrees and can be ready to drink within three weeks. In traditional brewing, the yeast used in ales causes a foam at the top of the tank from which it derives it’s name, top cropping (fermenting).
Lager is the German word, “to store.” Lagers are fermented at a cooler temperature around 50 degrees and then stored (lagered) for several weeks or months at temperatures near freezing. The type of yeast used in this process settles at the bottom of the tank and is called bottom cropping (fermenting).
Once the brewmaster determines the beer has fermented, the next step is to fill bottles, aluminum cans, kegs or casks.
What Do Those Letters and Numbers Mean?
Typically, there are two or three letter combinations in the beer list and on the label:
- ABV or ABW: Alcohol by volume or alcohol by weight. This is the amount of alcohol in a container of beer.
- IBU: International Bitterness Unit measures the levels of hop bitterness.
- SRM: Standard Reference Method is the color of the beer in a clear glass on a scale of one to 40 with one being the lightest.
In addition to flavor descriptions and what each measurement unit means, craft beer is also described by appearance, flavor, aroma, mouth feel and after taste. | <urn:uuid:faf5d632-ddd6-4360-8718-3540fa1b4525> | CC-MAIN-2020-05 | https://funpassports.co.za/?page_id=2007 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-05/segments/1579250597458.22/warc/CC-MAIN-20200120052454-20200120080454-00436.warc.gz | en | 0.94509 | 1,193 | 3.5 | 4 |
1. A project is a collection of coordinated work activities conducted within a specifi c time frame that utilizes resources to achieve specifi ed objectives.
a. Briefl y describe a project from your personal life that you have recently completed. State the nature of the project, the initial objectives, and planned the starting and ending dates and the actual starting and ending dates of the project. List any resources used (money, tools, materials, labor).
b. List and compare the outcome of your project to the initial objectives.
2. The text describes the ways in which a team of people writing a book is like a team of people writing software. Read the description and develop a two - column table in which the activities of writing a book are listed in the fi rst column and comparable activities of writing software are listed in the rows of the second column.
3. Describe three ways in which a team effort to develop software is not similar to a team effort to write a book.
4. Describe a circumstance in which a software team would be: a. effi cient but not effective and b. effective but not effi cient
5. For the Automated Teller System illustrated in Figure 2.4 , give an example of some software that might be obtained from each of the six sources of software components listed in Table 2.1
6. Briefly compare and contrast the mechanisms of planning and control used in a Waterfall development project and those used in iterative development projects.
Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
1. The answer should be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
2. The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
3. Also include a reference page. The Citations and references should follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length. | <urn:uuid:44f9715b-1b80-43e7-9791-08926c960079> | CC-MAIN-2019-30 | http://www.tutorsglobe.com/question/compare-the-outcome-of-your-project-to-the-initial-objective-52982459.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-30/segments/1563195526517.67/warc/CC-MAIN-20190720132039-20190720154039-00519.warc.gz | en | 0.912038 | 422 | 2.84375 | 3 |
Q: Is Fountas & Pinnell Classroom™ aligned to state standards?
A: The Fountas & Pinnell Literacy Continuum, from which all of the lessons in Fountas & Pinnell Classroom™ are derived, has been aligned to the following state standards:
- Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts
- Texas Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for English Language Arts and Reading
- 2017 English Standards of Learning for Virginia Public Schools
- Louisiana Student Standards for English Language Arts
- Tennessee English Language Arts Standards
To see more FAQs or get answers to other questions from a trained consultant, please visit the Discussion Board! | <urn:uuid:7b052c50-2130-441d-b1b5-61e59f1bea51> | CC-MAIN-2020-05 | https://fpblog.fountasandpinnell.com/faq-friday-is-fountas-pinnell-classroom-aligned-to-state-standards | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-05/segments/1579251671078.88/warc/CC-MAIN-20200125071430-20200125100430-00246.warc.gz | en | 0.863511 | 139 | 2.78125 | 3 |
COMPLETE SCHOOL PROJECT TOPICS & MATERIALS :
CHAPTERS: Chapter 1-5
DOC FORMAT: MS WORD/PDF
1.1 Background to the Study
Water has been identified to be very important to human existence because it is very necessary for survival.A reliable supply of clean wholesome water is crucial in an attempt to promote healthy living amongst the inhabitants of a well defined geographical region (Mustapha and Adam, 1999). In an attempt to proffer solution to water problem, it was estimated that 1.2 billion people around the world does not have access to clean safe water and about 2.5 billion people are not provided with adequate sanitation (Third World Water Forum, 2003). Majority of the affected people that lack access to clean safe water and adequate sanitation are located in the developing countries because the standard industrialized global model for safe water delivery and sanitation technology is not affordable (Gadgil and Derby, 2003).
1.2 statement of the research problem
Narrowing down to Nigeria, the supply or provision of public drinking water is not reliable (Egwari and Aboaba, 2002). As a result, this has adversely affected the good health of Nigerians most especially during the dry season (Adesunkanmi and Ajao, 1986). In Nigeria, ground water and pipe borne (tap) water are the major sources of drinking water. These sources are said to be unsafe sources of drinking water because findings indicated that ground water sources contain trace elements, dissolved solids and pathogens in excessive quantities that may be dangerous to the health of the people. Consequently, most of the investigations carried out on ground water samples from different parts of Nigeria revealed that most of the available sources of water or water types are polluted or contaminated hence, were not fit for drinking purpose (Ogunbanjo,2004 and Tijani, 2003) cited in Olaposi (2009) unpublished PhD Thesis. In addition, physical assessment of many public supplied pipe-borne water samples also testified to their poor quality.An example of locally developed alternative of safe water provision in Nigeria is the drinking water sold in polythene sachets and plastic bottles. there are few studies on the impact of pure water production on the economy of Nigeria to employment creation, income generation and wealth creation, hence this study.
1.3 Objectives of the study
The broad objective of this study is to assess the impact of pure water production on the Nigeria economy with specific attention to Nnewi North L.G.A of Anambra State .
The specific objectives are to:
i. Analyse how pure water production has impacted positively on the Nigeria economy
ii. Assess the extent to which pure water production has created income generation.
1.4 Research questions
i.what are the impact of pure production on the economy of Nigeria?.
ii.has the production of pure water created income generation in Nigeria?
1.5 Statement Of The Research Hypothesis
This study would be guided by the following hypothesis
1 Ho.pure water production has not impact positively on the economy of Nigeria.
Hi. pure water production has impact positively on the economy of Nigeria.
2 Ho. pure water production do not contribute towards economic development of Nigeria.
Hi. pure water production contribute towards economic development of Nigeria
1.6 Scope Of The Study
With the aim of examining the impact of pure water production on the economy of Nigeria, pure water should be produced under hygienic condition that conforms with the standard required by agencies such as NAFDAC.
1.7 Significance Of The Study.
Most researchers in Nigeria have not taken time to document the nature, production techniques and processes involved in pure water production as well as the impact of pure water production on the economy of Nigeria, hence this study .the researcher examined the impact of pure water production on the Nigeria economy which include:provision of employment for labour,provision of clean and treated water among others.
1.8 limitation of the Study
Some factors may limit the level of accuracy and reliability of this study. Factors include:
i. difficulty in obtaining data
ii. low response rate from individual parties.
More Research Project Topics Materials in the Department
- AN EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATION OF COVID-19 ON PRODUCT SALES AND MARKETING
- A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE EFFECT OF COVID-19 LOCKDOWN ON IMPORTATION
- CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS OF POS BUSINESSES IN NIGERIA
- IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON TELECOMMUNICATION INDUSTRIES IN NIGERIA (A CASE STUDY OF MTN)
- ASSESSING THE PERCEPTION OF QUANTITY SURVEYOR ON ADOPTION OF E-PROCUREMENT TO MITIGATE CORRUPT PRACTICES IN PUBLIC PROCUREMENT
- IMPACT OF POS ON PROMOTING ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN NIGERIA (A CASE STUDY OF CALABAR MUNICIPAL)
- IMPACT OF GOOD OFFICE RELATIONSHIP AMONG WORKERS ON THEIR OVERALL PERFORMANCE
- IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON THE TRANSPORTATION SECTOR IN NIGERIA | <urn:uuid:1c66892a-03b1-42dd-8c82-4f98e29f9e43> | CC-MAIN-2023-23 | https://eliteproject.com.ng/impact-of-pure-water-production-on-the-economic-development-of-nigeria/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-23/segments/1685224653183.5/warc/CC-MAIN-20230606214755-20230607004755-00043.warc.gz | en | 0.905039 | 1,126 | 3.328125 | 3 |
The Creek Watch Program monitors a number of parameters at the stream each month, detailing observations of the stream channel, banks, and surrounding habitat. Some Creek Watch teams additionally carry out in-stream water quality testing with chemistry kits.
Below are lists delineating what it is the Creek Watch team evaluates each month, and what you can hope to find in their data.
Decreased water clarity can indicate sediment or particles entering into the stream from run off or erosion, a frequent problem in the Wissahickon Watershed. Suspended particles or sediment in the water can diminish water quality for stream organisms, and can deflect sunlight from reaching aquatic plants. It can also raise the temperature of the stream, absorbing sunlight.
Surface coatings can be from a natural process or may indicate a problem in the stream. Creek Watchers report incidences of bubbles, oily coatings, or surface scum at their stream site.
The odor of the stream can indicate natural ecological conditions or a problem in the stream. Creek Watchers report incidences of sewage, sulfur, chemical, or gas/petroleum odors at their stream sites.
The streambed color can indicate biological or chemical functions at the site.
Shade helps to keep the temperature of the stream low and slow the growth of algae, important for the survival of aquatic animals. Canopy cover also supplies the stream with leaf litter in the fall, an important source of food and habitat for the aquatic system.
Some algae growth is important to maintaining a stable ecosystem. However, over abundance of algae can reduce dissolved oxygen concentrations for aquatic animals and decrease their survival. The Wissahickon Creek can have major algae problems due to nutrient runoff from animal waste, fertilizers, etc.
Stream flow varies with the seasons and storm events. Groundwater inputs to the Wissahickon Creek are fairly minimal, so much of the flow in the creek is from wastewater treatment facilities and from stormwater runoff. The amount of water in the stream can influence temperature, dissolved oxygen, and many other parameters.
Leaf packs are important for some aquatic insects, known as shredders. Shedders are absent from the Wissahickon Creek and the WVWA suspects this is due to a missing food source. When there is more canopy cover, more leaf litter finds its way into the stream.
Aquatic vegetation is vegetation growing in the streambed. The WVWA has not seen very much aquatic vegetation in the watershed and is interested in cataloguing any aquatic vegetation observed by Creek Watchers.
Erosion is a known impairment in the Wissahickon and is a large concern for the WVWA. Erosion occurs when large amounts of water weather and carve out a stream bank, carrying soil, rocks and debris downstream. Erosion can create unstable bank conditions and can bring down riparian trees. The sediment carried away from eroding stream banks eventually settles on the streambed surface, sometimes creating an island or point bar. This sediment seals in and flattens out valuable habitat in the rocks and crevices of the streambed.
A riparian corridor is the land the boarders the creek (zone of land between the water and 50 feet into the land). Stable riparian vegetation can reduce impacts from stormwater in an urban/suburban landscape by slowing down high velocity stormwater, filtering out pollutants, and providing shade and habitat to the stream corridor.
The WVWA is interested in the animals that are using the stream and stream bank habitat. Creek Watchers report their observations of mammals, birds, insects, plants, etc. at the stream on a monthly basis. | <urn:uuid:6181ac14-a419-4c70-8383-5f9501958025> | CC-MAIN-2018-34 | http://www.wvwa.org/creekwatch/monitors/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-34/segments/1534221215222.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20180819145405-20180819165405-00034.warc.gz | en | 0.915206 | 747 | 3.640625 | 4 |
Date: c. 638
The chronicler, al-Tabari (d. 923) records that the people of Kufa requested that they be allowed to use reeds as a building material. Caliph ʿUmar (r. 634-44) agreed to let this happen, but there were subsequently fires in both Kufa and Basra. After the fire a request was made to change the method of construction to bricks. These events appear in the chapter dealing with 17/638. See also: Architect; Builder; House Painter; Mat Maker.
Citation: Al-Tabari, Abu Jaʿfar Muhammad b. Jarir, Taʾrīkh al-rusul wa’l-mulūk. Translated in al-Tabari, Abu Jaʿfar Muhammad b. Jarir, The History of al-Ṭabarī (Taʾrīkh al-rusul wa’l-mulūk). Volume XIII: The Conquest of Iraq, Southwestern Persia, and Egypt, trans. Gautier Juynboll, Bibliotheca Persica (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1989), pp. 67-68.
Also: Milwright, Marcus. Islamic Arts and Crafts: An Anthology (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2017), pp. 73-74. | <urn:uuid:bfc5cf6d-366d-4825-aa22-185d71816665> | CC-MAIN-2022-49 | https://craftsofiraq.uvic.ca/kufa-builders/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-49/segments/1669446710698.62/warc/CC-MAIN-20221129132340-20221129162340-00296.warc.gz | en | 0.832034 | 301 | 2.703125 | 3 |
Here are some exercises anyone can do on a daily basis.
These are exercises Quoted from the Volunteer Ministers Handbook by L. Ron Hubbard
Exercises One, Two and Three
Look and Act Younger: Sitting somewhere near the center of a room, close your eyes and "contact" the two upper corners of the room behind you. Then, holding those corners, sit still and don't think. Remain interested only in those two corners.
You can do this for two minutes (minimum) or two hours, always with benefit. No matter what happens, simply hold the corners and don't think. You can do this daily. It will make you look and act younger.
Feel Freer: Pick out two similar objects. Then find as many differences between them as possible.
Now pick out two objects and see where they are in relation to each other and your body.
Use these two steps over and over. You will feel freer and see better.
Better your memory: Go over this list many times, each time answering its questions.
"Recall a time which really seems real to you."
"Recall a time when you were in good communication with someone."
"Recall a time when you agreed to something."
"Recall a time when somebody disagreed with you."
"Recall a time when you liked somebody."
"Recall a time when someone agreed with you."
"Recall a time when someone was communicating easily to you." "Recall a time when somebody liked you."
Use this list many times. If "holding corners" (Exercise One) disturbed you, use this list. If you are tired or confused, use it.
This exercises can be done for hours. | <urn:uuid:740f0ec2-b58b-4504-be62-d6a9847be654> | CC-MAIN-2018-43 | http://independent-scientologists-association.com/preclear-exercises.shtml | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-43/segments/1539583511761.78/warc/CC-MAIN-20181018084742-20181018110242-00380.warc.gz | en | 0.961443 | 357 | 2.59375 | 3 |
T H E L I F E A N D D E A T H S T R U G G L E
MEDAL IN HONOR OF THE NATIONAL HERO
MAJ. GEN. A N D R A N I K O Z A N I A N
Written by Gevork Nazaryan
The Turkish "army" by mid 1918, having obliterated all of Western Armenia, had overran most of Eastern Armenia, killing and raping en route, reaching the outskirts of Holy Echmiadzin. Save The Holy City! became the rallying cry of the last remnants of the Armenian nation. A volunteer militia began to enlist Armenians young and old, rich and poor, from all walks of life, from every corner of the world. Armenians from the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa rushed to fight the final battle in this struggle of Life and Death. Many volunteers were non-Armenians, people who simply hated the Turks for what they were doing and wanted to fight for justice and uphold human life. The Genocide would be the pinnacle of one thousand years of killing. The epic battle would take place near the village of Sardarapat, only few kilometers from the Holy City. The Turkish "army" was led by the famous or rather infamous Gallibolu [Gallipoli] Army. The critical energy of feelings and emotions was built up within the ranks of the Armenian fighters. The electrified atmosphere that was written in the stoic faces of the defenders was later recounted by the eyewitnesses as something of having a supernatural effect to it. If the Armenians would lose the battle -- EVERYTHING -- would be lost -- no going back, in case of defeat Darkness would prevail-- there will be no Light at the end of this long dark tunnel of history. But, Providence, in the eternal Life and Death struggle, would come through for Armenians -- again at the very last moment -- when everything suggested that the Abyss was near. It is during this time that the World War I British Lord of the Admiralty - Sir Winston Churchill - who would later be distinguished as the British Prime Minister during World War II -- would for the first time in history use the word Holocaust to describe what is happening to the Armenian nation. "An ancient race has disappeared from the pages of History..." So it seemed. At the utmost critical point of survival the Armenian fighting spirit had won. The Armenians had completely smashed the "Gallibolu" army chasing the remnants all the way to Kars. From that point on, the Armenian policy of reliance on foreign, outside forces had relinquished. Self-reliance became the new policy which to a great degree is still ingrained in Armenian individual psyche and collective consciousness.
ARSEN GOERGIZIAN ONE OF THE LEADING
MEMBERS OF THE DEFENSE COMMITTEE
The ancient Armenian fortress-city of Van wrote one of the most heroic pages of resistance to the Turkish onslaught during the years of the Genocide. A large Turkish army that included the death squad units of the Special Organization was in charge of eradicating the Armenian population of the Vaspurakan province [Villayet of Van]. The Turkish army along with bands of Kurds specifically targeted women and children. Women were stripped of their possessions, raped and killed. Small children were either killed or taken in to be raised as either Turks or Kurds. Thousands of Armenian villagers fled to the safety of the Van fortress. The huge fortress of Van, located in the heart of the city, since the days of the Kingdom of Ararat, served as the gathering point for defense and resistance, against foreign invaders.
THE MAP OF THE CITY WITH THE DEFENSE POSITIONS OF THE CITIZEN MILITIA
ISSUED BY THE AYGESTAN COMMITTEE ON APRIL 7, 1915
A Defense Committee, which became known as the Aygestan Committee was led by the prominent leaders and members of the intelligentsia of the Community. Four primary defense positions -- in the four cardinal directions -- were set up on the Eastern, Western, Northern and Southern sections of the fortress. The eastern section was under the command of Davit' Sarkisian, the western under the command of Harut'iwn Nerkarian, the northern under Mihran T'oromanian and the southern under Mihrdat Mirzaxanian. The overall command of the positions and defense was given to a gifted organizer and leader -- Haik Kosoyan -- whose leadership skills were critical in calming the situation and bringing order in a chaos and confusion of the panic-stricken and fearful villagers.
THE HEROIC DEFENSE OF VAN BY THE MUNICIPAL VOLUNTEER MILITIA
IF THE TURKISH ITTIHADIST SPECIAL ORGANIZATION EXTERMINATION
DEATH SQUADS WOULD HAVE BROKEN THROUGH
ALL THE INHABITANTS WOULD HAVE BEEN KILLED OFF...
Providing adequate rations of food and shelter to these people along with providing logistical instructions to the fighters on the walls was Commander Kosoyan's and the rest of the Committee's primary focus. The Committee's HQ were setup in Van's Prelacy building. The few hundred fighters were divided into five regiments. Four would take up positions on the fortifications while the fifth would be stationed on the inside as a rotating relief detachment. On 9:00 am April 7, 1915 the Turks under the bloody butcher Djevdet bey attacked only to be driven back by the Armenian fighters. The Turkish assaults continued unabated only to be time and again beaten back to their positions. The defenders heroically fought for weeks until reinforcements of Armenian fighters from Eastern Armenian, under the leadership of the outstanding National Hero Maj. Gen. Andranik Ozanian, with Russian Army liberated Van and the population had a chance to safely evacuate to Eastern Armenia, most notable to Yerevan and the suburbs. Eastern Armenia in general, and Yerevan in particular, served as a safe haven for the thousands of the survivors of the Genocide.
S U R V I V O R S . . .
THE CREATIVE CIVILIZATION BUILDING
ARMENIAN PEOPLE MUST AND WILL LIVE!
HISTORIC ARMENIAN FOLK COSTUME OF A WOMAN AND A MAN OF
VASPURAKAN PROVINCE WHICH ALONG WITH AYRARAT FORMS THE HEART OF
GREATER ARMENIA. ON DISPLAY IN THE ETHNOGRAPHIC MUSEUM OF SARDARAPAT
NEXT TO THE MONUMENTAL COMPLEX MARKING THE EPIC ARMENIAN VICTORY
AT SARDARAPAT ON MAY 26, 1918 WHICH SECURED THE SALVATION OF THE
REMNANTS OF THE ARMENIAN NATION FROM COMPLETE EXTERMINATION...
THE PATTERNS ON THE COSTUME ARE HARMONICALLY ARRANGED IN
A CAREFULLY CHOSEN ARRAY OF PATTERNS, GEOMETRIC SYMBOLS AND
COLORS AS VISUAL AND SUBLIME RESONATORS OF HIGH ENERGY/LIFE.
MADE OUT OF TRADITIONALLY WOVEN WOOL AND LINEN
THE CLOTHES WERE VERY COMFORTABLE...COOL DURING SUMMER
AND WARM DURING WINTER [NOTE THE WOOL BAJKON...LIT. JACKET
ON THE MALE HIGHLANDER THAT WOULD BE WORN DURING COLDER WEATHER].
THE SYMBOLS ON THE CLOTHES GO BACK TO DAWN OF HISTORY
AND MATCH THE SAME SACROSANCT WOVEN PATTERNS ON THE WALLS
OF EARLIEST SETTLED ARMENIC COMMUNITIES CA. 9,000 BC THAT
BEGAN THE NEOLITHIC REVOLUTION IN PLACES LIKE NEVALI CORI,
CAYONU, CATAL HUYUK AND OF COURSE GOBEKLI TEPE.
ARMENIC FOLK COMMUNITY
STIRRING DRAWINGS OF PRE-GENOCIDE FOLKISH LIFE IN YERKIR BY G. KHANJIAN.
With the extermination of the native, hard-working, productive Armenian population -- for ages serving as the builders and innovators of their native soil -- Van has remained a relatively backward place. This has been as a matter of fact the faith of all of historic Armenia -- eradicated of its people, it is left virtually undeveloped by the Turkish authorities that to this day deny one of the greatest crimes in human history -- deny that millions of people once existed and made the land bloom with their sweat and hard work -- killed for wanting to be free, to live in liberty and pursue their happiness and destiny. Killed on their own native soil, by a parasitic Turkish government that lived off of their sweat and hard work that cut short uncountable lives that in the millennia long tradition of a people that created a great civilization -- builders and innovators of human progress in all its endeavors. The land is still in ruins waiting for the caretakers and the creative people to return to once again make it bloom...anew.
I M M O R T A L I T Y | <urn:uuid:83c90222-d02b-4593-9632-1698228a9564> | CC-MAIN-2018-22 | http://armenianhighland.com/van/chronicle243.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-22/segments/1526794864872.17/warc/CC-MAIN-20180522190147-20180522210147-00430.warc.gz | en | 0.939794 | 1,940 | 2.5625 | 3 |
Data drives the world these days. From the way people communicate to the way businesses run, data surrounds all aspects. But what happens when data steers the ship in the wrong direction? Not only is it inconvenient, it’s expensive. In 2016, IBM estimated that bad data cost the US $3.1 trillion.
While there may be modern problems, bad data isn’t anything new. The collection and distribution of bad data has been around for thousands of years.
32 years ago this month, Coca-Cola experienced a period of bad data setback when they launched their “New Coke” formula in an attempt to compete with their top-competitor, Pepsi.
Coke conducted research by taste testing the new formula with hundreds of thousands of people, most of whom enjoyed the new drink. So, what went wrong?
By not factoring in how the classic formula related to the larger brand, the drink flopped as soon as it went to market and had to be pulled from the shelves, resulting in a loss of tens of millions of dollars for the company.
While the Coke mishap was significant, other organisations were hit harder by bad data. In 1999, NASA’s budget took a big hit when a miscalculation led to a $125 million loss.
The Mars Orbiter was lost by what was later determined to be a miscommunication in units of measurement. One of the teams that worked on the project used English units and another used the metric system – resulting in not only a financial loss but a loss of the orbiter itself.
However, one of the most notable business disasters of the modern era was caused, in part, by bad data. The Enron Scandal of 2001 led to the bankruptcy of what was once the sixth-largest energy company in the world.
When the stock prices started to skyrocket in the late ‘90s and early 2000s, things quickly started to change. Documents were being shred and it became apparent that much of the company’s data was fictionalised.
Despite being worth over $100 billion by 2000, the company couldn’t survive the ensuing fallout. Enron ended up going bankrupt and billions of dollars were lost.
To learn more about how bad data has cost companies, and even changed the course of history, take a look at the infographic that Utopia, Inc. developed. So how can bad data and the costly repercussions be fixed? Harvard Business Review breaks down what leads to this.
Knowledge workers waste 50% of their time looking for data, finding and fixing mistakes and looking for confirmation from other sources for data they don’t trust. Data scientists are spending 60% of their time simply organising data.
For the cost of bad data to lessen there needs to me more of a focus in hidden data factories and cut them down as much as possible. Additionally, when false or bad data is noticed by data scientists, managers, knowledge workers and others they don’t have the time to fix the false data they come across.
They are often under a tight deadline and make the corrections individually but don’t go back to the data creator to look at where or how the data went awry.
From a business standpoint alone, bad data can escalate and cost companies billions of dollars. TDWI and Inside Big Data look into the effects of bad data and the ripple effect it causes for businesses. TDWI estimates over $6 billion dollars were lost annually by US resulting from poor customer data.
Data continues be the basis for many of company’s top revolutions and can make or break a business dependent on how it’s executed. Looking at how other companies have dealt with data can only help others in the future.
Sourced by Digital Third Coast
Nominations are now open for the Tech Leaders Awards 2017, the UK’s flagship celebration of the business, IT and digital leaders driving disruptive innovation and demonstrating value from the application of technology in businesses and organisations. Nominating is free and simply: just click here to enter. Good luck! | <urn:uuid:633244b7-6009-4e1a-a6a8-cd030e614cba> | CC-MAIN-2023-50 | https://www.information-age.com/cost-bad-data-5559/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-50/segments/1700679100016.39/warc/CC-MAIN-20231128214805-20231129004805-00203.warc.gz | en | 0.962146 | 834 | 3.09375 | 3 |
7 Tips for Handling Isolation During the Pandemic
Making the best of a difficult time.
Posted March 27, 2020 | Reviewed by Ekua Hagan
Isolation can be difficult for anyone—but especially for people prone to depression and anxiety. It is natural for us to want to connect with people—in fact, solitary confinement in prison is almost lethal for some people.
In a previous post, Staying Home During the Pandemic, I described 10 ideas that can help you cope. Many people find staying at home can increase their depression and add to their rumination and worry. But staying at home does not mean we have to isolate ourselves from social contact with other people and it does not mean that we have to become passive and ruminate and worry. There are a lot of things that we can do from our homes while we minimize the risk of infection. And being at home will not be a life sentence since this pandemic will subside at some point. Of course, right now we do not know when that will be, so we need to have a plan—a daily plan and a longer-term plan—to cope with being at home.
My team at the American Institute for Cognitive Therapy has been generating a lot of great ideas for coping with the isolation so many of us are going through. We have shared a number of creative and very helpful ideas with our clients and ourselves on how to manage the difficulties of isolation.
I wanted to share with you the ideas that our senior clinicians—Heather Glubo, Aspasia Hotzoglou, Laura Oliff, Susan Paula, and Graham Reynolds—have offered. Interestingly, we have found that many of our clients who have been learning CBT and DBT skills are coping better than they thought they would. Skills actually work. Planning resilience leads to resilience.
Here are some of the ideas that our team has come up with. (I am sure that you have lots of great ideas, too. Let us know about them.)
1. Use Group Hangouts With Family/Friends/Support Groups
- Use Zoom or another platform for having a "party" with friends. One woman celebrated her birthday on Zoom with friends across the United States. Everyone cheered as she blew out the candles on her cake and cut her first piece. Two friends playing guitars in different states sang Happy Birthday. This will certainly be the most memorable birthday she will have had.
- Have recipe challenges with friends and family. Think about being creative about innovative cooking. Now is the time to share those recipes you always wanted to try. Link this to friends and skype or zoom your discussions. I know that two is a crowd in the kitchen, but this can be fun.
- Watch movies, shows, cook dinner over video platforms. You can watch a movie with a friend or family member via Facetime or other networking tools. In addition, cooking and eating meals can be done through video as a social activity.
- Have daily check-ins with close friends and family. Make a list of people to call, text, or video chat. Stay connected. Many of us are finding that we are talking with friends more—not less. This is the opposite of isolation.
- Encourage, ask for help, and offer help! Don’t hesitate to reach out and ask for support. Friends and family may actually be grateful to you for including them in your life. And there is nothing that will give you more satisfaction than helping someone who may be lonely and having difficulty.
- Use online support groups/meetings. Look into online help. Our team has continued with offering group therapy using Zoom and many clinical practices are also set up for these services. Check out other groups that might be relevant to your needs such as Online AA meetings (onlinegroupaa.org).
2. Focus on Your Health
- Drink water. Start each day with a large glass and keep going. Staying hydrated is staying healthy.
- Eat healthy. This is a chance to cook more with less temptation. Plan ahead and avoid junk food. Eat in a mindful way—paying attention to what you are doing. This will help decrease binge eating and impulsive eating. When shopping or ordering, skip the things that are not nutrient-rich.
- Exercise and do yoga. Yoga with Adriene on YouTube is a great platform for keeping up with your yoga practice. There are many more online. Use YouTube, download apps, or find exercise content that you can follow at home. You don’t need a personal trainer if you have a smartphone or tablet. Now there is no excuse—“I don’t have time to go to the gym." Just get outside and walk/run—aim for 10,000 steps. Keep your distance from others. Go at your own pace.
- Get enough sleep. Put your phone down by 10 p.m.—journal or read a book. Have a wind-down time before bedtime. This is a time to relax, not worry.
- Avoid binge drinking. Although ‘Quarantinis’ are becoming popular and liquor stores have been deemed “essential businesses,” try going alcohol-free or at least reduce alcohol consumption. You will function much better in the long term with less alcohol.
3. Build or Master a Skill
- Download Duolingo for free to learn a new language. Why not learn something new?
- Start researching or practicing new hobbies, languages, or activities that can give you a sense of mastery.
- Start projects that have been on your to-do list for a while—consider doing them together, with your partner or children, rather than alone.
- Foster a dog or cat. There has been an incredible increase in adoptions of cats and dogs. Of course, keep in mind that they easily become “forever” members of your family.
4. Practice Mindfulness
- Many of the popular mindfulness apps have trial periods or are beginning to offer discounted rates for new members because of the coronavirus. You can also download a number of free mindfulness resources on our website. Try taking at least five minutes a day to begin a mindfulness practice. Try using a Loving Kindness Meditation to develop the comforting feelings of compassion.
- Write, or mentally recite, a gratitude list once a day. This will help reduce your anxiety and depression and will help you realize that in the long run, you may be luckier than you feel right now.
5. Limit Screen Time
- Schedule one “coronavirus-free” hour where you do not search or talk about the virus. if thoughts about the virus come up mindfully notice them and detach. Set them aside for later. You may find that these thoughts decrease in frequency and intensity as you set them aside. Get occupied with other things (on this list).
- It is important to stay informed during this time, but it is also important to know your own limits with how much information is too much information. Perhaps it can be effective to have urgent alerts go to your phone, but otherwise limit news consumption to a certain time of day (e.g., once in the morning, once in the evening).
6. Keep a Routine
- Get dressed as if you were having a typical day. If you’re working, wear what you would wear to the office. If it’s a weekend, wear what you would wear for a casual day. Most importantly, wear something that makes you feel good about yourself.
- Make a realistic schedule for the day and stick to it. You can schedule by time or, more flexibly, by activity. Have certain activities or breaks in your day scheduled ahead of time and keep to the schedule as much as possible. Look back at the activities that you completed and those that you did not. If possible, add the incomplete activities to the next day.
7. Give Back
- It always feels good to contribute. Reach out to young adults or seniors you know who live alone. You don’t need a reason to call. Caring about someone is more than enough reason to talk.
- Think of how you can help those around you. How can you support neighbors, friends, family, your community, or work colleagues? Clean out your closet and set aside things for donation.
- Bake something or make a meal for a friend and drop it off at their front door.
- Increase gestures of affection. Make your partner a cup of coffee or tea, take a lunch break together, plan or make meals together (try out some new recipes), consider sharing daily exercise routines or taking a walk together outdoors, if working from home in different rooms stop by and say hello, light some candles one evening during or after dinner and ask “Alexa” to play some soft rock or romantic music, pick a program you only watch together and view an episode nightly, play cards or monopoly or any other game you have in your home or online.
I know we could go on with lots of other great ideas. But let’s start with a plan for each day and each week. Some of us will find that practicing coping skills now will not only help during the isolation for this period of the pandemic, but we may find that we will use many of these ideas after the pandemic passes. Good habits and good connections help us overcome the obstacles that we see before us.
Stay safe, stay calm, stay connected. | <urn:uuid:eb0915b7-7585-423f-93f8-7666c38f0904> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/anxiety-files/202003/7-tips-handling-isolation-during-the-pandemic | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570651.49/warc/CC-MAIN-20220807150925-20220807180925-00409.warc.gz | en | 0.960097 | 1,953 | 2.515625 | 3 |
Buoys in Long Island Sound Measured Sandy's Significant Wind Speed and Direction
UConn's observation system collects data that can foretell disaster.
Hours before Connecticut started to feel the effects of Hurricane Sandy, a network of buoys in Long Island Sound were measuring the wind speed and potential storm surge. Joining us by phone is James O'Donnell, a marine sciences and physics professor at UConn's Avery Point campus, and oversees the Long Island Sound Integrated Coastal Observing System. LISICOS operates four buoys throughout the Sound, all providing data to the NOAA forecasting system in real time, about every 15 minutes.
"All of the meterological information - wind, air pressure, temperature - that goes directly to the National Weather Service, and then the public uses it," O'Donnell says. "Frequently, our website is used by sailors and vacationers to plan their trips. The real value, in terms of who pays for it, is for the weather service, and then for the states and the EPA who are concerned about water quality."
During the storm, O'Donnell was monitoring the system from home until he lost power. "I realized pretty quickly that it was going to be pretty bad news, especially for the western Sound," he says. "The persistent winds from the northeast are dangerous in that they set up the sea level in the western part of the Sound much more effectively than winds from any other direction. Most hurricanes blow through on a north-south track, and they pass by quite quickly. But this storm, because it headed to the west, towards New Jersey, led to persistent high wind speeds from the northeast for something like 24 or 36 hours, and that allows the Sound's western sea levels to increase." | <urn:uuid:6285b6c6-2fa6-4abe-b9d4-2d948bda8237> | CC-MAIN-2014-35 | http://www.yourpublicmedia.org/node/22662 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-35/segments/1408500822560.65/warc/CC-MAIN-20140820021342-00466-ip-10-180-136-8.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955533 | 354 | 2.921875 | 3 |
- Works by Henry George
Original Progress and Poverty 1879
- Book III:
The Laws of Distribution
Chapter 6: Wages and the Law of Wages
- Self-employment wages determine employee wages
- Access to land determines wages
- Wages in primitive economies
- Wages depend on productivity of marginal land
- Wage dynamic holds true in complex economies
- Confusions about supply and demand
- All wages depend on base wages
- Land rent determines base wages
- The law of wages
- Wages where land is free
- Wages where land yields rent
- Wages where land is monopolized
- Rent determines wages
- Wage-rent relationship obvious
- Adam Smith's partial comprehension
- Economists' reluctance to confront wages
- Wages may rise in absolute while falling in
Epigraph to Book III:
The machines that are first invented to perform any particular movement are always the most complex, and succeeding artists generally discover that with fewer wheels, with fewer principles of motion than had originally been employed, the same effects may be more easily produced. The first philosophical systems, in the same manner, are always the most complex, and a particular connecting chain, or principle, is generally thought necessary to unite every two seemingly disjointed appearances, but it often happens that one great connecting principle is afterward found to be sufficient to bind together all the discordant phenomena that occur in a whole species of things.
--Adam Smith, Essay on the Principles Which Lead and Direct Philosophical Inquiries, as Illustrated by the History of Astronomy.
by Philippe Diaz
A Georgist Perspective
on the film
The End of Poverty?
- Progress and Poverty 2006 Abridged and Edited by Bob Drake
Progress and Poverty
Book III: The Laws of Distribution
Chapter 6: Wages and the Law of Wages
There is, of course, no such thing as a common rate of wages, in the sense that there is at any given time and place a common rate of interest. Wages, which include all returns received from labor, not only vary with the differing powers of individuals, but, as the organization of society becomes elaborate, vary largely as between occupations. Nevertheless, there is a certain general relation between all wages, so that we express a clear and well-understood idea when we say that wages are higher or lower in one time or place than in another. In their degrees, wages rise and fall in obedience to a common law. What is this law?
The fundamental principle of human action -- the law that is to political economy what the law of gravitation is to physics -- is that men seek to gratify their desires with the least exertion. Evidently, this principle must bring to an equality, through the competition it induces, the reward gained by equal exertions under similar circumstances. When men work for themselves, this equalization will be largely effected by the equation of prices; and between those who work for themselves and those who work for others, the same tendency to equalization will operate. Now, under this principle, what, in conditions of freedom, will be the terms at which one man can hire others to work for him? Evidently, they will be fixed by what the men could make if laboring for themselves. The principle which will prevent him from having to give anything above this except what is necessary to induce the change, will also prevent them from taking less. Did they demand more the competition of others would prevent them from getting employment. Did he offer less, none would accept the terms, as they could obtain greater results by working for themselves. Thus, although the employer wishes to pay as little as possible, and the employee to receive as much as possible, wages will be fixed by the value or produce of such labor to the laborers themselves. If wages are temporarily carried either above or below this line, a tendency to carry them back at once arises.
But the result, or the earnings of labor, as is readily seen in those primary and fundamental occupations in which labor first engages, and which, even in the most highly developed condition of society, still form the base of production, does not depend merely upon the intensity or quality of the labor itself. Wealth is the product of two factors, land and labor, and what a given amount of labor will yield will vary with the powers of the natural opportunities to which it is applied. This being the case, the principle that men seek to gratify their desires with the least exertion will fix wages at the produce of such labor at the point of highest natural productiveness open to it. Now, by virtue of the same principle, the highest point of natural productiveness open to labor under existing conditions will be the lowest point at which production continues, for men, impelled by a supreme law of the human mind to seek the satisfaction of their desires with the least exertion, will not expend labor at a lower point of productiveness while a higher is open to them. Thus the wages which an employer must pay will be measured by the lowest point of natural productiveness to which production extends, and wages will rise or fall as this point rises or falls.
To illustrate: In a simple state of society, each man, as is the primitive mode, works for himself -- some in hunting, let us say, some in fishing, some in cultivating the ground. Cultivation, we will suppose, has just begun, and the land in use is all of the same quality, yielding a similar return to similar exertions. Wages, therefore -- for, though there is neither employer nor employed, there are yet wages -- will be the full produce of labor, and, making allowance for the difference of agreeableness, risk, etc., in the three pursuits, they will be on the average equal in each -- that is to say, equal exertions will yield equal results. Now, if one of their number wishes to employ some of his fellows to work for him instead of for themselves, he must pay wages fixed by this full, average produce of labor.
Let a period of time elapse. Cultivation has extended, and, instead of land of the same quality, embraces lands of different qualities. Wages, now, will not be as before, the average produce of labor. They will be the average produce of labor at the margin of cultivation, or the point of lowest return. For, as men seek to satisfy their desires with the least possible exertion, the point of lowest return in cultivation must yield to labor a return equivalent to the average return in hunting and fishing.1 Labor will no longer yield equal returns to equal exertions, but those who expend their labor on the superior land will obtain a greater produce for the same exertion than those who cultivate the inferior land. Wages, however, will still be equal, for this excess which the cultivators of the superior land receive is in reality rent, and if land has been subjected to individual ownership will give it a value. Now, if, under these changed circumstances, one member of this community wishes to hire others to work for him, he will have to pay only what the labor yields at the lowest point of cultivation. If thereafter the margin of cultivation sinks to points of lower and lower productiveness, so must wages sink; if, on the contrary, it rises, so also must wages rise; for, just as a free body tends to take the shortest route to the earth's center, so do men seek the easiest mode to the gratification of their desires.
Here, then, we have the law of wages, as a deduction from a principle most obvious and most universal. That wages depend upon the margin of cultivation -- that they will be greater or less as the produce which labor can obtain from the highest natural opportunities open to it is greater or less, flows from the principle that men will seek to satisfy their wants with the least exertion.
In such societies, wages differ widely, but they still bear a more or less definite and obvious relation to each other. This relation is not invariable, as at one time a philosopher of repute may earn by his lectures many fold the wages of the best mechanic, and at another can hardly hope for the pay of a footman; as in a great city occupations may yield relatively high wages, which in a new settlement would yield relatively low wages; yet these variations between wages may, under all conditions, and in spite of arbitrary divergences caused by custom, law, etc., be traced to certain circumstances. In one of his most interesting chapters Adam Smith thus enumerates the principal circumstances which "make up for a small pecuniary gain in some employments and counterbalance a great one in others: first, the agreeableness or disagreeableness of the employments themselves; secondly, the easiness and cheapness, or the difficulty and expense of learning them; thirdly, the constancy or inconstancy of employment in them; fourthly, the small or great trust which must be reposed in those who exercise them; and fifthly, the probability or improbability of success in them."2 It is not necessary to dwell in detail on these causes of variation in wages between different employments. They have been admirably explained and illustrated by Adam Smith and the economists who have followed him, who have well worked out the details, even if they have failed to apprehend the main law.
The effect of all the circumstances which give rise to the differences between wages in different occupations may be included as supply and demand, and it is perfectly correct to say that the wages in different occupations will vary relatively according to differences in the supply and demand of labor -- meaning by demand the call which the community as a whole makes for services of the particular kind, and by supply the relative amount of labor which, under the existing conditions, can be determined to the performance of those particular services. But though this is true as to the relative differences of wages, when it is said, as is commonly said, that the general rate of wages is determined by supply and demand, the words are meaningless. For supply and demand are but relative terms. The supply of labor can only mean labor offered in exchange for labor or the produce of labor, and the demand for labor can only mean labor or the produce of labor offered in exchange for labor. Supply is thus demand, and demand supply, and, in the whole community, one must be coextensive with the other. This is clearly apprehended by the current political economy in relation to sales, and the reasoning of Ricardo, Mill, and others, which proves that alterations in supply and demand cannot produce a general rise or fall of values, though they may cause a rise or fall in the value of a particular thing, is as applicable to labor. What conceals the absurdity of speaking generally of supply and demand in reference to labor is the habit of considering the demand for labor as springing from capital and as something distinct from labor; but the analysis to which this idea has been heretofore subjected has sufficiently shown its fallacy. It is indeed evident from the mere statement, that wages can never permanently exceed the produce of labor, and hence that there is no fund from which wages can for any time be drawn, save that which labor constantly creates.
But, though all the circumstances which produce the differences in wages between occupations may be considered as operating through supply and demand, they, or rather, their effects, for sometimes the same cause operates in both ways, may be separated into two classes, according as they tend only to raise apparent wages or as they tend to raise real wages-that is, to increase the average reward for equal exertion. The high wages of some occupations much resemble what Adam Smith compares them to, the prizes of a lottery, in which the great gain of one is made up from the losses of many others. This is not only true of the professions by means of which Dr. Smith illustrates the principle, but is largely true of the wages of superintendence in mercantile pursuits, as shown by the fact that over ninety per cent. of the mercantile firms that commence business ultimately fail. The higher wages of those occupations which can be prosecuted only in certain states of the weather, or are otherwise intermittent and uncertain, are also of this class; while differences that arise from hardship, discredit, unhealthiness, etc., imply differences of sacrifice, the increased compensation for which only preserves the level of equal returns for equal exertions. All these differences are, in fact, equalizations, arising from circumstances which, to use the words of Adam Smith, "make up for a small pecuniary gain in some employments and counterbalance a great one in others." But, besides these merely apparent differences, there are real differences in wages between occupations, which are caused by the greater or less rarity of the qualities required -- greater abilities or skill, whether natural or acquired, commanding on the average greater wages. Now, these qualities, whether natural or acquired, are essentially analogous to differences in strength and quickness in manual labor, and as in manual labor the higher wages paid the man who can do more would be based upon wages paid to those who can do only the average amount, so wages in the occupations requiring superior abilities and skill must depend upon the common wages paid for ordinary abilities and skill.
It is, indeed, evident from observation, as it must be from theory, that whatever be the circumstances which produce the differences of wages in different occupations, and although they frequently vary in relation to each other, producing, as between time and time, and place and place, greater or less relative differences, yet the rate of wages in one occupation is always dependent on the rate in another, and so on, down, until the lowest and widest stratum of wages is reached, in occupations where the demand is more nearly uniform and in which there is the greatest freedom to engage.
For, although barriers of greater or less difficulty may exist, the amount of labor which can be determined in any particular pursuit is nowhere absolutely fixed. All mechanics could act as laborers, and many laborers could readily become mechanics; all storekeepers could act as shopmen, and many shopmen could easily become storekeepers; many farmers would, upon inducement, become hunters or miners, fishermen or sailors, and many hunters, miners, fishermen, and sailors know enough of fanning to turn their bands to it on demand. In each occupation there are men who unite it with others, or who alternate between occupations, while the young men who are constantly coming in to fill up the ranks of labor are drawn in the direction of the strongest inducements and least resistances. And further than this, all the gradations of wages shade into each other by imperceptible degrees, instead of being separated by clearly defined gulfs. The wages, even of the poorer paid mechanics, are generally higher than the wages of simple laborers, but there are always some mechanics who do not, on the whole, make as much as some laborers; the best paid lawyers receive much higher wages than the best paid clerks, but the best paid clerks make more than some lawyers, and in fact the worst paid clerks make more than the worst paid lawyers. Thus, on the verge of each occupation, stand those to whom the inducements between one occupation and another are so nicely balanced that the slightest change is sufficient to determine their labor in one direction or another. Thus, any increase or decrease in the demand for labor of a certain kind cannot, except temporarily, raise wages in that occupation above, nor depress them below, the relative level with wages in other occupations, which is determined by the circumstances previously adverted to, such as relative agreeableness or continuity of employment, etc. Even, as experience shows, where artificial barriers are imposed to this interaction, such as limiting laws, guild regulations, the establishment of caste, etc., they may interfere with, but cannot prevent, the maintenance of this equilibrium. They operate only as dams, which pile up the water of a stream above its natural level, but cannot prevent its overflow.
Thus, although they may from time to time alter in relation to each other, as the circumstances which determine relative levels change, yet it is evident that wages in all strata must ultimately depend upon wages in the lowest and widest stratum -- the general rate of wages rising or falling as these rise or fall.
Now, the primary and fundamental occupations, upon which, so to speak, all others are built upon, are evidently those which procure wealth directly from nature; hence the law of wages in them must be the general law of wages. And, as wages in such occupations clearly depend upon what labor can produce at the lowest point of natural productiveness to which it is habitually applied; therefore, wages generally depend upon the margin of cultivation, or, to put it more exactly, upon the highest point of natural productiveness to which labor is free to apply itself without the payment of rent.
So obvious is this law that it is often apprehended without being recognized. It is frequently said of such countries as California and Nevada that cheap labor would enormously aid their development, as it would enable the working of the poorer but most extensive deposits of ore. A relation between low wages and a low point of production is perceived by those who talk in this way, but they invert cause and effect. It is not low wages which will cause the working of low grade ore, but the extension of production to the lower point which will diminish wages. If wages could be arbitrarily forced down, as has sometimes been attempted by statute, the poorer mines would not be worked so long as richer mines could be worked. But if the margin of production were arbitrarily forced down, as it might be, were the superior natural opportunities in the ownership of those who chose rather to wait for future increase of value than to permit them to be used now, wages would necessarily fall.
The demonstration is complete. The law of wages we have thus obtained is that which we previously obtained as the corollary of the law of rent, and it completely harmonizes with the law of interest. It is, that:
This necessary minimum of wages (which by Smith and Ricardo is denominated the point of "natural wages," and by Mill supposed to regulate wages, which will be higher or lower as the working classes consent to reproduce at a higher or lower standard of comfort) is, however, included in the law of wages as previously stated, as it is evident that the margin of production cannot fall below that point at which enough will be left as wages to secure the maintenance of labor.
Like Ricardo's law of rent, of which it is the corollary, this law of wages carries with it its own proof and becomes self-evident by mere statement. For it is but an application of the central truth that is the foundation of economic reasoning -- that men will seek to satisfy their desires with the least exertion. The average man will not work for an employer for less, all things considered, than he can earn by working for himself; nor yet will he work for himself for less than he can earn by working for an employer, and hence the return which labor can secure from such natural opportunities as are free to it must fix the wages which labor everywhere gets. That is to say, the line of rent is the necessary measure of the line of wages. In fact, the accepted law of rent depends for its recognition upon a previous, though in many cases it seems to be an unconscious, acceptance of this law of wages. What makes it evident that land of a particular quality will yield as rent the surplus of its produce over that of the least productive land in use, is the apprehension of the fact that the owner of the higher quality of land can procure the labor to work his land by the payment of what that labor could produce if exerted upon land of the poorer quality.
In its simpler manifestations, this law of wages is recognized by people who do not trouble themselves about political economy, just as the fact that a heavy body would fall to the earth was long recognized by those who never thought of the law of gravitation. It does not require a philosopher to see that if in any country natural opportunities were thrown open which would enable laborers to make for themselves wages higher than the lowest now paid, the general rate of wages would rise; while the most ignorant and stupid of the placer miners of early California knew that as the placers gave out or were monopolized, wages must fall. It requires no finespun theory to explain why wages are so high relatively to production in new countries where land is yet unmonopolized. The cause is on the surface. One man will not work for another for less than his labor will really yield, when he can go upon the next quarter section and take up a farm for himself. It is only as land becomes monopolized and these natural opportunities are shut off from labor, that laborers are obliged to compete with each other for employment, and it becomes possible for the farmer to hire hands to do his work while he maintains himself on the difference between what their labor produces and what he pays them for it.
Adam Smith himself saw the cause of high wages where land was yet open to settlement, though he failed to appreciate the importance and connection of the fact. In treating of the Causes of the Prosperity of New Colonies (Chap. VII, Book IV, "Wealth of Nations") he says:
"Every colonist gets more land than he can possibly cultivate. He has no rent and scarce any taxes to pay.... He is eager, therefore, to collect laborers from every quarter and to pay them the most liberal wages. But these liberal wages, joined to the plenty and cheapness of land, soon make these laborers leave him in order to become landlords themselves, and to reward with equal liberality other laborers who soon leave them for the same reason they left their first masters."
This chapter contains numerous expressions which, like the opening sentence in the chapter on The Wages of Labor, show that Adam Smith failed to appreciate the true laws of the distribution of wealth only because he turned away from the more primitive forms of society to look for first principles amid complex social manifestations, where he was blinded by a preaccepted theory of the functions of capital, and, as it seems to me, by a vague acceptance of the doctrine which, two years after his death, was formulated by Malthus. And it is impossible to read the works of the economists who since the time of Smith have endeavored to build up and elucidate the science of political economy without seeing how, over and over again, they stumble over the law of wages without once recognizing it. Yet, "if it were a dog it would bite them!" Indeed, it is difficult to resist the impression that some of them really saw this law of wages, but, fearful of the practical conclusions to which it would lead, preferred to ignore and cover it up, rather than use it as the key to problems which without it are so perplexing. A great truth to an age which has rejected and trampled on it, is not a word of peace, but a sword!
Perhaps it may be well to remind the reader, before closing this chapter, of what has been before stated that I am using the word wages not in the sense of a quantity, but in the sense of a proportion. When I say that wages fall as rent rises, I do not mean that the quantity of wealth obtained by laborers as wages is necessarily less, but that the proportion which it bears to the whole produce is necessarily less. The proportion may diminish while the quantity remains the same or even increases. If the margin of cultivation descends from the productive point which we will call 25, to the productive point we will call 20, the rent of all lands that before paid rent will increase by this difference, and the proportion of the whole produce which goes to laborers as wages will to the same extent diminish; but if, in the meantime, the advance of the arts or the economies that become possible with greater population have so increased the productive power of labor that at 20, the same exertion will produce as much wealth as before at 25, laborers will get as wages as great a quantity as before, and the relative fall of wages will not be noticeable in any diminution of the necessaries or comforts of the laborers but only in the increased value of land and the greater incomes and more lavish expenditure of the rent-receiving class.
1 This equalization will be effected by the equation of prices.
2 This last, which is analogous to the element of risk in profits, accounts for the high wages of successful lawyers, physicians, contractors, actors, etc.
Robert Schalkenbach Foundation
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www.schalkenbach.org Robert Schalkenbach Foundation Main website
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www.georgist.com The Georgist News is a plain text, email newsletter
www.afterthecrash-masongaffney.com Selected works by Mason Gaffney
www.progressandpoverty.org Henry George's first book: Progress and Poverty
www.povertythinkagain.com A georgist perspective on the film "The End of Poverty?"
www.whyglobalpoverty.com Companion guide to the film "The End of Poverty?"
www.henrygeorgethestandard.org Henry George's weekly newspaper The Standard | <urn:uuid:18f946f0-7106-497e-b1c0-f955f3a7280b> | CC-MAIN-2017-09 | http://schalkenbach.org/library/henry-george/p+p/pp036.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-09/segments/1487501170569.99/warc/CC-MAIN-20170219104610-00332-ip-10-171-10-108.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966036 | 5,246 | 3.5 | 4 |
Any naturally formed solid assemblage of mineral grains can be described as a rock. The mineral grains may be fragments of crystals or intact crystals and their size can range from a few micrometres (1 micrometre = 10−6m) to a few centimetres. A rock may consist of one type of mineral but more usually it consists of several minerals. Rocks can be classified according to the way in which the grains are arranged, although the identity of the minerals present (for example, the rock limestone is made mostly of calcite), the proportions of particular minerals, and the dominant size of mineral grains are also important. The shape of the grains in a rock, their size and the relationship between them (for example, whether or not the grains interlock with each other to form a mosaic) define the texture of a rock, and reflect the processes that formed it. A rock's texture has nothing to do with how the rock feels when you touch it. To ‘read the rocks’ and discover how any particular rock formed, we investigate its texture and work backwards to deduce the processes by which that texture was produced.
Because the mineral grains in most rocks are quite small it is often best to use a hand lens, typically with a magnification power of times 10, to get a clearer view. You may already have access to a small hand lens. If so, some notes on this are given in Box 1, Using the hand lens.
Box 1 Using the hand lens
The correct way to examine objects with a hand lens is shown in Figure 2. Some additional hints are:
Hold the hand lens 2–3 cm from your eye and bring the object up towards the lens until it is in focus.
Make sure the surface of the object is well lit from the side.
Keep the hand lens and the object parallel to each other and hold both steady.
With rough surfaces you have to move the object back and forth to bring different parts into focus.
Rocks may be classified into three types, according to the three processes that form rocks:
Igneous rocks: these are formed from molten rock (magma) that becomes solid when it cools, either deep underground or after a volcanic eruption at the surface.
Sedimentary rocks: these are formed when eroded particles of pre-existing rocks (in other words sediment, such as sand on a beach or mud on the sea-bed) have been laid down in layers at the surface of the Earth and turned into solid rock by being buried and compacted under more layers of sediment.
Metamorphic rocks: these are existing rocks that have ‘changed form’ by the action of high pressure or temperature causing new crystals to grow, for example after burial deep in the Earth.
Sections 1.4 to 1.6 describe how each of the three major rock types is formed and how their modes of formation can be deduced from the textures and other features visible in the rocks themselves – reading the rocks. | <urn:uuid:79a66765-589d-4367-a001-2fd17423a20b> | CC-MAIN-2019-26 | https://www.open.edu/openlearn/science-maths-technology/science/geology/practising-science-reading-the-rocks-and-ecology/content-section-1.2.2 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-26/segments/1560627999130.98/warc/CC-MAIN-20190620024754-20190620050754-00373.warc.gz | en | 0.949081 | 616 | 4.625 | 5 |
The environment is the economic lifeblood of the North Country and it is crucial that the right choices are made now to protect New York, the United States, and the planet for future generations. The six million acres that comprise the Adirondack Park are filled with dozens of waterfalls, over thirty thousand miles of streams and rivers, and over 1500 miles of trails. The federal government must recognize the challenges that climate change and invasive species present to New Yorkers as residents of an ecologically diverse state and inhabitants of an interconnected planet.
New Yorkers have seen first-hand the destruction pollution can cause. The Adirondacks continue to recover from acid rain and they are also experiencing more instances of extreme weather. This impacts public safety and the economic security of the North Country.
There are approximately 50,000 non-native invasive animal and plant species that have been introduced to the United States, resulting in economic costs estimated at more than $100 billion annually. Due to New York’s position as the gateway to the Great Lakes and a center of international shipping trade, New York has been a point of entry for many aquatic and land-based invasive species.
As a member of the bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus, the leader of the House Republican Climate Resolution, and the Co-Chair of the House Invasive Species Caucus Congresswoman Stefanik is committed to consensus driven legislation to address our nation’s environmental and energy challenges. Congresswoman Stefanik believes that these solutions must be formed by the legislative branch in a way that is economically viable and puts the United States on the best possible footing to lead. By working with residents, state, and local governments the Federal Government can protect the environment while growing the economies of both the North Country and the United States.
Legislation introduced by Congresswoman Stefanik:
H.Res. 195 – Expressing the Commitment of the House of Representatives to Conservative Environmental Stewardship
H.R. 1357 – Stamp Out Invasive Species Act
H.R. 344 – Forest Legacy Management Flexibility Act
H.Res. 170 – Expression the Commitment of the House of Representatives to Work to Combat the Nationwide Problem of Invasive Species Threatening Native Ecosystems
Legislation cosponsored by Congresswoman Stefanik:
H.R. 2326 – Climate Solutions Commission Act of 2017
H.R. 468 – Foreign Spill Protection Act of 2017
H.R. 1026 – North Country National Scenic Trail Route Adjustment Act
H.R. 502 – To Permanently Reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund
H.R. 2983 – Stop the Asian Carp Now Act of 2017
For more information concerning work and views related to the Environment, please contact our office. | <urn:uuid:f320076a-9481-45a0-a60f-e14796d40001> | CC-MAIN-2018-51 | https://stefanik.house.gov/issues/environment | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-51/segments/1544376823236.2/warc/CC-MAIN-20181210013115-20181210034615-00282.warc.gz | en | 0.928758 | 562 | 2.890625 | 3 |
There have been quite a number of television programs, movies, and tabloid articles wondering is Bigfoot real. It is truly tough to accurately answer this question at the moment. What can be said is that there have been hundreds of sightings of a proposed Bigfoot or Sasquatch in every single continent on earth with the exception of Antarctica. It makes you wonder whether or not there is such a thing as Bigfoot, and if so, why is the ape-like creature so elusive? Not only do you have to wonder why has it been so elusive but in fact how it has been able to remain unscathed from humans all this time if Bigfoot’s are truly in fact real. Depending who you ask Bigfoot is either a supernatural being or a flesh and blood animal relic.
Bigfoot also known as the hairy man has been spotted all over the globe, and there have been tales of a supposed Bigfoot for hundreds of years. While the name “bigfoot” is fairly recent (1958), the tales of the giant hairy creature have been the stuff of legends for centuries. Many of the early bigfoot stories were told to entertain children, but with almost every single population in the world having some sort of bigfoot tale, it makes one wonder whether or not there is an entire race of wild men which we are not completely aware of.
The majority of Bigfoot sightings in the United States have happened in the Pacific Northwest. Washington State has had more Bigfoot sightings in their Mount Saint Helens area than any other region of the United States. Still, there have been numerous sightings all across the United States, mostly contained to wooded, rocky areas of the country where there is less likelihood for human habitation and intervention.
While many scientists don’t put much stock in the idea of a Bigfoot, others are not quite as skeptical of the existence of such a large primate. While the climates of the Pacific Northwest are not conducive to many primates’ habitat needs, who is to say whether or not there is a species of primate which has adapted to the conditions throughout not only the Pacific Northwest, but also the rest of the world?
There has been considerable evidence of Bigfoot throughout history. There have been numerous photographs taken of a large, hairy primate. These sightings and photographs put Bigfoot anywhere from 6-10 feet tall. Large footprints have also been found in areas where there have been Bigfoot sightings. The most notable Sasquatch tracks were discovered by construction worker Gerald Crew in California in 1958. When he discussed the tracks with others, they were uninterested, so Crew took plaster casts of the footprints and sent them to a friend to be analyzed. Pictures of Crew holding the casts then hit the local paper, and locals started calling the unknown creature Bigfoot. Since then, Bigfoot is a commonly accepted name for this mysterious species of ape.
When it comes to the question, “do bigfoots exist”? It is difficult to give a definitive answer. Even though absolutely no remains have ever been discovered of such a massive primate according to mainstream scientists, it does not necessarily mean they don’t exist. Researcher Jane Goodall was infamously unconvinced that there was no such thing as Bigfoot, making more people wonder about the probability of a giant, apelike beast roaming the earth’s woodlands. What we can say presently is that there have been photos, video clips, footprints of supposedly “real” Bigfoots, but scientists typically shrug off the photographic and video evidence, proclaiming an outright hoax or misidentification of another animal species such as a black bear. Nevertheless, with hundreds of sightings of Bigfoots throughout the world each year, it is difficult to entirely write off the notion that such a monster can really exist. | <urn:uuid:90ba5a28-b92e-4f23-a927-c3d142ce10ff> | CC-MAIN-2021-39 | http://www.paranormalsupernaturallogic.com/tag/jane-goodall/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-39/segments/1631780056348.59/warc/CC-MAIN-20210918062845-20210918092845-00266.warc.gz | en | 0.970677 | 764 | 3.046875 | 3 |
As Colombia emerges from the longest armed conflict in the history of the Americas, indigenous and Afro-descendant communities work with the Government to resolve their long-standing claims to land and resources
The Havana Peace Agreement, signed in 2016, recognised that the conflict was largely driven by unfair and uncertain ownership of land and resources. It establishes provisions for resolving long-standing complaints about land tenure and resource rights for rural populations, including Indigenous Peoples and Afro-Colombian communities.
The 1.9 million Indigenous People in Colombia make up 4.4% of the total population, whilst Afro-descendants total around 4.7 million people –nearly a tenth of the population. Indigenous Peoples and Afro-descendant communities, particularly women, have consistently experienced disproportionate levels of violence and displacement during the recent conflict. They have also faced and continue to experience serious environmental threats and land grabbing from extractive industries.
The implementation of the Agreement is an opportunity for Indigenous Peoples and Afro-descendant communities to protect their communities and guarantee their territorial rights. With the support of the Tenure Facility, civil society organisations, government agencies and a university are working in partnership to rapidly expand the formal recognition of the collective territorial rights of Afro-descendant community councils throughout Colombia, as well as ensuring the improvement of the processes of the formalisation of Indigenous land rights’ processes.
Indigenous Peoples in what is now Colombia have enjoyed a long and varied history, stretching back millennia. This timeline starts with the arrival of the first wave of colonialists, a cultural rupture which helped sow the seeds for ongoing discrimination and rights abuses, as well as the marginalisation of indigenous – and latterly Afro-descendant – culture. As such we recognise that this timeline does not cover a hugely rich period of pre-colonial cultural history.
The first expeditions in the territory are carried out on the Atlantic coast
The colonisation process gets underway, and the first European populations are founded in the Gulf of Urabá.
Laws of Burgos, also called Ordinances for the Good Treatment of Indians, are established. These laws precede later moves to abolish slavery of Indigenous Peoples, and eventually the first safeguards for Indigenous rights.
European colonists exploit Africans.
An estimated 1.1 million Africans enter Cartagena, Spanish America’s largest slave port. Most come from West Africa, namely modern-day Congo, Angola, Gambia, Nigeria, Cameroon, Liberia, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Senegal, and Mali.
Santa Marta is founded; it is the oldest city in Colombia.
Indigenous populations decline due to genocide, exploitation, disease and disruption of their life systems.
Independence Day of the colony of New Spain in Colombia on July 20, 1810.
Equality and communal lands. The Law of October 4th was the first declaration of legal equality between Colombian Indigenous Peoples and their fellow citizens. Nonetheless, the execution of the law was faulted and Indigenous Peoples were still forced to pay an unfair yearly tribute. Therefore, on October 11th, the Colombian Congress sanctioned the law, eliminated the yearly tribute and began a five-year plan of land distribution to Indigenous Peoples.
The Republic of Colombia is formed.
Two political parties dominate, the Conservatives and the Liberals. The bitter rivalry between them leads to the Thousand Days War. By 1902, 100,000 lives are lost.
Creation of the National Indigenous Organisation of Colombia-ONIC. Following successful discussions between Indigenous Peoples and their representative organisations throughout the country, ONIC is formed to promote indigenous rights, based on the principles of unity, land, culture and autonomy.
Colombia passes Law 70, the Black Communities Act, recognising Afro-Colombians as a distinct ethnic group and providing a legal basis for the defence of their land rights. Law 70 is an instrument to combat the historical exclusion, discrimination and deprivation of rights that Afro-descendants have experienced since slavery.
Grassroots organisations establish the Black Communities Process (PCN), an Afro-descendant collective of more than 100 grassroots organisations, community councils, and individuals. The PCN is dedicated to raising black awareness, combating racial discrimination, exclusion and social injustice, and developing a legal and political framework for the recognition and respect for the human rights of Afro-descendants and the attainment of self-determination.
Issuance of Decree 1397 of 1996 which lays the foundations for the creation of the National Commission of Indigenous Territories, and the Permanent Board of Concertation with Indigenous Peoples and Indigenous Organisations.
The United Nations General Assembly approves the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) with 144 countries, including Colombia.
Ending the conflict
Ending the conflict
The Government begins negotiations with FARC to end the conflict.
The Colombian Government ratifies the Havana Peace Agreement, which ends the conflict.
Afro-Colombian communities and Indigenous Peoples organisations come together to form the Ethnic Commission for Peace and the Defence of Territorial Rights.
PCN and the National Council of Peace Of Afro-Colombian (CONPA), together with the National Indigenous Organisation of Colombia (ONIC) and the Traditional Indigenous Authorities of the Higher Government of Colombia, come together to ensure the inclusion of an Ethnic Chapter in the Havana Peace Accords. The Ethnic Chapter guarantees respect for the collective territorial and political rights of African-Colombian and Indigenous Peoples during the implementation of the Agreement.
The Observatory of the Ethnic and Peasant Territories (OTEC) of the Pontifical Javeriana University establishes a geographic information system for the management of spatial data on the land claims of Afro-descendant communities
The Spanish conquest; When the Spanish arrive in the 15th century three large groups of Indigenous People populate the Colombian territory; the Chibcha, located in the highlands and cold areas of the center of the country and in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, the Caribbean, located on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean and the Arwac, in the regions of the Amazon, Putumayo and Caquetá rivers.
The legend of “El Dorado”: The conquerors are attracted by the enormous riches of the natives. Knowledge of religious ceremonies during which the Chibchas cast offerings on their gods inspires the legend of El Dorado, a mythical city of gold, the pursuit of which drives many expeditions to find it, costing the lives of both explorers and the natives they encounter.
During the conquest, the King of Spain gives each conqueror the right to found populations and rule their territory, with the mission of converting Indigenous Peoples to Christianity and forcing them to pay tribute to the Spanish crown.
Clashes between conservatives and liberals intensify in violence, leaving 200,000 dead
Liberals and conservatives create the National Front, excluding left-wing parties.
They divide the seats in congress, and effectively take turns running the country, ending decades of violence. The administrations of the National Front attempt social and economic reforms and create the Colombian Institute for Agrarian Reform (INCORA). However, social and political injustices continue.
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the National Liberation Army (ELN) demand land reform and redistribution. The FARC and ELN begin to wage guerrilla warfare against the Government. The conflict grows to involve paramilitary groups that eventually unite as the United Defence Forces of Colombia (AUC). Organised criminal groups, or BACRIM, also form. Some fighters rely on extortion and taxation of cocaine production to finance their campaigns. Over five decades, the conflict leads to more than 200,000 deaths and the displacement of more than 7 million people. Many of the displaced are indigenous Peoples and Afro-Colombian communities.
An elected National Constitutional Assembly writes a new Constitution that recognises the rights of indigenous Peoples and Afro-Colombian communities.
The Constitution recognises the autonomy and rights of Indigenous Peoples and Afro-Colombian communities of Colombia to the collective ownership of ancestral lands, as well as special cultural protections.
Colombia becomes signatory to the ILO Convention 169 on “Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent Countries” in a significant move towards better recognition of Indigenous Peoples’ rights.
Decree 1745 establishes the process of administering Law 70. In the 24 years following the enactment of Law 70, the Colombian government recognises 5.53 million hectares of collective territory, although 95.3% of these lands are in the Pacific region and only 4.6% in other parts of the country. This narrow interpretation and application of Law 70 excludes other Afro-descendant community councils that seek recognition of their collective lands.
Peace talks between the Government and FARC begin but break down after three years.
The Government and paramilitary groups sign the Santa Fe de Ralito Agreement, initiating the demobilisation of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC).
Juan Manual Santos is elected president and commits to peace negotiations with the FARC.
Government passes Land Victims and Restitution Act to allow millions of people driven from their homes by violence to return to their stolen or abandoned land.
The Act provides for redress, including financial compensation, to victims of human rights violations and violations of international humanitarian law.
Issuance of Decree 2333 of 2014 which seeks to establish mechanisms for the effective protection and legal certainty of the ancestrally occupied or owned lands and territories of Indigenous Peoples.
The National Land Agency (ANT) agrees to address the land rights claims of 271 Afro-descendant Community Councils nationwide.
The PCN demonstrates the vulnerable status of collective lands without legal recognition in the peace agreement land reform process. This work is supported by the Pontifical Javerian Academy and the Rights and Resources Initiative (RRI). The publication Territorial Rights of the Black Communities: Conceptualisation and Information Systems in the Face of the Vulnerability of Territories Without Collective Title, shows that 271 Afro-descendant Community Councils in 18 departments and 103 municipalities face significant risks due to lack of collective title. The authors identify 271 collective title applications submitted by the Community Councils that have waited 10 years or more without resolution. These lands are home to some 46,422 families, totalling 278,533 people.
The Black Communities Process begins a partnership with the Tenure Facility to strengthen the territorial rights of nearly 1.5 million Afro-Colombians.
PCN, OTEC, ANT, the Land Delegate of the Government Attorney General for Agricultural Issues and Land Restitution, and CONPA are working to expand the collective rights of Afro-descendant lands in Colombia through an initiative called “Collective Title of Lands of African-Descendant Territories in Colombia”. They focus first on landmark and high-priority cases, before addressing other claims. | <urn:uuid:79c6fa5c-d022-48fb-ab56-aeba88291b9d> | CC-MAIN-2021-43 | https://thetenurefacility.org/timeline/colombia-2/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-43/segments/1634323587926.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20211026200738-20211026230738-00394.warc.gz | en | 0.912606 | 2,233 | 3.984375 | 4 |
Reasons Why You Have Sensitive Teeth
Dentin hypersensitivity, otherwise simply referred to as ‘sensitive teeth’ is a very common dental problem that accounts for about 1 in 5 of all dentist visits in Australia, according to research published in the Australian Dental Journal. It is characterised by a painful response when your teeth are exposed to certain stimuli, including acidic foods, cold air, some food textures and more. The pain can range in severity from a minor nuisance to chronic agony. For some people, dentin hypersensitivity might be contained to a single episode; for others, it’s an ongoing issue that can affect their overall quality of life.
The good news is that a good dental clinic in Perth will have the experience and specialist expertise required to help you diagnose and treat sensitive teeth. Established way back in 1945, Mint Street Dental is one of the most reputable names in the industry, so you can rest assured our team of leading experts will take superb care of you and all your dentistry needs.
Curious about what actually causes dentin hypersensitivity? We’ve rounded up six of the most common causes:
- Harsh Toothbrushes
Hopefully it goes without saying that regularly brushing your teeth is a critical part of dental health. However, using the wrong type of toothbrush and/or incorrect brushing is also one of the most common causes of sensitive teeth. The harsh bristles on some types of toothbrushes can damage the protective layer of enamel that covers your teeth, particularly if you apply excess pressure while brushing. Once the tooth enamel is chipped away, the dentin underneath is left exposed, which can result in sensitivity.
With this in mind, it’s vital that you follow some simple teeth brushing guidelines:
- Keep your brush at a 45 degree angle against your gum line while brushing
- Always use gentle strokes
- Take at least two minutes to brush your teeth
- Remember to brush hard-to-reach teeth
- Replace your toothbrush about once every three months, or sooner if it begins showing obvious signs of wear and tear such as splayed bristles
- Cracked Teeth or Fillings
In the past, you might have had some work done at a Perth dental clinic. However, it’s worth keeping in mind that not all dental work is a permanent solution. Over time, fillings can wear out, which often means there’s nothing sitting between the layer of dentin in your teeth and potentially painful stimuli. In many cases, this will lead to sensitive teeth. You may also experience dentin hypersensitivity if you have cracked or damaged teeth and are yet to get them fixed.
Fixing broken fillings and damaged teeth can alleviate your teeth sensitivity, but it’s important to note that doing so carries a range of additional benefits. For example, it can prevent bacteria entering holes in the enamel and getting into the nerves and roots, which can lead to a range of unpleasant infections.
- Teeth Grinding
Teeth grinding is a widespread phenomenon that involves the involuntary grinding or clenching of the teeth. Approximately 1 in 20 people grind their teeth on a regular, ongoing basis. It’s thought that teeth grinding is linked to stress and anxiety, though the exact cause can vary between people. As you might imagine, excessive teeth grinding can wear away your tooth enamel and eventually lead to sensitive teeth.
Due to the fact that teeth grinding most commonly occurs at night, many people are not even aware that they do so. Treatment methods include stress management techniques and relaxation therapy, but for immediate results you might want to consider investing in a special mouthguard to wear at night to stop yourself inadvertently grinding and damaging your teeth in your sleep.
- Excessive Acidic Food
Another leading cause of sensitive teeth in Australia is excessive consumption of acidic food and beverages. The acid found in orange juice, tomatoes, soft drinks, citrus fruit and some sports drinks are known to damage tooth enamel, which leaves the nerves more exposed and can cause sensitive teeth. You don’t necessarily have to avoid all acidic foods (in fact, doing so would be almost impossible), but it does highlight the need to for a balanced diet that’s healthy for all parts of your body – including your mouth and teeth. Regular brushing and flossing also play a key role in protecting your teeth against the effects of consuming acidic foods and beverages.
- Receding Gums
Whether it’s the result of gum disease, teeth grinding or genetic tendencies, many people experience receding gums as they age. The protective layer of skin slowly pulls away from the teeth, leaving the roots of the teeth uncovered. The roots typically don’t have much enamel surrounding them, so they’re naturally more sensitive and susceptible to damage.
If you suspect that your gums are receding, be sure to talk to make an appointment at a dental clinic in Perth and have it checked out. As noted, receding gums are often a symptom of gum disease, which will need to be addressed to prevent further issues developing in the future.
- Teeth Bleaching
Teeth bleaching treatments are becoming increasingly popular as people seek out an easy way to improve the look of their teeth. While it can help you on your way to an award winning smile, some of the chemicals involved can be harsh on your teeth and irritate your gums, which may increase sensitivity in the days following the bleaching. Thankfully, sensitivity caused by teeth bleaching is usually temporary and fades away within a few days. If pain persists, be sure to talk to your dentist.
If you’re suffering from sensitive teeth and want to put an end to the pain, it might be time to visit a dentist. Handily located in Victoria Park, Mint Street Dental is the leading name in dentistry services in Perth. We pride ourselves on creating a friendly, welcoming environment that ensures our customers are as comfortable as possible from beginning to end. Contact us today to book your appointment. | <urn:uuid:4f7b5efc-2c35-42ba-8526-1561abed5927> | CC-MAIN-2020-34 | https://mintstdental.com.au/reasons-sensitive-teeth/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-34/segments/1596439737206.16/warc/CC-MAIN-20200807172851-20200807202851-00041.warc.gz | en | 0.950987 | 1,242 | 2.734375 | 3 |
Explanation of CBFR water rate structure intended to begin in 2015:
CBFR is an acronym for consumption-based fixed rate. There is a fixed component and two different consumption components. The fixed rate is for the pipes, meters, billing, administrative costs, treatment facility and all the stuff that we need no matter how much water flows through it. It is also based on the size pipe that comes to the property, which determines the amount of water that
you have the potential to use.
The first consumption category is a charge per hundred cubic feet (748 gallons) actually used in any given month. The second consumption category is based on each user taking responsibility for his contribution to why the project was calculated to need to be the size it is, because it needs to provide enough water at peak demand, also known as summer.
But to base it on past summer use before people were warned of this part of the calculation was deemed unfair. So this part of the rate structure was delayed until a 2014 summer use is measured. Everyone will have a chance to not use as much during peak demand as they used to and be able to take full responsibility for what they are charged based on their consumption during future peak periods.
Because conservation is expected, the rates take into account an estimated 21 percent conservation level so the revenues do not fall short. Every year, your summer use will be remeasured and it is on that use that your next year’s charges will be based for the peak demand (summer) part of the calculation, so you have a chance every year to do better.
The summer of 2014 is the first measurement that will be used for that part of your 2015 rates, and so on. Every user has the chance to become a whole new persona when it comes to water use; no one will ever have to know who you used to be, this is your big chance.
I thank Frank Loge and Matt Williams for devising such a fair and equitable method. | <urn:uuid:de6353a0-d1a6-4719-b9e8-5958a1de7ae2> | CC-MAIN-2015-14 | http://www.davisenterprise.com/forum/letters/your-use-calculates-your-rates/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-14/segments/1427131300799.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20150323172140-00262-ip-10-168-14-71.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973827 | 405 | 3.0625 | 3 |
Whereas the larger exterior muscles of the arm provide the most profound movements, such as the bending of the elbow and wrist, the smaller deep muscles of the arm perform many functions, such as twisting the wrist or moving the fingers. It is because of these muscles that the wrist and fingers can perform such detailed tasks.
Some deep muscles of the arm include:
- Flexor digitorum profundus: This long forearm muscle flexes the hand and fingers.
- Extensor pollicis brevis: Another important thumb muscle, this one acts in conjunction with the abductor pollicis longus to extend and bend the thumb outward.
- Supinator: This muscle near the elbow helps the bicep muscle to turn the hand palm-side up.
- Pronator quadratus: This quadrangle-shaped muscle is attached to both the radius and the ulna, and its job is to rotate the forearm and wrist as well as keep the proper distance between the radius and ulna.
Because the deep muscles of the arm perform such small and specialized functions that play a huge role in daily tasks, they are prone to injury. Problems with these muscles and their associated tendons can limit a person’s joint dexterity as well as cause pain and irritation.
Repetitive stress injuries, due to activities such as playing sports or using a keyboard, can cause inflammation and pain. Collectively, these injuries are known as tendonitis. If the tendon on the outside of the joint is affected, it is called “tennis elbow.” If it is the tendon on the inside of the elbow, the condition is known as “golfer’s elbow.” | <urn:uuid:90835cd1-b19e-4b2f-a26c-5074657a5f74> | CC-MAIN-2018-09 | https://www.healthline.com/human-body-maps/arm-deep-muscles/male | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-09/segments/1518891816370.72/warc/CC-MAIN-20180225110552-20180225130552-00376.warc.gz | en | 0.951985 | 348 | 3.25 | 3 |
The development of land, air, and sea vehicles with low drag and good stability has benefited greatly from the huge strides made in Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). Simulation of fluid flow over three-dimensional computer representations of a vehicle requires the solving of Navier-Stokes equations through many hundreds—and often thousands—of iterations. The result is an approximation of the flow field and pressure distribution that can be used to visualize the flow through streamlines and other techniques. The downside is the enormous amount of computing time that it takes—many hours or even days—to achieve a reasonably accurate and converged solution.
Now, Nobuyuki Umetani, formerly from Autodesk research (and now at the University of Tokyo), and Bernd Bickel, from the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (IST Austria), have devised a way to speed these simulations. They have developed a method using machine learning that “learns” to mode flow around three-dimensional objects, making streamlines and parameters like drag coefficient available in real time.
Using machine learning to help predict fluid flow came from discussions between Umetani and Bickel, long-time collaborators in CFD. "We both share the vision of making simulations faster," explained Bickel in an IST news release. "We want people to be able to design objects interactively, and therefore we work together to develop data-driven methods."
The new fluid flow simulation technique shows streamlines and pressure distribution on the vehicle surface (color-coded). On the left are some of the shapes used to train the program. On the right are the results of new vehicles simulated by the program. (Image source: Nobuyuki Umetani)
Machine Learning in Training
The technique the pair developed involves “training” the machine learning program on the converged CFD data for a variety of shapes and vehicle designs that are representative of typical vehicles. More than 800 vehicle shapes were used to train the program. Once the program has been trained, a process using Gaussian Process regression is utilized to infer the velocities and pressures for a new shape based on all of the previous vehicles and shapes. "With our machine learning tool, we are able to predict the flow in fractions of a second," said Nobuyuki Umetani in the IST release.
Machine learning has some restrictive requirements that had to be overcome in the development of this method. In machine learning, both the input and the output data need to be structured in a way that is consistent. This is relatively easy to accomplish with two-dimensional images, where a regular arrangement of pixels can represent the object. In three dimensions, however, the geometric objects define the shape. With a mesh of triangles, for example, the arrangement of the triangles can change if the shape changes, resulting in an inconsistency.
Umetani’s solution was to adapt polycubes to build a shape that could be used with machine learning. The polycube approach was originally developed to apply textures to objects in computer animations. The IST release described their use in this way: “A model starts with a small number of large cubes, which are then refined and split up in smaller ones following a well-defined procedure. If represented in this way, objects with similar shapes will have a similar data structure that machine learning methods can handle and compare.”
Aside from the huge time savings, the method described allows modifications and shape changes to be made in real time by interactively pulling and pushing the polycubes. The changes in drag coefficient, surface pressure distribution, and flow field streamlines are shown nearly instantly. As a result, the designer or stylist can immediately see the effect of their shape changes. This video shows the interactive capability of the new program.
A paper written by Umetani and Bickel and published in the journal ACM Transactions in Graphics also details the accuracy of the method. The results show similar errors (approximately 3.4% in drag coefficient) as do other CFD techniques, which is consistent with the error expected when various wind tunnels are compared to one another using similar conditions.
One reason for the high level of accuracy comes directly from machine learning. "When simulations are made in the classical way, the results for each tested shape are eventually thrown away after the computation. This means that every new computation starts from scratch. With machine learning, we make use of the data from previous calculations, and if we repeat a calculation, the accuracy increases,” explained Umetani.
Senior Editor Kevin Clemens has been writing about energy, automotive, and transportation topics for more than 30 years. He has masters degrees in Materials Engineering and Environmental Education and a doctorate degree in Mechanical Engineering, specializing in aerodynamics. He has set several world land speed records on electric motorcycles that he built in his workshop.
|Today's Insights. Tomorrow's Technologies.|
ESC returns to Minneapolis, Oct. 31-Nov. 1, 2018, with a fresh, in-depth, two-day educational program designed specifically for the needs of today's embedded systems professionals. With four comprehensive tracks, new technical tutorials, and a host of top engineering talent on stage, you'll get the specialized training you need to create competitive embedded products. Get hands-on in the classroom and speak directly to the engineers and developers who can help you work faster, cheaper, and smarter. Click here to register today! | <urn:uuid:15a182aa-e047-4351-9ad3-06f48c23f4ad> | CC-MAIN-2023-06 | https://www.designnews.com/design-hardware-software/3d-aerodynamic-modeling-derived-machine-learning | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-06/segments/1674764499816.79/warc/CC-MAIN-20230130101912-20230130131912-00859.warc.gz | en | 0.945513 | 1,115 | 3.671875 | 4 |
Note: Tesla is not a trademark of FireFly Wireless Networks. Picture is shown as an illustration of connectivity between a vehicle and a charging/base station.
Electric vehicle manufacturers can deploy VLC technology for base station connectivity, or to reduce wiring and weight within vehicles.
(Separate window/PDF will open)
Many applications exist for VLC technology in automobiles, including charging and communication systems, which FireFly has patents pending on, and V2V (Vehicle to Vehicle) connectivity, and V2R (Vehicle to Roadside) communications.
FireFly engineers have patented a unique invention which utilizes Visible Light Communications to connect vehicles to base stations or charging stations. In addition to providing connectivity between vehicles and such stations, VLC can be deployed within vehicles to eliminate wiring, which reduces manufacturing costs and reduces the weight of a vehicle, thus reducing fuel consumption of gasoline and diesel vehicles, or increasing range of electric vehicles. | <urn:uuid:cae9e2b3-b0b4-486e-93ed-2b804dbfa124> | CC-MAIN-2017-09 | http://www.fireflywirelessnetworks.com/vehicles.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-09/segments/1487501170613.8/warc/CC-MAIN-20170219104610-00198-ip-10-171-10-108.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943236 | 190 | 2.515625 | 3 |
So I have been trying project-based learning (PBL) and the focus is on Canada's provinces and territories. I've read many articles on edutopia.org and follow discussions on Twitter to get my head wrapped around PBL.
I understand PBL is open-ended, inquiry-based, and ongoing. I realize it's not about the project and should be less teacher-driven. I am really having a hard time with that. I took a PBL planner from this website http://wvde.state.wv.us/instruction/pbltemplate.html and it seemed like I had the right idea. But now as we are approaching the third week I feel like they are just doing a project.
I started with this idea from Pinterest, where students made their own suitcase to prepare for the trek across Canada.
Then we brainstormed a list of things they wanted to see and what they would need to travel. And here I start swaying away from PBL. I had each student pick a province or territory to travel to. Some chose to work in pairs and there is one group of 3. So far, a few individuals are having difficulty with the driving question, what do I plan to see and do? The students that are striving have the basic skills to do research. I gave them a graphic organizer to guide their research, and provided books and a link to get them started.
The ones who are struggling either don't know how to ask the right questions or don't know how to find the answers. They are also my struggling readers. To accommodate I am letting them watch videos and getting them to use ReadPlease (a software that converts text to speech). I am also going to need to pull them aside and teach researching skills.
In the meantime, other students are starting to think about how they will present their information. At first most students wanted to make a poster, but then I prompted them to think beyond what they've done in the past and to think how they can share with technology. I suggest blogging because that's my push this year, and I also showed them how to do a PowerPoint - and they were amazed. I now recognize how little they know about using technology in the classroom.
Almost all my students have computers at home and most of them have iPods or some kind of tablet. They all use their technology for entertainment but don't know how to use them for educational purposes. After some discussion, students realized they could take pictures, make notes, and videos from their devices, but they were still all wanting to do a PowerPoint.
I was hoping while they were doing their research, they would ask more questions and dig deeper. I wanted to show students how to find their location on Google maps or even try a new food that we don't normally eat. How do I get them to think beyond the project?
I realize the learning I am seeing is still useful. Students are learning how to find images, copying and pasting onto PowerPoint. They are learning how to save. They are collaborating and teaching each other the computer skills that I take advantage of knowing. Most of them are engaged and they are excited so I guess this is where I have to let go of my preconceptions and see where it goes. | <urn:uuid:5c694980-3942-426e-b19d-67c4f9f7e480> | CC-MAIN-2018-43 | http://lauslaws.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-uncertainty-of-pbls.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-43/segments/1539583510754.1/warc/CC-MAIN-20181016134654-20181016160154-00244.warc.gz | en | 0.984032 | 668 | 2.96875 | 3 |
In the period of British rule in India, the present Act was enacted as ‘the Cattle-trespass Act, 1871’ (Act no. 1 of 1871) by the Governor General of India in Council. The ultimate aim and object for which the present enactment was provided is for consolidation and amendment of the law relating to Trespasses by Cattle. From the year 1950, the provisions of this Act were extended to the entire territories of India, however, the territories comprising of part- B States immediately before the November 1st, 1956 and also the State Government’s notified presidency- towns and other local areas were excluded from such application and extension. The provisions of this Act were divided into eight important chapters.
The first chapter was making preliminary provisions in the Act containing short title as aforesaid, which was substituted for original by the Act of 1891 and also the same chapter dealing with provisions as to extension of the Act as afore discussed. Beside such short titling and extension, the said chapter is also providing for interpretational clause, where certain terms being significant in the Act were defined for better interpretation of the provisions of the Act.
The Act makes other significant provisions in its second chapter, at the first instance the establishment of Pounds was given as within the place directed by the District Magistrate after being subjected to the State Government’s general control. And for using such Pounds by the Villages, the said District Magistrate is empowered to determine, as the said Pounds will be under his control. And for rate fixing and alteration thereof as charges for feeding and watering cattle which will be impounded therein, the said District Magistrate is empowered. Apart from this, the State Government is having authority for appointing a Pound- keeper for each of such Pounds. Such Pound- keepers were made entitled to hold other offices, where other offices under the Government can also be held by them, as the same time. Also such Pound- keepers were sought to be treated as public servants. The Act enumerate certain duties of such Pound- keepers, where keeping registers, furnishing returns to that Government, entering into the register the instances of seizures and given instances in relation thereto and taking charge of the cattle, feeding and water the cattle, were specifically mentioned.
The next chapter being Chapter III of the Act makes provisions as to impounding of cattle. The cattle trespassing and doing damage to the crop or produce on the land which was cultivated, occupied, or in respect of which the advances made for cultivation of such crop or which was purchased or mortgage held by a person, who is here entitled to seize such cattle. And on such seizure of the cattle the persons as aforesaid were required to send them to the Pound located nearer to the land situated place, within the period of 20 hours. For aiding such seizures, the officers of the Police are required to aid such seizures. Similarly, in cases of damage to the public roads, canals, etc. also such impounding of cattle can be done under this Act. And there will be imposition of fines in relation to such impounding as per the prescribed scale by the State Government.
The procedure on payment of such fine by the Owner of the cattle is prescribed under chapter VI’s provisions, where the pound -keeper will deliver such cattle claimed by the Owner on payment of fine and charges incurred in respect of such cattle and such owner or his agent, if any, will be required to sign a receipt for them in the register maintained by the pound-keeper. And if such cattle were not claimed within a week time, then the Officer- in- charge of the Police station nearer to the place or any persons appointed by the District Magistrate will be informed and reported by the Pound- Keeper and such officers will be responsible to past a notice in relation thereto to the conspicuous and also by beat of drum in the Village for declaring such impounding and will ask to make claims by owners. And even after 7 days of such notice or proclamation, the cattle were not claimed, then they will be sold in the public auction by such officer.
Apart from this aspect, the illegal seizure of cattle or detention thereof are dealt with in the next chapter, where persons feeling victim can make complaint applications within the prescribed time to the District Magistrate or any authorized Magistrate. And there is also provision for compensating the persons being victim of such illegal seizure or detention.
And for penal provisions, the provisions contained in the sixth chapter provide in detail about them, including details of offences and punishments thereon. The persons who are victim of damage or loss of crops or produce due to such trespass by the cattle in his field, are entitle to file suit for recovery of amount against the head of compensation for such loss or damage. In the last chapter the State Government is empowered as to transfer of its functions or the functions of District Magistrate which are provided to them under this enactment, to the local authority comes within the area to which the provisions of this Act are extended.
Download & Read the Bare Act: The Cattle-trespass Act, 1871-pdf | <urn:uuid:b18e1689-3fb7-4e05-9cd9-3409434ec4c3> | CC-MAIN-2018-30 | https://lawyerslaw.org/the-cattle-trespass-act-1871/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2018-30/segments/1531676591455.76/warc/CC-MAIN-20180720002543-20180720022543-00359.warc.gz | en | 0.97892 | 1,044 | 3.140625 | 3 |
By Rabbi Benjamin Krausz
Former Rosh Kollel in Perth (2008-12)
Currently a teacher and educator in “Nativ”
Our Parashah– Ki Tetze is famous for including the largest number of Mitzvot in the Torah. There is a very wide variety of Mitzvot, and one of the Mitzvot mentioned is not to pervert Judgment – ” You shall not pervert the judgment of a stranger or an orphan”
If we look back to the beginning of the previous Parashah – Shoftim, we will find an identical Mitzvah – ” You shall not pervert justice; you shall not show favoritism, and you shall not take a bribe…” Why does the Torah repeat this Mitzvah again?This is explained by Rashi, basing himself on the Sifri
“And concerning a wealthy person, [meaning anyone, not necessarily poor], one has already been warned, “You shall not pervert justice” (Deut. 16:19). However, [Scripture] repeats this prohibition here in reference to the poor man to [make one] transgress two negative commandments [for perverting the justice due a poor man]. Since it is easier to pervert the judgment of a poor man than that of a rich man, [Scripture] admonishes and then repeats [the admonition].”
Rashi explains that this repetition is connected to the context of the warning – it refers to a stranger or an orphan – the weaker part of society, that Rashi refers to as the “poor man”.
This repetition of the warning of perverting justice of the poor, comes from a concern that the judge is liable to pervert the justice in the case of a poor man, more than in the case of a rich man. Judges naturally belong to the stronger elements of society, and that is the group they identify with. When encountering someone from a different group of society, there is a greater risk of not being sensitive to his suffering, and not performing justice towards him. This is the point the Torah is emphasizing through this repetition.
But besides this concern the Torah teaches us we need to have for the poor, and the sensitivity we need to cultivate towards him, the Torah is teaching us something concerning ourselves – our inner world.
But how can we overcome such natural inclinations? How do you overcome inclinations that lead us to negative actions? We do not want to eliminate these inclinations, since they are basically positive. The answer to this is by being aware of them. Creating awareness to our weaknesses, and not persuading ourselves that they do not exist, will bring us to a position where we will not be lead by them to problematic regions.
The Torah, by repeating this warning of perverting judgment, and emphasizing this warning towards the orphan -is creating the awareness to this weakness, and by that is creating the possibility not to err and create a perversion of justice. This principle of the need to be aware of our weaknesses, applies to each and everyone of us, not just to the judges. The awareness itself is the way to prevent our inclinations leading us astray.
For more Divrei Torah on the parsha click here | <urn:uuid:1ddb8be9-f87f-49b7-8426-394f846316c6> | CC-MAIN-2021-04 | https://torahmitzion.org/learn/self-awareness-the-decree-of-the-hour/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-04/segments/1610703581888.64/warc/CC-MAIN-20210125123120-20210125153120-00589.warc.gz | en | 0.942267 | 678 | 2.53125 | 3 |
Climb aboard the space shuttle to take a trip through space. As the space shuttle zooms through space, make sure to stop by each planet. Once you have landed on a planet, learn more about it by reading the passage provided. Once you have explored that planet move on to the next. Each stop gives factual information about each planet so users will learn while having fun.
Courtesy of Knovation | <urn:uuid:4365d92a-d293-4fc4-a8ac-9d000e339587> | CC-MAIN-2019-18 | https://www.techlearning.com/resources/blast-off-on-a-trip-inside-our-solar-system | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-18/segments/1555578517745.15/warc/CC-MAIN-20190418161426-20190418183426-00097.warc.gz | en | 0.918225 | 82 | 3.046875 | 3 |
BGU researchers have shown that a natural protein in the body can be tailored to function as a multi-targeting drug to treat osteoporosis, a disease in which the bones become brittle and fragile.
In a study published in the scientific journal PLOS Biology, Dr. Niv Papo of BGU's Avram and Stella Goldstein-Goren Department of Biotechnology Engineering and the National Institute of Biotechnology (NIBN), Dr. Noam Levaot of BGU's Department of Physiology and Cell Biology and Ph.D. student Yuval Zur showed that by targeting two cell receptors at the same time, the engineered proteins may provide relief for osteoporosis patients with fewer adverse side effects than current treatments.
“Osteoporosis is caused by a disturbance of the normal balance between the production of new bone tissue and the breakdown of old tissue by bone-removing cells, known as osteoclasts," says Dr. Levaot.
Current drugs for osteoporosis work by completely shutting off this breakdown, known as bone absorption, for an uncontrolled duration. This increases the risk for adverse side effects, such as low blood calcium, atypical fractures, and destruction of the jaw bone.
“These problems – combined with digestive side effects – limit the utilization of currently available drugs and leads to poor patient compliance. Thus, despite the progress that has been made in treatment of patients with osteoporosis, there remains a significant demand for safer and more specific osteoporosis drugs with a prolonged biological effect," Levaot adds.
The researchers said the drug is based on a natural human protein that has been modified to inhibit the bone destruction activity of osteoclasts by simultaneously targeting two receptors (communication sites) present on these cells. They showed that in an animal model for osteoporosis the drug is very specific to osteoclasts and can effectively prevent bone absorption.
“By demonstrating that a natural protein in the body can be modified to function as a drug with the ability to target two cell receptors at the same time, we believe that such modified proteins could provide the next generation of therapeutics with targeted activities and fewer adverse side effects. We are also confident that such modified protein compounds could also work on other diseases, including other bone diseases and certain types of cancer, particularly metastatic bone cancer," says co-researcher Dr. Papo. | <urn:uuid:60219787-d312-42c7-987b-38f729462af3> | CC-MAIN-2019-35 | http://in.bgu.ac.il/en/pages/news/osteo_drug.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2019-35/segments/1566027323221.23/warc/CC-MAIN-20190825062944-20190825084944-00322.warc.gz | en | 0.957035 | 493 | 3.03125 | 3 |
Enabling sustainable public transport in smart cities through real-time decision support
The growing consumption of fossil fuels and its negative environmental consequences have been a major concern during the last few decades. In line with that, public transport operators face global pressure to replace diesel buses by battery-electric buses (BEBs) in many countries. However, BEBs need to be recharged several times throughout the day to avoid running out of energy due to their limited driving range and slow charging rate. Accordingly, operating BEBs is substantially more sensitive to unanticipated delays and excess energy consumption, which raises serious challenges with respect to charging schedules. Moreover, BEBs are only a truly sustainable alternative if they are powered by renewable energy generators (REGs), which have intermittent and uncertain generation. Thus, we design and propose a real-time decision support system to overcome these uncertainties and maximize the utilization of REGs and minimize the impact on the grid while guaranteeing a feasible operation for the BEBs.
|Battery electric buses, Electrified transit bus networks, Real-time decision support system, Renewable energy, Sustainable public transport|
|40th International Conference on Information Systems, ICIS 2019|
|Organisation||Rotterdam School of Management (RSM), Erasmus University|
Abdelwahed, A.A.M, van den Berg, P.L, & Brandt, T. (2019). Enabling sustainable public transport in smart cities through real-time decision support. In 40th International Conference on Information Systems, ICIS 2019. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/1765/125864 | <urn:uuid:8c6eb719-47d3-4055-adb3-920630789168> | CC-MAIN-2021-21 | https://repub.eur.nl/pub/125864 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-21/segments/1620243989874.84/warc/CC-MAIN-20210518222121-20210519012121-00389.warc.gz | en | 0.895802 | 329 | 2.625 | 3 |
Richard Whittington for NPR
Graduate student Laura Ayers makes an inventory of the entire skeleton recovered from a trench at Texas State University's Forensic Anthropology Research Facility. Ayers and a group of students were able to find every bone except two kneecaps and a heel bone.
Graduate student Laura Ayers makes an inventory of the entire skeleton recovered from a trench at Texas State University's Forensic Anthropology Research Facility. Ayers and a group of students were able to find every bone except two kneecaps and a heel bone. Richard Whittington for NPR
Richard Whittington for NPR
(Clockwise, from left) Meredith Tise, Ayers, Teresa Gotay Nugent and Chris Hodges collect and inventory every bone. The bones have been scattered about the pit by the weather and small animals.
(Clockwise, from left) Meredith Tise, Ayers, Teresa Gotay Nugent and Chris Hodges collect and inventory every bone. The bones have been scattered about the pit by the weather and small animals. Richard Whittington for NPR
An hour south of Austin, the Forensic Anthropology Research Facility sits on ranch land covered with oak, juniper, knee-high grass and limestone. The land looks like pretty typical Texas hill country, except for one thing — it's populated with cows and corpses.
Only a handful of universities in the world offer space to study the decomposition of human remains. Texas State University's facility in central Texas is the newest. Students here learn how to study human bones to identify the dead and discover clues about what caused their deaths.
A 5-acre fenced-in plot of land functions as an outdoor decomposition research facility, explains Michelle Hamilton, an assistant professor at Texas State and the director of the school's Forensic Anthropology Center.
"These remains have been here since February," Hamilton says as she stands at the edge of a 4-by-12-foot trench.
In the bottom of the trench are human remains — sort of rust-colored, about the color of the soil. Hamilton continues, "This individual was brought out completely fleshed. We wanted to look at what the Texas sun and aridity and also the periods of rain would do to a skeleton here in Texas. As of right now, they're faster. They mummify faster; they skeletonize faster; they decompose faster."
Four graduate students are in the pit with the partially buried skeleton. They're clearing away compacted earth with trowels and brushes. As they dig deeper into the red soil, the putrid odor of decomposition wafts up. A slim, tattooed 30-year-old from New Orleans is holding the skull, cleaning dirt from the eye orbits.
Teresa Gotay Nugent says she was born in Connecticut and plans to go to South America to work on human rights cases. "Even though we're working with the dead, we actually help the living, the families of people that are missing and feared dead," Nugent says. "It's not all just macabre. You can actually make a difference doing this."
Another graduate student, Laura Ayers, is from Houston. She's in her second year of studying forensic anthropology. "Right now I'm trying to get the pelvic girdle out, the hip bones," she says while scraping. "I don't want to pull anything because it might break it." Ayers says she wants to be a professor and consult with local law enforcement.
Two students gingerly lift out the bones and place them on a sheet of plastic in the crude form of a complete skeleton; the other pair continues to dig with shovels. One of them has been searching fruitlessly for the kneecaps for a half-hour.
The bones are then placed inside a big red plastic bag, to be taken to the lab.
Hamilton watches approvingly. "OK, it looks like at the end of the recovery for this particular body, we have the majority of all bones recovered with exception of two kneecaps and some of the phalanges — parts of the hands and feet," Hamilton says. "So they did really good."
They will have to return later, screen the spaded dirt and look for the missing bones. It's a meticulous process. Nothing gets left behind.
"What should we do with the fingernails?" someone asks. "You can put them in a bag, and we'll dispose of them when we get to the lab," comes the answer.
The recovery of the skeleton is handled with dignity. He was, after all, a man, in his 30s. He died suddenly, and his family gave his body to the decomposition research facility with the understanding that he would further the knowledge of human osteology.
In its first year, the Forensic Anthropology Center at Texas State has received seven donated bodies. In comparison, a much older facility at the University of Tennessee has more than 650 individuals.
They need more donors at the Texas center. Asking for them is a delicate matter, but it must be done, to understand the story of the bones. | <urn:uuid:1092a9b3-d1e8-42a1-9a54-c0cf3b0098f7> | CC-MAIN-2013-48 | http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=105479033&ft=1&f=1007 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-48/segments/1387345759442/warc/CC-MAIN-20131218054919-00033-ip-10-33-133-15.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962882 | 1,046 | 3.140625 | 3 |
Last week I had the pleasure of participating in a two-day symposium on unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) hosted by the Northern California American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS). The event was held in Reno, Nevada, (otherwise known as “The Biggest Little City in the World”), and its purpose was to assemble UAS experts and enthusiasts to share information, showcase new technologies, and demonstrate systems in action – systems that support geographic information systems (GIS). Presentations covered a wide range of topics, including everything from vehicles, to software, to data collection, to workflow, cameras, and sensors. You can find my presentation here.
By all measures, this event was a success. With more than 500 attendees, the symposium included presentations on a wide range of topics including vehicles, to software, to data collection, to workflow, to cameras and sensors and an afternoon of UAS demos. But what struck me most about the symposium was not just the participants’ level of sophistication and knowledge (it was very high), but also the suitability of drones for the mapping and surveying market. In this article, I’ll explain why I think this market will be the second biggest commercial drone market (behind aerial photography and cinema and ahead of precision agriculture) by telling you three things I learned about how GIS professionals see and use drones.
Drones are a perfect fit for GIS – A geographic information system (GIS) lets you visualize, question, analyze, and interpret data to understand relationships, patterns, and trends. GIS benefits organizations of all sizes and in almost every industry. So, GIS professionals, like those who are members of ASPRS, are no strangers to aerial imaging. They know cameras and aircraft – and surprisingly a lot about drones. When I asked the audience by show of hands how many are familiar with drone technology and have remotely piloted a drone, more than half said they were familiar and had been a drone pilot. This stands in sharp contrast to the audience of the large agricultural drone show I attended over the summer where most attendees had never flown a drone and were unfamiliar with the technology – let alone cameras.
As a profession, most of this audience does photogrammetry. They are image producers. As a profession, farmers are consumers of images. For the unschooled, photogrammetry is the science of making measurements from photographs. The inputs are georeferenced photographs. Up to now these have been taken from manned aircraft or satellites. The output is typically a map, drawing, measurement, or a 3D model of some real-world object or scene. Since photogrammetry is used in fields like topographic mapping, architecture, engineering, manufacturing, quality control, and geology, the accuracy of images matters to these professionals. What matters to their customers is whether the output is timely, rich, localized, and problem-specific.
So, what better way is there to get all that done than from a drone? None. Low altitude small drones provide an advantage over incumbent aerial technology for GIS work. The images from these drone sensors are more resolute, can be captured more frequently, and cost less to produce. GIS professionals are willing to spend a lot of money on drone systems — they already spend about $40K for a complete ground-based GPS rover system and more than $100K for 3D laser scanners. So, the idea of spending up to $100K for a turnkey unmanned aircraft system is not out of line — and drone vendors know this. That’s why those that exhibited at this event showcased their high-end turnkey systems.
GIS professionals need good drone software – There is a growing interest in and awareness of the economic and strategic value of GIS for the Global 2000, as witnessed by the recent integration partnership between Esri (world’s largest GIS software vendor) and SAP (world’s largest enterprise application vendor). But the race to the top is for the software front end to that enterprise piece. The part that mappers and surveyors use on a day-to-day basis—including software like work management, flight controls, mission planning, aerial capture, post-processing, and mapping, and modeling.
There were more than 25 software vendors at this show – each with a bit of news. Some of the most interesting came from DroneDeploy and Google. DroneDeploy announced the first drone software capable of creating orthorectified maps in real time. Users have typically had to wait for four to six hours for maps to be created from drone imagery, but now they can get real-time aerial maps. This will save operators hours every time they fly their drones, and enable better decisions, as data can now be verified during a flight instead of hours or even days later as is the case with existing systems. DroneDeploy is able to achieve this real-time stitching because the drones its product manages are all internet-enabled and use cloud infrastructure for the processing.
The other interesting news from the event came from Google. Its soon-to-be-released Earth Engine product can now mix the world’s satellite imagery with UAS images — along with trillions of scientific measurements dating back over 40 years — and make it available online with tools for scientists, independent researchers, and nations. All of whom can mine this massive warehouse of data to detect changes, map trends, and quantify differences on the Earth’s surface. Google has already worked with Skycatch and opened up the engine to other partners, so expect to hear more as they go to full-scale launch.
LiDAR drones are here
Mapping and surveying professionals love LiDAR. They love it because it allows them to capture minute details that photos can’t — and with those details create precise digital representation of objects, buildings, and the ground. LiDAR is based on the same concept as RADAR, but it uses laser light instead of radio waves. By sending out laser beams in all directions, collecting the reflected energy, and performing some nifty high-speed computer processing, a scanner can create a real-time, virtual map of the surrounding area. These representations have many uses.
But most LiDAR units are heavy and – up to now – had to be mounted on trucks or manned aircraft. So over the past couple of years manufacturers like Riegl and Velodyne have reduced the size and weight of their units such that that it’s now possible to mount them on large multicopters. Additionally, these same vendors sell or partner to sell their own dedicated drones, thereby ‘vertically integrating’ (no pun intended) their scanner offerings. By coupling novel drone-mounted LiDAR systems with vision cameras, advanced computer processing, and GPS, it has become possible to create a remotely piloted flying LiDAR scanner. These vendors were at the show as was Phoenix Aerial Systems and XactSense, both of which have LiDAR drones.
What will be the next innovation for this market? Well, maps of navigable drone highways in the sky, for one. These would be aviation maps that would help pilots of manned aircraft know where not to fly. This BHAG is already being taken on by SkyWard, which just introduced the Urban SkyWays Project and the first end-to-end demonstration of a commercial drone network operated with full regulatory compliance. After that? Who knows. One thing is certain: I expect to see the vendors that attended this symposium continue to innovate in big ways. Stay tuned. In the meantime, feel free to write me at firstname.lastname@example.org and tell me what you think about the market opportunities.
This post also appears in sUAS News ‘The Market‘. | <urn:uuid:de6b87ae-2c80-4d1f-8840-23ecb82766d1> | CC-MAIN-2021-17 | https://droneanalyst.com/2014/10/28/gis-biggest-little-drone-market-world | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2021-17/segments/1618038507477.62/warc/CC-MAIN-20210418163541-20210418193541-00190.warc.gz | en | 0.958182 | 1,603 | 2.578125 | 3 |
Why eating gluten free is good, but gluten-free products could be bad
A U.S. cardiologist credited with sparking the "gluten-free" movement says while a gluten-free diet yields plenty of health benefits, eating certain gluten-free foods is not necessarily a healthier option.
"Being gluten-free is a good thing, but eating gluten-free processed foods is not a good thing," says Dr. William Davis, author of the best-selling book Wheat Belly: Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight and Find Your Path Back to Health.
While the variety of gluten-free products has been on a steady incline for the last couple of years, those foods often substitute wheat with cornstarch, potato starch or rice flour.
"We don't want to replace one problem with other problems," Davis told CTV Canada AM on Wednesday. "Foods that raise your blood sugar sky-high, make your tummy grow, give you hyper-tension, dementia, cancer and heart disease.”
In his book, Davis says the consumption of "genetically altered" modern wheat is the cause of rising obesity rates and a myriad of other diseases, including celiac, diabetes, heart disease, ADHD and even schizophrenia.
He says throughout time, wheat breeding has created changes in the structure of gluten – a protein found in foods processed from wheat.
It is estimated that 1 in 133 people in Canada are affected by celiac disease -- an autoimmune condition in which the small intestine is unable to properly digest gluten, making it difficult for the body to absorb nutrients.
About six per cent of Canadians are also estimated to suffer from gluten sensitivity.
But Davis says even without a dietary need, a wheat-free diet is a healthier choice.
The gluten aside, Davis says other proteins in wheat can stimulate appetite and cause changes to the gastrointestinal tract.
Meanwhile, Wheat Belly has remained on the New York Times Bestseller list for two years.
Davis said the book's success signifies that going wheat-free is no longer a fad.
"We're witnessing health transformation," he said. | <urn:uuid:3b99b729-6d9d-4e18-bd79-48a49c7a42f1> | CC-MAIN-2022-27 | https://www.ctvnews.ca/why-eating-gluten-free-is-good-but-gluten-free-products-could-be-bad-1.1499409 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-27/segments/1656103920118.49/warc/CC-MAIN-20220701034437-20220701064437-00123.warc.gz | en | 0.951442 | 440 | 2.609375 | 3 |
Making your own healthcare decisions
Digital technology has made health information very easy to find and people are generally more informed about healthcare conditions and treatments than in the past.
However, understanding and acting on information about your health can be difficult. That’s why it’s important to work closely with qualified healthcare professionals because they can provide you with specific information related to your individual health conditions, treatment options and care needs.
You have the right to make your own decisions about your care, guided by the advice of health professionals. Make sure you fully understand your treatment options so you can consider the benefits and risks before you agree to any treatment.
Questions to ask your surgeon or clinician
Before agreeing to any treatment, make sure you understand what it involves and any possible side effects. Also, ask about whether there are other options you can try.
Some questions to ask your surgeon or other relevant clinician include:
- Can you describe exactly what you are going to do?
- Are there any non-surgical options for treatment?
- What are the benefits and risks of each treatment option?
- What are the possible consequences of not having treatment?
- Will you or someone else perform the procedure?
- Do you perform many of these procedures?
- How long will I be in hospital?
- What will my out-of-pocket expenses be?
- Who else will be involved in my treatment (for example, an anaesthetist or a physiotherapist)?
- How can I expect to feel after surgery and how long will it take me to recover?
- Will I need help at home?
- Will I need rehabilitation?
- When will I be able to go back to work?
- What should I do if my condition gets worse while I am waiting for surgery?
Once you have asked your questions, it is often a good idea to take some time to think about the answers. Talk your options over with family and friends and, if you need to, ask the opinion of another healthcare professional.
Consenting to treatment
If you choose to go ahead with treatment, you will be asked to give your informed consent. This means that you understand your condition and any proposed treatment. Once you have all the information you need, the doctor will ask you to sign a consent form.
Before signing this consent form, it is your doctor’s responsibility to clearly explain any information that relates to your medical condition and treatment, so you can make an informed decision.
It is your responsibility to make sure you understand the risks by asking as many questions as you need to. You can refuse or withdraw your consent at any time before the surgery.
If you are still unsure about the treatment options presented to you, you have the right to get a second opinion
from another healthcare professional.
Where to get help
- Your GP (doctor)
- Your surgeon
- Hospital staff
This page has been produced in consultation with and approved by:
Department of Health and Human Services
Content on this website is provided for information purposes only. Information about a therapy, service, product or treatment does not in any way endorse or support such therapy, service, product or treatment and is not intended to replace advice from your doctor or other registered health professional. The information and materials contained on this website are not intended to constitute a comprehensive guide concerning all aspects of the therapy, product or treatment described on the website. All users are urged to always seek advice from a registered health care professional for diagnosis and answers to their medical questions and to ascertain whether the particular therapy, service, product or treatment described on the website is suitable in their circumstances. The State of Victoria and the Department of Health & Human Services shall not bear any liability for reliance by any user on the materials contained on this website. | <urn:uuid:f0b765d6-379d-4f51-8627-fb0d069128e3> | CC-MAIN-2020-16 | https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/ServicesAndSupport/making-decisions-about-surgery | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-16/segments/1585371662966.69/warc/CC-MAIN-20200406231617-20200407022117-00229.warc.gz | en | 0.947616 | 779 | 2.8125 | 3 |
Sun is power, and so is knowledge.
Those two ideas have combined at Perspectives Math and Science Academy on Chicago’s South Side. With help from Climate Cycle, a not-for-profit group committed to putting solar panels on as many schools as possible, students at Perspectives now have a tool to learn and help off-set energy use.
Climate Cycle's founder, Joey Feinstein, said the installation cost more than $18,000, but to him and his crew, it's priceless.
"It feels like a very concrete way of giving back to kids," he said.
The project was backed by Motorola and warmly accepted by students and staff.
The 1.2 kilowatts is only enough to power a few lights, but the main goal of the project is to teach kids about powering the future.
"That's going to make it real for them, and teach them to become stewards of the earth," said Perspective's Principal Mary Cummane.
Eighty percent of the work that went into the project went beyond the panels themselves and into the wiring, which was donated by Electrician’s Union Local 134.
The installation was completed on a cloudy day, but Feinstein said the cover doesn't matter.
"Fifty-seven percent of the world's solar energy comes from Germany, which is cloudier than Chicago! Our brightest days are ahead so it's appropriate for the instillation to take place today. Like sustainability, our ceiling is high, and our output in subsequent days will be higher too," Feinstein said. | <urn:uuid:1c70fbd8-bb4c-4b87-ba96-93a9ceb79efd> | CC-MAIN-2016-22 | http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/green/Solar-Panels-on-South-Side-School.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-22/segments/1464051299749.12/warc/CC-MAIN-20160524005459-00227-ip-10-185-217-139.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.982576 | 320 | 2.828125 | 3 |
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