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From Beijing to Beacon, air pollution alerts are rampant this summer. One of the primary causes for these alerts is high levels of "bad" ozone. At the same time, in some areas of the world, there is concern about the lack of "good" ozone, which protects organisms from the sun's harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays. What are good and bad ozone, and why should we care? Good and bad ozone have identical chemical compositions, they are gaseous molecules composed of three oxygen atoms. Depending on where ozone occurs in the atmosphere, ozone can serve as a UV filter or act as a pollutant that damages human health and crops. Ground-level, or "bad" ozone is found in the troposphere, the atmosphere closest to the earth's surface (from the ground to about six miles up). "Good" ozone is in the stratosphere, in a layer approximately 10 miles from the Earth's surface. Good ozone is produced naturally in the stratosphere; bad ozone is created as a result of the reaction between human-generated pollutants and sunlight. This article focuses on bad ozone. Most bad ozone results from human activities, including vehicle exhaust, power plant emissions and gasoline vapors. But it is not emitted directly into the atmosphere. In the presence of sunlight, hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides react with oxygen and are transformed into ozone. Because sunlight drives the formation of ground-level ozone, there is a daily cycle of ozone creation and destruction. In our region, concentrations are lowest in the early morning and peak at around 2 p.m. Bad ozone is known as a summertime air pollutant because sunlight and hot weather cause it to reach harmful concentrations in the air. Dutchess County experiences unhealthy levels of ozone pollution in the summer months. Associated health risks that have been documented include chest pain, congestion and lung inflammation. By reducing lung function, ozone pollution can also worsen bronchitis, emphysema and asthma. Repeated exposure may permanently scar lung tissue. And not only humans are affected: ozone can also damage vegetation and crops. You can't escape ozone pollution by escaping big cities during the summer. Rural and suburban areas are subject to ozone pollution because, in addition to local pollution, winds can carry emissions hundreds of miles from their original sources. Air-monitoring programs track ozone as it is created and destroyed. Data show concentrations are often highest in the urban corridors and along coastal areas (http://airnow.gov). During the electrical blackout of 2003, ozone levels dropped over much of eastern North America, highlighting the role power plants play in generating the nitrogen oxides that cause ozone formation in the troposphere. Vehicle emissions are the primary source of the nitrogen oxides that drive "bad" ozone; one can only imagine what our air would have been like on that day in 2003 if everyone had also stopped driving for a day. The Cary Institute serves as one of the ozone monitoring sites for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Round-the-clock ozone measurements are crucial to track changes resulting from reductions (or increases) in pollution. But ozone pollution is not just a local problem. It is a part of much larger, more complex air pollution problems that have global ramifications, affecting Beijing as well as Beacon. The atmosphere is a chemical soup, and the answer to remedy the bad ozone problem is, in part, the same as the answer to the question "how do we reduce the effects of global climate change and acid rain?" Reducing bad ozone will require significant reductions in our fossil fuel use, as well as the timing of its use, investment in equipment that lowers smokestack and tailpipe emissions and increases in public, non-polluting transportation. Our ecosystems and our lungs will benefit.
Ever wanted to create your own video game, design your own skate park or be a DJ for the day? If so, MOSI in Tampa has an exhibit for you. Design Zone at MOSI opened in July and allows visitors to explore a variety of creative concepts around art, music and engineering. The interactive, hands-on exhibit focuses on the importance of science and mathematical thinking, while promoting creativity and innovation. "So far the response from visitors has been great," says Adrienne Drew of MOSI. "Kids and adults alike seem to enjoy all of the interactive pieces within the Design Zone exhibition." Design Zone has three themed areas: art, music and engineering. Visitors can explore visual creativity in the Videogame Design Lab or discover the math and physics behind building a skate park. In the music section, guests can become a DJ and practice their skills at the turntable. Activities have educational components, making them both fun and educational for all ages. The exhibit comes to MOSI from the Oregon Museum of Science & Industry (OMSI). "OMSI developed the exhibit and hosted it at their museum, and now it's a traveling exhibit that will be on tour for the next eight years," says Drew. "Their inspiration was to create something fun and interactive for kids. Children are able to go through the exhibit and have fun, while at the same time learn about algebraic concepts and thinking." Design Zone at MOSI will run until September 5, 2011. Access to the exhibit is included in the cost of admission. Writer: Kimberly Patterson Source: Adrienne Drew, MOSI
Nature does not recognise political borders. This applies to the distribution of plants and animals, and to many of the challenges faced in environment protection and nature conservation. Cooperation at international level is thus vital in finding solutions to common nature conservation problems. In many cases, the consequences arising from over-use of nature in highly industrialised countries like Germany can be felt in places much further away – for example, through climate change. Countries in the global North are both directly and indirectly responsible for the use of natural resources taken from countries elsewhere. In the framework of international cooperation for nature conservation, BfN is active in a wide range of action areas. This cooperation takes place in the context of international agreements and programmes, bilateral and multilateral projects and with various international organisations. Intact ecosystems and ecosystem services are vital in ensuring human wellbeing, including for future generations. This is why BfN promotes... BfN supports the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV) in the implementation of international conventions and programs, implements bi- and multilateral as well as thematic projects in nature conservation and also manages the secretariat of the German MAB National Committee. BfN supports BMUV in the implementation and further development of international conventions, protocols and programmes. As part of this work, BfN plays an active role in scientific bodies and committees, and also advises BMUV on specialist topics and associated policy issues. With a wide range of bilateral and multilateral projects, BfN supports the implementation of international and regional conventions and programmes. Thematic focus lies in the areas of biodiversity and climate change, international protection of wetlands and sustainable consumption. On behalf of BMUV, BfN manages the secretariat of the German MAB National Committee and oversees all associated processes in UNESCO biosphere reserves in Germany.
Chapter 3. Structure of Crystals 3.2 Fundamental Concepts Atoms self-organize in crystals, most of the time. The crystalline lattice, is a periodic array of the atoms. When the solid is not crystalline, it is called amorphous. Examples of crystalline solids are metals, diamond and other precious stones, ice, graphite. Examples of amorphous solids are glass, amorphous carbon (a-C), amorphous Si, most plastics To discuss crystalline structures it is useful to consider atoms as being hard spheres, with well-defined radii. In this scheme, the shortest distance between two like atoms is one diameter. 3.3 Unit Cells The unit cell is the smallest structure that repeats itself by translation through the crystal. We construct these symmetrical units with the hard spheres. The most common types of unit cells are the faced-centered cubic (FCC), the body-centered cubic (FCC) and the hexagonal close-packed (HCP). Other types exist, particularly among minerals. The simple cube (SC) is often used for didactical purpose, no material has this structure. 3.4 Metallic Crystal Structures Important properties of the unit cells are The closest packed direction in a BCC cell is along the diagonal of the cube; in a FCC cell is along the diagonal of a face of the cube. 3.5 Density Computations The density of a solid is that of the unit cell, obtained by dividing the mass of the atoms (n atoms x Matom) and dividing by Vc the volume of the cell (a3 in the case of a cube). If the mass of the atom is given in amu (A), then we have to divide it by the Avogadro number to get Matom. Thus, the formula for the density is: 3.6 Polymorphism and Allotropy Some materials may exist in more than one crystal structure, this is called polymorphism. If the material is an elemental solid, it is called allotropy. An example of allotropy is carbon, which can exist as diamond, graphite, and amorphous carbon. 3.7 3.10 Crystallography Not Covered 3.11 Close-Packed Crystal Structures The FCC and HCP are related, and have the same APF. They are built by packing spheres on top of each other, in the hollow sites (Fig. 3.12 of book). The packing is alternate between two types of sites, ABABAB.. in the HCP structure, and alternates between three types of positions, ABCABC in the FCC crystals. Crystalline and Non-Crystalline Materials 3.12 Single Crystals Crystals can be single crystals where the whole solid is one crystal. Then it has a regular geometric structure with flat faces. 3.13 Polycrystalline Materials A solid can be composed of many crystalline grains, not aligned with each other. It is called polycrystalline. The grains can be more or less aligned with respect to each other. Where they meet is called a grain boundary. Different directions in the crystal have a different packing. For instance, atoms along the edge FCC crystals are more separated than along the face diagonal. This causes anisotropy in the properties of crystals; for instance, the deformation depends on the direction in which a stress is applied. 3.15 X-Ray Diffraction Determination of Crystalline Structure not covered 3.16 Non-Crystalline Solids In amorphous solids, there is no long-range order. But amorphous does not mean random, since the distance between atoms cannot be smaller than the size of the hard spheres. Also, in many cases there is some form of short-range order. For instance, the tetragonal order of crystalline SiO2 (quartz) is still apparent in amorphous SiO2 (silica glass.)
In some cases, failing extravagantly can work in favor of your cause. Go big or go home, as it were. John Brown was an American abolitionist who supported the use of violence to end slavery. A descendant of 17th century Puritans, Brown’s strong Calvinist beliefs would provide the moral inspiration for his battle against slavery. As we saw on The Abolitionists on PBS last Tuesday, Brown made a pledge in 1837 that would steer his actions in the coming decades: “Here, before God, in the presence of these witnesses, from this time, I consecrate my life to the destruction of slavery!” Unlike most white, well-educated, religiously-motivated abolitionists, Brown did not believe in solely non-violent means to end slavery. After the Fugitive Slave Act passed in 1850, Brown founded a militant anti-slavery brigade with the Biblically-inspired name “League of Gileadites.” Their mission was to prevent the recapture of escaped slaves by any means necessary. Rising tensions in Kansas compelled Brown to go to the aid of the anti-slavery settlers there, including five of his adult sons. Pro-slavery forces known as “Border Ruffians” interfered with voting, imprisoned abolitionists, harassed free settlers, and eventually seized the town of Lawrence. On 24 May 1856, Brown led a small group of armed men against their pro-slavery neighbors at Pottawatomie Creek, killing five. This catalyzed a civil war in Kansas, and created the public image of “Osawatomie Brown”—a nickname awarded for Brown’s heroic, if unsuccessful, defense of an anti-slavery settlement—as a recipient of both admiration and hatred. Brown raised funds based on his new-found notoriety, trained his men, and planned their next move—the Raid of Harpers Ferry, Virginia. On 16 October 1859, John Brown led 18-men—13 whites and five blacks—into Harpers Ferry. The plan was to seize the 100,000 rifles in the federal armory, arm local slaves, and march south, fighting only in self-defense. Brown’s men seized the armory with little trouble. However, things went awry when a free black man working as baggage master attempted to warn an incoming train of the danger at hand. Sadly, he was shot by Brown’s men. After the death of the baggage master, Brown allowed an eastbound to leave Harpers Ferry and spread word of the raid. Rather than the army of freed slaves for which they hoped, the pro-slavery forces began to gather. When the town’s militia surrounded John Brown’s force, they made their last stand at the railroad engine house, afterwards known as John Brown’s Fort. On 18 October, United States Marines under the command of Colonel Robert E. Lee stormed the engine house. Ten of Brown’s men were killed, including two of his sons, and seven were captured and tried with Brown. Media coverage of the failed raid showed the idyllic town of Harpers Ferry, where order was swiftly restored by federal troops, and portrayed John Brown as a fiery-eyed idealist, sympathetic in his advanced age and unshakable faith. Severely wounded and taken to the jail in Charles Town, Virginia, John Brown stood trial for treason against the commonwealth of Virginia, for murder, and for conspiring with slaves to rebel. On 2 November, in a mere 45 minutes, a jury convicted him and sentenced him to death. Brown readily accepted the sentence and declared that he had acted in accordance with God’s commandments. Responding to persistent rumors and written threats, Henry A. Wise, governor of Virginia, called out state militia companies to guard against a possible rescue of Brown and his followers. On 2 December 1859, Brown was hanged in Charles Town. After the execution, Brown became a divisive figure in national politics. Southerners rejoiced in putting down a violent rebellion while Northerners tolled church bells for a martyr and won more converts to the abolitionist cause. Governor Wise, whose records are housed at the Library of Virginia, received multiple threats from enraged, anonymous citizens which can be viewed on the Abolitionist Map of America as well as the Library of Virginia’s Death or Liberty exhibit. Publications such as Harper’s Weekly and Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Weekly replayed the drama in American households. Broadsides for vigils or community organizing demonstrate the far-reaching effects of John Brown, better seen through the use of mapping technologies on the Abolitionist Map of America. These events polarized the nation, making John Brown’s campaign a success in the long view. The moral conflict between freeing slaves and the shocking violence Brown committed continues to make him a compelling historical figure. How would we react to this type of principled violence today? Freedom fighter or terrorist? -Sonya Coleman, Digital Collections Assistant To learn more about records related to John Brown’s raid at the Library, see John Brown’s Raid: Records and Resources at the Library of Virginia.
Posted by Anders on April 13, 2003 Friend of yours, friend of mine, friend of Eliot's - these are instances of the usual genitive form. But in the latest issue of the London Review of Books, Richard Poirier writes: "Her father, of whom she was especially fond, was a painter and member of the Royal Academy, and her younger brother, Maurice, later to become a trusted friend of Eliot, was an officer in the British Army preparing to serve on the Western Front. The marriage ceremony was a hastily arranged and secretive affair, with only a few friends of hers in attendance." Thus we have "friend of Eliot" and "friends of hers" in two consecutive sentences (separated by a paragraph). Why is it not "friend of Eliot's", the usual genitive form, which corresponds to "friends of hers"? Is it correct to write as RP does? If so, why? Is there perhaps a difference in meaning between "friend of Eliot" and "friend of Eliot's"? As a non-native speaker of English, I am uncertain, but can imagine that there may be a difference in emphasis regarding the perception of the friendship. That is, a difference regarding to whom the other is a friend. Thus, if "I am a friend of Eliot's," then Eliot regards me as a friend (of his); whereas if "I am a friend of Eliot," I regard Eliot as a friend (of mine), even though he may not like me, i.e. he does not regard me as one of his friends. (Admittedly, I've never heard about such a distinction.)
Secrecy of Confession Is Absolute The standard of secrecy protecting a confession outweighs any form of professional confidentiality or secrecy. When a person unburdens his soul and confesses his sins to a priest in the Sacrament of Penance, a very sacred trust is formed. The priest must maintain absolute secrecy about anything that a person confesses. For this reason, confessionals were developed with screens to protect the anonymity of the penitent. This secrecy is called "the sacramental seal," "the seal of the confessional," or "the seal of confession." The sacramental seal is inviolable. Quoting Canon 983.1 of the Code of Canon Law, the Catechism states, "...It is a crime for a confessor in any way to betray a penitent by word or in any other manner or for any reason" (No. 2490). A priest, therefore, cannot break the seal to save his own life, to protect his good name, to refute a false accusation, to save the life of another, to aid the course of justice (like reporting a crime), or to avert a public calamity. He cannot be compelled by law to disclose a person's confession or be bound by any oath he takes, e.g. as a witness in a court trial. A priest cannot reveal the contents of a confession either directly, by repeating the substance of what has been said, or indirectly, by some sign, suggestion, or action. A Decree from the Holy Office (Nov. 18, 1682) mandated that confessors are forbidden, even where there would be no revelation direct or indirect, to make any use of the knowledge obtained in the confession that would "displease" the penitent or reveal his identity. (Just as an aside, a great movie which deals with this very topic is Alfred Hitchcock's "I Confess," which deals with a priest who hears a murder confession and then is framed for the murder. As a priest, I was in agony during much of the movie.) However, a priest may ask the penitent for a release from the sacramental seal to discuss the confession with the person himself or others. For instance, if the penitent wants to discuss the subject matter of a previous confession a particular sin, fault, temptation, circumstance in a counseling session or in a conversation with the same priest, that priest will need the permission of the penitent to do so. For instance, especially with the advent of "face-to-face confession," I have had individuals come up to me and say, "Father, remember that problem I spoke to you about in confession?" I have to say, "Please refresh my memory," or "Do you give me permission to discuss this with you now?" Or if a priest needs guidance from a more experienced confessor to deal with a difficult case of conscience, he first must ask the permission of the penitent to discuss the matter. Even in this case, the priest must keep the identity of the person secret. What happens if a priest violates the seal of confession? The Catechism (No. 1467) cites the Code of Canon Law (No. 1388.1) in addressing this issue, which states, "A confessor who directly violates the seal of confession incurs an automatic excommunication reserved to the Apostolic See; if he does so only indirectly, he is to be punished in accord with the seriousness of the offense." From the severity of the punishment, we can clearly see how sacred the sacramental seal of confession is in the eyes of the Church. Actually, the Church's position in this matter has long-standing credibility. The Fourth Lateran Council (1215) produced one of the first comprehensive teachings concerning the Sacrament of Penance. Addressing various problems ranging from abuses to heretical stands against the sacrament, the council defended the sacrament itself, stipulated the need for the yearly sacramental confession of sins and reception of the Holy Eucharist, and imposed disciplinary measures upon priest confessors. The council decreed, "Let the confessor take absolute care not to betray the sinner through word or sign, or in any other way whatsoever. In case he needs expert advice he may seek it without, however, in any way indicating the person. For we decree that he who presumes to reveal a sin which has been manifested to him in the tribunal of penance is not only to be deposed from the priestly office, but also to be consigned to a closed monastery for perpetual penance." A beautiful story (perhaps embellished with time) which captures the reality of this topic is the life of St. John Nepomucene (1340-93), the vicar general to the Archbishop of Prague. King Wenceslaus IV, described as a vicious, young man who easily succumbed to rage and caprice, was highly suspicious of his wife, the Queen. St. John happened to be the Queen's confessor. Although the king himself was unfaithful, he became increasingly jealous and suspicious of his wife, who was irreproachable in her conduct. Although Wencelaus tortured St. John to force him to reveal the Queen's confessions, he would not. In the end, St. John was thrown into the River Moldau and drowned on March 20, 1393. Each priest realizes that he is the ordained mediator of a very sacred and precious sacrament. He knows that in the confessional, the penitent speaks not so much to him, but through him to the Lord. Therefore, humbled by his position, the priest knows that whatever is said in confession must remain secret at all costs. Another interesting side to this question is the obligation of the laity: An interpreter needed for someone to make a confession or anyone who gains knowledge of a confession (such as overhearing someones confession) is also obligated to preserve secrecy (Code of Canon Law, No. 983.2). For such a person to violate the secrecy of another persons confession is a mortal sin and warrants "a just penalty, not excluding excommunication" (No. 1388.2). A person who falsely accuses a priest of breaking the seal of the confession incurs a mortal sin and perhaps other canonical penalties, including excommunication. Clearly, the Church regards the seal of confession as sacred. Every person whether priest or laity must take the obligation to preserve the secrecy of confession absolutely seriously. A book by Fr. Saunders entitled Straight Answers (400 pages) is available with 100 "straight answers" about the faith. This book may be purchased directly or through mail order from the Queen of Apostles Family Gift Shop (703/354-0742), and the Pauline Book and Media Center (703/549-3806). Fr. Saunders is dean of the Notre Dame Graduate School of Christendom College and pastor of Queen of Apostles Parish, both in Alexandria. Copyright ©1999 Arlington Catholic Herald, Inc. All rights reserved. This item 1385 digitally provided courtesy of CatholicCulture.org
Search our database of handpicked sites Looking for a great physics site? We've tracked down the very best and checked them for accuracy. Just fill out the fields below and we'll do the rest. You searched for We found 16 results on physics.org and 144 results in our database of sites 133 are Websites, 7 are Videos, and 4 are Experiments) Search results on physics.org Search results from our links database A program which models the gravitational effects of different bodies in different systems. This program is simple and shows the effect of gravity very well. Read about the effect of space travel from feeling sick to bone loss and muscle wasting. A look at the combined effect on distance from an origin of distance traveled and relativistic effects during accelerated travel. Brief description of some experiments with smoke in a closed box, with normal convection currents and odd effects, includes diagrams and discussion of effects. Statements from the Institution of Engineering and Technology on the possible health effects of EM fields and radiation from power lines, mobile phones and their associated base stations. Read how biology exploit quantum effects to harness nature. An article explaining the thermodielectric effect and where it occurs. Explains how Blue Screen Special Effects for television and movies work. From HowStuffWorks.com. The site is an interactive page to study the photoelectric effect on different materials (sodium, cesium and silver) by changing the wavelength and the intensity of the light. This is a site from the Thinkquest competition with good explanations on the magnetic effect of a current, the motor effect and magnetic field strength. Showing 1 - 10 of 144
Here’s a story of a man named Murphy who used his wife’s kitchen cake mixer to make something other than a cake … Now before getting into that, because latex is an organic, natural product, we need to start off with explaining exactly where latex comes from. The Rubber Tree (Hevea Brasiliensis) Latex mattresses are constructed from the milk or sap from a rubber tree. This rubber tree is known as Hevea brasiliensis. This tree has a major economic significance because its milky latex is the primary source of many things made out of natural rubber (gloves, catheters, balloons, condoms, hoses, belts, and swim caps), not just latex mattresses. Where the Rubber Tree is Found The Hevea brasiliensis tree specimens were first discovered by a French expedition in South America. They were then exported (in huge quantities) for use on rubber plantations in Asia. The Hevea Brasiliensis tree needs an abundance of rainfall, hot temperatures, high humidity, and absolutely no frost. Therefore, not surprisingly, it is largely found in tropical climates. Purdue University reports that Java, Sumatra, Malaysia Indochina/Thailand and Sri Lanka have been major producers of latex. The tropical rain forests of South America, in addition to India, Equatorial Africa, Sarawak, and Burma produce smaller quantities of latex. Today, most of the world’s natural rubber (nearly 75 percent) comes from plantations in Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia. Roots to Colonialism and Indigenous People Through the history of the Hevea brasiliensis tree, disease existed in its native Brazilian habitat, making harvesting challenging. That said, disease strains were eliminated roughly 200 years ago to free these concentrated areas of disease. They have since thrived in the tropical climates of Asia. Colonialism and an indigenous society are part of latex history, as rubber plantations overshadowed traditional means of farming and means of making a living. Today, local communities who desire entrepreneurship and free trade are operating sustainable rubber estates, where indigenous populations are making a living with its extraction. The Link to Latex Mattresses and a Kitchen Cake Mixer Latex wasn’t used to make foam until the 1920s. E.A. Murphy, a British scientist for the Dunlop company, is thought to be credited for producing the first latex foam in the late 1920s. While this opened the possibility for latex mattress construction, it took five years of study and research (along with mishaps and failed attempts) before it was figured out how to create the bubbles needed to produce a latex mattress. Eventually, latex mattress construction evolved into the Dunlop and Talalay processes we know of today. How did this discovery happen? All it took was a thinking out-of-the-box moment when Murphy thought to use of his wife’s cake mixer to whip up latex instead of cake batter. While it’s believed that Murphy’s cohorts were not particularly impressed with his discovery, that soon changed when his colleagues saw the incredible cushioning and shaping the foam latex rubber concoction could achieve. The cake-mixer whipped latex become a huge success, and quickly become used in such things as seat cushions in motorcycles and cars, and later airplane cockpit seats. Then, as early as 1931, the first latex mattress was introduced. In addition to comfort, the initial latex mattress was marketed as a mattress that saved time because it didn’t need to be flipped or fluffed. Link to Us! If you found this article useful and shareable, please copy and paste the following into the html code of your website or blog: Learn More about Getting a Better Night's Sleep and Good Sleep Hygiene at <a href="http://www.plushbeds.com/blog/mattress/the-history-of-latex-mattresses/">Plushbeds Green Sleep Blog</a>.
Music tourism (visiting a city or town to see a gig or festival) is on the rise. But why stop at gigs and festivals? Why not visit the birthplace of your favourite genre and follow the actual journey various music genres have taken as one style developed into another. To make it easier to trace the threads of music history, we’ve created an interactive map detailing the evolution of western dance music over the last 100 years. The map shows the time and place where each of the music styles were born and which blend of genres influenced the next. Click on the image above to launch the interactive version You may need to upgrade to the latest version of your browser to view the interactive map. We hope the graphic will allow you to learn more about the music you love and discover other forms of music you’ll enjoy — as well as possible locations to add to your wish-list. About the Research: The map shows the evolution of top level dance genres only, and does not delve into all possible sub-genres. It is often difficult to pin-point the beginning of a genre to a single year, so we have placed the birth of each genre within 5-year periods. When the explosion of dance music arrived in the 80s, many genres arrived in the same 5-year period as the genres they influenced. In this situation, the ‘influencer’ genre starts to fade in on the map at the time the influencing line appears. Non-dance music genres which influenced dance music are also included, but their own influences are not shown. Often where a genre was first born was not the location it eventually gained most popularity. This is a fairly complex subject and much debate exists not only around how you define various genres of music, but also where they initially came from. If you’d like to share your thoughts, we’d love to hear from you in the comments below.
Put the VT to work in your classroom Using Descriptive Language Lesson Question:How can students use descriptive language to convey their feelings about a product? Lesson Overview:In this lesson, students analyze a writer's use of sensory details and descriptive language in a New York Times article reviewing the Apple iPhone. Then, students are asked to write original product reviews which incorporate some of the descriptive writing techniques identified and evaluated in class. Length of Lesson:One hour to one hour and a half Instructional Objectives:Students will: - use the five senses to respond to a work of art - evaluate a writer's use of sensory details and descriptive language in a product review - determine adjectives' definitions and connotations using the VT - synthesize knowledge of descriptive language techniques by writing original product reviews - student notebooks - white board - computers with Internet access - copies of the New York Times article "State of the Art; Apple Waves Its Wand At the Phone" (one per student) Warm Up:Using the five senses to respond to a work of art: - Before class, display a print or poster that features a work of art that would inspire students to use strong adjectives in describing it. For example, an abstract painting by Jackson Pollack or Paul Klee could work well for this exercise. (Ask your school's librarian to see if they have available art posters or prints.) - List the five senses on the board (i.e., sight, hearing, touch, smell, taste). As students enter the classroom, ask them to study the displayed work of art and to then use their five senses to write a list of words to describe their reactions to it. (Explain to students that although they cannot actually hear, touch, smell, or taste the art, that they can still use these senses to express their feelings. For example, does the art feel "warm" or "cold"? Is it "loud" or "quiet"? Does it taste "sweet" or "bitter"? etc.) - Elicit students' responses and establish that the words they listed are considered adjectives because they were all used to describe or modify a noun (the artwork). Also establish that some of the adjectives can be interpreted literally (e.g., those adjectives used to describe sight-bright, dark, colorful, geometric, etc.) and that many of the adjectives are used metaphorically or figuratively (e.g, those adjectives used to describe the other four senses-loud, soft, smooth, coarse, pungent, sour, etc.). - To reiterate the point that certain descriptive words can be used both literally and figuratively, display the VT web for the word "coarse" on the white board and have students point out which of the adjective definitions (color-coded in gold) would be most fitting to describe a work of art. Perhaps one student might describe a painting as "coarse" because its brushstrokes seem "rough" or "grainy" and another student might use the adjective "coarse" because he or she considers the content of the painting "gross" or "vulgar." Instruction:Reading a product review and identifying descriptive language: - Explain to students that writers often evoke the five senses when they are trying to describe something new they have encountered. - Inform students that they are about to read a Times product review in which journalist David Pogue describes Apple's soon-to-be-released iPhone and his feelings about this new product using sensory details, descriptive adjectives, and metaphorical language. - Distribute copies of the New York Times article "State of the Art: Apple Waves Its Wand At the Phone," available at the following URL: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/11/technology/11pogue.html. - Ask students to read the Times article, circling examples where Pogue uses sensory details, descriptive adjectives, or metaphorical language in describing the iPhone or for another purpose in the review (or "preview" as Pogue calls it). - Elicit students' examples of how Pogue used his five senses to describe the iPhone. For example, Pogue used physical details about the iPhone to help his readers visualize the product: "Its face is shiny black, rimmed by mirror-finish stainless steel." Pogue also made references to the iPhone's sound quality (e.g., "The speaker is on the bottom edge, rather than the back, where it would be muffled when the phone is set down.") and to describe how one uses touch to activate the iPhone's search features (e.g., "...you flick your finger on the glass to send the list scrolling freely, according to the speed of your flick."). - Direct the class discussion to focus on how Pogue uses metaphorical language to capture the significance of the iPhone's creation. Emphasize the central analogy between Apple's creation of the iPhone and Cinderella's fairy godmother's ability to transform "some homely and utilitarian object, like a pumpkin or a mouse into something glamourous and amazing?" How does this comparison communicate Pogue's overall feeling about Apple and its latest creation? - Have students join small groups to "pool" the adjectives they circled as they read "State of the Art: Apple Waves Its Wand At the Phone." Then, have each group create a two-columned chart where group members list all "negative" adjectives in one column and all "positive" adjectives in the other column (students can disregard "neutral" adjectives). Encourage students to use the Visual Thesaurus as a reference aid during this sorting process. For example, if a group is unsure about the connotation or definition of the word "homely" from the article's first paragraph, they could look it up on the VT and discover this adjective is defined as "lacking in physical beauty or proportion" and is associated with such words as "plain" and "inelegant"; therefore, "homely" should be placed in the "negative" adjective column. - After groups have sorted adjectives into "positive" and "negative" chart columns, have them review how many of the positive and negative adjectives were used to describe the iPhone and how Pogue used descriptive adjectives to convey his feelings about the iPhone. [Students will discover that the majority of the positive adjectives in the review (e.g., gorgeous, spectacular, super-smart, wicked cool, etc.) were used to describe the iPhone, while many of the negative adjectives (e.g., homely, ordinary, awkward, etc.) were used to contrast the iPhone with "lesser" products.] Wrap-up:Writing original product reviews: - Tell students that now it is their turn to use descriptive language to express their feelings about a new or interesting product. - For homework or in a subsequent lesson, have each student choose a product to review in a short article. For example, students may wish to review a new candy bar on the market, a recently-released CD, or even a new kitchen gadget that they have discovered. Students need not worry about their product choices as much as how they will use sensory or metaphorical language to creatively describe the physical characteristics of the product, its features, or their views about its quality. (Students should appeal to at least two of the five senses, include at least one metaphor, and use strong "positive" or "negative" adjectives in their reviews.) - If students get "stuck" during the review-writing process, suggest they use the VT as a resource as they search for descriptive adjectives. Extending the Lesson: - Students could share their completed product reviews in a later class by creating product exhibitions. Each student could set up his or her desk as a mini-product exhibition by placing the product (or an image of the product) and related review on the desk. Then, fellow classmates could circulate throughout the room, checking out the products, reading the reviews, and writing feedback to the writers on sticky-notes or on sign-in sheets placed alongside the reviews. - Check each group's adjective chart to make sure that students identified a sufficient number of adjectives from the Times article and listed each adjective in the correct column (i.e., "positive" or "negative"). - Assess each student's product review for creative use of sensory details, descriptive adjectives, and metaphorical language. Educational Standards:Language Arts Standard 2. Uses the stylistic and rhetorical aspects of writing Level III (Grades 6-8) 1. Uses descriptive language that clarifies and enhances ideas (e.g., establishes tone and mood, uses figurative language, uses sensory images and comparisons, uses a thesaurus to choose effective wording) Level IV (Grades 9-12) 1. Uses precise and descriptive language that clarifies and enhances ideas and supports different purposes (e.g., to stimulate the imagination of the reader, to translate concepts into simpler or more easily understood terms, to achieve a specific tone, to explain concepts in literature) Standard 5. Uses the general skills and strategies of the reading process Level III [Grade: 6-8] 3. Uses a variety of strategies to extend reading vocabulary (e.g., uses analogies, idioms, similes, metaphors to infer the meaning of literal and figurative phrases; uses definition, restatement, example, comparison and contrast to verify word meanings; identifies shades of meaning; knows denotative and connotative meanings; knows vocabulary related to different content areas and current events; uses rhyming dictionaries, classification books, etymological dictionaries) Level IV [Grade: 9-12] 2. Extends general and specialized reading vocabulary (e.g., interprets the meaning of codes, symbols, abbreviations, and acronyms; uses Latin, Greek, Anglo-Saxon roots and affixes to infer meaning; understands subject-area terminology; understands word relationships, such as analogies or synonyms and antonyms; uses cognates; understands allusions to mythology and other literature; understands connotative and denotative meanings) Standard 9. Uses viewing skills and strategies to understand and interpret visual media Level III [Grade: 6-8] 2. Uses a variety of criteria to evaluate and form viewpoints of visual media (e.g., evaluates the effectiveness of informational media, such as web sites, documentaries, news programs; recognizes a range of viewpoints and arguments; establishes criteria for selecting or avoiding specific programs) Level IV [Grade: 9-12] 2. Uses a variety of criteria (e.g., clarity, accuracy, effectiveness, bias, relevance of facts) to evaluate informational media (e.g., web sites, documentaries, news programs)
A cryptic crossword is a puzzle in which some or all of the answers are obscured by letters that are either hidden in the grid, or in the case of American-style crosswords (also known as quick, or straight, crosswords), in the clue itself. The clues are usually simple definitions, but sometimes they are homonyms, or even anagrams of the answer itself. Some clues are so cryptic that they have to be solved by looking for patterns, such as a repeated letter, or a word that has been jumbled or otherwise altered to give the desired meaning. The most common cryptic clues include letters hidden in the answer, or anagrams of the answer itself. In the latter case, the compiler often provides some hints that the word is anagrammatic; for example, the clue “Ned T.’s seal cooked is rather bland (5,4)” might lead to the answer NEEDS SALT. Other cryptic clues may contain abbreviations or puns, and some include references to the history of language. Roman numerals, and arithmetic using them, are often used, such as the clue “IV times III” (4×3) yielding XII (12). Partial answers are also permitted in cryptic crosswords; for instance, “Nice summer?” might lead to the grid entry ETE (which could be understood as Nice, the city in France, or simply a pleasant summer). Clues may use puns to hide the word they refer to, but there are also tricks that make the words less obvious. For example, in the puzzle “Torquemada performs a miniaturised Metamorphoses” (OVID), “in shape nothing more than a poet” is hidden in the clue OVID, which can only be read correctly when preceded by the word “over”. A number of different types of crosswords exist, and each has its own rules and style. For instance, some require a certain number of black squares to be filled in, while others have no limit on their use of black squares. Typically, a cryptic crossword has 13 rows and columns of squares, totalling 81-130 cells. It is possible to fill in all cells except for those marked as black, but this can be difficult, and the solver must use checkers or other methods to determine whether a cell has a correct answer. The Times publishes a variety of crosswords, written by a wide range of contributors. Its puzzles have become notorious for their difficulty, and they often feature a large amount of vocabulary, including specialized terms from fields such as medicine and science. The newspaper has a full specification sheet listing the requirements for submissions, which can be found online or by writing to the paper. Will Shortz does not write the majority of the Times puzzles himself; he has described the process of working with the puzzle editors as “a lot of back and forth and very little compromise.”
For a parent, having a young child that does not listen or throws tantrums is often written off as normal “toddler” behavior that they believe their child will outgrow. Then that child turns into a pre-teen who becomes aggressive, defiant and has frequent outbursts – also often thought to be normal “teen” behavior. But before your child even hits the toddler years there are usually signs that may signal something more critical is going on and that these behaviors are not as normal as they may seem. Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) is not something that many parents consider when they are dealing with some of these challenging issues with their children because they do not know it exists. Manhattan Psychology Group has created this infographic about ODD to help bring awareness to parents who may be having a hard time with their defiant toddler or teen. We hope that by brining awareness to Oppositional Defiant Disorder and its symptoms and treatments we can encourage parents to get a professional evaluation and ultimately get the help they need to improve their child’s behaviors as well as create a better parent/child relationship. Share this infographic on your website: Written by Lauren Feiden, PsyD
What is a pinhole camera? Have you heard of a camera that doesn’t have lens? There are cameras without lenses and a pinhole camera belongs to this category. They also have a very small aperture. Sharpness of the image depends on how small the size of the hole is. The size of the aperture should be less than 1/100 or the distance between the object and the screen. How a Pinhole Camera Works It is easy to make a pinhole camera. You can make pinhole cameras from waste materials like paint cans, oatmeal containers, cardboard box, etc. Various parts of the pinhole camera are the pinhole opening, light-proof box, film plane, shutter mechanism, and a stabilization system. How does a pinhole camera work? Take a cardboard box or any other air-tight container. Make a small hole in it and pass light through this hole. When light is passed through, an image is formed on the back of the interior of the box or the container to which a piece of film is attached. The working is same as that of any film camera; the only difference is that pinhole cameras can be made at home easily. (Ref. Fig 1 – geometry of a pinhole camera) Image source: northlight Ref. Fig 2 – working of a pinhole camera Image Source: wikimedia Geometry of a pinhole camera and its working Develop this photographic paper or the film you have attached to the cardboard box or the container to see the images. You will not be able to see the images if you don’t develop the film. (Ref. Fig 3 – Photograph taken with a pinhole camera) Image source: krisdedecker Fig 3 – Photograph taken with a pinhole camera Let me summarize some of the key points one needs to understand when it comes to the working of a pinhole camera. The points are: 1. There is no focusing apparatus in pinhole cameras. Due to this fact, things like size, shape and the distance of the hole and the film plays a vital role. Remember, sharpness of the image depends on how small the size of the hole is. 2. How to determine the diameter of the tiny hole? It’s simple. First measure the distance between the hole and the film. This is the focal length (f). Use the formula d = 0.0073 x f ^ ½. Alternatively, you may calculate the size of the aperture here. 3. Are you wondering where the lens is in a pinhole camera? The pinhole or the tiny hole that you put in the cardboard box or the container acts as the lens. You might have a doubt on how the images taken using a pinhole camera are sharper when compared to those taken using other cameras? This is because the light that passes through this pinhole gets emitted and they form a small point on the photographic paper or the film.
What does HALF stand for? What does HALF mean? This page is about the various possible meanings of the acronym, abbreviation, shorthand or slang term: HALF. We've found a total of 3 definitions for HALF: What does HALF mean? - one-half, half(noun) - one of two equal parts of a divisible whole
Growing opposition to slavery During the late 1700s to mid 1800s, a growing opposition to slavery was taking place in the United States. This growing opposition was visible in the ways people were beginning to speak out against slavery through abolitionist movements, along with some aspects of the Wilmot Proviso. People’s consciences were also stirred by the novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Many people during this time span were slowly beginning to come to the understanding that slavery was morally wrong. Abolitionists such as Frederick Douglass, a former slave himself, and William Lloyd Garrison were beginning to speak out against slavery during this time period. The abolitionists of this time period, white and black, were slowly but steadily gaining support, mostly in the Northern region. In his “Declaration of Sentiments of the American Anti-Slavery Society’, Garrison stated that, “We shall organize Anti-Slavery Societies, if possible, in every city, town, and village of our land. Only $13.90 / page Other abolitionists gained attention to their cause by publishing newspapers and holding anti slavery conventions. Yet another abolitionist, Theodore Parker, published a poster one year after the Fugitive Slave Act was established, an act that declared all runaway slaves were, upon capture, to be returned to their master, that warned runaway slaves of the dangers of watchmen and police looking for them. These small acts done by the abolitionists of that time period slowly began to influence other white peoples’ views on slavery. In 1846, David Wilmot, a Democratic representative from Pennsylvania, proposed that Congress ban slavery from all lands acquired in the war with Mexico. This proposal came to be known as the Wilmot Proviso. The Wilmot Proviso, also known as the “White Man’s Proviso”, gained support by those who were anti slavery along with other Northerners who wanted to preserve the West for free labor. However, the support from the Southern slave states defeated the Wilmot proviso, leaving the decision as to whether the West should be slave territory or free land up for discussion. Eventually the doctrine of popular sovereignty was established, which decided that the people of the given territory should resolve the issue of slavery in he territory themselves by popular vote. These series of events shows not only the growing sympathy of the North towards slavery but also the unsureness of Congress whether to abolish slavery or stabilize free territory because of the growing realization that slavery was wrong. The novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, or Life among the Lowly, also brought much attention to the anti slavery movement. The novel, written by Harriet Beecher Stowe, a Northerner who had never set foot on a plantation, told bout the trials and terrors in the life of a slave on a Southern plantation. The novel sparked much support in the abolitionist movement and was accepted as truth among the Northerners. According to an advertisement from 1859 for Uncle Tom’s Cabin, it was still considered “the greatest book of the age” seven years after its publication in 1852. This tear Jerking novel caused many people to come to the realization that slavery was morally wrong. Thanks to the publications, conventions, and lectures done by the abolitionists of he time, more attention was brought to the anti slavery movement, intluencing many peoples’ views. The controversy over the territory gained from the American-Mexican war also showed a growing realization that slavery was wrong. The novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, also showed opposition to slavery because it was accepted as truth among the North. Although slavery was still accepted and often times welcomed during the late 1700s to mid 1800s, more people were beginning to see the immorality behind the cruel treatment of slaves.
If you are from New Orleans, Carnival season starts right after the Epiphany on January 6th, with most of the celebrations concentrated in the two weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday. In Brazil, Venice, even in Quebec City, Carnival runs from January 31st to February 17th, 2015, the last day before Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent. This day is also known as Shrove Tuesday, Fat Tuesday, Mardi Gras, Pancake Tuesday and Giovedi Grasso to name a few. Carnival is a time to celebrate and have fun. A common character during this period is the jester. Their hats, sometimes called the cap ’n’ bells or cockscomb are usually floppy with three points each of which there’s usually a jingle bell at the end. The three points of the hat represent the donkey’s ears and tail worn by jesters in earlier times. In societies where freedom of speech was not recognized as a right, the court jester – precisely because anything he said was by definition “a jest” and “the uttering of a fool” – could speak frankly on controversial issues in a way in which anyone else would have been severely punished for, and monarchs understood the usefulness of having such a person at their side. Jesters could also give bad news to the King that no-one else would dare deliver. In literature, the jester is symbolic of common sense and of honesty, notably King Lear, the court jester is a character used for insight and advice on the part of the monarch, taking advantage of his license to mock and speak freely without worrying about being thrown in the dungeons or even executed. Only as the lowliest member of the court can the jester be the monarch’s most useful adviser.
posted on Dec, 10 2008 @ 01:16 AM Dragons are found in almost ever ancient culture around the world. While many have different features and characteristics, they all fall under the same basic idea. Usually a dinosaur like creature, some flying, some fire breathing. How could all of the creatures have so much in common if some of the cultures had never had contact with each other in those ancient times? To support the flying aspect, we all know there were dinosaurs that flew. As for the fire breathing, there are speculations that certain creatures had a mechanism in the jaw that could create a spark if cracked on demand. As for the fuel, I'm not sure. The only thing left to prove that dinosaurs existed during the same time as humans. The only thing stopping this is the theory of evolution. Just because we don't see any today, doesn't mean a very small number couldn't have existed 500 to 1500 years ago. They probably didn't all go out at once. The flood depicted in the Bible could also play a significant role in this. Could this be the reason some of the only prehistoric creatures alive today can swim? Sharks, Alligators, Crocodiles. I'm not necessary trying to prove a point or even make an argument. I just wanted to throw the info. out there for everyone.
King Richard III lost his crown and his life at the Battle of Bosworth Field on 22nd August 1485. He was the last English king to die on the battlefield and the last Plantagenet king. Treachery has long been cried as Richard was not supported by men he legitimately expected to fight for him. Foremost amongst this shadowy clique was Thomas, Lord Stanley, a name guaranteed to bring boos and hisses from any Ricardian. The reason for Lord Stanley’s betrayal of his king is not hard to fathom; he was step-father to Henry Tudor and so had a right to expect a great deal of power in compensation for his actions, or rather, lack of action. Yet there is more to this story. Stretching back over two decades lies a dispute in which Richard, as Duke of Gloucester and then as king, took sides. I suspect that perhaps even more than becoming step-father to a king, this matter may have played on Lord Stanley’s mind as he watched from the sidelines as the two armies prepared to fight to the death for the crown of England. No doubt he also enjoyed being courted by both parties. The dispute in question was between the Stanley family and the Harrington family. Both were gentry families in the north west, with the Stanley’s increasing their wealth and influence under Thomas’s grandfather, Sir John, and father, Sir Thomas, the first Baron Stanley. By the mid 15th century they owned great swathes of north west England and held many offices of power in the region. During the Wars of the Roses, Lord Stanley developed a reputation for staying out of battles until the result was clear and then joining, usually by sending his younger brother Sir William’s forces into the fray, on the winning side, thus reaping the rewards of seeming to decide the battle. He fought variously for Lancaster and York and just as often failed to arrive at battles. Thus the Stanley’s position had been won carefully, by ensuring that whether York or Lancaster might prevail, the Stanleys always stood to gain. For these reasons Lord Stanley is often seen as a fickle, conniving, self-serving man. If one were to seek to give him the benefit of the doubt, we may allow that he headed a family on the cusp of real greatness after several generations of hard work. One wrong move at this time could cost the entire family everything that they had. Perhaps he did not feel willing or able to take that risk. The Harrington family are perhaps the very antithesis of the Stanleys. James Harrington was a friend and supporter of Richard as Lord of the North. His grandfather had carried Henry V’s banner at the battle of Agincourt where Richard’s own grandfather had been slain. The two men were soaked in the chivalric memories of English glory on French soil. Throughout the Wars of the Roses, the Harringtons fought for York and never wavered. Not once. Sir James is one of the candidates for having carried Richard’s banner at Bosworth, a fitting repeat of Agincourt as the king led a charge of his cavalry across the shuddering field. Certainly, Sir James died at the king’s side that day. The beginnings of the Stanley feud with the Harringtons was the Battle of Wakefield on 30th December 1460. Not because they fought on opposing sides; Stanley managed to miss this battle. Richard’s father, the Duke of York and brother Edmund, Earl of Rutland were killed at the battle when the Yorkist army was destroyed. Also killed was James’s father Thomas and James’s eldest brother John. Initial reports stated that Thomas died in the fighting and John of his wounds shortly after the battle. This meant that Thomas Harrington’s possessions passed on his death to John and on John’s death to his heirs. Anne and Elizabeth Harrington were about four and five years old and the law stated that the inheritance would pass to whoever they married. James Harrington and his brother Robert argued that John had in fact died before Thomas, making James the rightful heir. Lord Stanley immediately set about making the two girls his wards and marrying them to his son and nephew. The jewel in the Harrington family crown was Hornby Castle. A stunning property, it sat above the valley of the River Lune, firmly in Stanley country. Obtaining it would allow them to join territories together and thoroughly dominate the area. Edward IV, measuring Stanley’s might, feared upsetting him and granted him control of the Harrington girls and therefore possession of Hornby. James Harrington, who had been amongst those who captured Henry VI in 1465 and delivered him to Edward, must have felt somewhat betrayed after his loyal service. Anyway, he and his brother refused to surrender their nieces or the castle and dug their heels in behind the mighty walls of Hornby. When the Earl of Warwick rebelled and Henry VI was temporarily reinstated as king, Stanley seized the opportunity to try and drive the Harringtons out for good. He brought up a giant cannon named ‘Mile Ende’ from Bristol with the intention of blasting the troublesome Harringtons out of Hornby. Not a shot was fired however, and it is intriguing to find a warrant issued by Richard on 26th March 1470, signed ‘at Hornby’. The seventeen year old Duke had chosen his side, and it was the loyal Harringtons that he backed, perhaps perceiving an injustice they suffered at his brother’s hands that their service did not merit, in contrast to Stanley. In Richard, the north found ‘good lordship’ to check the advance of Stanley power. Lord Stanley found himself blocked by the king’s own brother. In 1483, when Richard became king, evidence suggests that he intended to re-open the issue of ownership of Hornby, no doubt to the joy of the loyal Sir James, but to the dismay and disgust of Lord Stanley, whose son and daughter in law now lived at the castle. Add to this the appointments of Richard Ratcliffe, the new king’s friend and uncle of Robert Harrington’s wife, as king’s deputy in the West Marches and Sherriff of Westmorland, Robert’s brother-in-law John Pilkington as Steward of Rochdale and Richard III’s chamberlain and another Harrington family member, John Huddlestone, as Warden of the West Marches, Sheriff of Cumberland and Steward of Penrith and we see Stanley influence being strangled in the region. No doubt this restriction of Lord Stanley’s expansionism was intentional on Richard’s part, but as Thomas Stanley surveyed Bosworth Field, this must have been playing on his mind. Should he maintain upon the throne the man who was seeking to destroy him, or replace him with a step-son full of gratitude with power to dispense accordingly? Richard III had appointed Stanley Steward of his Household and made him a Knight of the Garter, perhaps not entirely able to escape his brother’s recognition of Stanley as a necessary evil given the huge force of armed men that he was able to call upon. But was this enough to compensate Stanley for the dismantling of his north western empire, or did he see an opportunity for more? Henry VII made him Earl of Derby, a title his family still hold today. Measured dispassionately, it was a good decision that has made the family in a way Thomas’s father and grandfather could only have dreamed of. The Harringtons, for all of their unswerving loyalty, were wiped out, destroyed, along with the House of York they had fought alongside for so long. I cannot help but wonder whether in this respect, Lord Stanley’s betrayal of his king at Bosworth was foreseeable and even understandable. Hornby Castle, he must have mused, was finally his. The mighty Richard had stood against him, but Stanley had won in the end. Was Richard the architect of his own demise? He failed to play the game of thrones well and his commitment to loyalty and chivalric values left him open to opportunism and betrayal, even making them appealing to some. Then again, I am a card carrying Ricardian, so boo, hiss! Matt can also be found on Twitter @mattlewisauthor.
It looks like you're using an Ad Blocker. Please white-list or disable AboveTopSecret.com in your ad-blocking tool. Some features of ATS will be disabled while you continue to use an ad-blocker. Let us start with a simple question that appears to have an obvious answer: what is a dog? It turns out geneticists in the past decade have shown the answer is not so obvious. In fact, generations of anthropologists, archaeologists and wildlife biologists turned out to be dead wrong when it came to the origins of “man’s best friend”. Prior to DNA studies conducted in the 1990s, the generally accepted theory posited that dogs branched off from a variety of wild canids, i.e., coyotes, hyenas, jackals, wolves and so on, about 15,000 years ago. The results of the first comprehensive DNA study shocked the scholarly community. The study found that all dog breeds can be traced back to wolves and not other canids. The second part of the finding was even more unexpected – the branching off occurred from 40-150,000 years ago. Why do these findings pose a problem? We have to answer that question with another question: how were dogs bred from wolves? This is not just difficult to explain, it is impossible. Do not be fooled by the pseudo-explanations put forth by science writers that state our Stone Age ancestors befriended wolves and somehow (the procedure is never articulated) managed to breed the first mutant wolf, the mother of all dogs. Sorry, we like dogs too, but that is what a dog is. Think about those statements for a moment. If you are thinking that dogs evolved naturally from wolves, that is not an option. No scientist believes that because the stringent wolf pecking order and breeding rituals would never allow a mutant to survive, at least that is one strong argument against natural evolution. The evolution of the domesticated dog from a wild pack animal appears to be a miracle! It should not have happened. This is another unexplained enigma. Crufts is an annual international Championship conformation show for dogs organised and hosted by the Kennel Club, currently held every March at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Birmingham, England. It is the largest annual dog show in the world, as declared by Guinness World Records, and lasts four days. Originally posted by LiveForever8 This is not just difficult to explain, it is impossible. Do not be fooled by the pseudo-explanations put forth by science writers
If the engine is the heart of the machine, then the fuel is its blood. We use this analogy because when fuel problems exist, the engine will eventually start to sputter. Garbage In equals Garbage Out. Technically speaking, in such situations, combustion isn't complete, or, at least, as ideal and total as it needs to be. As a result, unburned diesel will accumulate in the combustion chamber. An engine can only run as cleanly and efficiently as the quality of fuel allows. What are the two most common fuel system problems? Water and Fuel degradation. Why is water such an issue? When water is stored in a tank, small microbes can and do dine on fuel. Water acts as the metabolizing agent. The food is the organic matter contained in the diesel. The waste caused by that consumption is hydrogen sulfide. Left untreated, hydrogen sulfide will form into a black slime that impedes combustion. When optimal combustion hasn't been achieved, the unburned portions of the fuel will accumulate where they can. If you’re lucky those particles will attach themselves to the cylinder wall. Together with the engine oil, they’ll migrate south into the oil pan, mitigating damage to the combustion chamber. But the chances are good that those teeny tiny particles will begin to accumulate where they’re least wanted, in the injectors. After a period of time of poor combustion, the injectors will eventually start to clog, and the generator engine will show outward signs that all is not well within. (Think shortness of breath, some chest pain, sweating.) The exhaust will change from white to a hazy blue to black soot. Diesel contains a heavy constituent of crude oil called asphalts. In nominal conditions, those asphalts are in solution and burn along with the other components. If, however, the diesel has been sitting, those heavier constituents can break apart. Like materials will attract one another and accumulate in the fuel. With enough weight, they’ll sink, and coat the bottom of the tank like roofing tar. The compromised fuel result is shorter cycles and incomplete combustion times. But, like a clever physician the generator operator has a few tricks up his/her sleeve to detect this issue in its infancy. With or without problems, the fuel filter of a generator should be changed after approximately 300 hours of operation (more frequently in extreme heat or cold). This is typically the threshold of acceptable performance. Fuel filter inspection. The filter offers a blood sample of all that’s circulating (or not) within the combustion chamber. If performance has been suffering and improves with the change then there is potential for a fuel problem. And if the outside of the filter media shows signs of a slimy dark material then microbes have invaded your fuel source. Water most commonly begins to reveal itself when the seasons change, particularly when summer gives way to winter. This is when you need to keep the tank full. Any exposed surface area, like the inside of a tank, can produce condensation naturally. The key is to minimize the exposure. Test the tank. Because water is heavier than oil, if it’s present it will settle at the bottom of the tank. Take a long, ½-inch PVC pipe, attach Water Cut Paste to the end and dip it to the bottom of the tank. Wait a few minutes before extracting. The paste will change colour if it’s been exposed to water. Like our own most important organ, the heart, an engine can still perform under less than ideal conditions. However, to achieve optimal combustion and an extended, life a healthy generator needs high-quality fuel. In the next post we’ll delve into the juice behind the engine: Generator Battery Maintenance - The Juice
Studies have shown that about 70% of all cancers have association with environmental factors. These environmental factors could be physical (air, soil, water), biological (virus, bacteria, fungi, plants, animals) and/or social (lifestyle). Of all these environmental factors, lifestyle is the most important. Exercise, smoking and excessive alcohol intake are well known associates of lung and liver cancer respectively. The relationship between diet and some cancers is also well known. A diet rich in fruits and vegetables helps ward off cancer especially cancer of the stomach, and large intestine. For fruits, citrus fruits appear specially favoured. Reduce fat intake, also limit consumption of salt and salt preserved foods. Maintain a balanced diet and exercise to maintain healthy body weight. Alcohol and tobacco have long been known to be associated with lung and liver cancers. Duration and dose of these two habits are very important. Parents should avoid smoking in the presence of children to avoid spreading the habit; same goes for alcohol intake, having a bar in the house stocked with assorted alcoholic drinks though socially desirable encourages children to drink. Creating awareness in schools about health implications of alcohol/smoking will go a long way. 3.Reduce exposure to occupational/environmental Hazards Cancers associated with occupational exposure include those of the lungs, bladder, nose and skin. Several chemicals and chemical groups have been identified to cause cancer. Avoid or reduce exposure to them. Use protective clothing and equipment- insist on them. These chemicals include benzene, asbestos, soot, arsenic and wood dust. Go for regular screening for levels of the chemicals (associated with your occupation) in your body. 4.Reduce or Avoid Exposure to Radiation. Adopt sun protective behaviour, minimise time spent under the sun; ultra violet radiation from the sun is a known cause of skin cancer, accounting for about 80% of cases. The use of protective clothing, sunglasses, hats and sunscreens is recommended. Unnecessary exposure to medical x-rays should be avoided. Two infections are associated with cancer; Hepatitis B infection which can lead to cancer of the liver, and Human papilloma Virus infection which is associated with cancer of the cervix. Immunisation is now available against these two infections. You can consult your physician. 6.Prevention by use of drugs. Some drugs and micronutrients are known to reduce the risk of some cancers. The cancers include breast cancer, cancer of the large intestine, cancer of the prostate. The micronutrients are vitamins and minerals which can be taken as supplements but better obtained through regular and adequate consumption of fruits and vegetables.
Arctic Ocean Circulation The Arctic Ocean is unique among the world’s oceans for many reasons. It is largely ice-covered (much of it year-round, the rest seasonally) and it is relatively isolated from the rest of the world’s oceans, much like the Mediterranean Sea. Follow the water as it enters and exits the Arctic Ocean. This complex circulation system in the Arctic—which impacts the entire food web—is in a delicate balance. In recent years, scientists have documented changes in the Arctic system, including a dramtatic reduction in sea ice cover and a weakening of the Beaufort Gyre circulation system, that are attributed to climate change. The Arctic Ocean affects the way of life of not only the Arctic native peoples, but also those of us living “downstream,” in Europe and North America. As such, the Arctic Ocean, and the effect of changes that are taking place there, are the focus of intense study by oceanographers of all disciplines.
LINCOLN, Neb. — The most common food safety rules involve food preparation and storage, but bacteria can start growing as soon as you take your groceries to your car. Improperly bagging and transporting food after grocery shopping can cause bacteria and contamination of your food. Following just a few tips can help prevent contamination, said Julie Albrecht, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension food specialist. "To make sure that the food you bring home is as safe and delicious as it was at the store, it's important to know the best way to pack and transport your groceries," the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources specialist said. Different food types should be separated into different bags. Transport foods to be cooked in one bag and those not to be cooked in another. Bag eggs separately from foods you will eat raw in case they crack. Put foods of similar temperatures in the same bags, such as frozen foods, refrigerated foods and room temperature foods. More importantly, do not pack meat and dairy in the same bag as produce and other raw foods. "Meat pathogens can easily transfer to and contaminate produce," Albrecht said. The bag that holds the food matters too. A reusable, thermal bag can keep groceries hot or cold until they can be stored properly. When using these bags, however, it is still important to use a separate bag for meats to avoid the spread of pathogens. Wrap meats in a plastic bag at the bottom if only using one reusable bag, and clean reusable bags regularly. "Wipe them out, or even throw them in the washing machine on a regular basis to keep them germ free," Albrecht said.
Indeed, mental illnesses have always been stigmatized throughout the world for the longest time and to date. It was never accepted as a normal sign of breakdown but a phenomenon that could make the sufferer an abnormal person. Sufferers endured their disability, perceiving the fact that they would not be considered ‘normal’ and treated in the most indifferent way. But today, the world, along with evolution in the diverse genre, has excelled in the field of taking care of mental health and preventing people’s demise too. “What mental health needs are more sunlight, more candor, and more unashamed conversation.” – Glenn Close. But how many of us fathom these words? Probably a handful! This year, the World Federation for Mental Health or WFMH, celebrated this day by theming it as suicide prevention. According to the World Health Organization or WHO, it is more than 800,000 people passing away by committing suicide, with the majority age group being fifteen to twenty-nine years. Further, it has been discovered that not only adults are victimized, but young ones too are preyed upon by violence, sexual abuse, bullying, cyberbullying, and more. The intensity felt by those tender minds are so emotionally overwhelming that they find suicide the only way possible to hide the pain and make an end to it. This particular affair has never been brought to light so explicitly before, but this year the WFMH has turned out to be the game-changer. With so many organizations and institutions grounded and also rising in digits, what the content is, of the education, holds a pivotal role. Majorly stereotyped studies are what is being conveyed. However, now is the time to bring to the spotlight of all these organizations – how suicide and its prevention is as mandatory as any other action. The necessity is to be passed on to every single mental health awareness institution, and that is not all; plentiful of scientific and professional organizations is to incorporate strategies to keep suicide or even the intention at bay. With suicide being the principal impetus among sufferers, especially the ones highlighted, the national health authorities must craft policies that are to be followed holistically to prevent this as much as possible. Every single person should be talked to, healed, calmed, aiding the most to give them a normal life back again. An history of a suicide A consultant psychiatrist had narrated an incident of a boy who was an IAS aspirant and went to Delhi, the capital of India, for a strict preparation to bag the post. Being a small-town boy who is an introvert along with issues of short-temper and struggling to live in a tiny rented room, he was a very fragile person who’d advance toward taking drastic steps in a jiffy. The exact thing happened when his first attempt at the major exam was futile, and he ended up committing suicide leaving behind his whole family helpless. The psychiatrist further states that this is the scenario of the present state where the number of victims has risen to an alarming level, according to statistics. Her words hold the truth. She further claims the need of all the professionals, media, sociologists, NGOs, hospitals, schools, colleges, cyber lawmakers, police, and many more esteemed organizations to join hands to eradicate the act of suicide or thoughts provoking it. Ms. Ruth Benson, Research Officer, International Association for Suicide Prevention Professor Ping Qin, Executive Committee Member, International Association for Suicide Prevention Professor Murad Khan, President, International Association for Suicide Prevention, further explains – the probability of committing suicide is among the minds of people residing in lower or middle-income groups according to statistics. The fight against the suicide With around 8,00,000 sufferers committing suicide, it is narrowed down that in just 40 seconds, somebody is committing it. Not only this, when that one person is committing it, 20 others are attempting it. They leave around 135 people in impassable pain and agony, and few are affected in an unfathomable hysterical manner. A person who has a mental illness, when talked to, provides significant instances as to why they are likely to attempt suicide. Every individual has a distinctive thought process that has to be studied thoroughly to perceive the grounds on which the victims are standing. People who have attempted or experienced some suicidal tendencies need to be discussed with their feelings; only then every other person passing through that phase can be healed. National suicide prevention strategies are something to talk about, they are found in 38 countries presently, and this states that those countries are very much concerned about handling those issues. They have incorporated immediate actions that are to be taken in case of any emergency experienced. Countries, who are members of WHO, have promised to decrease suicides by 10% by 2020. Sufferers who have attempted suicide, in many countries still, are stigmatized by the stereotyped communities, and this especially takes place in small towns or suburbs where people are still unaware as to how mental health issues are normal as any other health issue. Those sufferers who tried to take their own lives are not only haunted by the nightmare but also traumatized by the tantrums of the community people. A very vital fact which is to be studied is, in certain western countries, suicide has been decriminalized, but it is still considered illegal in 25 countries, and 20 more follow Islamic and Sharia law, and people attempting suicide are jailed. The more the decriminalization, the more the sufferers will be healed, and also surveillance will improve. It has thus been clearly and repeatedly imparted that suicide is preventable, and every country must give in their best effort to do that. It often happens that the person suffering has not come across mental health services; to not worsen the situation, the country must bring evolution by founding one and thus saving thousands of lives.
Scientists at the Smithsonian Institution and partners have published a paper that optimizes sperm collection protocols from the critically endangered Panamanian Golden Frog Atelopus zeteki. It also improves our understanding of reproduction in endangered harlequin frogs. The research, to be published published 15 March 2017, in Theriogenology, was conducted by Dr. Gina DellaTogna, a Panamanian biologist who studied this charismatic animal at the National Zoological Park in Washington DC. The study characterizes the dose-response patterns for several artificial hormone treatments and describes the sperm morphology for the first time in this species. “This study is important, because it contributes towards the basic understanding of reproduction of a highly endangered group of frogs in Latin America,” said DellaTogna, who performed the experiments for her PhD at the University of Maryland. “This study has already helped us to solve critical reproduction problems in captive Atelopus collections in Panama and allowed us to repeatedly collect high-quality sperm samples for genome resource banking at any time of the year, without harming the frogs.” “Basic reproductive research is something that has yielded huge conservation dividends for the successful care and management of other endangered species like Pandas and Black Footed Ferrets,” said Pierre Comizzoli, a co-author of the paper and reproduction specialist at the National Zoo. “Gina’s research opens the door to develop methods like sperm freezing and storage to preserve the long term genetic integrity and diversity in small populations.” The research is particularly relevant to current amphibian conservation efforts in Panama where the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project has captive-breeding colonies of five species of Atelopus that are threatened with extinction from the deadly fungal disease chytridiomycosis. “Successful reproduction is key to any captive assurance program,” said Roberto Ibáñez, the director of the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation project at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama. “Gina has already begun applying what she has learned to successfully help us to produce offspring from four other endangered harlequin frog species. I hope that she will eventually extend it to species with different modes of reproduction that are also difficult to breed”. The research was made possible with assistance from the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore who manage the Golden Frog Species Survival Plan. Funding was provided from the Panamanian Government’s Secretaría Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (SENACYT), The WoodTiger Fund, the Smithsonian Endowment for Science and the University of Ottawa Research Chairs Program. Della Togna G, Trudeau VL, Gratwicke B, Evans M, Augustine L, Chia H, Bronikowski EJ, Murphy JB, Comizzoli P. 2017 Effects of hormonal stimulation on the concentration and quality of excreted spermatozoa in the critically endangered Panamanian golden frog (Atelopus zeteki). Theriogenology. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.theriogenology.2016.12.033
Eyewitness 1864: A narrow escape follows Union crew's ship seizure January 19, 2014 12:00 AM The U.S. Naval Historical Center The USS Huron By Len Barcousky / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette After U.S. Navy sailors were able to capture a Confederate blockade-running ship in the dead of night, their troubles were far from over. No sooner had the captain of the Chatham agreed to surrender than the USS Huron found herself in danger of being dashed to pieces in stormy Atlantic seas. The Daily Pittsburgh Gazette on Jan. 4, 1864, printed an unidentified Pittsburgh sailor's account of the "long and perilous" pursuit of the Chatham. The chase had taken place on Dec. 16, 1863, off the Georgia coast at Doboy Sound. Such first-person stories, written by local participants, often were published by regional newspapers like the Gazette. The Huron, a steam-powered gunboat, was part of the Union's South Atlantic Blockading Squadron that sought to cut off Confederate trade. The Huron had been pursuing the Chatham for about an hour when the rebel vessel headed into shallow water. George Stevens, the commander of the Huron, ordered his crew to follow, and broadsides from the Union ship's guns persuaded the Chatham's captain, J. E. Mardenbrough, to give up. "Not a moment too soon, however, for just as she surrendered, crash went our gallant ship on the shoals, making every timber in her body crack," the Gazette correspondent wrote. "If the enemy had then known of our mishap, she could easily have escaped us as we were hard aground among the breakers." The enemy ship was boarded successfully, but the Huron remained stuck and was in danger of being swamped. "The ship reeled over until the muzzles of the guns were submerged in the sea to the trunnions," the Gazette's on-the-scene correspondent wrote. Waves "would strike her with a report like a cannon and sent the sheeted foam fifty feet into the air and over the ship, threatening to shiver the vessel into pieces, but the brave old ship -- God bless her -- had a heart of oak."The sailor reported that after working through the night and into the late morning, "our exhausted crew, with one last effort, got her off on the flood tide." The article estimated the value of the Chatham's cargo of cotton, tobacco and rosin at $250,000. That number is equivalent to about $4.7 million in modern money. The Huron also captured 55 crew members and passengers aboard the Bahamas-bound ship. "We are now safe in harbor with our prize snug alongside," the Gazette story concluded. The Chatham was taken to Port Royal, S.C., which had been captured by the North early in the war. The Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies, compiled after the war, described the Chatham as "an old Savannah River boat, not seaworthy, and her prize master reports that he had much trouble in getting her even to this port." The Huron continued in blockade service through the end of the war in April 1865. She and her crew captured at least one more Confederate merchant ship, according to the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. She was later part of a Northern armada that bombarded Fort Fisher, N.C., closing the port of Wilmington to blockade runners. The Huron was decommissioned in 1868. Len Barcousky: email@example.com or 724-772-0184. To report inappropriate comments, abuse and/or repeat offenders, please send an email to firstname.lastname@example.org and include a link to the article and a copy of the comment. Your report will be reviewed in a timely manner.
Women’s Equality Day, annual event in the United States, observed on August 26 since its inception in 1971, marking American women’s advancements toward equality with men. Many organizations, libraries, workplaces, and other institutions have observed the day by participating in events and programs that recognize women’s progress toward equality. August 26, 1970, marked the 50th anniversary of the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which granted full woman suffrage. On that anniversary, the National Organization for Women (NOW) called upon women to demonstrate for equal rights in a nationwide “strike for equality.” Several demonstrators hung two 40-foot banners from the crown of the Statue of Liberty, while others drew attention to the strike by stopping the ticker at the American Stock Exchange. More than 100,000 other women participated in demonstrations and rallies in more than 90 major cities and towns across the country, making the strike the largest gender-equality protest in the history of the United States. In New York City 50,000 women marched down Fifth Avenue in support of the women’s movement and equal rights; former NOW president Betty Friedan, feminist author Gloria Steinem, and U.S. Rep. Bella Abzug addressed the crowd. The women demanded equal opportunities in both education and employment, as well as access to 24-hour child-care centres. Although the strike did not bring about immediate change, it was extraordinarily successful in demonstrating the breadth of support for women’s rights, and the press coverage it received drew significant attention to the feminist movement. For example, the New York Times’s coverage of the strike marked the publication’s first article about the movement. The strike also helped to secure passage of the Equal Rights Amendment by Congress in 1971–72; the amendment subsequently failed to be ratified by the required three-fourths of the state legislatures, however. In 1971 Congress officially recognized August 26 as Women’s Equality Day, which not only commemorates the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment but also highlights the continued efforts of women to achieve full equality.
In my Unicode promotion activity among academic people in linguistics and literary studies, I am very often involved in terminological discussions like this one on the distinction between "script", "alphabet" and "writing system". The definitions of "script" and "alphabet" Rick laid down sound quite fine to me (as a linguist): > A script is a collection of written symbols viewed as a unit. An alphabet > is the complete collection of such symbols used for a particular purpose, > such as a single language. Generally, "alphabet" implies that it is a > collection of units representing phonological units, rather than syllabic > units. The term "syllabary" is preferred for the latter. "Alphabet" is > often used in normal discourse to mean "script", but technically speaking in > the standard, they are different. The "Latin Alphabet" technically refers > ONLY to the subset of the "Latin Script" which is used to write the "Latin However, the concept of "writing system" is lacking, and I would see it in a somewhat different way than Peter Constable did in his > Writing system: An implementation of a script for a particular > purpose, e.g. for writing a particular language. A writing > system uses some subset of the characters of the script on > which it is based with most or all of the behaviours typical to > that script and possibly certain behaviours that are peculiar > to that particular writing system. In my understanding, a writing system is a concept located on a higher level: It is the totality of graphical symbols of the semiotic system used by a certain language community. Consequently, a writing system may comprise more than one script, and in fact even the English (or German or French ...) writing system allows for e.g. Roman numbers, technical symbols, etc. which, in our daily written communication, co-occur with Latin script letters on panels, technical instructions, etc. No-one, however, would enumerate e.g. Roman numbers in the alphabet. On the other hand, the set of different scripts admitted in a definite writing system is limited, since the English language community will not understand e.g. a Devanagari script unit (as, say, an abbreviation or a technical label): no communicative value has been defined for this The "classical" example for a complex "writing system", according to this understanding, would be the Japanese system using (at least!) three I dare state that in terms of information technology, "writing system" almost corresponds to "locale", at least as far as the use of graphical symbols is concerned. What do you think about this? Carl-Martin Bunz, M.A. Institute for Comparative Indo-European Linguistics and Indo-Iranian Studies University of Saarland P.O. Box 15 11 50 Tel. +49-(0)681-302-2744 /-2304 This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.2 : Tue Jul 10 2001 - 17:20:44 EDT
Understanding Breast Cancer -- the Basics What Causes Breast Cancer? continued... Because of these risks, prevention strategies and screening guidelines for those with the BRCA genes are more aggressive. There are other genes that have been identified as increasing the risk of breast cancer, including the PTEN gene, the ATM gene, the TP53 gene, and the CHEK2 gene. However, these genes carry a lower risk for breast cancer development than the BRCA genes. Generally, women over 50 are more likely to get breast cancer than younger women, and African-American women are more likely than Caucasians to get breast cancer before menopause. A link between breast cancer and hormones is gradually becoming clearer. Researchers think that the greater a woman's exposure to the hormone estrogen, the more susceptible she is to breast cancer. Estrogen tells cells to divide; the more the cells divide, the more likely they are to be abnormal in some way, potentially becoming cancerous. A woman's exposure to estrogen and progesterone rises and falls during her lifetime. This is influenced by the age she starts menstruating (menarche) and stops menstruating (menopause), the average length of her menstrual cycle, and her age at first childbirth. A woman's risk for breast cancer is increased if she starts menstruating before age 12 (less than 2 times the risk), has her first child after 30, stops menstruating after 55, or does not breast feed. Current information about the effect of birth control pills and breast cancer risk is mixed. Some studies have found that the hormones in birth control pills probably do not increase breast cancer risk or protect against breast cancer. However other studies suggest that the risk of breast cancer is increased in women who have taken birth control pills recently, regardless of how long she has taken them. Some studies suggest that the use of hormone replacement therapy with combined estrogen and progesterone containing compounds increases the risk of developing breast cancers. They also show, after a 7 year follow up, that the use of estrogens alone does not increase or decrease the risk of breast cancer development. Their use may, though, increase the risk of clotting.
EDINBURGH, Scotland, March 18 (UPI) -- Scotland says it will develop a tidal energy farm expected to yield 10 megawatts of electricity, the largest tidal energy project ever undertaken in the world. The project, looking like an underwater wind farm, will take advantage of steady sea currents that flow through underwater canyon walls in the sound of Islay off the southwest coast of Scotland, PhysOrg.com reported Friday. John Swinney, the Scottish finance secretary, said waterways around Scotland comprise nearly 25 percent of Europe's total tidal resources. The project will use tidal turbines from Norwegian company Hammerfest Storm, which has had them running in an experimental operation in Norway for six years. The Scottish project is expected to more than double the energy capacity of the existing grid to support more than 5,000 homes and businesses. The tidal farm is expected to cost $65 million and help Scotland meet its stated goal of deriving 80 percent of its energy needs from renewable resources by 2020, PhysOrg.com reported.
We are committed to making inspiring, high-quality science education available to all young people, helping them to achieve their career aspirations in science and related sectors and preparing them to live in our increasingly technological world. You can learn more about our work grouped under the following projects: - Influencing education policy through building the evidence base, working with key stakeholders and producing resources. - Supporting teachers through our investment in the National Science Learning Centre and Project ENTHUSE continues to be a priority for us, as well as other research and activities, including working with local schools. - Supporting school governance with tools to help governors think strategically, ask challenging questions and drive improvements in science education. - Primary science is one of our focus areas, and we aim to reinvigorate the teaching of science in primary schools and strengthen the continuity of science education and the transition to secondary school. - Informal learning of science outside the classroom is not well understood and we seek to improve understanding and practice of informal science experiences. - Education and neuroscience work examines the ways in which neuroscience is being used to inform teaching and learning, and where possible develop further investigations to evaluate the strength of the evidence and how it can support and improve the quality of education. - Independent research projects (including EPQs) are an excellent opportunity for students to do their own scientific investigations and we work to support students to enable them to further their scientific knowledge and skills. In 2010, the Wellcome Trust set out its goals and priorities for the next ten years in the Education Strategy paper [PDF 84KB]. Our work continues to be shaped by this framework.
The possibility of music as a mending impact which could influence wellbeing and conduct is pretty much as least as old as the works of Aristotle and Plato. The twentieth century discipline started after World War I and World War II, when local area performers, all things considered, both novice and expert, went to Veterans emergency clinics around the nation to play for the a large number of veterans experiencing both physical and passionate injury from the conflicts. As needs be, larger part of grown-ups between the ages of 65 and 85 are known to have no less than one constant condition, regardless of whether it be coronary illness, diabetes, disease, joint pain, etc. The maturing populace can likewise encounter an assortment old enough related changes to their physical, mental and enthusiastic prosperity. This is the reason music treatment for seniors and their parental figures can be so advantageous. Music treatment has been demonstrated to assist a few seniors with reestablishing their wellbeing, just as assist them with reviewing recollections and battle sorrow. In this Article What is Music treatment/therapy ? Music treatment is the utilization of music to address the physical, enthusiastic, intellectual, and social requirements of a gathering or person. It utilizes an assortment of exercises, like paying attention to tunes, playing an instrument, drumming, composing melodies, and directed symbolism. This type of treatment might be useful for individuals with misery and tension, and it might assist with working on the personal satisfaction for individuals with actual wellbeing problems.2 Anyone can take part in music treatment; you needn’t bother with a foundation in music to encounter its advantageous impacts. Music treatment contacts all parts of the psyche, body, mind and conduct. Music can give an interruption to the psyche, it can slow the rhythms of the body, and it can modify our state of mind, which thus can impact conduct. Music effectsly affects the brain. Various styles of music can significantly affect an individual’s state of mind rapidly, and it can assist them with encountering and cycle a wide scope of feelings, from joy to fervor, just as misery, serenity, and care. Creating music can likewise be just about as gainful as paying attention to music, and music treatment urges individuals to effectively make the music they see as supportive to them. There are two fundamental sorts of music therapy: dynamic and open. You needn’t bother with melodic ability, so anybody can partake. Dynamic/Active music therapy You are effectively engaged with this sort of treatment. It therapy typically includes playing straightforward instruments, moving, or singing. Such action empowers actual incitement that can be advantageous for actual wellbeing. Responsive/ Receptive music treatment This type of therapy includes a timeframe for careful paying attention to music and regularly includes uncommonly arranged recorded or unrecorded music. The tune decisions will regularly mirror the individual’s way of life, age, and individual encounters. Psychological/ Mental wellness Benefits of Music Therapy: Music is connected to memory. Music treatment can likewise work on psychological wellness by decreasing manifestations of stress, nervousness, and sadness. Music treatment’s point is to permit individuals to resolve issues and articulate their thoughts such that they regularly can’t with words alone. ‘Depression’/ ‘Wretchedness’ and ‘Dementia’ are normal sicknesses among more older senior citizens among tge world. Music treatment’s way to deal with bettering the personal satisfaction for more seasoned grown-ups makes it a suitable device for treating sadness. For older adults, disengagement enormously impacts their psychological well-being. Group music therapy can make method for correspondence with others that they would not regularly approach. Indeed, even paying attention to music routinely can further develop correspondence capacities for more seasoned grown-ups who experience issues with verbal correspondence. Music treatment has additionally been utilized to treat individuals encountering injury by assisting them with diminishing pressure and lift their temperament. It is becoming so compelling for managing injury that it’s viewed as a second rush of help in the occasions around an emergency. Music treatment enables those adapting to injury to securely communicate their sensations of nervousness in a casual setting. More seasoned grown-ups with dementia and Alzheimer’s infection can utilize music to get to their previous encounters and recollections. Melodic recollections regularly go immaculate by Alzheimer’s infection, making music that a lot more grounded of a treatment choice. It can assist with lessening pressure, uneasiness, wretchedness, and disturbance. Individuals with dementia or Alzheimer’s might think that it is difficult to impart. These troubles frequently lead to segregation and misery. Music gives a way to them to put themselves out there and speak with their parental figures. Comfortable music assists those with Alzheimer’s keep a grip on their encounters and personalities. Music treatment assists them with keeping a hold of the real world and the things that give them pleasure. While it’s no fix, music treatment can essentially work on the personal satisfaction for individuals with Alzheimer’s. Physical Health Benefits of Music Therapy: It can help your heart wellbeing: Music can make you need to move — and the advantages of moving are very much archived. Researchers likewise realize that paying attention to music can alter Trusted Source your breath rate, your pulse, and your circulatory strain, contingent upon the music’s force and beat. It helps practice execution : Practice lovers have since quite a while ago realized that music upgrades their actual exhibition. The right music can be an uplifting device to assist you with being all the more actually dynamic. Greater development, regardless of whether that is strolling, moving, or extending alongside music, can work on the accompanying a. Heart and cardiovascular wellbeing b. Muscle strength c. Bone thickness d. Equilibrium and coordination Coordinating an individual’s consideration away from their aggravation with music treatment can assist ease with tormenting and decrease pressure, as well. Playing or paying attention to music assists you with breathing musically. This can work on respiratory wellbeing, assist you with delivering body pressure, and lift up your state of mind — all of which can emphatically affect your general personal satisfaction. Genuinely, music treatment can help – a. Lower circulatory strain b. Diminished pulse c. Worked on relaxing d. Muscle unwinding Who does Music treatment ? Music therapists/ advisors survey passionate prosperity, actual wellbeing, social working, correspondence capacities, and intellectual abilities through melodic reactions; plan music meetings for people and gatherings dependent on customer needs utilizing music extemporization, open music tuning in, tune composing, verse conversation, music and symbolism, music execution, and learning through music; take part in interdisciplinary treatment arranging, continuous assessment, and follow up. Music advisors work in mental emergency clinics, rehabilitative offices, clinical emergency clinics, short term facilities, day care treatment focuses, offices serving people with formative inabilities, local area emotional wellness habitats, medication and liquor programs, senior focuses, nursing homes, hospice programs, remedial offices, shelter, schools, and private practice.
Sometimes studies will require that participants include only females. A variety of reasons are behind this type of selection criteria, based on what the trial is for, what phase it’s in, and what other studies may have already been completed. 1—Differences in the Sexes. In addition to the obvious physical differences between males and females, there are additional biological and physiological differences which determine “sex”—male or female. For example, the levels and types of hormones men and women have are different. Women have more estrogen and progesterone; men have more testosterone. There are other physical differences that may not be so apparent. Generally speaking, women have a higher body fat percentage and less muscle tissue mass. Women have lower blood pressure but their hearts beat faster. Women have about 4.6 million red blood cells per cubic millimeter of blood compared to 5.2 million in men; but females have more white blood cells, more granulocytes, and more B and T lymphocytes. Women produce more antibodies at a faster rate than males. Sex can affect health symptoms, risk factors, and outcomes. Males and females experience higher or lower risks of certain diseases, illnesses, or conditions based on their genetics and their environments; may react and report symptoms differently or seek medical care at different times based on their culture or societal norms; and may respond in various ways to medications or treatments based on a variety of factors from current health status to the rate of their metabolism. “The lack of clinical trial data for women means we don’t fully understand if drugs are as safe and effective in women as they are in men,” says Dr. Natalie DiPietro Mager, an associate professor of pharmacy practice at Ohio Northern University. An example: After its release, the sleeping pill zolpidem (Ambien) was found to clear much slower in women than in men, leading the FDA to cut the recommended dosage for women in half. 2—Sex-Related Illnesses. Some diseases and conditions occur only in people of one sex, such as ovarian and prostrate cancers, or uterine fibroids. Certain diseases and conditions also are clearly sex related, because they are caused by the same chromosomes that determine sex. Some are just more common in one than the other. And some occur at similar rates, but manifest differently in men and women. Some examples of illnesses and disorders that are female-biased: • 99% of breast cancer occurs in women. • Endometriosis almost always occurs in women. • Osteoporosis is female-dominant. • 75% of autoimmune diseases such as Sjögren’s syndrome and scleroderma occur in women. • In the U.S., twice as many women than men suffer from depression. • Migraine, carpal tunnel syndrome, Multiple Sclerosis, and IBS are also more prevalent in women. 3—Underrepresentation. “Sex-Specific Medical Research: Why Women’s Health Can’t Wait,” a report from the Mary Horrigan Connors Center for Women’s Health & Gender Biology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, also reports the following: • Cardiovascular disease is the number one killer of women in the U.S, yet only one-third of cardiovascular clinical trial subjects are female. • More women die each year of lung cancer than of breast, ovarian, and uterine cancers combined; it is the leading cause of cancer death in women. Yet most lunch cancer studies enroll more men than women. • Two-thirds of Alzheimer’s patients are women and women are almost twice as likely to develop it than men; yet the impact of hormonal changes and sex differences in gene expression are only beginning to emerge as potential explanations. 4—Study Bias. In the past, research has been biased towards males; so some female studies may be trying to make up for this fact and gather female-only research. According to the Gendered Innovations project at Stanford University, “science, medicine, and engineering often take the young, white, able-bodied 70kg male as the norm. When studied at all, other segments of the population—women, the elderly, and non-white groups —are frequently considered as deviations from that norm.” 5—You are Needed! Adequate numbers of women volunteers in clinical trials is crucial for the discovery of new and improved methods of prevention, diagnosis, and treatment that can improve the health and well being of women everywhere. Meridien Research is currently conducting studies related to several of the illnesses and conditions mentioned here, including Alzheimer’s, depression, migraines, uterine fibroids, and Multiple Sclerosis, at several of our locations. For more information or to see if you or someone you know may qualify to participate, please contact us today at 1-888-777-8839.
\|Page tools: Print Page Print All RSS Search this Product\| CONTENT OF CENSUSES FROM 1911 TO 1996 Asterisks are used to indicate the year in which particular topics were included in the census. The numbers in brackets refer to explanatory notes on pages 58 and 59. (1) Prior to and including 1976, the term relationship to head was used. (2) The term head was considered inappropriate and relationship to Person 1 was asked. (3) Since 1986 relationship to Person 1/Person 2 has been asked. (4) Year of first marriage was used. (5) Prior to 1976, nationality rather than citizenship was asked. (6) Since 1986 the person has been asked whether or not they were an Australian citizen. (7) In all censuses prior to 1971, respondents were required to state their race and, where race was mixed, to specify the proportion of each. (8) In the 1971 and 1976 Censuses, a question with response categories of European, Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and Other was included. (9) A question on each person's ancestry was asked for the first time in 1986. (10) The 1961 Census asked for state of usual residence. (11) State level only. (12) Question asked whether the person could read and write. (13) Question asked whether the person could read and write a foreign language if unable to read and write English. (14) The 1976 Census asked for all languages regularly used. (15) In 1981 ability to speak English was asked. (16) Since 1986 two separate questions have been asked - language used and ability to speak English. (17) Included a question where respondents reported their highest level of educational achievement. (18) Since 1976, a question on attendance at school or other educational institution has been asked. (19) Since 1971, people aged 15 or more have been asked whether they had obtained a qualification. If so, information on the name of highest qualification obtained, field of study, the name of institution and the year obtained was collected. (20) In the Censuses from 1981 to 1996, respondents have been required to answer a series of questions from which labour force status was coded. (21) An additional question - main tasks or duties performed in the occupation has been asked from 1986 to 1996. (22) Place of work was first collected in 1954. (23) Employer's occupation was asked in 1911 and 1921. (24) 1971, 1976 and 1996 Censuses focused on hours worked in all jobs held in the week prior to the census. (25) The 1981, 1986 and 1991 Censuses asked for hours worked in the main job in the week prior to the census. (26) Journey to work topic has been derived from coding of address of usual residence and address of workplace to obtain origins and destinations of travel to work. (27) Data was collected but not processed. (28) From 1911 to 1971, and in 1996, a direct question on nature of occupancy was asked. (29) From 1976 to 1991, nature of occupancy data was derived from mortgage and rent questions. (30) If paying rent to a Government Authority in 1954 or a State Housing Authority in 1961, respondents were instructed to write 'Tenant (G)'. (31) Tenants in 1966 had the option of marking the relevant State Housing Authority or 'other landlord'. (32) In 1971, response categories comprised State Housing Authority, employer or other landlord. (33) The number of landlord response categories rose from three (from 1971 until 1991) to seven in 1996. (34) In 1976 the monthly payment made on first and second mortgages was asked. (35) Average monthly payment for total mortgages was asked. (36) Monthly payment made on the loans for the dwelling was asked. (37) Those with mortgage repayments had the option of writing the weekly, fortnightly or monthly amount paid. (38) This question has been completed by the Census Collector since 1976. (39) In 1996 a new classification was developed for Other Dwellings. It included caravans in caravan parks, boats in marinas, anufactured home estates and self-care units in accommodation for the retired or aged, all of which were enumerated using household forms. However in 1986 and 1991, caravans in caravan parks and boats in marinas were included in the Non-Private Dwelling classification. (40) The question was answered by the Census Collector in 1981. (41) In 1976, type of fuel or power used for household purposes was asked. (42) Completed by the Collector in the Censuses from 1971 to 1986.
Antihistamines are medications to control allergy symptoms such as sneezing, runny nose and irritated eyes. Antihistamines are available over-the-counter and by prescription. The American Academy of Family Physicians says you should always discuss these drugs with your doctor before taking one. Antihistamines may interact with other medications or substances, as listed here by the AAFP: Sleeping pills or other medicines used for sedation. Medications used to treat high blood pressure. Health Tip: Keep Allergy Symptoms Under Control When spring has sprung, so have all kinds of allergens. Blooming trees and flowers may lead to sneezing, coughing and watery eyes. But you don't have to let allergy symptoms keep you from enjoying spring. The American Academy of Family Physicians offers these suggestions to help manage your allergy symptoms: Medications such as over-the-counter antihistamines, decongestants, eye drops or nasal sprays can help prevent and ease symptoms. Consider regular allergy shots. Always take a shower when coming in from the outdoors, especially before you go to bed. Help keep your home free of mold by frequently and thoroughly cleaning bathrooms, shower curtains and anything else that tends to get moist. Use a dehumidifier to limit humidity to less than 50 percent, if possible. Limit exposure to pets if a family member is allergic to them. Limit fabrics, which can attract dust. Where possible, eliminate fabric curtains or drapes, and replace carpet with wood or tile floors.
Nondisclosure agreements have great practical significance, especially in establishing business contacts in order to cushion the risks associated with the (mutual) disclosure of internals. In practice, it is common for both sides to mutually commit to secrecy. However, it is also possible to agree on a unilateral secrecy agreement. When establishing business contacts, it is often necessary to disclose sensitive information in order to be able to describe the mutual benefits. For example, a cloud provider may need to disclose the operation of its database system so customers can decide whether the database is suitable for their purposes. Content of confidentiality agreements For NDAs, the principle of contract freedom applies. The parties are thus fundamentally free in the drafting of the contract. Non-disclosure agreements should contain as detailed rules as possible to avoid later disputes. It should be noted that the regulations may not be formulated too broadly. Otherwise, the limits to immorality or a violation of good faith can be quickly exceeded. Excerpts from NDAs should include the following: 1. Definition of confidential information For laymen it is often difficult to find a generally valid definition for confidential information. Nevertheless, it may be useful to develop such a definition. Some contract negotiations sometimes take months. In the meantime, it may turn out that more information must be disclosed than was originally thought. If the confidentiality agreement establishes a common definition of confidential information, no new NDAs need to be set up. The parties then also always have the certainty that they are moving within the framework of the NDAs. Example of a general definition: “Confidential is any information that has been exchanged between the parties in writing and has been marked as confidential.” 2. Designation of confidential information In order to avoid too much regulation, the most important confidential information in the non- disclosure agreement should be quoted verbatim. Thus, in the case of a dispute, the original intention of the parties can always be used. Example: source codes, software, business plans, data carriers It is also appropriate to present a preamble to the contract, which lists the objectives of the cooperation separately. 3. Designation of non-confidential information In order to avoid the risk that the NDA has been formulated too narrowly and thus restricting the freedom of competition for a contractor too much, it should always be expressly agreed for clarification which information should not be treated confidentially. Example: general knowledge, expertise, random knowledge 4. The use of confidential information The agreement of a confidentiality agreement only makes sense if a detailed agreement is made, which specifies the concrete use of the information. Among other things, it is agreed how the use and transfer of the information to the employees of the contracting parties has to take place. It can be expressly regulated which employees may access the information. Often it works with different levels of confidentiality. Example: High level of confidentiality – only senior management is allowed access to the information, Medium confidentiality level – The agents responsible for the specific service may be given access to the information, Low confidentiality – Secretariat staff may access the information. 5. Contract duration There is no statutory regulation for the term of a non-disclosure agreement. If no contractual regulation is made on the duration of the contract, the NDA must be interpreted. If in doubt, the parties will seek an unlimited contract term. In individual cases, however, this can also constitute a disadvantage at the expense of one party. It is therefore always important to ensure that a reasonable contract period is specified. 6. Contractual penalties Strong secrecy agreements are characterized by the promise of a contractual penalty in the event of a breach of secrecy. The background is that otherwise the causality and amount of the damage are hardly detectable for the person concerned. 7. Use of the knowledge in the event of non-conclusion of the contract Frequently, problems arise when the contract negotiations do not lead to the desired cooperation. In practice, it is often the case that the parties have already developed common ideas or solutions during the course of contract negotiations. In such a case, concrete contractual arrangements are essential. The NDA can specify which of the contract partners such ideas, concepts or solutions belong to and who can continue to use them. However, it can also be agreed that both parties have rights to the ideas that have been developed and that both parties can use these ideas for their own purposes. recommended action Confidential information is exposed to the risk of unintentional disclosure. In the age of the Internet, confidential information can be easily shared with millions of people. For this reason, confidentiality agreements are a useful basis for contract negotiations. Let legal advice help you to protect your confidential information.
A-level Physics (Advancing Physics)/Flux A coil of wire creates magnetic flux. The amount of magnetic flux created depends on three things: the number of coils in the wire, the amount of current flowing through the wire, and the permeance of the object through which the flux is flowing. So: where Φ is flux (in webers, denoted Wb), Λ is permeance (in WbA−1) and I is current (in A). This is the total flux induced. NI is the number of "current-turns". Permeance is related to permeability (a material property) by the following equation: where μ is permeability, A is cross-sectional area, and L is length. A permanent magnet is just like a coil, except that a current does not need to be generated to maintain the flux. Over smaller areas, we need to know the flux density B. This is the amount of flux per. unit area: The flux around a coil of wire varies - ΛNI only gives the total flux, not the flux across a certain area. To show this, we use lines of flux. These obey the following rules: 1. Lines of flux go from the north pole of a permanent magnet to the south pole. 2. Lines of flux go clockwise about wires carrying current away from you. 3. Lines of flux never touch, intersect, or cross. The direction of the flux is shown with an arrow. Flux is a bit like electricity in that it must have a complete circuit. The lines of flux always take the route of most permeance. Iron (Fe) has around 800 times as much permeability as air. So, flux goes through the iron, and not the air. Questions[edit \| edit source] 1. A circular steel core has a cross-sectional area of 9 cm2, and a length of 0.5m. If the permeability of steel is 875 μNA−2, what is the permeance of that core? 2. A coil of insulated wire is wrapped 60 times around the top of the core, and a 9A direct current is put through the coil. How much flux is induced? 3. Assuming that all the flux goes through the core, what is the flux density at any point in the core? 4. Draw a diagram showing the lines of flux within the core.
After reading this article you will learn about the classification of plans. Class # 1. Classification on the Basis of Levels in the Organisation: Similar to objectives, plans are made for different organisational levels. Plans classified on this basis are discussed below: 1. Strategic Plans: Strategic plans are made to achieve the overall organisational goals. They achieve strategic goals through effective allocation of resources over different functional/ product areas. They match the organisational strengths and weaknesses with the environmental opportunities and threats. They are comprehensive and general in nature. They are made for all functional areas of business. They are made by the top-level managers in consultation with board members and middle- level managers and generally relate to a period of more than 5 years. The questions most commonly answered through strategic plans are: (a) What are the ways in which overall goals can be achieved? (b) How to allocate resources over different areas of the enterprise? (c) How to respond to the external environment? (d) How to coordinate the firm’s internal strengths and weaknesses with its external environment? Strategic plans are usually made to plan the growth rate, diversification plans, change the product line etc. 2. Tactical Plans: Tactical plans are the means to support and implement strategic plans. They are made to achieve tactical goals of the organisation. They are related to departmental goals of the enterprise. These plans are made by middle-level managers in consultation with lower-level managers and normally relate to intermediate period of 1 to 5 years. While strategic plans are general in nature, these plans are more specific and precise. The important questions answered through tactical plans are: (a) How to deal with changes in competitors’ policies? (b) How to deal with changes in the demand for products? (c) How to increase company’s share in the market? 3. Operational Plans: Operational plans support the tactical plans. They are made to achieve operational goals of the enterprise. These plans are highly specific and determine what different sections of the organisation need to perform. While resources are allocated in strategic plans, their efficient use to achieve overall organisational goals is ensured by operational plans. These plans are made by lower-level managers in consultation with middle-level managers and relate to short periods of time of less than one year, say some weeks, months or even days. Different single-use and standing plans are made in operational planning to achieve the overall organisation goals. Plans to meet the delivery schedules, adjust the production schedules, budget the costs etc. are the common activities performed in operational planning. Plans (strategic, tactical and operational) classified on the basis of levels in the organisation are tabulated as follows: These plans related to three types of goals can be diagrammatically represented as follows: Class # 2. Classification on the Basis of Use: On the basis of use, plans can be: 1. Single-Use Plans 2. Standing Plans. Single use plans are made to serve a specific objective. They cease to exist once the objective is achieved. They are, thus, short lived plans made for nonrecurring activities. For example, if company wants to install a machine, it has to plan its purchase; whether it wants to buy a new machine or a second hand machine, whether it wants to buy or acquire it on lease. Various alternative courses of action will be guided by their respective returns and costs and once the machine is acquired, the plan does not exist any more. Single use plans are intended to achieve a particular objective which is not likely to be repeated in future. These are meant to deal with problems which are non-repetitive and distinct in nature. Different types of single use plans are: 3. Strategies and Programme is a sequence of activities where each sequence is timed (time taken to complete each step is determined) to successfully achieve the overall objectives. According to Terry and Franklin, programme is “a comprehensive plan that includes future use of different resources in an integrated pattern and establishes a sequence of required actions and time schedules for each in order to achieve stated objectives.” Programmes are single use plans made for a specific action. It is made to achieve a specific objective that represents a series or sequence of steps, time required to accomplish each step and resources allocated to accomplish each step. Programme is a sequence of activities carried to implement a policy or accomplish an objective. Each programme has specific objectives, policies, procedures, methods and budgets to support its expenses. Steps in making a programme: A programme can be made in six steps: (i) Divide the total work into parts: As the first step in making a programme, total work load is determined and divided into parts. (ii) Develop the sequence of various parts: After the steps are determined, they are arranged in a sequential order and relationship amongst the steps is established to facilitate coordination. (iii) Determine the responsibility for each part: The divided parts or steps are assigned to people according to their skills and abilities. This helps in determining who will do what and also fixes their responsibility. (iv) Determine how each part will be completed and what resources are necessary: It determines the way each step will be accomplished and arranges resources (human and non-human) for their completion. (v) Determine the time required for completing each part: To ensure that the programme is completed within the time schedule, time required to accomplish each part is determined. Delay in completion increases financial and non-financial costs and, therefore, it is necessary to determine the time to complete the overall programme and each step of the programme. (vi) Develop a schedule for implementing each step: A schedule or time table for implementing each step in programme is determined to ensure optimum utilisation of resources allocated over different steps of the programme. Types of programmes: Programmes can be of two types: (i) Major programme: It is the main programme designed to achieve a specific objective, for example, setting up a plant and machinery or modernisation of an existing unit. (ii) Minor programme: It is a sub-plan designed to achieve the major programme. For setting a new plant and machinery, minor programmes are made to analyse the sources from where the machinery can be purchased, arranging funds from various sources, arranging for installation, air conditioning plant for the machine, training people to work on the machine, arranging for people to work over-time (if the need be), etc. Budgets are plans that specify resources for specific activities in a given period of time. Managers make decisions through budgets to allocate resources over various courses of action. It is a statement of inflow and outflow of financial resources spread over a period of time. The time period for which budget is prepared is known as planning horizon. A budget may be prepared for one year, six months, or even one month depending on the nature of business activities. The time period is generally divided into shorter periods known as sub-periods. A budget prepares the expected inflows and outflows of men, material, output etc. expressed in monetary terms. Budget is “a plan for income or outgo, or both, of money, personnel, purchased items, sales items or any other entity about which the manager believes determining the future course of action will assist in managerial efforts”. A budget also acts as a controlling device. It plans the organisational performance and ensures that actual performance is in conformity with planned performance. The basic element of budget is the planning horizon; it refers to the time period covered by the budget. There may be long-term or short-term budgets depending on the nature of enterprise. For enterprises operating in a stable environment, the planning period could be long, say one year while for concerns which are affected by seasonal variations, a six monthly or a quarterly budget may suffice. The time period over which a budget is spread may be sub-divided into shorter intervals called sub-periods. A yearly budget, for example, may have monthly intervals as sub-periods; a monthly budget may be sub-divided into daily activities. The purpose of sub-division is to co-ordinate and control the flow of activities from one sub- period to another sub-period. This enables the managers to trace the deviations before the end of the budgeted period. Features of a budget: A budget has the following features: (i) A plan: Budget is a plan that provides the standard of performance. (ii) Controlling device: A budget aims at reporting performance according to the estimated levels. It, thus, acts as a controlling device. (iii) Future oriented: Past provides the basis for making budgets but budgets are made for controlling future actions. Types of budgets: There can be a variety of budgets. These can be broadly classified as follows: (i) Operating budgets: These budgets relate to operating or daily activities of the business and involve revenues and expenses. They can be of the following types: (a) Expense budgets: They relate to expenses of the organisation in producing goods and services. The expenses can be fixed or variable. (b) Revenue budgets: They project earnings from sales and other business activities. (c) Profit budgets: They are the projections of profits. Profit is the difference between revenue and expense budgets. (ii) Financial budgets: These budgets facilitate the use of operating budgets. They predict the sources and uses of funds for carrying out various business activities. They can be of the following types: (a) Capital expenditure budgets: Capital expenditure means expenditure on fixed assets like plant and machinery, building etc. These budgets indicate the time when investments will be made and sources from where funds will be raised to invest in these assets. (b) Cash budgets: They predict cash position over the budgeted period. Periods when there will be shortage and cash surplus can be known and adjustments can be made to raise or invest cash to ensure smooth flow of cash throughout the budgeted period. (c) Balance sheet budgets: They project the structure of assets, liabilities and capital over the budgeted period. Budgets can further be classified as sales budget, production budget, materials budget etc. Strategy is a course of action. Strategy provides guide to action. The word ‘strategy’ was initially used in military organisations, related to making plans in adverse situations. Now the concept is used in business organisations also. Strategy is “determination of the purpose and the basic long-term objectives of an enterprise and the adoption of courses of action and allocation of resources necessary to achieve these aims.” Strategy means selecting a course of action out of various courses in order to achieve the long-run goals through continuous and active interaction with the environment. Strategy gives direction to organisational plans (to achieve its goals). It is also a means (way to achieve) to an end (the goals). Strategies cannot be generalized. Depending on environmental threats and opportunities, strategy is prepared every time managers want to overcome the threats or exploit the opportunities. Well formulated strategies help to grow and develop in the fast changing environment. For example, competitors of a firm adopt new technology to reduce the cost of production and sell the products at lower prices. Other business firms will also adopt a strategy to change their technology or adopt other means of cost reduction to reduce their prices and compete with competitors. When organisational objectives are framed and programmes (major and minor) formulated to decide how these objectives will be achieved, strategy unifies resources and their movement/allocation in the desired direction to achieve the objectives. This can also be called a situational plan. Features of strategy: Strategy has the following features: (i) It is made for a long period of time. It coordinates business activities with environmental activities. (ii) The impact of strategies can be known after a long period of time. Losses in the short- run does not mean strategies are wrong unless long-run results show losses. (iii)A strategy results in optimum allocation of resources. Scarce organisational resources are allocated over business activities in the order of priority. (iv) It is a pervasive business plan prepared for all business organisations, in all functional areas, at all levels. Merits of strategies: Strategies have the following merits: (i) They provide a course of action to achieve a specific goal. (ii) They allocate scarce organisational resources over effective business areas. (iii) They coordinate organisation’s internal environment with its external environment. (iv) They provide scope for growth and expansion in the light of changing competitors’ policies. (v) They provide direction to organisational activities. Strategic planning aims at knowing what we are and where we want to go so that environmental threats and opportunities can be exploited, within the strengths and weaknesses of the organisation. “A project is a plan that co-ordinates a set of limited – scope activities that do not need to be divided into several major projects in order to reach a major non-recurring goal.” A project is part of the major programme plan with a distinct object achieved within the given time frame. Each project requires a plan layout and physical, financial and human resources for its successful completion and is, therefore, supported by budgets. Once the project is completed, the work force engaged in that project is disintegrated and the project plan ceases to exist. Project plans are made for preparing an advertisement campaign, building a bridge, flyover, dam or a new office, introducing a new product line, buying land and building, plant and machinery etc. A company frames objective to increase sales by 8%. It makes a programme to increase sales by spending more on advertisement. It further makes a project plan. Each project plan is headed by the project manager who directs people to complete the project within the financial and non-financial resources. The project manager lays responsibilities of his group members and facilitates control over activities of the project members. Features of a Project: 1. It has a specific objective which contributes towards organisational objective. A project to design an advertisement campaign contributes to the objective of promoting sales. 2. It is a unique, non-repetitive activity undertaken after considering all relevant factors that affect the project. It is unique because project plans are usually not made for repetitive activities. Once the objective is achieved, the project plan ceases to exist. The project to construct a factory building, for example, till the building is under construction. Once the construction is completed, the plan does not exist any more. If at all, another building is to be constructed, it will be supported by another project plan. 3. It is complex with respect to interdependence of tasks and is supported by goals, policies, procedures, rules and budgets. Policies provide guide to action within the defined area of discretion. In relation to a project, it provides guidelines regarding selection and implementation of projects. It helps in selecting the project on the basis of defined policy parameters. If the company has a policy of avoiding risky situations and has to choose between two projects; risky and less risky, it will select the less risky project even though risk is related to return. Implementation of the project is also affected by the company policy. Selection of construction site (implementing a construction project): hilly area or planes, backward area or developed area is affected by company policy. If it aims at promoting balanced regional development, it will choose to set up the plant in the backward area. If its policy is only profit maximisation, it will choose to set up the plant in the developed area. Procedure defines the steps to carry out a policy. If the policy supports regional development and has a project to set up a plant in the remote/backward area, the procedure defines the route it has to follow to prepare the architectural plan, to apply to concerned authorities for getting the sanctions for construction and doing the necessary paper work. Budget ensures financial strength to the project arranging for funds at the right time and cost, spending them in the right direction, avoiding cash deficit and surplus in any sub-period of the budgeted period is ensured through budgets. It is critical to the organisation and must be completed within assigned time and cost constraints. Delay in completion of the project can result in huge financial losses. For example, construction of a building, dam or a bridge has huge costs involved and delay in construction can result in cost overrun which may not be affordable. Standing plans are made to deal with situations which occur repeatedly in the organisation. They standardize the recurrent activities so that routine decisions with respect to such activities can be taken by lower level managers and top-level managers can concentrate on strategic issues. These plans can be repeatedly used in similar situations. Managers refer to these plans to deal with problems of recurring nature and, thus, save time, money and efforts in making decisions every time a problem of the same type arises. For example, standing plans can be made for dealing with leave cases of employees. Every time an employee goes on leave, he follows leave rules framed in the standing plans. This saves top managers from the botheration of personally dealing with leave case of every employee. “Standing plans are directives that serve to increase organisational effectiveness by standardizing many routine decisions.” Merits of standing plans: (a) These plans guide daily behaviour so that managers can delegate part of their work load to subordinates. Standing plans, therefore, facilitate delegation. (b) They facilitate co-ordination as there is pre-determined way to solve recurrent organisational problems. (c) As the decisions for recurring problems are routinized, organisational efficiency tends to increase. (d) They provide ready basis for making decisions and, thus, facilitate fast decision-making. (e) They save top managers’ time, money and energy by providing a basis for quick action. Differences between single-use and standing plans: Different types of standing plans are discussed below: Policy means a general guideline that defines the way a company operates. It clarifies the intents of top managers to be followed by all its branches (inland or abroad) in all departments, at all levels. Mrs. X goes to a saree store and buys a saree. On reaching back home, she finds that the saree is defective. She telephones the store and states her problem. The store owner tells her that the board in the store clearly stated — No Return or Exchange. This is the company policy and therefore, the customer had no redressal to her grievance. The policy clearly states the broad (parameters) guidelines or intentions of managers that should be observed by everyone in the organisation. Policy directs organisational activities towards its goals and is a wise attempt to coordinate organisation’s philosophies with the needs of its environment. They are made at all levels for all departments. Top managers make policies to achieve the broad organisational goals and departmental managers make policies to achieve departmental goals. They are usually long-term plans stated in general terms. However, they are flexible. Policies are not rigid. Managers can change the policies if the situation demands. If the company policy states that all organisational posts shall be filled from internal sources (transfers or promotion), managers have the discretion to fill the post through external sources if no internal candidate is found suitable. “A policy is a verbal, written or implied overall guide setting up boundaries that supply the general limits and discretion in which managerial action will take place.” “Policies define an area within which a decision is to be made and ensure that the decision will be consistent with, and contribute to, an objective.” Policies are plans stated in general terms to deal with specific situations, expressing the intention of top management. They are framed with active participation of managers at all levels, intended to achieve the overall organisational goals. Procedure provides sequential order to a policy. It describes the steps in which policy matters will be dealt with. It is more specific than a policy. While policy provides a general guideline to action, procedure expresses the way that guideline will be followed. “A procedure is a series of related tasks that make up the chronological sequence and the established way of performing the work to be accomplished.” It is a guide to action rather than thinking. It details the exact manner in which certain activities will be accomplished. It provides a detailed guideline to policy. While policy is a general guideline to action, procedure provides a step-by-step sequence for accomplishing policy matters. It describes how the task will be done, who will do it, when will it be done and what is the time taken to accomplish each step so that end result is achieved in time. A procedure is however, less flexible than a policy. Managers can use discretion while dealing with policy matters but not with procedures. A policy that states all appointments shall be made through a selection procedure will follow the procedure in order —job specification, application form, preliminary interview, conducting tests, cross checking, formal interview, medical examination, employment decision, job offer. Since procedure prescribes step-by-step handling of organisational matters, top managers can delegate routine matters to lower-levels and concentrate on important issues. Once the procedure is established, it is repeatedly used to deal with similar problems. Appointment procedure, for example, is followed every time an appointment is made. In fact, policies are laid by top managers and procedures are determined by managers at lower levels. A well defined procedure speeds up the managerial work as duplication of work at various stages is avoided. Procedures cut across the functional areas also. Various departments are involved in carrying out a procedure that mainly relates to one department. Though procedure for production mainly relates to production department, it is prescribed in such a way that it requires coordinated effort of all the departments. Procedure for managing production of a new product, for example, involves co-ordinated effort of all other departments. It pre-supposes a well designed procedure for finance department (to arrange for funds), advertising department (to create awareness about the product), personnel department (to provide the required manpower), accounts department (for recording transactions) and sales department (for ensuring the sale). They make policies to coordinate organisation’s internal working with external environmental variables. They may have to change the policies, if required. Procedures are made for all the departments to carry out their respective activities. Merits of procedures: Procedures have the following merits: 1. They make the work simple. People at various levels follow procedures and perform their work without disturbing top managers. Top managers can, thus, concentrate on important activities. 2. They increase organisational efficiency by providing a standard way of performing the task. 3. Well-defined procedures provide consistency and uniformity of actions. 4. They lay out a definite sequence of activities. There is no duplication of work. 5. They facilitate delegation as there is a defined way of doing the work. Delegation relieves top managers of routine work and develops the ability and skills of lower-level managers. 6. They define exact sequence of work and time taken to accomplish each sequence. This facilitates quick decision-making and control. 7. They help in doing the work fast. 8. They provide consistency and uniformity of actions. Limitations of procedures: Procedures suffer from the following limitations: 1. They are inflexible. They cannot be easily changed. 2. As they are inflexible, they hamper the initiative and creativity of employees. Managers should constantly review the procedures and change them according to the situation. Subordinates should have the freedom to carry out the procedures in dealing with the situation in a constructive manner. Policies and Procedures: The following table highlights the points of difference between policies and procedures: Strategies and Policies: Both strategies and policies help to make decisions to achieve organisational goals. Clear strategies and policies provide right direction and guidance to organisational goals and plans. However, they differ from each other in the following respects: Method is “a prescribed manner for performing a given task with adequate consideration to the objective, facilities available, and total expenditure of time, money and effort.” It is the way of doing each step in the procedure to increase efficiency of that task, decrease cost and achieve organisational goals with minimum disturbance. A method is more specific than procedure. It is the way of doing an event out of the sequence of events defined in the procedure. It is the way of accomplishing one task or one step of the procedure. Method increases the effectiveness of procedure. In the procedure of selection, for example, cross checking can be done by contacting people who had contact with the candidate ever before. His previous employers, for instance, can be contacted to verify the candidate’s professional details. The methods of conducting interview can be face-to-face or indirect interview through questionnaires. It defines a standard, scientific, efficient and specific way to increase the task efficiency and was well studied by Taylor in time and motion studies where each task was carefully planned and defined in the ‘Scientific Management Approach.’ Efficiency can be improved by keeping the method simple. Method can be improved through time and motion study and work simplification so that employees can identify their skills to increase output by using that method. Method defines the task in terms of the manner and time taken to complete the task. Rules is a set of actions or directions that must be followed by every member of the organisation. “Rules are statements that a specific action must or must not be taken in a given situation.” They are the guide to action in the form of orders and instructions which have to be followed by employees. Rules bring discipline in the organisation by promoting and restraining individual actions. They are enforced rigidly in the organisation. A rule may say – ‘No loitering in the corridors.’ If anybody is found loitering, he will be subject to disciplinary action. A rule is a prescribed direction that tells people to do or not to do things or to behave in certain ways. Rules are strictly observed as they are meant to be followed by everyone in the organisation. They are like orders that enforce obligation on people to do things in certain ways. Rules, thus, promote rational behaviour on the part of organisational members. They are stated in writing to avoid confusion in understanding. Non-compliance to rules is subject to punishment, and, therefore, it is necessary they are available for ready reference. They are not subject to managerial discretion and are, therefore, non-flexible. They identify specific actions that must be taken or not taken. Rules may or may not form part of procedure. ‘No loitering in the corridors is not part of any procedure. All purchases should be made by inviting tenders is part of purchase procedure. Strict compliance to rules sometimes make these rules an end rather than means to end. People follow rules blindly whether or not they are in the larger interest of the organisation. They also delimit individual freedom, creativity and innovativeness. People follow rules simply to avoid disciplinary action. Strict rules make the organisation a ‘bureaucratic organisation.’ Rules must be followed by everyone. There is no scope for personal discretion, likes or dislikes. Differences between Rules and Policies: Class # 3. Classification on the Basis of Time: There is no definite basis for classifying plans as long-term, medium-term and short-term. It depends on the nature of business, nature of product and adaptability of organisation to external environment, market demand, production cycle etc. For a firm producing heavy goods which do not change frequently, period of 10 years may be intermediate or short-term but for a firm producing seasonal goods, period of even one year may be long-term. The period should, however, justify the time and resources committed to the plans. The period should enable the organisation to fulfill its commitments to the decisions. The decisions should have positive impact on the future outcomes. 1. Long-term Plans: These plans are normally made for a minimum period of 5 years. They relate to goals and usually cover all functional areas of the business. Future being uncertain, these plans foresee environmental changes (by applying techniques of forecasting) so that organisations can accept them when they occur. They relate to investment in fixed assets which generate returns over a long-period of time. They aim to achieve strategic goals of the organisation over a long time period. 2. Medium-term Plans: These plans normally relate to a period of one to 5 years. They are the supporting plans that help to achieve long-term plans. Plans made to analyse the impact of advertisement campaign on expansion of business into new markets are medium-term plans. These plans usually relate to tactical goals. 3. Short-term Plans: These plans are normally prepared for a period of one year, though in some cases, these may even relate to a period of less than one year. They look into immediate future of the company. They are usually made for specific functional areas. Plans made to retain or promote sales, to train workers (so that labour turnover rate is reduced) are short- term plans. They relate to operational goals of the enterprise. The classification of plans according to time and their relationship with goals of the enterprise is depicted as follows: These plans are not independent of each other. A successful organisation coordinates all these plans. Short-term plans contribute to medium-term plans which further contribute to long-term plans. Class # 4. Classification on the Basis of Functional Areas: These plans are more specific and relate to a particular area of operation. They develop guidelines to action in a specific functional area. They usually set short-term objectives for each functional area and define the means to achieve the objectives within the given time frame. Features of Functional Plans: Functional plans have the following features: 1. They aim to achieve short-term objectives of functional areas and are, therefore, made for a short period of time, usually less than one year. 2. They look into immediate future of the functional areas. They are designed by operating managers. 3. They are specific plans which define the area of operating personnel. “A functional plan describes the specific actions to be taken in the immediate future by people responsible for that particular functional area. It usually sets forth short-term objectives, the actions to be taken to achieve those objectives, and a time frame for the accomplishment of each action.” 1. Production plans: “Production plans consist of planning and overseeing the process of converting inputs into value – enhanced output.” The areas of production plans are: production system, efficiency of operations, location of company facilities, design of company facilities, and day-to-day process planning. These plans set the targets of production. They are designed according to production policy of business organisations. Firms may produce throughout the year, pile inventories and sell them during peak season or produce only during the peak season of demand. In the latter case, they can diversify into other areas during slack season to keep their plant and machinery occupied. 2. Marketing plans: Marketing plans are designed by marketing managers. They “tell sales and marketing personnel who will sell what, where, when, to whom, in what quantity and how.” They help to sell the products and develop new products to increase the share of market; to plan for sale in cash or credit; if it decides to sell on credit, to determine the credit terms and credit policies for the sales department. Production plans and marketing plans aim to satisfy consumer needs and are inter-dependent. The production department produces according to expected sale and sales department sells what is produced. 3. Financial plans: Finance managers prepare financial plans for raising and utilizing / allocating financial resources effectively. These plans meet the fixed and working capital requirements of the firm. They plan for financial cuts during recessionary economic conditions and raising additional funds during boom. All departments need funds for their effective functioning. Production department needs raw material for smooth flow of production and marketing department needs funds for advertising and sales promotion campaigns. Financial plans contribute to financial strength of the organisation through effective cost control techniques that reduce cost of operations. 4. Human resource plans: These plans make optimum use of the most productive asset of the organisation, its people. They ensure best match between the employees and their jobs, thus, avoiding manpower shortages and surpluses. They forecast the demand for labour, analyse the present supply and balance the projected demand and supply of labour. These plans forecast the size and nature of human resource required by the organisation to achieve its strategic goals. They identify human resource requirements of the organisation and plan to satisfy these requirements. They forecast quantitative (how many people are needed) and qualitative (what type of people are needed) human resource needs of the organisation. They also plan for ways in which people are developed so that they contribute to organisational goals effectively. They focus on the following important activities: 1. Identify the right number of people with right skills and also acquire them for the organisation. 2. Motivate the employees to enhance their performance skills. 3. Train the workforce who can adapt to the changing uncertain environment. 4. Formulate employee retention, compensation and development policies.
One of the most amazing court cases you probably have never heard of had come down to this. Standing Bear, the reluctant chief of the Ponca tribe, rose on May 2, 1879, to address a packed audience in a Nebraska courtroom. At issue was the existence of a mind that many were unable to see. Standing Bear’s journey to this courtroom had been excruciating. The U.S. government had decided several years earlier to force the 752 Ponca Native Americans off their lands along the fertile Niobrara River and move them to the desolate Indian Territory, in what is now northern Oklahoma. Standing Bear surrendered everything he owned, assembled his tribe, and began marching a six-hundred-mile “trail of tears.” If the walk didn’t kill them (as it did Standing Bear’s daughter), then the parched Indian Territory would. Left with meager provisions and fields of parched rock to farm, nearly a third of the Poncas died within the first year. This included Standing Bear’s son. As his son lay dying, Standing Bear promised to return his son’s bones to the tribe’s burial grounds so that his son could walk the afterlife with his ancestors, according to their religion. Desperate, Standing Bear decided to go home. Carrying his son’s bones in a bag clutched to his chest, Standing Bear and twenty-seven others began their return in the dead of winter. Word spread of the group’s travel as they approached the Omaha Indian reservation, midway through their journey. The Omahas welcomed them with open arms, but U.S. officials welcomed them with open handcuffs. General George Crook was ordered by government officials to return the beleaguered Poncas to the Indian Territory. Read the whole story: Salon Leave a comment below and continue the conversation.
2903.0.55.002 - How Australia Takes a Census, 2006 Latest ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 19/07/2006 First Issue \|Page tools: Print Page Print All RSS Search this Product\| Students tap into CensusAtSchool Students from 2732 schools nationwide have recently completed the questionnaire stage of the CensusAtSchool project. Now, the data gathered from that questionnaire is ready to be used. Starting this week, 750 NSW schools involved in the project will begin progressively tapping into the data, for uses that are both educational and fun. CensusAtSchool is an online learning experience conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). It shows students from Years 5 to 12 how statistics can be relevant to them. The Director of Census in New South Wales, Sue Phillips indicated that the ABS was delighted with the response from both the public and independent schools sectors. “CensusAtSchool aims to increase statistical literacy amongst students and open their minds to the possibility of future careers in statistics. It has the strong backing of both public and private educational bodies in NSW,” she said. “School students from across Australia have built up a statistical base by filling in a questionnaire online at the ABS CensusAtSchool website. “Just like a real Census, students answered a set of questions about themselves. The questions dealt with things such as height, what a student had for breakfast, their favourite music and the like,” Ms Phillips said. Students can access the data to make comparisons between themselves and other sets of students in different parts of Australia. They can compare how they are alike and how they differ. As with the national Census, no one can be identified from this data and strict internet security is in place. It is also a way of highlighting the importance of the 2006 Census, fast approaching on Tuesday 8 August. These documents will be presented in a new window.
When we think of Roses it immediately conjures up lots of romantic thoughts— our grandmothers may have had fabulous beds of roses, weddings are festooned with roses — they are luscious, fragrant and abundant in our contemplated garden. When thinking about designing a new garden everyone wants to weave in some of these fanciful beauties as they epitomize the idealized garden. But they can also be known to be persnickety and overly fussy —they get black spot, a vast array of bugs descends seemingly out of nowhere to devour the leaves and precious flowers. Japanese beetles seem to be visiting our gardens earlier and earlier each summer to do their dreaded damage. But take heart, there is a lot you can do to prevent these diseases and critters from destroying your dream rose garden. Initial good preparation of the soil is vital, along with selecting the right varieties that are disease-resistant and long-blooming. Select a site that gets about 6-9 hours of sun a day, and good drainage is imperative as roses do not like having “wet feet.” When planting a rose, dig a very generous hole about twice the size of the rose. Be sure to give the rose a generous area to grow in as good air circulation is essential to healthy roses. Plan on planting new roses either early in the morning or on an overcast day — avoid planting on sunny hot days or late in the day. Remove heavy or clay like soil and discard replace with either home grown compost or lobster compost which is abundant in beneficial trace minerals. Fill the new hole with approximately 1/3 compost, add a slow release organic fertilizer which will gradually feed the rose throughout the growing season. Carefully, remove rose from the nursery pot and place gently in the new hole. Continue adding compost allowing the roots to settle in and fill the hole. At this point, it is time to water the rose before filling the hole completely. Fill a large watering can with about 3 gallons of water, add about 4-5 tablespoons of liquid sea weed and fish emulsion fertilizer. Water the hole well, allowing the water to seep in very gradually. Wait several minutes and water the rose again — repeat this process a third time before backfilling the hole with more compost–tamping gently with your foot to fill in any air pockets. Aim to position the rose at the same depth it was growing in the nursery pot. Allow the rose to settle in for a few days and repeat with a very diluted solution of sea weed and fish emulsion. Aim to allow the rose to receive about 1” of water per week to get it well established. To prevent black spot and other diseases, spray regularly with diluted Neem oil, 2 tablespoons of baking soda and a small dash of liquid dish detergent. Consistent use of this combination will prevent and eliminate the typical dreaded rose diseases. I aim to spray my roses every 7-10 days. Spray early in the morning or on cool overcast days. Do not spray rose on hot sunny days. Excessive periods of rain may increase mildew and black spot. To revive them, you can cut them back about 50% — remove and discard any diseased leaves and flowers especially from the ground surrounding your beds.
In 1978, Ernie Walker worked on a little ranch north of Saskatoon while he was in school for archeology. A few years later, Walker took the site on a lease with the City of Saskatoon. He explored it in the following years, and between 1982 and 1983, he discovered a bison jump, along with bones and artifacts. Walker named the site Newo Asiniak, which in Cree means four stones, as he always felt there was more history to the land. It turns out he was right. In 2020, four petroglyphs were excavated on the site, which now is called Wanuskewin Heritage Park. "Little did I know that 40 years later it will come crashing down on me but in a good and wonderful way," said Walker, who is now a forensic anthropologist and park founder at Wanuskewin. The four stones include a 225-kilogram (500-pound) ribstone, a petroglyph carved in the form of animal rib, which will be on display at the park starting Friday. Walker said the stones are evidence of the culture that likely existed before European explorers made contact with the Indigenous peoples living on the land. The ribstone was discovered along with a nine-kilogram (20-pound) stone. Another excavated stone bears grid patterns and weighs 340 kilograms (750 pounds). The largest of them all is a boulder weighing approximately 545 kilograms (1,200 pounds) that's still in the ground. But that's not all Walker found. He also discovered a stone knife next to the stones, which is considered a rare find. "There's no question about association," Walker said. "I measured the width of the cutting edge and it's exactly the same width of the groove on the rock. De facto, that was the stone tool to make the groove [on the ribstone]. Whoever did that carving almost left a business card behind." Reintroducing bison to park led to historic find Walker developed a lifelong connection to the land that was originally the ranch, which was owned by Mike Vitkowski. The two men struck up a friendship, and after Vitkowski died, it became part of the park, which opened in 1992. Walker is on the board. Bison were reintroduced to the land in 2019. Walker said the petroglyphs would not have been discovered without them. In August 2020, while the bison were in a paddock, their hooves turned up the soil. Walker was helping feed them with the bison manager when he saw the "top of a boulder protruding from the ground" near his feet. "The bison spent time there giving each other dust baths and just in their normal activity, they uncovered the stones," said Walker, who had surveyed the area before but had never seen them. The bison had uncovered the ribstone. "The lines on the boulder mimicked ribs of a bison. In the middle of it, there was a little horned figure. A spirit figure with a triangular head with horns and an oblong body and a tail that went to the crack," Walker said. "I was trying not to have a heart attack. If the bison wouldn't have been here, we wouldn't have been here." The petroglyphs were leading up to the pathway near the bison jump. Walker said the style on the boulders is a part of hoof print art tradition. Ribstones like this one are sometimes associated with bison kills, Walker said. And since the boulders were found near a bison jump, he said it can be related. Walker said it is difficult to predict exactly how old the rocks are. He said hoof print style of rock art is typical to southern parts of Alberta and Saskatchewan, North and South Dakota, Montana and Wyoming. "They generally date to somewhere between 300 years and 1,800 years ago." Push for UNESCO heritage status Walker is pushing for Wanuskewin Heritage Park to be added to UNESCO's list of world heritage sites, the gold standard for cultural and scientific sites internationally. The park plans to hand in its voluminous submission through Parks Canada by the end of next year. "The migratory bison hunting populations in pre-contact history followed bison herds and never carried a lot of items. But Wanuskewin has everything one would expect to find in a pre-contact culture on the northern plains," he said. "It has bison jumps, massive campsites that we've been excavating. Now, it has rock art. That's exceptional and tangible evidence of pre-contact culture. We think that it's so exceptional that it's worthy of the designation." Wanuskewin Heritage Park has also emerged as an agreed-upon location by residential school survivors for the papal visit in Canada. No dates or locations have been confirmed. It has been a gathering place for Indigenous people for more than 6,000 years, according to archeological records. Wanuskewin also has geographical significance. The greatest concentration of residential schools sat on the treaty territories of central and southern Saskatchewan. He said the petroglyphs give a glimpse of spiritual and ceremonial aspects of that culture. Wanuskewin will be not only a Saskatchewan phenomenon, but also a "great Canadian story." Walker said while consideration for the status can take up to decades, Wanuskewin is still on "a faster track" as a decision can be made in Paris in June 2025, if all the intermediary processes go well. "Getting UNESCO status will mark us for international recognition. Of course there will be international tourism. It would change Saskatoon. I'd like to think it will change Saskatchewan," he said. Walker said back in the 1980s when the park was still in its genesis, Hillaird McNab, an elder from George Gordon First Nation, told him that the site was destined to be a park. "McNab said it was supposed to happen, and it's now. This place wants to tell its story to the rest of the world," Walker said. "Bisons are the keystone species for grasslands and First Nation people. If you look at those bison, you are looking at a time capsule." Elder Akanya Naji from Dakota Nation of Wahpeton agrees. "Bison is very sacred to us and in our creation stories are called our brothers. They provide sustenance to us. Our economy was our bison," Naji, who goes by the colonizer's name of Cy Standing, said. A way for the future Naji has been connected with Wanuskewin for almost 30 years and said the land "was a gathering, healing and ceremonial place." He wasn't surprised with the discovery of the petroglyphs, which hold a cultural significance. "All the rocks are sacred to us," Naji said. "In our creation stories, rocks were the first things to be created." Naji said traditionally rocks are not supposed to be moved but he understood the scientific motive of conservation. He said the discovery furthers their path to the future that flourishes from their past. "If you don't have a history, you don't have a future. That's what we wanted to do with Wanuskewin, to teach our people and non-Indigenous people about our history." Naji said Wanuskewin becoming a UNESCO heritage site will be better for future generations to learn about their history. "This place tells our histories and Wanuskewin can play a role in changing people's thinking especially about our Earth," Naji said. "Our histories go back to pre-contact and we want to preserve that history. There's not much pre-contact knowledge, as much has been written by colonizers."
Annette Hacker, director, Office: (515) 294-4777 James Reecy, Animal Science, (515) 294-9269, email@example.com Dan Kuester, News Service, (515) 294-0704, firstname.lastname@example.org Iowa State University researcher is part of cattle-genome mapping team AMES, Iowa -- An Iowa State University faculty member is part of an international team that mapped the cattle genome. James Reecy, director of the Office of Biotechnology and associate professor of animal science, took part in the annotation portion of the mapping project that manually examined the computer-generated genetic sequencing. The group's findings are being published in the current edition of the journal Science. In the past, animal genome sequencing has focused mostly on small animals, such as rat and dog. "This is the first time cattle were sequenced for a whole genome assembly," said Reecy. "It is important that we have the entire genome for a large animal." The research was funded in part by the National Institutes of Health, which was interested in how this sequencing could help understand the previously mapped human genome. "It was very beneficial for humans," said Reecy. "We found a new gene sequence in cattle that hadn't been seen in humans, which helped us to improve the annotation of the human genome." The grouped mapped the genome of Taurine cattle, or non-humped cattle, which includes many breeds such as Angus, Shorthorn and most other beef and dairy breeds that are common to colder weather areas such as North America and Western Europe. Cattle were chosen by researchers to be mapped because the species fills a need in the list of animals that can help understand animal and human genes. Mapping cattle also helps fill in needed information in the evolution of different species. Cattle fit a unique evolutionary group. That, along with the agricultural benefit is why the species was chosen, said Reecy. That benefit for farmers includes the possibility of learning more quickly which genes are associated with which traits of importance in cattle. "We can increase the efficiency with which we can say, 'This gene is associated with this trait.'" said Reecy. "This will help us answer questions like, 'Can we improve milk production? Can we improve the healthfulness of beef?' This will allow us to do things quickly that otherwise would have taken us years." The lead researchers for the project were from Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.; Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas; and Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Australia; and was funded partially through the United States Department of Agriculture, CSIRO and National Cattlemen's Beef Association. An Iowa State University researcher helped map the genome of Taurine cattle, which includes many breeds such as Angus, Shorthorn and most other beef and dairy breeds that are common to North America and Western Europe. This will allow us to do things quickly that otherwise would have taken us years.
Your feet are one of the most overlooked body parts when it comes to exercise. As you exercise, pay attention to what your feet are telling you. Consult your physician before beginning any fitness program. This includes a complete physical and foot exam. This is especially important for those who are overweight, smoke, or haven't had a physical exam in a long time. Proper fitness requires wearing the right clothes and shoes. Wear loose-fitting, light-colored and loosely woven clothing in hot weather and several layers of warm clothing in cold weather. The American Podiatric Medical Association stresses the importance of foot care in exercising. People don't realize the tremendous pressure that is put on their feet while exercising. For example, a 150-pound jogger puts more than 150 tons of impact on his feet when running three miles. Improper foot care during exercise is a contributing factor to some of the more than 300 foot ailments, according to the APMA. The following are common ailments caused by improper foot care during exercise:
Thinking Schools Tigrai, Ethiopia By Dagim Melese & Atsede Teshayou Semema Secondary School is a school with 47 teachers, of whom 29 were at the training in October. We began the day with a professional development session in which we discussed the Principles of TSE, research basis of the use of visual tools and research outcomes of whole school implementation of Thinking Maps. Video clip of Thinking Schools Ethiopia trainers Atsede Tsehayou, Dagim Melese and Robert Seth Price facilitating the Trainer of Trainers (ToT) who are facilitating their whole schools including the school in this posting. The training was in October 2015. Initially we modeled Collegial Coaching where we did briefing, conducted lessons in classrooms with students, followed by a debriefing with all the participating teachers. During the briefing we shared our lesson plan, the pedagogical strategies we will be employing during the demonstration lesson, and what we want the teachers to observe. We asked them to record their observations, thoughts and questions. During the demonstration lessons, I used community building exercises with the students, modeled the use of circle map with a student, asked students to work in pairs, gave time for sharing groups works to whole group, used questioning that call for elaboration by students, citing examples by them, and clarifying concepts and consolidated a lesson. The goal of the demonstration lesson was for sharing strategies of transferring Thinking Maps to students by ALL teachers. Helping teachers see how powerful is working on thinking maps to organize thinking with content as tools for ensuring student engagement in class room learning. In order to show how deep, rich, detailed, panoramic the information, thoughts and ideas of students can be when supported with Thinking Maps. How effective students and students’ transfer between each other and of information can be. As we travel towards Humera (a hot- dry location) we have seen that it will be effective if we employ strategies of collaborative learning groups to demonstrate for example that we have natural gifts of thinking in many different ways, active transfer of thinking processes to content learning is key and student cantered pedagogies are needed for improving thinking skills. Thinking Schools Ethiopia – Tigray is a collaboration of Tigray Development Association and Thinking Foundation for 37 model schools in 12 Woredas located in all 7 zonal administrations with funding administered by Initiative Africa for a Girl’s Empowerment Whole School Change grant from Sida (Swedish Development Agency) that began as a grass roots project by Robert Seth Price along with lead country trainers Atsede Tsehayou and Dagim Melese. Read the chapter on Ethiopia in the Corwin Press book Pathways to Thinking Schools.
Sketch of Chickasaw Warrior, 1775 Although the Chickasaw Nation was primarily located in present-day Mississippi, their actions during the late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth century had a great impact on early Alabama history. The tribe successfully negotiated complicated trade and military alliances with the French, the British, and the U.S. government following the American Revolution. Despite their efforts to adapt to increasing numbers of white settlers after the war, they were eventually forced to cede their territory, along with the Creeks, Choctaws, and Cherokees, and remove to present-day Oklahoma. Today, the members of the Chickasaw Nation reside largely in 13 counties in south-central Oklahoma. The Chickasaw Indians traditionally lived in what is now northwestern Alabama, northern Mississippi, and southwestern Tennessee. Their population fluctuated between 2,000 and 5,000 throughout the eighteenth century, and their villages were concentrated in the area of present-day Tupelo, Mississippi. Though smaller in numbers than other neighboring Indian tribes, such as the Creeks and the Choctaws, the Chickasaws’ impact on Alabama and the Southeast was significant. The Chickasaws were culturally related to their southern neighbors the Choctaws. They spoke a dialect of the Western Muskogean language family shared by many of the Southeast’s Native American societies. Like all southeastern Indians, the Chickasaws traced lineage according to matrilineal rules of kinship, which meant an individual was only related to his or her mother’s family and that the primary father figure in a child’s life was likely a maternal uncle rather than the biological father. Chickasaw women controlled their own resources and land, where they raised the crops that all Chickasaws depended upon. By the eighteenth century, the Chickasaws lived in approximately 10 towns in northeastern Mississippi and in other locations among the Upper Creeks from 1722 to 1740 and farther east along the Savannah River from 1723 until around 1776. Following the Natchez War against the French in 1729, a contingent of Natchez people joined the Chickasaws as a separate village. Each village maintained its own set of war chiefs, civil chiefs, and other officers that may have been determined by clan membership, with 15 distinct clans. The Chickasaw villages fell into one of two basic groupings, or moieties, called the Spanish clan or Panther clan, and each division maintained its own ritualistic leaders and governance. Contact with European Explorers Chickasaw Beaded Cap The Chickasaws’ first interactions with Europeans occurred during the winter of 1540-41, when they repeatedly attacked Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto and his expedition until they moved west across the Mississippi River, culminating in a major engagement on March 4, 1541, when the Chickasaws nearly overran Soto’s forces and killed 12 Spaniards, 56 horses, and hundreds of pigs. Those brief encounters were the only significant contact that the Chickasaws had with Europeans until the founding of Charles Town (Charleston) in Carolina by the English in 1670. British traders sought to trade guns, metal goods, manufactured cloth, and other items with the Chickasaws for deerskins and Indian captives, who were then sold as slaves to sugar plantations in the Caribbean. The Chickasaws became prominent slave traders in the early colonial South at the expense of their Indian neighbors, enhancing their wealth and political position as middlemen between the British and other tribes. French explorers and traders, who had established a presence on the Gulf Coast, chose to trade with their principal Indian allies, the Choctaws, to the dismay of the Chickasaws. Partly for this reason, around 200 Chickasaws, led by chief Squirrel King, relocated farther east to the Savannah River in the 1720s to be nearer the English and their trade goods. Conflict with the Choctaws and the French The Chickasaws’ close relations with the English led the French, under Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, into conflict with the tribe that lasted for several decades and had a ruinous effect. The French colonial government could not afford to trade with all Indians in the lower Mississippi Valley, and they chose to cut their losses by cultivating the large Choctaw population as allies to the exclusion of some smaller groups such as the Chickasaws. Beginning in 1720, the Chickasaws sparked a conflict with the French and their Choctaw allies after Chickasaw warriors killed a French fur trader whom they and the English accused of being a spy. In retaliation, the French provided more guns and ammunition to the Choctaws and encouraged them to attack the Chickasaws. All of the Choctaw assaults were repelled by the Chickasaw, who then went on the offensive and effectively cut off all French shipping on the Mississippi River. The Chickasaws and Choctaws established peace in 1724 and the French agreed to abide by the new agreement in 1725. The peace agreement was short-lived, however. In November 1729, the Natchez Indians rebelled against the French settlers in their midst, killing more than 200 of them. When the French retaliated in force, they killed many Natchez and took still more as prisoners. Natchez survivors were forced to abandon their home territory, and many of them sought refuge among the Chickasaws sometime around 1730 or 1731 in what is now Lee County, Mississippi, further angering the French. In 1736, the French and Choctaws launched a coordinated attack from the north and south against Chickasaw villages in northeast Mississippi that failed miserably, despite a nearly three-to-one advantage over the defenders. In 1739, the French mounted a new effort against the Chickasaws that also failed, and the two parties signed a truce in 1740. The Chickasaws again established peace with the Choctaws during the French and Indian War, ending decades of conflict, and Britain’s defeat of the French in 1763 removed them as a threat. The Chickasaws had survived France’s attempt to destroy them, but their population had dropped dramatically to about 3,000 during this period as a result of the constant warfare. The American Revolution With their ally and long-time trading partner Great Britain in control of much of the eastern territory of the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi River area after 1763, the Chickasaws experienced few threats. That agreeable situation ended, however, when the American Revolution erupted in 1776. The Chickasaws tried to remain neutral, but they felt most committed to the British cause because of the long history between the two nations. The only battle between the Chickasaws and Americans during the war occurred in 1780, when some Chickasaws briefly attacked George Rogers Clark’s Fort Jefferson in western Kentucky. After the war the Chickasaws quickly established relations with the United States and with Spain, which controlled the entire Gulf Coast from Florida to Texas. During the 1780s and 1790s, the Chickasaws played the United States and Spain off of one another, trading with both countries while refusing to be dominated by either. Skillful diplomacy had always been important for the Chickasaws in retaining their sovereignty, but in 1795, under the Treaty of San Lorenzo (also called Pinckney’s Treaty), Spain ceded all claims to land above the 31st parallel, thus placing all Chickasaw lands within the boundaries of the United States. The Mississippi Territory (including present-day Alabama) was formed three years later in 1798, and Americans flooded into lands along the Mississippi River and then along the Natchez Trace, which crossed through the middle of Chickasaw lands. By 1809 there were an estimated 5,000 American squatters living on Chickasaw land. Chickasaw Territory in Alabama, 1824 Beginning with a treaty at Chickasaw Bluffs in 1801, in which the Chickasaws granted the United States permission to build the Natchez Trace through their territory, the Chickasaws slowly ceded their claims to land. In 1805, in the Treaty of Chickasaw Nation, the Chickasaws ceded some claims to land north of the Tennessee River, including part of north Alabama, in order to pay debts owed to trading companies. Despite their support of the United States against the Red Stick Creeks during the War of 1812, the Chickasaws were forced to sign a treaty with Andrew Jackson in 1816 that ceded their remaining claims to land north and east of the Tennessee River, including parts of north Alabama. Two years later, in the Great Chickasaw Cession, the Chickasaws ceded all remaining claims to land in Tennessee and western Kentucky. The Colbert family, especially William and George, played a significant role in promoting these land cessions among their fellow Chickasaws after the War of 1812. As members of the Chickasaw tribe with bi-lingual speaking and writing skills and business interests, the Colberts parlayed their Chickasaw ethnicity, education, and entrepreneurial spirit into political power. Along with growing pressure on the Chickasaws to cede their lands came cultural and economic change. Chickasaw chiefs, including some of the Colberts, led a new effort to encourage the production of renewable resources, such as cattle and cotton, in order to establish a market economy among the Chickasaws and move away from their dependence on the deerskin trade. Along with these new agricultural pursuits, the Chickasaws embraced slave ownership, constitutional government, and private land ownership. In addition, the role of women began to mirror American mainstream values. Whereas Chickasaw women had been the farmers and owners of land, new economic realities placed them in a more subservient role to their husbands. Assimilation and Removal Protestant missionaries arrived among the Chickasaws in the early nineteenth century, teaching Christianity, writing, arithmetic, husbandry, and domestic skills. The U.S. government, through its “plan of civilization,” urged the Chickasaws and other southeastern Indians to adopt mainstream American culture as a path to becoming American citizens. Although many Chickasaws did adopt the values, economics, and religion of their American neighbors, white residents of Mississippi and Alabama insisted that Indians had no right to possess lands that more “civilized”—by which they meant European American—citizens could own and farm. After the U.S. government passed the Indian Removal Act in 1830, Chickasaw leaders sought to acquire the best terms possible, especially members of the extended Colbert family, who sought special provisions and guarantees of extra money or land claims. That summer, tribal representatives met with U.S. delegates, including Pres. Andrew Jackson, and a treaty was signed on August 31 at Franklin, Tennessee. The Chickasaws agreed to cede their two million acres in Alabama and Mississippi in exchange for an equal amount of land to the west, but this treaty was voided when a suitable area could not be found. A new treaty was signed in 1832 in Chickasaw territory at Pontotoc Creek in present-day Pontotoc County, Mississippi, under which the Chickasaw ceded all their remaining lands, including an area in northwest Alabama south of the Tennessee River, to the U.S. government in exchange for lands in present-day Oklahoma. The lands were surveyed and quickly sold, with each adult Chickasaw receiving a temporary individual land allotment that was also sold, with all monies placed in a fund to cover the costs of removal. Alabama and Mississippi settlers quickly occupied the Chickasaw lands beginning in 1832, as they had been doing illegally by the hundreds since the mid-1820s. Chickasaw removal took years, because suitable land in the west could not be found. Most Chickasaws did not arrive in Indian Territory until 1838, after a January 1837 meeting between the Chickasaws and Choctaws at Doaksville, Choctaw Nation in Indian Territory, at which the Choctaws sold the western part of their new territory to the Chickasaws. The last Chickasaws did not leave north Mississippi until 1850. - Adair, James. The History of the American Indians. Kathryn Holland Braund, ed. Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press, 2005. - Atkinson, James R. Splendid Land, Splendid People: The Chickasaw Indians to Removal. Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press, 2004. - Bunn, Mike. Fourteenth Colony: The Forgotten Story of the Gulf South During America’s Revolutionary Era. Montgomery: NewSouth Books, 2020. - Fitzgerald, David G. Chickasaw: Unconquered and Unconquerable. Ada, Okla.: Chickasaw Press, 2006. - Gibson, Arrell M. The Chickasaws. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1971. - Hoyt, Anne Kelley. Bibliography of the Chickasaw. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1987. - Scrivner, Fulsom Charles. The Early Chickasaws: Profile of Courage. New York: Vantage Press, 2005. - Swanton, John R. Chickasaw Society and Religion. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2006.
August 12, 2013 If you’ve ever known any sea-going oceanographers, there’s a good chance you’ve heard them talk about CTDs, rosettes, and Niskin bottles. These are core tools of the trade for investigating water properties. The CTD is a package of sensors that measure Conductivity (to determine salinity), Temperature, and Depth. These are core physical properties of the water which determine the density of the water. Water will layer based on its density when it’s in a stable state, like oil and vinegar. Water in the ocean acquires different temperature and salinity properties based on where that water ‘formed’ and the path that it’s travelled since then. For instance, water that formed in the North Atlantic then moved up into the Canada basin is saltier than that which has moved in from the Pacific, and is found lower in the water column. In the Canada Basin, the seas are generally very calm thanks to the sea ice cover which limits mixing, and helps keep layers very distinct. There are many other sensors that we send down with the CTD to take measurements alongside it, such as an oxygen sensor, and a fluorometer to measure phytoplankton (such as algae). They all collect data continuously in situ, then send it up the cable to our computer at the surface so we can see these properties in real time Niskins are bottles that are sent down with the CTD. We use them to sample water from the depths desired, then bring them up to the surface. They are sent down open, and then close when we give a signal on the way back up. We call this firing the Niskin. We use the live feed of data from the CTD on the way down to determine at what depth we want to fire the Niskins. When they’re back on deck we can sample the water for whatever properties we want. Each of the 24 Niskins holds 10 litres of water. From this, we take 21 different types of samples used for investigating different chemical, physical and biological properties. Most are packaged up and sent home, but a few are analyzed while onboard. The rosette is the term used for the entire package of CTD, Niskin bottles and frame. We have 2 teams of 5 that take care of deploying, recovering, and sampling the rosette: Day Watch (Kristina Brown, Edmand Fok, Dave Spear, Paul Dainard, and Michiyo Yamamoto-Kawai) is responsible from noon to midnight, and Night Watch (Sarah Zimmermann, Scott Rose, Sigrid Salo, Zoe Sandwith, and Yusuke Ogiwara) is responsible from midnight to noon. With the help of a crew member operating the winch, a typical cast in the Canada Basin will be to ~3500 metres, and will take 2 - 2.5 hours to get back on deck, then another 1.5 hours to sample.
The Moon's Poles The poles of Earth's Moon are interesting sites due to extremes of sunlight and darkness. Earth is tilted on its axis by 23°, which causes our seasons including the alternating "midnight Sun" and long winter nights near Earth's poles. By contrast, the Moon is tilted only slightly (with respect to the Sun) at an angle of just 1.5°. Lacking seasonal variations in lighting, places near the Moon's poles are perpetually on the edge between daylight and darkness. Places near the Moon's poles that have extreme elevations, such as the heights of mountains and the depths of craters, may be almost permanently illuminated or forever in darkness. A mountain top that is perpetually bathed in sunlight is called a "Peak of Eternal Light". Scientists aren't sure if any such peaks actually exist on the Moon, but there are several which are at least close. Four peaks along the rim of Peary crater near the North Pole as well as Malapert Mountain and some smaller ridges near the South Pole may be lit nearly all of the time. Such locations are very interesting to space explorers planning trips to the Moon. Solar panels built on top of one of these peaks would be able to supply an almost constant flow of electrical power for robotic explorers or human colonists. Some deep craters near the poles may be opposites of Peaks of Eternal Light; they might be permanently shrouded in darkness. One of the largest craters in the Solar System, the South Pole-Aitken basin, covers an area that includes the Moon's South Pole. The floor of this crater is 6 km (3.7 miles) lower in some places than the average elevation of the Moon. Permanently darkened crater floors are exceptionally cold and may harbor water ice left over from comet impacts. If such ice actually is found near the Moon's poles, the news will excite scientists and space explorers alike. Ancient ice deposits could provide scientists with clues about the Moon's history. Since water ice can be used for drinking water, to produce breathable oxygen, and to make rocket fuel, explorers are keen to know whether ice can be found at the Moon's poles or not. NASA's LCROSS mission will attempt to detect signs of ice in craters near the Moon's South Pole. In October 2009 the spacecraft will observe the plume of material kicked up by a controlled crash of a booster rocket stage into a crater near the South Pole.
Ask Dr. Dave: How should I choose between an acrylic adhesive and an epoxy? Dave Dunn's January 2014 column. ANSWER: Both types of adhesives are very versatile; the choice depends on your operating environments and manufacturing situation. Invented in the 1940s, epoxies are the oldest and most tested adhesive for this application. A wide range of epoxy adhesives is available, from heat-cured, one-component systems (normally requiring several hours to fully cure) to two-component, ambient-cured systems. The general rule of thumb is that if your adhesive must resist very high temperatures and aggressive environments, then you need to use a heat-cured system. Higher temperatures give better molecular mobility to a curing adhesive system and promote more chemical crosslinking. Two-component, ambient-cured systems (epoxy component plus hardener) are definitely the most widely used epoxies. They range from the 1:1 mix ratio—the so-called “five-minute” adhesives, which are generally sold for consumer and light industrial applications—to quite high-performance systems with varying mix ratios. Epoxies tend to give high tensile and shear strengths, but are somewhat brittle. On the other hand, tough acrylic adhesives—often called reactive acrylics or methacrylate adhesives—are relatively newer systems (from about 1980) and comprise an acrylic monomer system cured by either a surface activator or two components mixed together like an epoxy. Their major attributes include the ability to cure to high strengths very quickly, good flexibility and the ability to bond to dirty or oily surfaces without extensive surface preparation. In general, they do not have the same high-temperature or liquid resistance as most epoxies. My recommendation is to evaluate the specific requirement of your application in terms of heat resistance, environmental resistance and manufacturing productivity required so you can make a calculated decision.
To truly be safe, we have to follow the science. That is exactly what UVCUE and PLANLED did. UVCUE creates a large UV-C disinfection zone that continuously disinfects about 25% of the room air during occupancy based on ceiling height. The germicidal UV rays are directed to the upper region of an occupied space and disinfects air before recirculating it. Yes! Upper Room UVC Germicidal Irradiation is a well established method of air disinfection recommended by CDC, ASHRAE, IES and researchers from Harvard School of Public Health, and Mount Sinai School of Medicine. In a nutshell, UVC light is scientifically proven to kill pathogens. UVUE emits UVC light directed at the top of the room, killing virus particles before that air is then circulated back downward toward people below. See how the CDC recommends increasing ventilation, filtration and considering Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation to increase safety in classrooms. Energy Industries is working with UVCUE to bring you the safest environment for your rooms. Click below to learn more about UVCUE and how, working together, we can keep you as safe as possible.
Everyone has a history. When you take a moment to think, our history is what develops us to be who we are today. It is not just our history, either. The history of our family, neighbors, co-workers and communities helps us to know one another and helps shape our decisions every day. Centre County has a rich history. Divided into five regions (Penns Valley, Moshannon-Mountaintop, Upper Bald Eagle Valley, Inter-Valley and the Centre Region), the county settlers found two halves; to the northwest the Appalachian Plateau Province, and to the southeast the Ridge and Valley Province. The geography consisted of limestone, iron, hardwood forests and streams. All of these components are prime for the iron industry. This quickly became the basis of the economy, soon to be followed by agriculture-based education. Between 1810 and 1930, the population increases in the five county regions were similar, but after 1930, the Centre Region began growing by leaps and bounds compared to the rest. By 1850, the agriculture industry needed help, and the State Agricultural Society as well as the state’s General Assembly responded with the approval of the Farmer’s High School. A final site of 400 acres was selected in Centre County and the building of the Farmer’s High School began in 1854. This is the creation of what is now the Pennsylvania State University. To put the history into perspective, Leadership Centre County gave us a day to experience for ourselves a journey through history. We started with a brief world tour at the Boal Mansion in Boalsburg, followed by a view of a once simpler life at the Simler House in Philipsburg. While there, we were taken back in history to the Roland Theatre where you, too, can still experience living history. We continued on State Route 504 between Philipsburg and Aaronsburg. Route 504 marks a portion of the 1799 State Road, which was an important connector during the War of 1812, becoming the primary route for mail, supplies and people traveling between Erie and Philadelphia. Along this drive, original stone mile posts still stand as a reminder of a time when making a journey from one corner of the commonwealth to the other took several days. After becoming part of history for the second time that day, we made a stop at Curtin Village. Our tour guide, John, entertained us with a very informative tour, taking us to the days when iron ruled and the residents of Curtin Village shopped at the company store. Just one more stop on our journey was to the Boogersburg School. The minute we walked through the door, the LCC class members were transformed into local pupils straight from the school records of the 1800s. With the smell of woodfire in the stove and seated in front of a piece of soapstone and slateboard, we were guided through a 19th century learning experience. The land where the school is located was deeded by local ironmaster Moses Thompson, who owned the nearby Centre Furnace, which is where our day concluded with a tour. These brand new experiences that many of us did not know about are a sample of what shaped Centre County into what we now enjoy. We drive by these places daily. How often does one stop to remember the history and how decisions made by the early settlers of the county shaped the Centre County that we all know today? We have a rich culture. Everything that has happened affects the future. Everyone has a history. I encourage you to take time and learn about our roots. It’s who we are. Everyone has a history. Submitted by Matt Wise, constituent representative for Sen. Jake Corman and member of the Leadership Centre County class of 2014. For more information about Leadership Centre County, go to www.leadershipcentrecounty.org .
GREENBELT, Md., June 15 (UPI) -- An active region on the sun that rotated into view of the Earth Sunday has fired off two flares and two coronal mass ejections, U.S. scientists say. The first flare lasted for a relatively long 3 hours, peaking at 9:17 a.m. EDT Wednesday, the NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center reported. The associated CME left the sun at approximately 375 miles per second and is directed toward Earth, although because of its relatively slow speed the effect on Earth is expected to be minimal, the center said. The second M-class flare was also a long-duration event and peaked at 10:08 a.m. EDT Thursday. The CME associated with this flare is traveling much faster -- preliminary analysis at Goddard's Space Weather Center indicates speeds of approximately 800 miles per second -- and is heading toward Earth and could also affect Mars and the Spitzer spacecraft, the center said. The Space Weather Center models estimate both CMEs will arrive at the Earth Saturday.
There are many different types of floss and it is important to choose the right type of floss for your teeth. Our hygienist can guide you in choosing the right floss type and the flossing technique best suited to your mouth. - Use a piece of floss about a foot and a half long. - Wrap the floss around your index fingers. - User your thumbs or middle fingers to guide the floss gently between your teeth. - Wrap the floss around one tooth and slide it smoothly up to the gum line with an up and down motion. - Without removing the floss, wrap it around the other tooth in the same manner until the sides of both adjacent teeth are squeaky clean. Repeat this between all teeth.
Tests are defined as an evaluation over one unit which might encompass one or more chapters in a textbook. - Acids and Bases (Answers) pH, acids, bases, salts, Bronsted-Lowry, titrations, indicators, molarity. - Acids, Bases, and Salts (Answers) pH, acids, bases, salts, Bronsted-Lowry, titrations, indicators, molarity. - Atomic Structure: (Answers) protons, electrons, neutrons, nucleus, nuclear chemistry, halflife, sublevels, electronic configuration - Atomic Theory#1: (Answers) Bohr, Quantum, orbitals, energy levels, atomic size, light. - Atomic Theory#2: (Answers) Thomson, Rutherford, Bohr, deBroglie, Quantum. - Atomic Theory#3: Electrons, Quantum Numbers, and the Periodic Table - Bonding: (Answers) nonpolar, polar, formulas, ionic, covalent, metallic, intermolecular forces, resonance, hybrid orbitals. - Bonding & Molecular Structures: (Answers) Lewis structures, bonds, molecular structure. - Chemical Kinetics and Intro to Equilibrium: (Answers) Rate Equations, Equilibrium, LeChatelier, - Compounds & Equations: (Answers) formulas, balancing equations, energy, compounds, mixtures, reactions. - Introductory Material: (Answers) measurement, significant digits, metric system, dimensional analysis, density, energy. - Ionic Equilibria: (Answers) hydrolysis, weak acids and bases, solubility product. - Kinetics: activation energy, equilibrium, Le Chatelier, Keq, endothermic, exothermic. - Kinetic Molecular Theory#1: (Answers) gas laws, ideal gas law - Kinetic Molecular Theory#2: (Answers) gas laws, ideal gas law, crystals - Matter, Atoms and the Mole : Two separte tests. - Matter and Energy: (Answers) mixtures, celcius, kinetic energy, gas laws, kelvin, STP, vapor pressure, ideal gas law. - Nuclear Chemistry: (Answers) nuclear decay, fission, fusion, radioactivity, Lise Meitner, atomic bomb. - Organic Chemistry: (Answers) alkanes, homologus series, esters, alcohols, ethers, acids, unsaturated, saturated, alkenes. - Organic Chem--Hydrocarbons: (Answers) alkanes, homologus series, hybridization, geometry, addition reactions, substitution reactions. - Organic Chem--Hydrocarbon Derivatives: (Answers) alcohols, organic acids, aldehydes, ketones, esters, ethers, amines. - Periodic Table #1: (Answers) metals, nonmetals, mettalloids, trends, volume, alkali, halogen, reactivity - Periodic Table #2 (Answers) metals, nonmetals, mettalloids, trends, volume, alkali, halogen, reactivity - Polymers: (Answers) addition, condensation - PreTest-Gormley: (Answers) Basic math and science skills. - Predicting Chemical Reactions: (Answers) reactivity, periodic trends, redox. - Redox: (Answers) electrolysis, oxidation, reduction, oxidation potential, emf. - Solutions and Colloids: (Answers) molarity, molality, mol fraction, osmosis. - Stoichiometry Review: (Answers) stoichiometry, percent composition, titrations. - Stoichiometry#1: (Answers) mols, empirical formulas, molecular formulas, Avogadro. - Stoichiometry#2: (Answers) mols, empirical formula, molecular formula, molarity, STP Quizzes are defined as an evaluation over a specific topic within a unit. - Chemical Reactions #1: Predicting chemical reactions from periodic trends. - Chemical Reactions #2: Predicting chemical reactions from periodic trends. - Chemical Reactions #3: Predicting chemical reactions from periodic trends. - Dimensional Analysis Worksheet: Good pop quiz questions. - Dimensional Analysis (07/13/01) - Periodic Table: Periodic trends used to place elements. - Qualitative Analysis: - Solutions Concentration: molariy, molality, freezing point depression - Symbol Quiz#1: Symbols of elements. - Symbol Quiz#2: Symbols of elements. Exams are considered to be tests over several units. These would be the kind of evaluations instructors would give at the end of a semester or course. - Exam#1 Essay short answer. Redox titrations, rate equations, free energy, equilibrium, electrochemistry. \|Questions? Comments??\|\| Revised on: Dec 2 2015 7:48:07 PM \|
A Galilean Thermometer consists of a large glass cylinder filled with a transparent liquid whose density varies as much as possible with temperature. Little sealed glass spheres, each filled with a different colored liquid, float at various heights within the tube. Each glass sphere carries a metal tag, indicating a temperature value. The external temperature corresponds to the tag carried by the glass sphere that is floating at mid-height of the tube. The underlying principle of this method of temperature measurement is buoyancy. According to the Archimedes’ principle, the buoyant force exerted on an object depends on the weight of the liquid displaced by the object. This corresponds to the product of the object’s volume and the liquid’s density. Because the glass spheres are sealed and have a defined volume, the buoyant force on the spheres, and by this their position in the glass tube, are only determined by the density of the tube’s liquid. If the liquid’s density is lower than a spheres’s effective density, this specific sphere will sink; otherwise, it will float. In the case of equal densities, the sphere floats at mid-height. The Galilean Thermometer is based on the temperature-dependency of the liquid’s density. With increasing temperature, its density decreases. That makes each bulb change its position: the bulb originally floating at mid-height sinks and another bulb takes on the position at mid-height – the temperature increase is visualized. Despite the name of the thermometer, Galileo was probably not its true inventor although he certainly gave the initial inspiration. Members of the Florentine Accademia del Cimento (1657–1667) and not Galileo himself accomplished the construction of a first device several years after his death in 1642. - Galilean Thermometer Not So Galilean, J. Chem. Educ. 2012, 89 (9), 1095–1096.
Summer is a great time for not only fun learning themes, but more independent preschool work! My very favorite summer learning themes are the beach and ocean, lemonade, watermelon, camping, and ice cream! I feel like bubbles probably lands in there too somewhere. All of these things make me think about being a little kid in the summertime! Our new summer color by code printable set has all the summer feels and includes color identification, color words, fine motor skills, as well as number and letter skills. The set is a great addition to send home with your preschoolers, work on in small groups, and even use as a quick assessment! Summer Color By Code Printables The summer color by code printable set includes 4 color by code pages. There is a watermelon set that uses uppercase and lowercase letters in its color by code. There is the option to choose between uppercase and lowercase letters. There is an ocean set that uses numbers in its color by code. There is the option to work with numbers 1-10 or 11-20. All pages include color words and direction. Print the pages on white paper and make copies as needed. The summer color by code pages can be colored with crayons, markers, colored pencils, or even watercolor paints! The watermelon set needs blue, green, red, and black. The ocean set needs blue, green, purple, yellow, orange, and red. When introducing color by code pages to preschoolers, it is a great idea to go over color words. I have a printed and laminated list of color words that my preschoolers can take on the go with them whenever needed. We use this list for the groups that come to our small group and still cannot recognize the high frequency color words yet. After putting names on the papers, we go over the color words. Each time we figure out what a new color word says, we find that colored crayon. In my classroom we color the color word at the top of the page the color it says. This helps avoid confusion with the multi-step directions for this activity. It can be tough for preschoolers to find a letter, go back up to the code to find the same letter, then identify the color word next to the letter in the code, find the correct crayon, and then go back down to the letter in the picture, and color it. So taking the steps down a notch can be extremely helpful! The summer color by code printable pages are a way to quickly assess your preschoolers at this point in the year. Here are skills that I am looking for when I add the color by code pages to our learning centers or small groups. - name writing - color word identification - color identification - fine motor skills (coloring, crayon movement, wrist movement) - hard work “endurance” (coloring the entire area vs. just coloring over the letter) - visual discrimination You can quickly look through the completed summer color by code pages to really see where your preschoolers are. Now some preschoolers may be on point or even above average with all of these skills and still insist that coloring is not their thing. But I feel as the teacher, you always know your preschoolers very well and understand this. I hope you are loving the options available within the summer color by code set! As a preschool teacher, I know that it is nice to have differentiated options readily available. Grab your summer color by code set now!
PRINCETON, N.J., Feb. 22 (UPI) -- A new climate model predicts more snowfall for Earth's polar regions and highest altitudes but less overall for the world, U.S. researchers say. The projections are the result of a climate model developed at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory in Princeton, N.J. The model suggests the majority of the planet would experience less snowfall as a result of warming due to a doubling of atmospheric carbon dioxide, a decline that could spell trouble for regions such as the western United States that rely on snowmelt as a source of fresh water. Scientists at Princeton University who have been analyzing the model said the greatest reductions in snowfall in North America would occur along the northeast coast, in the mountainous west, and in the Pacific Northwest. They said snowfall will increase in very cold regions of the globe because as air warms it can hold more moisture, leading to increased precipitation in the form of snow. Regions in and around the arctic and Antarctica will get more snow than they now receive, they said in a Princeton release Friday.
A worker who is injured at work as a direct result of the use of a piece work tools that turns out to be defective. This is the main reason to any accident occur at work place. If a worker is injured because of an inherent defect in equipment, the manager will be held responsible regardless of fault. However, this may be true for many types of accidents that arise as a result of faulty equipment at work. Any part of the body may be damaged in a workplace accident. The back is especially prone to injuries, ranging from mild soft tissue sprains to cracked or crushed vertebrae. The vertebrae protect the spinal cord, which itself controls all movement and sensation in the human body. Work accident injuries at Bowmanville is normally caused by the lifting of heavy weights, or the repetitive performance of motions which place strain on the back, such as bending and twisting. Head and neck injuries at work may result from falls from height, object falling, or work vehicle accidents. Injuries to the face can be extremely traumatic, combining as they do physical and psychological factors. Compensation awards in this area normally reflect the extent of any facial scarring.
By Allen Perkins, M.D. When I was in college in Louisiana, I took a course in Louisiana history. When we got to modern times and discussed education, health care, or another social risk factor, the professor would always start the lecture by saying, "Thank God for Mississippi." He would go on to point out that though Louisiana was bad, it was not as bad as our neighbor to the east. Living in Alabama for the past 20 years and working in healthcare, I also have often been grateful for Mississippi's performance when defending our state at national meetings. The latest reason to be thankful is the CDC's look at how long people will live after age 65 and what percent of those later years are predicted to be healthy. Alabamians, as usual, are not as healthy as most Americans. The average Alabamian who is currently 65 years old can be expected to live to age 82 ½, slightly better than the average Mississippian (and West Virginian). However, he/she will start feeling poorly by age 77. If black, he or she will live to age 82 but will start feeling bad at age 73. Both whites and blacks will be healthier slightly longer in Alabama than in Mississippi. For those in Alabama who feel like moving, Hawaiians live to age 86 and are healthy on average until age 81. Why are we not healthy as a region? Investigators who study such things point out that there is not one reason but many. Many living in the Gulf region do not have access to health care, which leads to poor health. There's also our region's history of unequal income (people tend to work harder for less money and children are more likely to be poor) and unhealthy lifestyles (more likely to smoke and be obese, less likely to be physically active). In addition, we tend to value limited government and tolerate weaker public health regulations, which seem to contribute to poor health as well. While this study was looking at people over 65, Alabama's record is similar for every age group. Rather than focusing on being slightly better than Mississippi every time a study such as this comes out, maybe we should throw for the end-zone instead. With a targeted effort, we could be the best in the south. Areas where we can make a difference in Alabama - Prevention of road injuries: The number of road injuries is going down in Alabama but not as rapidly as in other states. We already have what works in place– motorcycle helmet laws, anti drunk-driving laws, seatbelt laws. More robust enforcement of these laws will improve our standing. I would also propose that we strengthen our laws against driving under the influence of prescription drugs. - Implement diabetes management programs: Much of the poor health at the end of life is due to poorly treated diabetes in the middle of life. One in ten Alabamians over the age of 30 but under age 60 have diabetes (second to Mississippi and West Virginia). If people have access to healthcare, diabetes can be identified and managed early. Doing this substantially reduces the future problem of kidney disease and improves health after age 65. Though 30% of Alabamians are obese, diabetes can be controlled. We now have an opportunity to improve access to primary care through better insurance options and potentially through the Medicaid expansion. New models of primary care offer promising interventions like text reminders, peer support groups and other interventions that engage patients, leading to weight loss and adherence to medications. - Reduce sexually risky behaviors: In Alabama 7 out of every 100 teenaged girls will get pregnant before they turn 20, with almost 1 in 2 teenagers reporting engaging in sexual activity while in high school. Unprotected sexual activity leads to sexually transmitted infections, and unwanted pregnancies are more likely to lead to premature births and other costly problems. We are not the worst in the region but these unwanted pregnancies cost taxpayers in Alabama $125,000,000 per year. Waiting for teens to come to the doctor's office for care will not solve the problem. We need to better educate our youth about how to avoid the potential health consequences of sexual activity. In addition, we need to provide access to truthful information and resources proven to reduce teen pregnancy. Our health care system must work with our public health system and community leaders to help this to occur. Often we look at our health problems and despair. The three actions outlined above will allow us to leap ahead of the rest of the southeastern states. Just increasing our efforts in these three areas will make Alabama the envy of not only Mississippi, but all of our neighbors. Dr. Perkins is Professor and Chair of Family Medicine at the University of South Alabama College of Medicine in Mobile. The opinions he expresses are his own.
Advancements in Justice for Animals in Colombia Worldwide, there are more and more laws coming into effect that protect animals, both pets in homes and animals in the wild. Some countries are becoming more aware of the need to protect animals from abuse. Did you know that this is the case with Colombia? In this article, you can read about the latest advancements in justice for animals in Colombia. 2016 was a historic year for animals in Colombia It’s true that in many areas animal abuse continues. However, in 2016 a new law in Colombia classed the abuse of animals as a crime. Basically, the law recognizes that animals aren’t objects, but rather they are sentient beings (capable or able to feel). A local animal rights defender, Juan Carlos Losada, is the author of Law 1774. The Colombian president signed this law in January 2016. Mr. Losada confirms that 2016 was a year of improvements in animal welfare in Colombia. The new law helps to increase awareness of issues related to the well-being and protection of all living creatures. Of course, we’re not saying that this will put an end to all animal abuse issues in Colombia. Rather, we’re analyzing the different advancements that have been achieved over time throughout Colombian territory. While there’s still a lot to do, the residents of Colombia are gradually adjusting their attitude. They are starting to see animals as living beings that can feel, instead of as objects. The Colombian government is implementing several initiatives. For example, some politicians are participating in programs for the defense and protection of animal rights (monitored by the National Planning Department). The Ministry of the Interior has also created a specific office for this purpose. This department will carry out and enforce the new law on animal abuse. Before and after Law 1774 In December 2015, the full Senate of Colombia approved a law project to modify the 1989 Decree 84, that had previously dealt with animals. They also defined the penal process for breaking that law, and stated how we should view animals. It’s worth knowing that, before this, people in Colombia animals viewed as “movable goods”. Today, the new law has changed the field completely. It upholds the simple (and fundamental) fact that animals are “sentient beings”. Law 1774 ensures that animals have rights and that they are taken into consideration. With cases of animal abuse, the punishment will be monetary fines (between 5 and 50 monthly wages). In some cases the person may even receive a prison term (from 12 to 36 months for aggravated cases). In 2016, the instances of animal abuse in Colombia went down substantially. However, it still hasn’t been completely eradicated. But from now on, the authorities register all animal abuse issues and carry out the corresponding penalties. Just one month after this law came into effect, the authorities had already arrested 6 people for animal abuse. Law 1774 is also very useful to educate the citizens of Colombia. Everyone should know that mistreating an animal just isn’t morally unacceptable. It’s also now a crime punishable by law. The authorities must now act to protect beings, not just things. If you reflect on this, the new law is a really radical change. There’s still a lot to do Source: Happy Animals Club Facebook page Of course, there’s still much more work to do with regards to animal rights. Many different areas need to improve. For example, how can the new law be implemented in all areas? What specific authorities should get involved? How does the process work in each case, and what tools can the judges use? It’s a task that will require the combined efforts of various institutions. It will involve the National Attorney General, the National Police, and the Justice Power (especially judges). It’s also a challenge for local authorities and councils, as well as for normal citizens. This last group must learn how to recognize and report animal abuse. This law is educating the Colombian people on what to do if they are confronted by a case of animal abuse. They should report it in person, with as much physical evidence (such as photos) as possible. Someone in Colombia who has seen animal abuse should go to one of the following departments: - The Police Inspectors - The local Courts of the National Attorney General that provide attention to the public - Or to one of the Immediate Response Units What can we consider to be animal abuse? If you see an animal that is suffering from hunger, thirst, physical discomfort, pain, diseases from negligence or neglect, fear or excessive stress, you should report it.It might interest you...
(image courtesy of myplate.gov) Childhood food allergies are on the rise, according to a recent study in the journal Pediatrics. A whopping six million kids — or eight percent of the under-18 set — has at least one food allergy. Peanuts are the most common allergen, but milk is a very close second, a potentially alarming statistic given the USDA’s unveiling a few weeks ago of its new MyPlate icon, which, as you can see above, features a side of dairy. Given the fact that milk allergies among kids are on the rise — and that 75 percent of the world’s population is lactose intolerant — one has to ask: Dairy might be on MyPlate, but does it belong on your plate? Balancing Milk Consumption For a balanced perspective, we asked Maggie Ward, MS, RD, LDN for her thoughts. Ward is the Nutrition Director at the Lenox, Mass.-based UltraWellness Center, which is run by functional medicine expert Mark Hyman, MD. Here’s what she had to say: Dairy is tough and a “touchy subject.” Overall, for the average healthy adult or child, I am not against dairy. I do always emphasize organic with any animal products in order to minimize not only pesticides but also the hormones and antibiotics that are found in most factory-farmed animals. For those that don’t do well with milk, unsweetened yogurts or cheeses may be a better option. Also, smaller mammals’ milk (e.g., sheep, goat) is often easier to digest and better tolerated. The other side of the issue, however, is that dairy is one of the most common food allergens and, I think, often overconsumed in both the young and adult populations. For those who are sick or experiencing GI infections, this often becomes even more relevant. I also don’t think people should be fooled into thinking that they can’t have a balanced diet without dairy. We can get calcium from many other foods sources, such as dark leafy greens, broccoli, nuts and seeds (like almonds and sesame), sea vegetables, etc. For children under 2 years of age who do not have dairy, it’s also important they get enough fat in the diet, but this can be easily provided through other foods (avocado, olive oil, coconut, nuts/seeds, etc).
In one of the most famous passages in The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith cautions, People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices. . . . Supporters of antitrust laws believe that Smith couldn’t speak the truth more plainly. They deem this sort of anticompetitive behavior bad for consumers. Antitrust regulation, they argue, is necessary to protect competition and the well-being of society from these kinds of conspiracies. But is Adam Smith right? He correctly warns of the natural incentive that businesses have to get the highest price possible for their products, and perhaps to monopolize their industry or collude with one another to increase prices. One might legitimately conclude that free markets cannot always be left free, and that government institutions like antitrust are necessary for the protection of society’s interests. As awful and ridiculous as this may sound, people who love freedom must take this claim seriously. Antitrust supporters generally have a strong foundation, not only in Adam Smith, but in much of the conventional economic theory of the twentieth century. Economists have at their disposal powerfully convincing ways of showing that monopoly is harmful, and that antitrust enforcement is the perfect remedy, at least in theory. The real world also provides plenty of examples that support the claims of antitrust supporters. The kind of behavior that Smith describes does indeed occur. One such case was the notorious fare-fixing telephone conversation initiated by American Airlines chairman Robert Crandall with Braniff president Howard Putnam in 1983.1 The early 1960s gave us another infamous example. General Electric, Westinghouse, Allis-Chalmers, and I-T-E coordinated a pervasive price conspiracy in selling heavy electrical equipment to the government. A single company would enter a bid lower than all its competitors, all of whom would enter identical bids higher than the lowest. In one instance, seven different companies entered a bid of exactly $198,438.24, and the contract was awarded to the single firm that bid lower. It was a very effective cartel. These were supposed to be secret bids, and the conspiracy would never have worked if not for the cartel’s ingenious enforcement strategy. The firm to enter the lowest bid was determined by the fullness of the moon. This phase of the moon strategy was foolproof for decades, and was only discovered in 1959 by a reporter in Tennessee, who noticed the peculiarity of the identical bids. The conspiracy is estimated to have cost consumers $175 million in every year of its decades-long existence.2 These examples illustrate the creativity that businesses sometimes use in trying to monopolize a market. When cartel members can actually enforce the agreement, or when a firm actually succeeds in monopolizing a market, the result is almost invariably bad for consumers.3 Whether antitrust enforcement does the job or not, we still need to take the threat of monopoly seriously. And we still need to recognize and acknowledge that antitrust is, at least in theory, a way to deal with this threat. But do classical liberals need to concede that antitrust regulation actually does the job? Do we need to agree that antitrust deals effectively with the threat of monopoly and that it is therefore good for society? The answer is clearly no. In fact, sober economic analysis can explain how antitrust policy fails to combat the monopoly threat, how it betrays the public interest it is pledged to protect, and how it therefore serves the private interests of the businessmen, politicians, and bureaucrats involved. In short, we need to voice the reasons why the antitrust laws should be repealed.4 Antitrust Enforcement: The Ideal Versus the Real One would rightly be suspicious to discover that antitrust laws in this country are enforced by two separate federal agencies, the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission.5 Each agency is subject to Congress by way of budget appropriation, confirmation of appointees, and general oversight into agency activities. Because of this oversight, we can be fairly certain that the agencies enforce the statutes according to the wishes of the current Congress.6 In a perfect world in which Congressmen are public servants, antitrust should work the way it is supposed to. We should expect that once Congress allocates an amount to each agency, staff members there take an inventory of the monopoly inefficiency in the economy, make a list according to the costs to society, and bring cases against these monopolies in order of their importance until their budgets are exhausted. There might be some red tape and pre-investigation procedures to worry about, but overall this seems to be the way it should work. What better way to make society better off? How much better can a policy get? Unfortunately, the naive assumption that there is a public-interest standard in government dominates discussions of antitrust and in so doing abstracts entirely from the existence and power of special interest groups. Policies that were introduced in the name of promoting competition have become tools to protect against competition. Congress, businesses, and the antitrust bureaucracy all have much at stake in the antitrust game. They form a triangle of private interests that drive antitrust enforcement at the expense of the general public. The Antitrust Bureaucracy First, consider the incentives of those who are in charge of enforcing the antitrust statutes. At the Antitrust Division, there are 331 attorneys and 50 economists, while the FTC maintains a comparable 435 attorneys and 63 economists. These agencies are hierarchical and experience much of the red tape that any government bureau does. But at some point, every decision is made by an individual, who has his own career agenda and objectives. One study of the Antitrust Division7 found that the strengthening of the anti-merger laws (the 1950 Cellar-Kefauver amendment), and especially the early cases brought to court, made antitrust expertise more valuable in the private marketplace. There was a clear increase in the demand for these skills so that a young lawyer had a great deal to gain by working in the Antitrust Division. What’s more, he or she had even more to gain from the specific experience of arguing cases at trial in the federal courts. Lawyers at the Antitrust Division have every incentive to choose cases that will go to trial, and go to trial quickly, regardless of the efficacy of the action in combating monopoly, or its effect on consumer welfare. A similar study focuses on the FTC.8 The study found that the ultimate career objective of most FTC lawyers was a job at a prestigious private law firm. Robert Katzmann writes that some cases threaten the morale of the staff because they often involve years of tedious investigation before they reach the trial stage.9 Therefore, the FTC opens a number of easily prosecuted matters, which may have little value to the consumer . . . in an effort to satisfy the staff’s perceived needs.10 One FTC attorney is quoted in the study as saying, for me, each complaint is an opportunity, a vehicle which someday could take me into the courtroom. I want to go to trial so badly that there are times when I overstate the possibilities which the particular matter might offer.11 It’s clear from studies like these that the antitrust bureaucracy doesn’t select cases to prosecute on the basis of their potential net benefit to society. Instead, the staff at FTC and the Antitrust Division use the discretion that they do have to further their own private interests and careers rather than those of the public at large. The antitrust bureaucracy cannot be counted on to uphold the public interest in enforcing antitrust laws. Although the antitrust bureaucrats would like to exercise complete control over their enforcement agendas, they are ultimately accountable to their congressional oversight and appropriations committees. Now, consider the incentives of members of Congress. The goal for most members is to get re-elected or ascend to a higher office. There is a much greater chance that this will happen if they support local or narrow interests rather than some vague notion of the national or public interest. Antitrust is one of many pork-barrel programs that Congress uses to transfer wealth from large, unorganized groups of individuals to the narrow, organized interests of others. In many ways, antitrust is the perfect wealth-transfer vehicle. It is highly inconspicuous, covering the entire economy rather than just specific industries. It applies to specific business practices, and can therefore be used to protect less efficient companies from their more efficient competitors. Antitrust can therefore deliver potent benefits (directly limiting the competitiveness of one’s rivals), while the costs occupy a tiny line on the federal budget and are hardly noticeable at all. The stockholders of the protected company gain at the expense of the stockholders of the more efficient, yet legally hampered, competitor. The evidence on the matter is clear. Antitrust enforcement falls less stringently on companies headquartered in the congressional districts of members on the key committees with oversight and budget authority over the antitrust bureaus.12 And if a committee’s membership changes significantly, the antitrust bureaucracy changes as well. After the 1976 and 1978 elections, the key oversight committees experienced rapid turnover of its members. Prior to that, the FTC had a very avid enforcement agenda. But the new committee members found their constituent interests demanded a different approach. Therefore, in 1979, the Congress blasted the FTC as a runaway and out-of-control bureaucracy. After a series of heated hearings, the FTC systematically watered down or simply halted most of its controversial activities. As the currents change in pork-barrel waters, so too does the antitrust bureaucracy. Other aspects of antitrust also reveal private interests at work. While the original Sherman Act was ostensibly supposed to rein in the dangerous concentrations of wealth among the giant monopolies of the day, history reveals little monopoly power existed at the time. Prices were falling throughout the economy and output was surging.13 This only serves to benefit consumers, and Congress even recognized this as true.14 So why did Congress enact an antimonopoly law in such an apparently competitive climate? Because the law protected small or inefficient businesses from the rigors of competition, and it portrayed Congress as a champion of justice and freedom. Other studies find similar results for the Clayton Act.15 Still other studies show that antitrust not only fails to benefit consumers, but also harms them. The conclusion from examining the incentives created by antitrust laws, and actions taken under them, is that antitrust laws do not serve the public interest as their supporters would claim. Antitrust does not combat the monopoly threat, but rather protects less efficient companies from their competitive rivals, bolsters the political capital of members of Congress, and furthers the careers of Washington bureaucrats. In short, the only thing that antitrust makes more efficient is the cozy triangle of special interests. Classical liberals should take the threat of monopoly seriously. But the answer to this threat is not antitrust laws. Any potential monopoly must instead be exposed to the discipline of market competition. Economists have long made convincing arguments that a natural monopoly is rare. Most monopolies exist because of government intervention. By repealing antitrust statutes, and ending government-sponsored monopoly, we will allow the threat of monopoly to be dealt with in the most effective manner possible: the market process. Adam Smith rightly warned us of the dangers of business conspiracies. But in the same famous passage quoted earlier, he went on to warn of the even greater danger of relying on government institutions to combat it: It is impossible indeed to prevent such meetings, by any law which either could be executed, or would be consistent with liberty and justice. But though the law cannot hinder people of the same trade from sometimes assembling together, it ought to do nothing to facilitate such assemblies; much less to render them necessary. 1. Howard Putnam taped this conversation. It was entered as evidence in the case brought by the government against American Airlines and Crandall. Quoted from Roger E. Meiners, Al H. Ringleb, and Frances L. Edwards, The Legal Environment of Business, 3rd ed., p. 401. 2. Dennis W. Carlton and Jeffrey M. Perloff, Modern Industrial Organization, pp. 181-183, and Richard A. Posner, The Social Cost of Monopoly and Regulation, Journal of Political Economy, 83:807-827. 3. Probably most successful monopolization is achieved through government protection. 4. A compelling case has been made along these lines by D. T. Armentano. See Antitrust and Monopoly (New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1982) and Antitrust Policy: The Case for Repeal (Washington, D.C.: Cato Institute, 1986). 5. This arrangement has been the subject of widespread and extensive criticism, which typically calls for the elimination of the FTC. See Richard S. Higgins, William F. Shughart II, and Robert D. Tollison, Dual Enforcement of the Antitrust Laws, in Robert J. Mackay, James C. Miller III, and Bruce Yandle, eds., Public Choice and Regulation: A View from Inside the Federal Trade Commission (Stanford, Calif.: Hoover Institution Press, 1987). 6. Barry R. Weingast and Mark J. Moran, Bureaucratic Discretion or Congressional Control? Regulatory Policymaking by the Federal Trade Commission, Journal of Political Economy, October 1983, 91:765-800. 7. Suzanne Weaver, The Decision to Prosecute: Organization and Public Policy in the Antitrust Division (Cambridge: MIT Press, 1977). 8. Robert A. Katzmann, Regulatory Bureaucracy: The Federal Trade Commission and Antitrust Policy (Cambridge: MIT Press, 1980). 9. Ibid., p. 83. 11. Ibid., p. 61. 12. Richard A. Posner, The Federal Trade Commission, University of Chicago Law Review, 37:47-89, 1969. Roger L. Faith, Donald R. Leavens, and Robert D. Tollison, Antitrust Porkbarrel, Journal of Law and Economics, 15:329-342, 1982. 13. Thomas J. DiLorenzo, The Origins of Antitrust: An Interest-Group Perspective, International Review of Law and Economics, 5:73-90, 1985. 14. Ibid., pp. 80-81. 15. Robert B. Ekelund, Michael J. McDonald, and Robert D. Tollison, Business Restraints and the Clayton Act of 1914: Public- or Private-Interest Legislation? in Fred S. McChesney and William F. Shughart, The Causes and Consequences of Antitrust: The Public Choice Perspective (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1994). Mr. Lopez is Charles G. Koch Research Fellow at the Center for Market Processes and H. B. Earhart Doctoral Fellow in economics at George Mason University.
Frequently Asked Questions What is an Opportunity Zone? According to the IRS, an Opportunity Zone is an economically-distressed community area where new investments may be eligible for preferential tax treatment. Community areas qualify as Opportunity Zones if they have been nominated by the state and certified by the U.S. Treasury. Opportunity Zones must be created within low-income communities as defined by Section 45D(e) of the Internal Revenue Code—census tracts with a poverty rate of at least 20 percent or where the median family income does not exceed 80 percent of statewide median income. A maximum of 25 percent of a state’s low-income census tracts may be designated as Opportunity Zones. How did Chicago decide which areas to recommend as Opportunity Zones? The City of Chicago recommended 133 census tracts — out of more than 500 eligible tracts in the City — to the State of Illinois for designation as Opportunity Zones, as well as two additional tracts that make up the former Michael Reese Hospital site. The selection of the 133 census tracts focuses on areas of the city in greatest need, using data from the 2011-2015 U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS). The City used the following factors to select the tracts: - Unemployment rate of 20 percent or more - Median family income of less than $38,000, which is approximately 50 percent of Area Median Income - Poverty rate of 30 percent or more The City consulted with aldermen to confirm that the identified tracts within communities with these three qualifying factors were also the tracts that had the most investment potential. In certain limited instances, eligible tracts from within the same community in which economic development activity is underway or which eligible tracts are adjacent to a tract in which development is underway were strategically exchanged.
The Expanding the Family Circle training offers strategies for working with all members of the family system The Expanding the Family Circle training and curriculum was developed through a Child Welfare Training grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service’s Children’s Bureau. This grant supported a collaborative, community-based approach to designing a curriculum that sought multiple perspectives and partnerships across New York State. The training was developed by a team of individuals with expertise across a range of areas. Significant input came from focus groups with women of color who had direct experience with child welfare services. In addition, members of New York State’s Native American Family Services Commission met with the curriculum team over the life of the project to help the training support Indian Child Welfare goals. The curriculum also drew on partnerships between the School of Social Welfare at the University at Albany and the New York Sate Office of Child and Family Services’ Bureau of Training; this helped ensure that the new training would build on existing child welfare training curricula in the state. New York State’s Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence provided valuable information and feedback regarding content on intimate partner violence. The training approach is centered on adult learning principles and uses the ecological perspective and family systems theory as guiding frameworks for the content. Several underlying principles guided the work of the curriculum development team: Families are diverse across cultures and communities. Parents can be partners in raising their children even if they are not in the same household. Fathers can contribute to the well-being of their policies that will support them as parents. Couple relationships build on parents’ individual strengths to sustain healthy supportive relationships with spouses and potential spouses, including attention to the emotional and physical safety for both parents, the individual and joint capacity to understand and control fertility choices, and the individual and joint capacity to manage and plan their financial lives. The Expanding the Family Circle training, designed to be delivered over two consecutive days, teaches a framework for the experienced caseworker to integrate a culturally competent family-centered approach to casework practice with all families engaged in child welfare services. The training offers skills and strategies for working with all members of a family system, including couples, resident and non-resident fathers, extended family members and community supports. Participants will identify benefits and learn to address barriers to working across an entire family system with a culturally competent approach. The training is organized into six modules designed to engage participants and promote trust-building as they move through the modules. Participants first learn the necessary concepts of cultural competence then learn how to integrate that learning into their practice and everyday life. Grant # 90CT0120/02 was a discretionary grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children’s Bureau to the School of Social Welfare at the University at Albany and ran from October 2003 to July 2009
Timothy George, dean of Beeson Divinity School, is a longtime participant in Evangelicals and Catholics Together, an initiative that seeks common ground between these historically antagonistic traditions. He spoke with Christianity Today assistant editor Collin Hansen. For George's discussion of how "the greatest pope since the Reformation" changed evangelicalism, see his interview in Christianity Today. For much of Protestant history, Catholics have been derided as "papists." The office of pope symbolized what was wrong with Catholicism. Now, with Pope John Paul II's death, you don't often hear that rhetoric in sermons. When did this begin to change? I think it's a fairly recent phenomenon. If you go back to the election of John F. Kennedy in 1960, you have a watershed moment. You would find on the Protestant side a lot of anti-Catholic rhetoric and deep reservation. Just look at the newspapers and some of the sermons and read about the dangers that would happen if you elect a Catholic President who answers to Rome. Certainly Vatican II is another watershed. In the sense that Vatican II falls far short of what evangelical Protestants would like to see, it does move significantly beyond where the Roman Catholic church was. Most notably for evangelicals is the role of the Bible, the fact that Roman Catholics now study the Scriptures with a new intensity and devotion that would not have always been the case prior to Vatican II. The stand on religious liberty that Vatican II takes is another example. Those are significant changes that, in some ways, we're just beginning to feel the impact of 40 or 50 years later. But I would not underestimate the role of John Paul II's world historical significance. If there's one thing that evangelical Protestants were against in the '40s, '50s, and '60s, it was communism. Here comes along a Roman Catholic pope who, admittedly with the help of President Reagan and a few other people, was able to radically alter the geo-political landscape. Put Billy Graham in this realm too, in his preaching in the Soviet Union and so forth. So I think that softens some of these attitudes that we used to hear. Other than Billy Graham, have there been other major evangelical figures who tried to bridge the historic divide with Catholicism? Chuck Colson has to be put into that category. At another level I would say Francis Schaeffer, though he was a strait-laced Presbyterian. He recognized the importance of an alliance with Catholics on the issue of sanctity of life. To some extent Carl Henry also fits. He was a member of the editorial board of First Things, for example, which is not strictly a Catholic magazine but has a lot of Catholic influence. So are we living in historic times then? All these names are contemporary. When you think back, whom would you think of? In some ways I would say D. L. Moody. Moody is the forerunner. Moody was the first person, in his 1893 Chicago campaigncalled campaigns back then because the Civil War had campaigns. He was a chaplain in the Civil War. Billy Graham, coming out of World War II, had crusades. But in the 1893 campaign in Chicago, Moody was the first evangelical preacher that I know of who invited Roman Catholic prelates, priests, and bishops to share his platform. And they did. This was well before Billy Graham would actually begin to do it in the '50s. Moody also took up money and helped build a Roman Catholic church in his hometown of Northfield, Massachusetts. So he was very friendly to Catholics. But in some ways Moody was not able to make the kind of sweeping changes that Billy Graham was able to make, because he was limited by the polarized context of his era. Catholicism was so entrenched in his day. We're talking about Vatican I Catholicism. We're talking about Pius IX and those who succeeded him. The doctrine of papal infallibility had just been announced. There was not a good ecumenical spirit flowing back and forth, which in some ways makes Moody all the more interesting in that he stood out against that divide. We're in the flow and flux of it all. It's really hard to evaluate where we are or how historians will look at our times. But there is a sea change that has happened, particularly among evangelicals and Catholics. I think the Evangelicals and Catholics Together movement is evidence of that. Clearly something momentous is afoot. Evangelicals are not Roman Catholics. But we are Catholics in that we affirm the historic orthodox faith. And we want to call the Roman Catholic Church, as we call ourselves, to a further reformation on the basis of the Word of God. That's what we ought to be about. Mark Noll and Carolyn Nystrom have just written a book called Is The Reformation Over? In my endorsement I said, "The Reformation is over only in the sense that to some extent it has succeeded." Which is to say that Roman Catholicism has taken on many, but not all, of the main emphases that come out of Luther. There's a clear movement in that direction, and I think evangelicals can celebrate that and see our commonalities. Certainly the Protestantism of Martin Luther was quite different from that of Jonathan Edwards. Martin Luther did not intend to start a new church. By Edwards's time, it's taken for granted that the bishop of Rome is the Antichrist. Exactly. He's writing a couple of hundred years later, and you've got the hardening of the arteries that has set in on both sides. He's not just reacting against the pope in Luther's day, he's reacting against the Council of Trent and the Counter-Reformation. And that makes it all the more remarkable that we've been able, as it were, in the last 30, 40, 50 years, to find some way to reach out across this great chasm. Collin Hansen is assistant editor for Christianity Today. Copyright © 2005 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information. See our full coverage area on Pope John Paul II. Recent Christianity Today articles on Pope John Paul II include: Pope Gave Evangelicals the Moral Impetus We Didn't Have \| Timothy George discusses how "the greatest pope since the Reformation" changed evangelicalism without us knowing. (April 06, 2005) Pope 'Broadened the Way' for Evangelicals and Catholics \| Theologian Tom Oden sees continued cooperation ahead. (April 05, 2005) Pope Saw His Final Pain as Public Suffering \| John Paul II embodied the "culture of life." (April 05, 2005) How the Pope Turned Me Into An Evangelical \| A Christianity Today associate editor recalls growing up Catholic in John Paul II's Poland. (April 04, 2005) Pope John Paul II and Evangelicals \| Protestants admired his lifelong admonition to "Be not afraid! Open the doors to Christ!" An interview with George Weigel. (April 04, 2005) He Was my Pope, Too \| Now that John Paul II is gone, I am even more of an orphan than the Christians in the Roman church. (April 04, 2005) Protestants Laud Pope for Ecumenical, Social Stands \| He was 'unquestionably the most influential voice for morality and peace in the world during the last 100 years,' says Billy Graham. (April 04, 2005) Pope John Paul II, Leader of World's 1 Billion Roman Catholics, Is Dead at 84 \| Third-longest papacy marked by a passion to evangelize the whole world. (April 04, 2005) 'Hymn for Easter Day' \| Charles Wesley's 'Christ the Lord Is Risen Today' brings alleluia's historical significance to modern audiences. (March 24, 2005) The Jewishness of the Nicene Creed \| It was the Bible, not Greek philosophy, that shaped the theology of the Nicene bishops. (Feb. 25, 2005) Still Fighting over Nicaea \| The Anglican Communion dusts off and debates some of the Council of Nicaea's forgotten canons. (Feb. 18, 2005) Dostoyevsky's Disregarded Prophecy \| The famous Russian author shows us what's to fear in a world without God. (Feb. 11, 2005) Losing Jesus' Language \| The Assyrians, Iraq's main Christian population, struggle to keep their heritage and their ancient language. (Feb. 04, 2005) Tsunami Catastrophe: 'Let My Heart Be Broken ' \| World Vision has changed much over the years, but the vision and compassion of its founder, Bob Pierce, continues to give it heart and soul. (Jan. 28, 2005) Football's Pious Pioneer \| Amos Alonzo Stagg instilled in football Christian values that remain apparent today. (Jan. 14, 2005) The Doctrine Doctor \| Jaroslav Pelikan has written a history of the Christian tradition on a scale no one else has attempted in the twentieth century. (Dec. 30, 2004) The Real Twelve Days of Christmas \| Celebrating Christ's birth with saints of the faith during the actual Christmas season. (Dec. 23, 2004) Compassionate in War, Christian in Vision \| The man behind the Geneva Conventions knew the heights of success and the depths of failure. (Dec. 16, 2004)
Risk Assessment Studies Report No. 23 Ochratoxin A in Food Centre for Food Safety The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region This is a publication of the Centre for Food Safety of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Under no circumstances should the research data contained herein be reproduced, reviewed, or abstracted in part or in whole, or in conjunction with other publications or research work unless a written permission is obtained from the Centre for Food Safety. Acknowledgement is required if other parts of this publication are used. Table of Contents Scope of Study Conclusions and Recommendations Advice to Trade Advice to Consumers Annex 1 : Legal limits for ochratoxin A in different food products set by the European Commission Annex 2: Levels of ochratoxin A in various food groups Ochratoxin A is a toxic and potentially carcinogenic fungal toxin found in a variety of food commodities. This study conducted by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department aims to assess the levels of ochratoxin A in foods in Hong Kong and the levels of exposure in secondary school students to this substance. A total of 287 food samples were taken from the local retail market for ochratoxin A analysis. Majority of food samples including local staple food of steamed rice, noodles and congee were not found to contain measurable amounts of ochratoxin A. Presence of measurable amount of ochratoxin A was reported in 101 food items (35% of all samples) with levels ranged from 0.01 – 2.09 mg/kg, all of which were below the draft Codex standard of 5 mg/kg. Dietary exposures to ochratoxin A for average and high consumers of secondary school students were estimated to be 3.88 and 8.97 ng/kg body weight/week respectively, both levels were well below the provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) of 100 ng/kg body weight established by JECFA. The results suggested that both the average and high consumers of secondary school students are unlikely to experience major toxicological effects of ochratoxin A. This study aims to determine the prevailing levels of ochratoxin A in food available in the local market in Hong Kong, and to investigate the dietary exposure to ochratoxin A in secondary school students. Nature of ochratoxin A 2. Ochratoxins are a group of mycotoxins produced as secondary metabolites by several fungi of the Aspergillus or Penicillium families and are weak organic acids consisting of a derivative of an isocoumarin (Figure 1). The family of ochratoxins consists of three members, A, B, and C which differ slightly from each other in chemical structures. These differences, however, have marked effects on their respective toxic potentials. Ochratoxin A is the most abundant and hence the most commonly detected member but is also the most toxic of the three 1, 2, 3 , It is a potent toxin affecting mainly the kidney. As in other mycotoxins, ochratoxin A can contaminate a wide variety of foods as a result of fungal infection in crops, in the field during growth, at harvest, in storage and in shipment under favourable environmental conditions especially when they are not properly dried. Ochratoxin A may be present in a foodstuff even when the visible mould is not seen. Figure 1. Ochratoxin A Occurrence and common food products involved 3. Ochratoxin A is found mainly in cereal and cereal products. This group of commodities has been reported to be the main contributors to ochratoxin A exposure in exposure assessments carried out by the European Commission 4, 5 , accounting for 50% of total dietary exposure of ochratoxin A in European countries (SCOOP task 3.2.7, 2002). 4. Besides cereals and cereal products, ochratoxin A is also found in a range of other food commodities, including coffee, cocoa, wine, beer, pulses, spices, dried fruits, grape juice, pig kidney and other meat and meat products of non-ruminant animals exposed to feedstuffs contaminated with this mycotoxin. Ruminant animals such as cows and sheep are generally resistant to the effects of ochratoxin A due to hydrolysis to the non-toxic metabolites by protozoa in the stomachs before absorption into the blood 6 . Associated fungal species and geographical distributions 5. The frequency of the occurrence of the different species of ochratoxin A- producing fungi differs according to the geographical regions and in the commodities affected. The Penicillium species that is associated with ochratoxin A production, Penicillium verrucosum, is a common storage fungus and is the source of ochratoxin A in crops in the cool temperate regions such as Canada, eastern and north western Europe and parts of South America. It grows only at temperatures below 30°C and at a lower water activity 7 . Penicillium species may produce ochratoxin at temperatures as low as 5°C 8 . 6. In contrast, Aspergillus species appears to be limited to conditions of high humidity and temperature growing in the tropical and subtropical climates and is the source of contamination for coffee and cocoa beans, spices, dried vine fruit, grape juice and wine. Aspergillus ochraceus is the best known species of ochratoxin –producing Aspergillus. It grows at moderate temperatures and at a high water activity and is a significant source of ochratoxin A in cereals. It infects coffee beans usually during sun-drying causing contamination in green coffee. 7. Aspergillus carbonarius is highly resistant to sunlight and survives sun-drying because of its black spores and therefore grows at high temperatures. It is associated with maturing fruits and is the source of ochratoxin A in grapes, dried vine fruits, and wine and is also another source of ochratoxin A in coffee. 8. Another closely related species, Aspergillus niger, is another minor source of ochratoxin A production in infected coffee beans and dried vine fruits. Chemistry and effects of processing 9. Ochratoxin A is a moderately stable molecule and is able to survive most food processing to some extent and may thus occur in consumer products. Processing may involve boiling, baking, roasting or fermentation, and the degree to which it is destroyed will further depend on other parameters such as pH, temperature and the other ingredients present. Ochratoxin A is only partly destroyed during cooking and bread making. Baking and roasting have been reported to reduce the toxin content by a mere 20% 9, 10 , However, physical treatment of grain, such as scouring while cleaning the grain prior to milling, can result in a >50% reduction of ochratoxin A contamination in the resultant wheat flour. Milling seems to have no or only a minor effect on the level of ochratoxin A 11 . Sources of human exposure 10. Dietary intake represents the main source of ochratoxin A in human. Human exposure to ochratoxin A occurs mainly through consumption of contaminated crops or food derived from animals exposed to contaminated feedstuffs. Occupational exposures from inhalation of dust at grain storage warehouses are uncommon. Levels of ochratoxin A in human can be measured by detection of ochratoxin A in human blood and breast milk. A collaborative survey carried out by 13 member states in European Commission in 1995 (SCOOP task 3.2.2) estimated ochratoxin A intakes in human based on plasma levels of the toxin as a biomarker and found that similar levels were obtained by estimations from dietary exposure from food surveys. This suggests that the main sources of ochratoxin A are the known dietary sources covered in the food surveys. Toxicity and health implications 11. Ochratoxin A is absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. In most species, ochratoxin A is absorbed from the stomach as a result of its acidic properties 12 . Absorption also takes place in the small intestine particularly in the proximal jejunum. In non-ruminant species such as pigs, chickens, rabbits and rats, around half of the ingested ochratoxin A may be absorbed 13, 14 , The absorbed ochratoxin A is distributed via blood, mainly to the kidneys, and at lower concentrations to the liver, muscle and fat, with a proportion metabolised into the non-toxic metabolite ochratoxin alpha and other less toxic minor metabolites at various sites in different species 12, and a significant proportion excreted unchanged. Ochratoxin A has a long serum half-life in non-ruminant animals and in humans (72-120 h in pigs, 840 h in a human subject) on the basis of its strong binding to serum macromolecules. 12. In ruminant species such as the cow, effective hydrolysis of ochratoxin A to the non-toxic ochratoxin alpha takes place in the four stomachs in the presence of the ruminant protozoa 6 rendering the species resistant to the effects of the toxin. 13. Transfer to the milk has been demonstrated in rats, rabbits and humans. In contrast, little ochratoxin A is transferred to the milk of ruminants, again due to metabolism of this mycotoxin by the rumen microflora. 14. The acute toxicity of ochratoxin A is relatively low, although large species differences and sensitivity are seen with oral LD50 values ranging widely in different species. Oral LD50 values has been demonstrated to range from 0.2 mg/kg bw in dogs, 1 mg/kg bw in pigs, 3.3 mg/kg bw in chicken, and 46-58 mg/kg bw in mouse. Dogs and pigs have been reported to be the most sensitive species . Effects of acute poisoning such as multifocal haemorrhages in various organs and fibrin thrombi in the spleen, brain, liver, kidney and heart have been reported following single dose administration. Nephrosis, hepatic and lymphoid necrosis, and enteritis with villous atrophy have also been observed in the test species 16, 17 , At present, there are no documented cases of acute toxicity reported in humans. 15. The subchronic and chronic effects of ochratoxin A are of greatest concern. Ochratoxin A has been shown to be nephrotoxic, hepatotoxic, teratogenic and immunotoxic to several species of animals and carcinogenic in mice and rats causing tumours of the kidney and liver. 16. In particular, its role in chronic nephropathies has been extensively documented in many mammalian species. Ochratoxin A is considered the causal agent in nephropathies observed in several species of agricultural animals, particularly in pigs. It has produced nephrotoxic effects in all species of single - stomach animals studied so far, even at the lowest level tested (200 μg/kg feed in rats and pigs). 17. Ochratoxicosis in farm animals such as pigs and poultry may lead to pathological changes in the kidney such as tubular atrophy, interstitial fibrosis and hyalinised glomeruli. The main target site of ochratoxin A toxicity is the renal proximal tubule, where it exerts cytotoxic and carcinogenic effects. Significant sex and species differences in sensitivity to nephrotoxicity have been observed where pigs have been found to be a more sensitive species compared with rats or mouse. 18. In human, dietary exposure to ochratoxin A in parts of Bulgaria, Romania and the former Yugoslavia may have association with Balkan endemic nephropathy, a chronic progressive kidney disease, that is characterised by progressive hypercreatinaemia, uraemia, hypertension and oedema. 20 19. Ochratoxin A has been known to cause hepatic damage and hepatic necrosis in experimental animals. It is a potent teratogen in mice, rats, hamsters and chicken. Both teratogenic and reproductive effects have been demonstrated. 20. Ochratoxin A has been reported to be an immunosuppressor and affects the immune system in a number of mammalian species. It was able to cause inhibition of protein biosynthesis and inhibition of macrophage migration 18 . 21. Ochratoxin A was tested for carcinogenicity by oral administration in mice and rats. Increased incidence of hepatocellular tumours in mice of each sex, and association with renal-cell adenomas and carcinomas have been reported in male mice and in rats of each sex fed with ochratoxin A. In 1993, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified ochratoxin A as possible human carcinogen (Group 2B) and concluded that there was sufficient evidence in experimental animals for the carcinogenicity of ochratoxin A and inadequate evidence in humans for the carcinogenicity of ochratoxin A 19. The doses at which carcinogenicity were observed in rodents had been reported to be higher than those that caused nephrotoxicity. 22. Ochratoxin A has been shown to induce DNA damage, DNA repair, and chromosomal aberrations in mammalian cells in vitro as well as DNA damage and chromosomal aberrations in mice treated in vivo. However, the mechanism for genotoxicity is unclear and there was no evidence that it is mediated by direct interaction with DNA. Observations in humans 23. Human exposure, as demonstrated by the occurrence of ochratoxin A in blood, and in human milk, has been observed in various countries in Europe. Ochratoxin A was found more frequently and high concentrations in blood samples obtained from people living in regions where the fatal human kidney disease, Balkan Endemic Nephropathy, occurs. A highly significant relationship has been observed between Balkan endemic nephropathy and tumours of the urinary tract, particularly with tumours of the renal pelvis and ureters. Nevertheless, similar average concentrations have been found in some other European countries where this disease is not observed. The Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) concluded in 2001 that the epidemiological and clinical data available do not provide a basis for calculating the likely carcinogenic potency in human and that Balkan Endemic Nephropathy may involve other nephrotoxic agents. 18 Level of safe intake of ochratoxin A 24. Following the evaluations carried out in 1990, 1995 and 2001 for ochratoxin A, JECFA has established a provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) of 100 ng/kg bw/wk for this substance. 20 25. The European Commission's Scientific Committee for Food (SCF), after reviewing its opinion on ochratoxin A, concluded in 1998 that it would be prudent to reduce exposure to ochratoxin A as much as possible, ensuring that exposures are towards the lower end of the range of tolerable daily intakes which has been estimated by other bodies, at a level below 5 ng/kg bw/ day. 21 26. Tolerable intake, which can be expressed in daily, weekly (e.g. PTWI) or monthly basis is an estimate of the amount of a contaminant that can be ingested over a lifetime without appreciable risk. An intake above PTWI does not automatically mean that health is at risk. Transient excursion above the PTWI would have no health consequences provided that the average intake over long period is not exceeded as the emphasis of PTWI is a lifetime exposure. 27. Values for the estimated dietary exposures to ochratoxin A in European countries range from 0.13 to 4.6 ng/kg bw per day (i.e. 0.91 to 32.2 ng/kg bw per week) with the major source being cereal and cereal products (SCOOP task 3.2.2 and SCOOP 3.2.7). Following the evaluation in 2001 by JECFA, the mean total intake of ochratoxin A at the international level was estimated to be 45 ng/kg bw per week based on aggregated data. This was assessed on the basis of data on mean consumption combined with weighted mean level of contamination 18 . Codex draft limit 28. In the recent sessions of the Codex Committee of Food Additives and Contaminants (CCFAC), there had been active discussions on setting the draft maximum level for ochratoxin A in raw wheat, barley, rye and derived products. A draft maximum level of 5 μg/kg is now held at step 7, pending for JECFA to conduct a more comprehensive risk assessment by 2006. In the 37th session of CCFAC held in April 2005, ochratoxin A was considered a high priority item for evaluation by JECFA, with particular reference to ochratoxin A levels in cereals, exposure assessment, and effects of processing on residual levels in foods. Legal limits in some countries 29. Legal limits of ochratoxin A have been set in a number of food commodities including cereals and cereal products, dried vine fruits, roasted and soluble coffee, wine, grape juice, and foods for infants and children by the European Commission under EC regulation 466/2001 22 , 472/2002 23, 24 , and 123/2005 25 . The updated limits set for different food items are listed in Annex 1. Study on ochratoxin A in food 30. Studies on levels of ochratoxin A in food, so far, have been conducted mainly in the West. Consequentially, international data accumulated at present are confined principally to the Western diet. Little is known about levels of ochratoxin A with regards to the rice-based Eastern diet pertaining to the weather conditions in countries in the East. The present study was carried out to evaluate the local situation of the levels of ochratoxin A in food, and to estimate the dietary exposure to ochratoxin A in secondary school students population in Hong Kong in order to assess if there is any associated health risk. 31. In this study, the potentials for any risks to health posed by ochratoxin A exposure from food intake are assessed by (1) comparing the prevailing levels of ochratoxin A in Hong Kong with reported levels in the international community and to the draft limit of 5 μg/kg proposed by Codex, and (2) comparing the dietary exposure to ochratoxin A with the appropriate safe exposure levels, the Provisional Tolerable Weekly Intakes (PTWIs), recommended by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA). \| SCOPE OF STUDY 32. To study the prevailing levels of ochratoxin A in the Hong Kong retail market, this study covers major food commodities associated with ochratoxin A contamination including (i) cereals and cereal products, (ii) legumes, pulses and products (iii) meat, poultry and products (including offals), (iv) chocolate and cocoa products, (v) dried fruits, (vi) juice drinks, (vii) coffee and tea, and (viii) spices and condiments. 33. In order to assess the dietary exposure of secondary school student to ochratoxin A, the food items used for exposure assessment were based on those covered in the Food Consumption Survey in Secondary School Students carried out by FEHD in 2000 including the following food groups: (i) cereals and cereal products, (ii) legumes, pulses and products (iii) meat, poultry and products (including offals), (iv) chocolate, (v) dried fruits, (vi) juice drinks, and (vii) coffee and tea. In the FEHD Food Consumption Survey 2000, no individual consumption data is available for spices. It is expected that part of the dietary exposure to ochratoxin A due to spices may be included in the seasoned or marinated food items in this study. 34. This study did not cover food sources which are not associated with ochratoxin A contamination such as seafood. Products from ruminant animals (beef and milk) were not covered because they are generally not subject to the effects of ochratoxin A. 35. Food samples were taken from the food groups cereals and cereal products, legumes, pulses and products, meat, poultry and products (including offals), chocolate and cocoa products, dried fruits, juice drinks, coffee and tea, as well as local spices and condiments. Food items that are sold loose or pre-packed were included in the study. All samples in the study were analysed on an individual basis. 36. Food samples were purchased from different premises in the local market, including supermarkets and fresh provision shops, in different locations in Hong Kong according to the food groups as mentioned in paragraph 32 (Scope of study) and sent to the Food Research Laboratory (FRL) of the Centre for Food Safety for analyses. 37. Samples were analysed raw or cooked. For samples used for exposure analyses, samples were processed “as consumed” in the normal edible forms, which may involve cooking or after some forms of preparation as appropriate for the respective food items. 38. Laboratory analysis for the detection and quantification of ochratoxin A was conducted by FRL using the method of High Performance Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS), using ochratoxin B (OTB) as an internal standard. All samples underwent processing steps of extraction, sample cleanup by immunoaffinity column and pre-concentration before submitting to HPLC-MS/MS for analyses of ochratoxin A levels. The limits of detection (LOD) achieved for solid and liquid samples were 0.05 μg/kg and 0.005 μg/kg respectively. These values compare favourably with LODs reported in overseas countries. 39. When the analytical value was below the LOD, the true value could be anywhere between zero and the LOD. In this study, the value of 1/2-LOD was assigned to all test results below LOD for the calculation of mean ochratoxin A levels in food commodities and for estimating the dietary exposure. Since the level of contaminants in food usually follows a log-normal distribution, assigning a value of 1/2 LOD to all non-detected levels is considered a conservative approach. Dietary Exposure Assessment 40. Dietary exposures from individual food items were obtained based on the food consumption data (see paragraph 43) and the concentrations of ochratoxin A present in food. 41. Daily dietary exposure was multiplied by seven to obtain the weekly exposure level. Total exposure for each student was obtained by summing exposures from all food items. The mean and 95th percentile of the weekly exposure levels were used to represent the average dietary exposure and the exposure for high consumers respectively. 42. The estimated weekly exposure levels were then compared with the PTWI as established by JECFA. Food Consumption Data 43. The food consumption data in this report were extracted from the Food Consumption Survey conducted in local secondary school students in 2000 by FEHD. In the survey, a stratified three-stage sampling plan was used, with a sampling frame of 472 secondary schools and more than 380,000 students, covering almost all the local secondary schools. A total of 967 students from 27 schools participated in the survey yielding a response rate of 77% at the school level and 96% at the student level. The mean weight of the participated students was 52.0kg 26 . Levels of occurrence of ochratoxin A in the local market in Hong Kong 44. A total of 287 food samples were collected and sent to FRL for ochratoxin A analyses. 320 analyses were carried out for raw and cooked food items. The results for the prevailing levels of ochratoxin A in foods available in the local market in Hong Kong are shown in Annex 2. 45. Of the 287 food samples tested, ochratoxin A was reported in 101 items (35%). The measured concentration of ochratoxin A ranged from 0.01 to 2.09 μg/kg. 65% of the samples were below LOD. In particular, measurements for all 37 samples (64 analyses for uncooked and cooked items) in the group “rice and rice products” were all below LOD. Food Consumption Data 46. Food consumption data for the different food groups are given in Table 1. Concentrations of Ochratoxin A in Food 47. Food items used in exposure assessment were based on availability of Food Consumption data in the Food Consumption Survey 2000 for secondary school students. The median value for ochratoxin A concentration for each food group is shown in Table 2. Dietary Exposures to Ochratoxin A Average Secondary School Students 48. The dietary exposure to ochratoxin A for average secondary school students was estimated to be 3.88 ng/kg bw/week. The main dietary source of ochratoxin A was cereal and cereal products which contributed 61 % of the total exposure. This was followed by “Meat, poultry and their products” which contributed 22 %. Dietary exposures to ochratoxin A from different food groups are shown in Table 3. 49. Further analysis was undertaken to estimate the exposure level for high consumers. The 95th percentile exposure level of the secondary school students was used to represent the dietary exposure to ochratoxin A for high consumers and was estimated to be 8.97 ng/kg bw/week . Comparison with PTWI 50. Dietary exposures to ochratoxin A for the average secondary school students and the high consumers were compared with the PTWI established by JECFA (Table 4). Levels of ochratoxin A 51. The concentration levels of ochratoxin A in the raw cereal and cereal products tested in this study were all below the draft standard of 5 μg/kg proposed by Codex for raw cereals. Even with the low LOD levels of 0.05 μg/kg achieved in the FRL, only 35 % of all the food items tested in this study were detected with ochratoxin A levels. In particular, none of the food items in the subgroup “rice and rice products”, which are staple food items with high consumption level in the local diet, had measurable levels of ochratoxin A. Ochratoxin A levels of <1 μg/kg in rice flour and rice-based cereals in Canada 27 and Italy 28 , and levels of 0.9 to 6.0 μg/kg in rice in Korea have been reported 29 . A recent study carried out in Taiwan in 2005 30 also reported no measurable ochratoxin A level in rice and rice products in 75 samples tested based on the limit of detection of 0.3 μg/kg. 52. The concentrations of ochratoxin A in all other food items in other food groups were low and were all below the 5 μg/kg level. 53. The reported levels of ochratoxin A in all food items tested in our study were also below the legal limits for the respective commodities in the European Union and other countries. 54. The low levels of ochratoxin A reported in this study indicated that the qualities of food commodities available in the retail market in Hong Kong are good. The low incidence in ochratoxin A contamination suggested a low rate of infection of the ochratoxin- producing fungi with subsequent production of toxin which may be due to good storage and weather conditions in our food supply. 55. The dietary exposure to ochratoxin A for an average secondary school student was estimated to be 3.88 ng/kg bw/week while that for the high consumer was 8.97 ng/kg bw/week, amounting to 4% and 9% of the PTWI. Exposures to ochratoxin A for an average student and high consumer were both well below the PTWI established by JECFA of 100 ng/kg bw/week. These values were also below the tolerable daily intake established by the European Commission Scientific Committee for Food (ECSCF) of 5 ng/kg bw/day. Exposure estimates in the range 0.91 to 32.2 ng/kg bw per week were reported in the European Union. In Korea, an estimated probable daily intake for consumers has been reported to be in the range of 0.8 – 4.1 ng/kg bw/day. Exposure estimates for the Hong Kong secondary school student were in the lower ends of these levels reported in other countries. The low dietary exposure to ochratoxin A reported in this study indicates that it is unlikely that food commodities available in the retail market in Hong Kong would pose adverse health risk to the consumers with respect to ochratoxin A toxicity. Contributions from Different Food Groups to Total Dietary Exposure 56. In our study, the main dietary source of ochratoxin A was “cereals and cereal products”, which contributed to 61% of the total exposure. This is consistent with international data where cereals and cereal products were commonly reported as the major source of ochratoxin A exposure. Collated exposure data in the European Union (SCOOP task 3.2.7) reported a 50% contribution of the group “cereals and cereal products” to the total exposure. Risk assessment of ochratoxin A in the Netherlands reported that 55% of the total ochratoxin A intake from the diet was from cereals 31,. Despite the high proportion of the dietary intake of ochratoxin A due to cereals, the actual exposure to ochratoxin A through the consumption of cereals and cereal products in Hong Kong is low amounting to a mere 2.36 ng/kg bw/week. 57. “Meat, poultry and their products” ranked second accounting for 22% in the contribution to the total exposure of ochratoxin A. It is also the second highest food group for consumption level for secondary school student (Table 1). The exposure level due to this group is low amounting to only 0.85 ng/kg bw/week (Table 3). Food items within the group “meat, poultry and their products” would also have incorporated spices and condiments in their processing. Therefore, the exposure level due to “Meat, poultry and their products” included part of the ochratoxin A exposure due to spices and condiments which would augment the contributions and the amount of ochratoxin A exposure due to meat sources. 58. In the survey for the level of ochratoxin A occurrence, low levels of ochratoxin A contamination are reported for the group “spices and condiments”. Survey results reported low ochratoxin A contamination in 16 out of 52 samples (31%) tested, all with levels below 1 μg/kg . The concentrations of ochratoxin A in the local spices (<0.05 to 0.82 μg/kg) and condiments (<0.005 to 0.99 μg/kg) were low compared with international data. In 2002, SCOOP task 3.2.7 reported an average ochratoxin A level of 1.15 μg/kg (<0.1 to 23.8 μg/kg) in the food group “spices” among member countries. A survey on spices carried out by Food Standard Agency of the United Kingdom (UKFSA) in 2005 reported a range of 0.3 to 47.7 μg/kg of ochratoxin A levels for chilli powder, cayenne pepper and paprika 32 . 59. In this study, separate consumption data for spices is not available from the food consumption data source, “FEHD Food Consumption Survey 2000”. In order to estimate dietary exposure of ochratoxin A due to spices, the consumption levels for spices used by the SCOOP task 3.2.7 (Italian food consumption data) were used as a surrogate value, i.e. 2.1 g and 6.5 g per person per day for the average and high (95th percentile) consumer respectively. Taking this consumption data and the average ochratoxin A level of 0.17 μg/kg in spices obtained in our current study, it is estimated that an exposure of 0.05 ng/kg bw/week and 0.15 ng/kg bw/week may be expected for an average and high consumer respectively (corresponding to 1% and 4% of the estimated total dietary exposure to ochratoxin A, and 0.05% and 0.15% of PTWI, for an average and high consumer respectively). These values suggested that Hong Kong secondary school student may take in only low level of ochratoxin A from local spices. 60. Since ochratoxin A is stable and generally resistant to heat and processing, control of ochratoxin A contamination lies in the control of the growth of the toxin-producing fungi. Effective prevention of ochratoxin A contamination therefore depends on good farming and agricultural practices. Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) including methods to reduce fungal infection and growth during harvest, storage, transport and processing provide the primary line of defense against contamination of crops with ochratoxin A. 61. Specific measures to control the growth of ochratoxin A producing mould and the subsequent production of the toxin include lowering the moisture content of the grain at pre-harvest and harvest stages, employing effective drying processes, and ensuring dry conditions during subsequent storage and transport of the crops. 62. Extra precautions are required when conditions such as frost damage and excessive rainfall occur during preharvest, which may affect levels of ochratoxin A in the harvested grains. 63. Preservation of the grains is an important process in the prevention and reduction of ochratoxin A in cereals. Grain should be allowed to dry as much as possible before harvest. Ideally, grains are best harvested at a water activity below 0.70 (less than 14% moisture content in small grains). When it is not possible (e.g. adverse weather conditions leading to a disrupted harvest with the grain harvested at high moisture contents), grain should be dried to a moisture content corresponding to a water activity of less than 0.70 as quickly as possible immediately after harvest and preferably using heated-air drying. 64. Other general measures for the prevention of mycotoxin contaminations include maintainence of good soil conditions and plant nutrition, prevention of fungal contaminations during planting, minimising insect or mechanical damage during pre-harvest and harvest stages, and avoiding sun-drying of food commodities at high humidity which are prone to fungal infections. 65. Detailed measures and practices based on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) for the prevention and reduction of contamination by ochratoxin A in cereal grains may be obtained in the “Code of practice for the Prevention and Reduction of Mycotoxin Contamination in Cereals, including Annexes on Ochratoxin A, Zearalenone, Fumonisins and Tricothecenes” laid out by Codex Alimentarius Commission in 2003. In addition, an “Ochratoxin A Management System based on Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP)” has also been put forward in this Codex document (CAC/RCP 51, 2003) 33. Food Consumption Survey for Secondary School Students 2000 66. In the food consumption survey, the food consumption pattern of secondary school students was collected using a food frequency questionnaire. Although the food frequency questionnaire used was very comprehensive, it was not possible to cover every single food item, some of which might be relevant to ochratoxin A exposure. FEHD is currently conducting a more comprehensive population-based food consumption survey which would allow more accurate estimates and more comprehensive exposure studies to be conducted in the future. In our study, consumption levels for coffee and tea were grouped and consumption data for spices is not available in our food consumption survey. 67. For exposure analyses, at least three samples for each food item were taken from the retail market in this study. A more precise estimate of the mean ochratoxin A concentration for each particular food item may be obtained by increasing the number of samples taken for each food item for laboratory analysis. However, the number of samples taken has to be balanced with the required resources and the number of food items to be included. \| CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 68. Of 287 food samples tested, measurable amounts of ochratoxin A were found present in 101 food samples tested which account for 35% of all samples. All the 101 samples were reported to have low levels of ochratoxin A ranging from 0.01 to 2.09 μg/kg. These values were below the proposed Codex draft maximum level of 5 μg/kg. This study showed that ochratoxin A levels in cereals and cereal products and other commonly consumed food available in the retail market in Hong Kong were low. In particular, no measurable amount of ochratoxin A was found in our local staple foods of rice and rice products. 69. Dietary exposures to ochratoxin A were estimated to be 3.88 and 8.97 ng/kg body weight/week for average secondary school student and high consumers respectively. These values were far below the provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) of 100 ng/kg body weight established by JECFA in 2001. It can be concluded that secondary school students are unlikely to experience major toxicological effects of ochratoxin A. Advice to trade 70. To minimise ochratoxin A contamination in foods, the trade is advised to: - follow Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) throughout the stages of planting, pre-harvest, harvest, storage, transport, processing and distribution of food commodities; - develop ochratoxin A management system based on Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) for food production; - obtain raw materials from reliable and reputable suppliers; - maintain good storage conditions: - store foods in cool and dry environment - keep stocks according to a first-in-first-out basis - keep proper documentations of control points. Advice to consumers 71. The present study showed that the prevailing levels of ochratoxin A in food available in the local market in Hong Kong are low and does not warrant a change in the dietary pattern for the public. Members of the public are advised to follow the general dietary advice of healthy eating and to note the following: - consume a variety of cereals as the basic requirement of a healthy diet; - have a balanced and varied diet, do not overindulge in a small variety of food items; - take note of the conditions of the food products before purchase; - do not purchase or consume foods with the presence of visible moulds, or foods that are dampened with unexpected moistures; - purchase foods from reliable and reputable retailers; - store foods in a cool, dry place before consumption and according to storage instructions; - avoid stocking up excessive foods and take notice of the durability of foods. - Van der Merwe, K.J., Steyn, P.S., and Fourie, L., Scott, D.B., and Theron, J.J. (1965). Ochratoxin A , a toxic metabolite produced by Aspergillus ochraceus Wilh. Nature 205 (4976): 1112 - Van der Merwe, K.J., Steyn, P.S., and Fourie, L., Mycotoxins. Part II. The constitution of ochratoxin A, B, C, metabolites of Aspergillus ochraceus Wilh. Journal of the Chemical Society 7038: 1965. - Li, S., Marquardt, R.R, Frohlich, A.A., Vitti, T.G., and Crow, G. (1997). Pharmacokinetics of ochratoxin A and its metabolites in rats. Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology 145:82. - European Commission. Assessment of dietary intake of ochratoxin A by the population of EU Member States, (1997) SCOOP. Task 3.2.2. Reports on tasks for scientific cooperation. Report EUR 17523. - European Commission. Reports on tasks for scientific cooperation. (2002) Reports of experts participating in Task 3.2.7. Assessment of dietary intake of ochratoxin A by the population of EU Member States, SCOOP Task 3.2.7, January, 2002. - Kiessling, K.H., Pettersson, H., Sandholm, K. & Olsen, M. (1984) Metabolism of aflatoxin, ochratoxin, zearalenone, and three tricothecenes by intact rumen fluid, rumen protozoa, and rumen bacteria. Appl. Environ. Mircobiol., 47, 1070-1073. - European Mycotoxin Awareness Network. Fact Sheet 3. Ochratoxin A. Available from: URL: http://188.8.131.52/eman2/fsheet3.asp - International Program of Chemical Safety. Selected Mycotoxins: Ochratoxins, tricothecenes, ergot. Environmental Health Criteria 105. World Health Organisation, Geneva, 1990. Available from: URL: http://www.inchem.org/documents/ehc/ehc/ehc105.htm - Berry, L. (1988) The pathology of mycotoxins. Journal of Pathology 154: 301 - Puntaric, D., Bosnir, J., Smit, Z., and Baklaic, Z. (2001). Ochratoxin A in corn and wheat: Geographical association with endemic nephropathy. Croatian Medical Journal. 42(2):175. - Codex alimentarius commission. Position Paper on Ochratoxin A. CCFAC Agenda item 14(a) CX/FAC 99/14. November 1998 - Galtier, P. (1978) Contribution of pharmacokinetics studies to mycotoxicology – Ochratoxin A. Vet. Sci. Commun. 1, 349-358. - Suzuki, S., Satoh, T. & Yamazaki, M . (1977) The pharmacokinetics of ochratoxinA in rats. Jpn. J. Pharmacol., 27, 735-744. - Galtier, P., Alvinerie, M. & Charpenteau, J.L. (1981) The pharmacokinetic profiles of ochratoxin A in pigs, rabbits and chickens. Food Cosmet. Toxicol., 19, 735-738. - Harwig, J., Kuiper-Goodman, T. & Scott, P.M. (1983) Microbial food toxicants: Ochratoxins. In: Rechcigl, M., ed., Handbook of Foodbourne Diseases of Biological Origin, Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, pp. 193-238. - Albassam, MA., Yong, S.I., Bhatnagar, R., Sharma, A.K. & Prior, M.G. (1987) Histopathological and electron microscopic studies on the acute toxicity of ochratoxin A in rats. Vet. Pathol., 424, 427-435. - JECFA. Ochratoxin A (JECFA 47, 2001) Available from: http://www.inchem.org/documents/jecfa/jecmono/v47je04.htm - Creppy EE, Rosechenthaler R & Dirheimer G, (1984). Inhibition of protein synthesis in mice by ochratoxin A and its prevention by phenylalanine. Food. Chem. Toxicol., 22, 883-886. - IARC (1993) Ochratoxin A. In: IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risk of Chemicals to Humans, Vol.56, Lyon: IARC Press, pp. 489 – 521. - JECFA (2002) Evaluation of Certain Mycotoxins in Food. (56th Report of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives). Technical Reports Series No. 906, 2002. - EUROPA European Commission Research. Prevention of ochratoxin A in cereals. Dr. Monica Olsen. Available from URL: http://europa.eu.int/comm/research/quality-of-life/ka1/volume1/qlk1-1999-00433.htm. - European Commission. Commission Regulation (EC) No 466/2001 of 8 March 2001. Official Journal of the European Communities No. L77 1-13. - European Commission. Commission Regulation (EC) No 472/2002 of 12 March 2001. Official Journal of the European Communities No. L75, 18-20. - European Commission. Corrigendum of 23 March 2002. Official Journal of the European Communities No. L80, 42. - European Commission. Commission Regulation (EC) No 123/2005 of 26 January 2005 amending Regulation (EC) No 466/2001 as regards ochratoxin A. Official Journal of the European Union No. L25, 3-5 - FEHD. Food Consumption Survey 2000. Hong Kong Food and Environmental Hygiene Department; 2001. - Lombaert GA, Pellaers P, Roscoe V, Mankotia M, Neil R, Scott PM (2003) Mycotoxins in infant cereal foods from the Canadian retail market. Food Addit Contam. 2003, 20, 494-504 - Biffi R, Munari M, Dioguardi L, Ballabio C, Cattaneo A, Galli CL, Restani P. (2004) Ochratoxin A in conventional and organic cereal derivatives: A survey of the Italian market, 2001-02. Food Addit Contam., 21, 586-591 - Park JW, Chung S-H, and Kim Y-B. (2005). Ochratoxin A in Korean Food Commodities: Occurrence and Safety Evaluation. J. Agri. Food Chem. (53) 4637 – 4642. - Lin L-C, Chen P-C, Fu Y-M and Shih D Y-C. (2005) Ochratoxin A Contamination in Coffees, Cereals, Red Wines and Beers in Taiwan. 13 (1), 84 -92. - Baker M, Pieters MN. (2002) Risk Assessment of ochratoxin A in the Netherlands. RIVM report 388802025/2002. - UKFSA. 2005. Survey of Spices for Aflatoxins and Ochratoxin A. Food Survey Information Sheet. Available at URL: http://www.food.gov.uk/science/surveillance/fsis2005/fsis7305 - Codex Alimentarius Commission. CAC/RCP 51, 2003 Prevention and Reduction of Mycotoxin Contamination in Cereals, including Annexes on Ochratoxin A, Zearalenone, Fumonisins and tricothecenes. Available at URL: http://www.codexalimentarius.net/web/standard_list.jsp Legal limits for ochratoxin A in different food products set by the European Commission: (For details, please refer to Commission Regulation (EC) No.123/2005 of 26 January 2005)
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. It has been rightly proclaimed in the American declaration of independence that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Created with certain unalienable rights….” Similarly, Indian Constitution has ensured and enshrined Fundamental rights for all citizens irrespective of caste, creed, religion, color, sex or nationality. These basic rights, commonly known as human rights, are recognized the world over as basic rights with which every individual is born. In recognition of human rights “The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was made on 10th of December, 1948. This declaration is the basic instrument of human rights. In spite of the fact that this declaration has no legal bindings and authority, it forms the basic of all laws on human rights. The necessity of formulating laws to protect human rights is now being felt all over the world. According to social thinkers the issue of human rights has become very important after the conclusion of World War II. It is important for social stability both at national and international level. Wherever there is breach of human rights there is conflict at one level or the other. In view of the increasing importance of the subject it becomes necessary that the subject of human rights be recognized by educational institutions as an independent discipline. Course contents and curriculum of the discipline of human rights may very according to the nature and circumstances of a particular institution but generally it should include the rights of a child, rights of minorities, rights of the destitute and the disabled, right to live, convention on women, trafficking of women and children for sexual exploitation etc. Since the formation of the United Nations the promotion and protection of human rights has been its main focus. The United Nations has created a wide range of mechanisms for monitoring violations of human rights. The conventional mechanisms include treaties and organizations, U.N. special reporters, representatives and experts and working groups. Asian countries like China argue in favor of collective rights. According to Chinese thinkers European countries lay stress upon individual rights and values while Asian countries esteem collective rights and obligations to the family and society as whole. With freedom movement the world over after World War II the end of colonization also ended the policy of apartheid and thereby the most aggressive violation of human rights. With spread of education women are asserting for their rights. Women’s movements are playing important role in spreading the message of human rights. They are fighting not only for their own rights but are also supporting the struggle for human rights of other weaker and deprived sections like bonded labour, child labour, landless labour, unemployed persons, dalits and elderly people. It is unfortunate that violation of human rights still continues in most parts of the world. Ethnics cleansing and genocide can still be seen in several parts of the world. Large sections of world population are deprived of basic necessities of life i.e. food, shelter and security of life. Right to minimum basic needs viz. work health care, education and shelter are denied to them. These deprivations amount to negation of Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Although advanced countries of the West claim to be the champions of human rights, in practice they follow a partisan political agenda. Some of them are engaged in double-speak of human rights and use it only as an excuse to persue their agenda against the developing and under-developed countries whereby human rights are already violated by them as these are interpreted to suit their malicious activities. Hence, so long as disparity of financial and economic conditions among the developed and developing countries continues, human rights to a vast number of people cannot be guaranteed. International monetary and financial system will have to address for that. Environmental pollution and degradation is becoming a threat to the very survival of human life. Other rights become inconsequential if the very right live is not safe. Information technology is assuming such dimensions that the privacy of life and established moral and ethical standards may be eroded. Indian Govt. is no less concerned about human rights. Human Rights Act 1993 created “The National Human Rights Commission” with the following provisions: (a) The commission is authorized to conduct enquiry on a petition presented to it by a victim or into complaint of violation of human rights or abetment thereof or negligence by some public servant in prevention of such violation. (b) The National Human Rights Commission can also intervene in any proceeding involving any allegation of violation of Human Rights pending before some court with the permission of the court. (c) The commission can visit any prison in the country to study the living conditions of its inmates and make recommendations thereabout. (d) The commission can review the existing safeguards and laws protecting Human Rights and can make suggestions for effective implementation thereof. (e) The National Human Rights Commissions encourages NGO’s and institutions and promotes research in the field of Human Rights. The National Human Rights Commission is headed by a chairman and includes four members and three deemed members who are chairpersons of the National Minority Commission, The National Commission of Schedule Caste and Schedule Tribes and National Commission for women. The chairperson and the members are appointed by the president of India on the recommendation of a committee comprising of the Prime Minister as its chairman, speakers of Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha and the Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha. According to the Human Rights Act of 1993 only the present or some former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court can hold the post of chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission. The NHRC protects the fundamental rights enshrined on the constitution or include in treatise to which India is a party. It has also stressed the need for appropriate political measures to tackle terrorism, the insulation of investing of investigative functions of the police from political or other extraneous pressure and the revision of the Indian Prisons Act of 1994 for improvement in conditions in jails and police lockups. Priorities of the National human Rights Commission include ending of child labour, provision of elementary education to all and guaranteeing a certain level of exception of all levels of society that they can live under protection of an adequate and effective legal system. The NHRC has recommended that all states must have their own Human Rights Commission to ensure swift disposal of petitions coming from respective states. It would be in the interest of the country that baseless complaints on Human Rights excesses in areas hit by insurgency are discouraged because majority of complaints received in these areas have been found baseless by the army and the NHRC. Hence for successful working of NHRC sincerity on the part of complainants should be first priority and necessity.
Oceanus is the Titan personification of the ocean, which the ancient Greeks believed to surround the world in its entirety. He is a son of Gaia and Uranus and resembles the ocean that is far away (so not the Mediterranean sea that is central to Greek culture). He married his sister, Tethys, and together they would raise the Oceanids: water nymphs that protect the oceans. Through their union, they also gave birth to Potamids and Nyads. These were river nymphs and gods that protect the rivers and springs. Finally, Oceanus is also the father of Triptolemos. This demi-god would later have an interesting run-in with Demeter. Unlike his siblings, Oceanus did not participate in any of the battles between Titans and Olympians. Instead, he secluded himself to his own private realm. His offspring (and their offspring) did participate in the war, but they fought on the side of the Olympians.
For those who are new to cooking, the first thing you need to know is this: you won’t get anything to brown in non-stick coated cookware. Stainless steel is the only way to go for beautifully browned meats, but there are some things to know about pans. Temperature is important, so learning to use your stainless is a good idea if you don’t want to ruin your food and destroy your pots. If you don’t know how to use them properly or how to manage the temperature, your food will stick to the pan or burn. Here are some important tips about cookware. - Aluminum pans will actually leach into the food as it cooks. That’s why acidic foods such as tomatoes will keep your aluminum pans looking new. - Copper pots are used by professionals but are very expensive and difficult to maintain, and they’ll react with acidic foods. - Glass pots have poor heat distribution and food will burn. - Cast iron pots are porous and trapped grease can turn rancid. They’re heavy and cook well, but they’ll react with food and rust if not properly “seasoned” and maintained. - Coated pans, no matter how expensive or well made, will eventually chip off. What you don’t see before the actual chipping begins are the minute particles that wear off and lead to chipping. - The right types of utensils are needed for all types of pans, including stainless. - Stainless steel by itself is not a good heat conductor, so look for pans with copper or aluminum cores. Copper cores conduct heat very evenly, heat up quickly, and adjust to temperature changes quickly. Aluminum cores also conducts heat very evenly and is cheaper than copper. - Stainless pots come in various thicknesses, so buy the best you can afford. Cheap stainless steel pots without a copper or aluminum core will cook unevenly, giving you hot spots. - Stainless is durable and can maintain its appearance for as long as you own it (some stainless cooks have had their cookware for as long as 50 years). - Stainless doesn’t impart any flavor or create a chemical reaction with food. - Even the best stainless cookware will get tiny scratches if you use knives on them, but generally, stainless is resistant to scratches and dents. What should you do when it comes to stainless? Cooking is all about temperature shocks and exchanges. The reason a chicken is roasted at a higher temperature in the beginning is to shock the meat and create a nice, crispy and brown skin. The remainder of the roasting is done at a lower temperature. This same technique is used when cooking on the stove top. So what’s the trick to finding the right temperature? - Never place food or cooking fat in a pan without preheating the pan - When you add your cooking fat, you should see it shivering somewhat in the pan. If your pan is too hot, the fat will smoke and burn. If this happens, discard the fat and start again. The pan will be very hot at this point so take it off the burner and let it cool a bit while you lower the burner and let the temperature regulate. - It’s best to heat the pan slowly over medium high heat so it can heat up evenly. Use the water droplet trick This is a great trick you can try in the beginning to get used to finding the right temperature. Heat your pan and place a small droplet of water into it when you think it’s hot enough. - If your pan is too cold, the droplet will bubble and evaporate very fast. Placing food in a pan that’s too cold will cause it to stick. - If the pan is too hot, the droplet of water will separate very fast into a lot of smaller droplets and move very fast in the pan. Carefully wipe the droplets and let the pan cool down a bit, then try again. If your pan is too hot, food will burn. Even high heat oils such as coconut oil will smoke because stainless conducts heat quickly. - When you’re near the right temperature, the droplet will split into smaller droplets of water and then evaporate. - At the right temperature, the droplet will stay intact and move around the pan, without evaporating, almost like a mercury ball. This is the time to add the cooking fat and then your piece of meat. - Swipe the water from the pan with a paper towel before you add the fat to avoid oil splatter. You won’t find coated pans in restaurant kitchens. Cooking with stainless steel can produce some of the most fantastic dishes you’ll ever imagine. If you learn to use your pans correctly, you’ll never go back to anything else (check out the van der Waals force if you want to geek out on the physics of cooking). You’ll increase your range of recipes and make cooking and eating more enjoyable. If you’re just starting out, here are the basic stainless steel cookware pieces you should have in your kitchen. They’re the sizes most often used by both professionals and home cooks. - One, two, and four quart saucepans with lids – These will be your workhorses. - Two to three gallon stockpot with lid – For soups, stock, pasta, and sauces. - Ten to twelve inch sauté pan with lid – A sauté pan (from the French sauter – “to jump”) has relatively high straight sides and a flat bottom. It’s used for making sauces, pan “frying”, and braising. - Ten inch skillet – A skillet (sometimes referred to as a frying pan) has sloped sides that taper in at the bottom. It’s used for eggs, omelets, frittatas or even pancakes. Look for healthy Paleo recipes here. With the right pans, a little patience and practice, and a few good tips, you’ll soon be cooking great meals and impressing your friends while everyone benefits from healthy eating. Simple Pan Sauce Use your sauté pan to make a simple pan sauce for chicken or other meats. - After the meat is cooked, remove it from the pan. - Remove the pan from the heat and deglaze it by adding a liquid such as wine, sherry, fruit juice, or water, enough to cover the bottom of the pan. (Be careful not to let the liquid flame. If it does, quickly cover the pan with a lid). - Scrape the brown bits using a wooden spoon and mix them into the liquid, letting the liquid reduce until you’re left with just a couple of tablespoons. You’ve now concentrated the flavor. - Reduce the temperature to medium or medium high heat and add about one cup of reduced stock (your bone stock works well here). - Add 1-2 pats of butter and stir until it’s incorporated. This will give you a richer sauce. - Season to taste with pink salt, pepper, rosemary, tarragon or any herb that suits the meat and the final dish you’re creating. - Continue reducing the sauce until it’s thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. It’s ready to pour over your meat or vegetables.
If you have not tasted persimmons, you are missing a marvelous fruit. They are my favorite fruit and I like them crunchy (not too ripe). Known as a “fruit of the gods” in ancient Greece, this shiny “glazed” reddish-orange colored fruit, has a unique sweet/juicy addicting taste of its own. The most popular variety (regular Fuyu) is shaped like a tomato and is truly delectable. Persimmons contain not only a lot of vitamins and minerals, but also have plenty of antioxidant polyphenol/flanaoids with some medicinal properties beneficial to health. The four varieties are: Japanese, American, Indian, and black persimmons. Besides regular Fuyu, the other types are Giant Fuyu, Hachiya, Amagaki, Sharon, Tanenashi, Fuyugaki, Chocolate persimmons, and many others. Then, there is the American persimmons, grown in Florida, California, west to Iowa, south to Texas, and other warmer States, hardiness zones 4 through 9. I have two Fuyu persimmon trees I planted 8 years ago in my backyard in Las Vegas, which is zone 9a, sometimes a bit too warm, but luckily they are thriving (like my apple tree and other dwarf citrus fruits trees) and bearing fruits. Persimmons are either astringent (like Hachiya) or non-astringent (sweet like Fuyu). This fruit is in season from October through February and is usually ready for harvest before it gets too wintery cold and before birds and squirrels get to them first. There are some individual fruit pouches available to protect the fruits from them. Hot peppers, vinegar, are supposed to repel squirrels and other animals, besides commercial animal repellants. History of persimmons Marco Polo’s accounts reveal China traded in persimmons in the early 14th century. Persimmon, the oriental variety, was native to southeastern China, belonging to stone fruit group. This famous fruit is also cultivated in Japan, Korea, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, found its way to Queensland, Australia in 1885. It is also popular in the Mediterranean coasts of France, Italy and other countries in Europe, Algeria, Russia for more than a hundred years. US Navy Commodore Matthew Perry in 1856 sent the first seed from Japan to the United States. The USDA imported grafted persimmon trees in 1870 distributed to California and southeastern states. In 1912, the original trees were brought into Palestine from America and Sicily. Impressive health benefits Persimmons are loaded with nutrients, vitamins, minerals, polyphenols/ flavonoids, and fibers that are essential to health. One 168 gram-fruit has 118 calories, 1 gram of protein, 31 gram of carbohydrates, 0.3. gram fats, and 6 gram of fibers. The Recommended Daily Intake (RDI) for persimmons are: Vitamin A, 55%, Vitamin C, 22%, E, 6%, K, 5%, B6, 8%,Potassium, 8%, copper, 9%, manganese, 30%, calcium, >1%, folate, riboflavin, tannic acid, gallic acid, carotenoids, quercetin, kaempferol, other flavonoids, all of which make this fruit beneficial in lowering blood pressure, bad cholesterol, and the risk for heart disease, metabolic diseases, and cancer. Its fiber content helps in satiety (less food intake for better weight control) and also acts as a probiotic by fueling the good bacteria in our gut. In a study of 98,000 persons, there was 18 percent fewer deaths from heart related conditions among those who consumed the highest polyphenols/flavonoids by lowering blood pressure, bad cholesterol, and decreasing inflammation in the body. Antioxidants, beneficial plant compounds, are substances that prevent or slow down cell damage by counteracting oxidative stress, a reaction triggered by unstable molecules called free radicals, which results from stress, depression, daily problems, bad diet, substance abuse, tobacco, alcohol, lack of exercise, and environmental conditions. Antioxidant-rich foods (vegetables, fruits), avoiding bad habits and foods that are toxic to our body (like processed meats: sausages, bacon, ham, etc.) counteract oxidative processes in our body and reduce risks for certain chronic diseases. Persimmons contain beta carotene, pigment in many colorful vegetables and fruits which reduces risk for heart disease, lung and colorectal cancers, and metabolic disease, like diabetes. They are also rich in potassium which prevents kidney stone formation. One persimmon provides rhodopsin, which is an essential protein for normal vision, besides lutein and zeaxanthin, antioxidants for health vision. All these also reduces the risk for macular degeneration by 40% as shown in a study of 100,000 individuals eating persimmons regularly. These substances are also good for preventing night blindness and the progress of cataract. This versatile fruit also contains Betulinic acid which removes toxin in the body and lowers risk for cancer. The fibers in it prevents constipation and lessens hemorrhoids formation. The Phenolic acids in persimmons slows down arteriosclerosis and all antioxidants in persimmons protect and boost the immune system. The potent vitamin C in persimmons protects body cells from damage by free radicals and reduces inflammation, significantly lowering the levels of C reactive protein and interleukin, substances produced by inflammation, the body’s #1 enemy. Vitamin C, together with Vitamins A and K, slows premature aging process and wrinkle formation. All these health benefits add up with regular intake of anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, food items, like persimmons, berries, avocados, other fruits, virgin olive oil, fish, And the practical best benefits of them all, persimmons has a mouth-watering enjoyable luscious taste so irresistible and addictive as to fully deserve the distinction of being called “a fruit of the gods.” Persimmons could be used in salad together with with berries and other citrus fruits, for baking muffins, with chicken and meat, added to smoothies, or simply munching on them, crunchy and sweet, making it excellent for breakfast and snacks. After washing it well, including organic ones, the nutrient skin may also be eaten, a matter of personal taste. Persimmon and diabetics Those with diabetes can eat their favorite fruits in moderation, all of which contain natural sugar (fructose) but all the calories in them should be computed into the prescribed diabetic diet. And persimmons is such a great treat which also cubs hunger as stated above, which complements the advice in my previous columns: to push ourselves (overweight or not) away from the table less than full, filing the gap with refreshing 6-stage filtered water, a glass before meals, and a glass or two after. Philip S. Chua, MD, FACS, FPCS, a Cardiac Surgeon Emeritus based in Northwest Indiana and Las Vegas, Nevada, is a medical lecturer/author, and Chairman of the Filipino United Network-USA, a 501(c)3 humanitarian foundation in the United States. Websites: FUN8888.com, philipSchua.com Email: [email protected]
Learn something new every day More Info... by email Ureteral duplication, also called a duplex collecting system, is a relatively common anatomical anomaly in which a patient has two ureters instead of one. A ureter is the tube that connects a kidney to the bladder. Normally, each kidney has one ureter to drain urine from that organ to the bladder, but sometimes both kidneys are affected so that both of these organs each has an extra ureter. Patients who have a ureterocele often have ureteral duplication. A ureterocele refers to the enlargement of the part of the ureter that is closest to the bladder. The opening of the ureter into the bladder is also abnormally narrowed. Ureteroceles can interfere with the proper flow of urine, and may cause the urine to backflow up the ureter. It is possible that a ureteral duplication is associated with genetics; however, the exact cause is unknown. Females tend to to be at a higher risk of this medical condition than males, and usually, females will also have both kidneys affected. Typically, the condition is diagnosed in the womb with a prenatal ultrasound. This is an imaging test that is used to diagnose potential problems prior to birth. After birth, a ureteral duplication may be suspected if the child frequently suffers from urinary tract infections. Children who also suffer from urinary tract infections will likely be prescribed a course of antibiotics. In severe cases, they may also be given intravenous fluids. A urologist will assess the patient's specific condition and his medical history to determine a treatment plan. When surgery is necessary, it is generally delayed until the patient is at least six to 12 months old. Infants have a very small bladder, which can complicate surgery and increase the risk of complications. Patients with ureteral duplication who do not appear to suffer adverse effects from the condition may not require treatment. If the ureterocele is severely constricting the ureter and causing a backflow of urine, the urine may need to be surgically drained. In some cases, the urologist may recommend removing the ureter with the ureterocele, leaving the duplicate, functioning ureter in place. A variety of other surgeries may be used to address a ureteral duplication, including a cutaneous ureterostomy, where the surgeon will detach the ureters at the point where they connect to the bladder. They will protrude through an opening in the abdomen, and the urine collects in external bags. The patient will later undergo a second surgery to replace the ureters, and in some cases, a partial nephrectomy may also be needed to remove a portion of a damaged kidney. One of our editors will review your suggestion and make changes if warranted. Note that depending on the number of suggestions we receive, this can take anywhere from a few hours to a few days. Thank you for helping to improve wiseGEEK!
Healthy nails are beautiful nails, so it’s wise to take good care of yours. At our nail technician school on Long Island, our students learn about how to make your nails more appealing with care and polish. However, what you do also plays an important role as stronger nails support a manicure and make it last longer. Let us recommend key practices you can incorporate into your life that contribute to good nail health: Eat a healthy diet – Yes, this applies to your nails, as well as the rest of your body. All of those vitamins and minerals encourage your nails to grow long and strong, especially biotin. This vitamin is particularly good for nails. You may want to consider taking a daily biotin supplement or a multivitamin. Remember the importance of water – Water can be both good and bad for your nails. Drinking plenty of water is good for your entire body, including your nails, so you want to remain hydrated. However, prolonged soaking in water can weaken nails, causing them to break easily. Don’t use your nails as tools – You may find yourself scraping off substances with your nails or slipping them under a pop-top to open a can. This can result in broken and/or weakened nails. Give your nails a little love with proper care, as well as a great manicure, to show off healthy and stylish fingernails.
This is the text from the appeal leaflet produced by the Landmark Trust. The Tudor lookout tower that became a pinnacle of learning Freston Tower was probably built around 1549 by Thomas Gooding. Different theories abound as to why he built such a spectacular structure - it may have been a lookout tower, an extravagant folly or part of a pleasure garden. The best known, but least probable tale, is that it was built for the education of the beautiful Ellen de Freston. Each weekday she studied a different subject on each floor - Charity, Tapestry, Music, Painting, Literature, culminating in Astronomy on the top floor. However, as the definitive book Follies describes, "other versions have her ending up on the roof in the arms of the builder, furthering her education in a different manner!" An architectural mystery The Tower is built of red brick decorated with blue brick diapering. The staircase turret rises six storeys up to the roof with an arcaded brick parapet. The polygonal buttresses to each corner end in exuberant pinnacles. Was it ever part of something larger? The first three storeys on the south side are windowless, and from the differing brickwork it has been suggested that the Tower was originally joined to something else. Whatever its use, it has no fewer than 33 windows which increase in elaborateness the higher one goes. They start plain, then sprout pediments, culminating in the top floor which has large transommed and mullioned windows. Even the three-sided oak staircase has a window in each face on every storey, and there are fine views in all directions, including the Orwell Bridge. Cedars and swales Country Life has described the scenery as "truly idyllic; a foreground of parkland, shaded by cedar trees, and falling into one of those odd little valleys known as swales, that are a feature of the country along the Orwell." To stay in this Arcadian setting will be a memorable experience. Repairs and restoration Freston Tower appears outwardly to be in relatively good condition, but there is still a considerable amount of repair work needed as well as alterations to the accommodation. Much of the brickwork needs repointing, and the pinnacles and top of the staircase turret need rebuilding. The pedimented porch may be reinstated as well as the window surrounds which were originally rendered to Internally we plan to rearrange the accommodation as shown overleaf. We will be renewing the kitchen and bathroom as well as carrying out replastering, redecoration and renewing services. Copyright Landmark Trust, 2000
A flock of birds, represented as dots, illustrates the complexity of data at both local and global scales. Image credit: Henry Adams When Henry Adams thinks about a vast store of data, like a million points in three-dimensional space, or the medical records of 1,000 patients, the Colorado State University mathematics assistant professor thinks about how that data can be represented as a geometric shape. Considering data as shapes can help mathematicians find new patterns in that data. Though a dataset may be too high-dimensional for the human mind to perceive on its own, the shape of a dataset can be illuminated with the aid of advanced computing. Adams is at the forefront of an emerging field called topological data analysis, the merger of a pure mathematical field – topology – with an applied one – data science. For much of the 20th century, topology, or the study of shape and space, lived only in the realm of pure mathematics. But in the last two decades, topology has become increasingly quantitative, computable and statistical, according to Adams. Now a field of its own, topological data analysis describes shapes of data in multiple dimensions and resolutions, with new applications in fields like biology, materials science and economics. An easy way to think about how data has shape, Adams says, is to consider biological systems like flocks of birds or schools of fish that exhibit collective behaviors. A video of starlings flying in a distinctive pattern, for example, “is an extremely complex dataset, with so many birds, and so many time steps,” Adams said. “So even just to get your mind around this dataset and start analyzing it is quite complicated.” That’s where Adams’ work comes in: He, along with colleagues, have devised methods for taking vast datasets like flying birds and condensing them in ways that are easier to work with. Lens for viewing data Earlier this year, Adams and mathematics colleagues, including CSU Ph.D. graduate Lori Ziegelmeier, published a SIAM news piece summarizing how computational topology provides a lens through which mathematical modelers can tackle large datasets and glean insights from the shapes and patterns found therein. The researchers, along with recent CSU Ph.D. Rachel Neville, had organized a conference on the same subject the previous year, bringing together pure and applied mathematicians to advance the field of topological data science. All this evolved from some afternoons in the Weber Building a few years prior, during meetings of an interdisciplinary group called the Pattern Analysis Laboratory. Founded in 2007 by CSU math professors Michael Kirby and Chris Peterson, the Pattern Analysis Laboratory is a laid-back, open environment in which mathematicians from different disciplines get together and let their interests, not a set agenda, guide the conversation. From one of those meetings, Adams says, the idea emerged for a paper the group eventually published in 2017 that has been cited over 200 times since then. The paper introduces an algorithm for taking a complex dataset and summarizing it in a lower-dimensional format, so that it can be fed into a machine learning algorithm. “Persistence Images: A Stable Vector Representation of Persistent Homology,” was co-authored by former CSU graduate students Tegan Emerson, Rachel Neville, Sofya Chepushtanova, Eric Hanson, Francis Motta and Lori Ziegelmeier, and mathematics professors Kirby, Peterson and Patrick Shipman The researchers’ work created new opportunities for applying topological principles to large datasets in fields ranging from archaeology to biology. For example, archaeologists in Poland used the CSU researchers’ topology principles to study cutaway patterns in ancient rock carvings. Now, Adams is working with chemists from Washington State University, CU Boulder and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to apply such principles to molecules in various energy regimes. Adams credits the paper’s popularity to the Pattern Analysis Lab’s open and collaborative environment, along with a tendency among mathematicians in general to share ideas for pure enjoyment and inspiration. He continues to work on both the applications and theory of topological spaces.
This section defines some of the terms used in the chapters that follow. A context is a logical grouping or mapping of configuration parameters that pertain to various physical ports, logical IP interfaces, and services. A context can be thought of as a virtual private network (VPN). The system supports the configuration of multiple contexts. Each is configured and operates independently from the others. Once a context has been created, administrative users can then configure services, logical IP interfaces, subscribers, etc.for that context. Administrative users would then bind the logical interfaces to physical ports. Contexts can also be assigned domain aliases, wherein if a subscriber's domain name matches one of the configured alias names for that context, then that context is used. Contexts on the system can be categorized as follows: Source context: Also referred to as the "ingress" context, this context provides the subscriber's point-of-entry in the system. It is also the context in which services are configured. For example, in a GPRS/UMTS network, the radio network containing the Service GPRS Support Nodes (SGSNs) would communicate with the system via Gn interfaces configured within the source context as part of the GGSN service. Destination context: Also referred to as the "egress" context, this context is where a subscriber is provided services (such as access to the Internet) as defined by access point name (APN) configuration templates. For example, the system's destination context would be configured with the interfaces facilitating subscriber data traffic to/from the Internet, a VPN, or other PDN. Authentication context: This context provides authentication functionality for subscriber PDP contexts and/or administrative user sessions and contains the policies and logical interfaces for communicating with Remote Authentication Dial In User Service (RADIUS) authentication servers. To ensure scalability, authentication functionality for subscriber sessions should not be configured in the local context. For administrative users, authentication functionality can either be configured in the local context or be authenticated in the same context as subscribers. Accounting context: This context provides accounting functionality for subscriber PDP contexts and/or administrative user sessions. The system context in which accounting functionality is configured depends on the protocol used. Accounting for subscriber PDP contexts can be performed using either the GPRS Tunneling Protocol Prime (GTPP) or RADIUS. Accounting for administrative user sessions is based on RADIUS. When using GTPP, it is recommended that accounting functionality be configured in a system source context along with the GGSN service. When using RADIUS for subscriber accounting, it must be configured in the same context as RADIUS authentication. To simplify the configuration process, RADIUS-based authentication and accounting can be configured in a destination context as long as the APN templates are configured there as well. RADIUS-based accounting for administrative user sessions can either be configured in the local context or in the same context used for subscriber accounting. To ensure scalability, accounting functionality for subscriber sessions should not be configured in the local context. Local context: This is the default context on the system used to provide out-of-band management functionality. The local context is described in the Command Line Reference. Prior to allowing the flow of user data, the port must be associated with a virtual circuit or tunnel called a logical interface. A logical interface within the system is defined as the logical assignment of a virtual router instance that provides higher-layer protocol transport, such as Layer 3 IP addressing. Interfaces are configured as part of the VPN context and are independent from the physical port that will be used to bridge the virtual interfaces to the network. Logical interfaces are assigned to IP addresses and are bound to a specific port during the configuration process. Logical interfaces are also associated with services through bindings. Services are bound to an IP address that is configured for a particular logical interface. When associated, the interface takes on the characteristics of the functions enabled by the service. For example, if an interface is bound to a GGSN service, it will function as a Gn interface between the GGSN service and the SGSN. Services are defined later in this section. Gn: This is the interface used by the GGSN to communicate with SGSNs on the same GPRS/UMTS Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN). This interface serves as both the signalling and data path for establishing and maintaining subscriber PDP contexts. The GGSN communicates with SGSNs on the PLMN using the GPRS Tunnelling Protocol (GTP). The signalling or control aspect of this protocol is referred to as the GTP Control Plane (GTPC) while the encapsulated user data traffic is referred to as the GTP User Plane (GTPU). One or more Gn interfaces can be configured per system context. Gn interfaces are bound to ports on either the Ethernet 10/100 or Ethernet 1000 Line Cards or on the four-port Quad Gig-E Line Card (QGLC). Ga: This is the interface used by the GGSN to communicate with the charging gateway (CG). The charging gateway is responsible for sending GGSN charging detail records (G-CDRs) received from the GGSN for each PDP context to the billing system. The GGSN communicates with the CGs on the PLMN using GTP Prime (GTPP). One or more Ga interfaces can be configured per system context. Ga interfaces are bound to ports on either the Ethernet 10/100 or Ethernet 1000 Line Cards or on the QGLC. Gc: This is the interface used by the GGSN to communicate with the Home Location Register (HLR) via a GTP-to-MAP (Mobile Application Part) protocol convertor. This interface is used for network initiated PDP contexts. For network initiated PDP contexts, the GGSN will communicate with the protocol convertor using GTP. The convertor, in turn, will communicate with the HLR using MAP over Signalling System 7 (SS7). One Gc interface can be configured per system context. Gc interfaces are bound to ports on either the Ethernet 10/100 or Ethernet 1000 Line Cards or on the QGLC. Gi: This is the interface used by the GGSN to communicate with packet data networks (PDNs) external to the PLMN. Examples of PDNs are the Internet or corporate intranets. Additionally, inbound packets received on this interface could initiate a network requested PDP context if the intended MS is not currently connected. One or more Gi interfaces can be configured per system context. Gi interfaces are bound to ports on either the Ethernet 10/100 or Ethernet 1000 Line Cards or on the QGLC. Gp: This is the interface used by the GGSN to communicate with GPRS support nodes (GSNs, e.g. GGSNs and/or SGSNs) on different PLMNs. Within the system, a single interface can serve as both a Gn and a Gp interface. One or more Gn/Gp interfaces can be configured per system context. Gp interfaces are bound to ports on either the Ethernet 10/100 or Ethernet 1000 Line Cards or on the QGLC. AAA: This is the interface used by the GGSN to communicate with either an authentication or accounting server on the network using the Remote Authentication Dial In User Service (RADIUS) protocol. This is an optional interface that can be by the GGSN for subscriber PDP context authentication or accounting. AAA interfaces are bound to ports on either the Ethernet 10/100 or Ethernet 1000 Line Cards or on the QGLC. S6b: This is an optional Diameter protocol-based interface over which the GGSN communicates with 3G AAA/HSS in LTE/SAE network for subscriber authorization. This interface is supported through license-enabled feature. For more information on this support, refer Common Gateway Access Support in guide. DHCP: This is the interface used by the GGSN to communicate with a Dynamic Host Control Protocol (DHCP) Server. The system can be configured to dynamically provide IP addresses for PDP contexts from the DHCP server. DHCP interfaces are bound to ports on either the Ethernet 10/100 or Ethernet 1000 Line Cards or on the QGLC. A binding is an association between "elements" within the system. There are two types of bindings: static and dynamic. Static binding is accomplished through the configuration of the system. Static bindings are used to associate: A specific logical interface (configured within a particular context) to a physical port. Once the interface is bound to the physical port, traffic can flow through the context just as if it were any physically defined circuit. Static bindings support any encapsulation method over any interface and port type. A service to an IP address assigned to a logical interface within the same context. This allows the interface to take on the characteristics (i.e., support the protocols) required by the service. For example, a GGSN service bound to a logical interface will cause the logical interface to take on the characteristics of a Gn interface within a GPRS/UMTS network. Dynamic binding associates a subscriber to a specific egress context based on the configuration of their profile or system parameters. This provides a higher degree of deployment flexibility as it allows a wireless carrier to support multiple services and facilitates seamless connections to multiple networks. Services are configured within a context and enable certain functionality. The following services can be configured on the system: GGSN services: GGSN services are configured to support both mobile-initiated and network-requested PDP contexts. The GGSN service must be bound to a logical interface within the same context. Once bound, the interface takes on the characteristics of a Gn interface. Multiple services can be bound to the same logical interface. Therefore, a single physical port can facilitate multiple Gn interfaces. FA services: FA services are configured to support Mobile IP and define FA functionality on the system. The system supports multiple Mobile IP configurations. A single system can perform the function of a FA only, an HA only, or a combined PDSN/FA/HA. Depending on your configuration, the FA service can create and maintain the Pi interface between the PDSN/FA and the HA or it can communicate with an HA service configured within the same context. The FA service should be configured in a different context from the PDSN service. However, if the FA service will be communicating with an HA that is a separate network element, it must be configured within the same context as and be bound to the Pi interfaces that allow it to communicate with the HA. LAC services: LAC services are configured on the system to provide Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) access concentrator (LAC) functionality. LAC services can be configured and used within networks to provide secure tunneling to an L2TP network server (LNS) on a remote PDN. DHCP services: DHCP services are configured on a system to provide dynamic assignment of IP address to PDP contexts through the use of the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP). Following figure illustrates the relationship between services, interfaces, and contexts within the system for GPRS/UMTS networks. The source context used to service a subscriber session is the same as the context in which the GGSN service is configured. Each GGSN service is bound to an IP address in a source context. The SGSNs select which IP address to use, typically by using DNS. Once a subscriber has established a PDP context with a GGSN, the SGSNs continue to use that same PDP context and GGSN as the subscriber moves about the network. Destination contexts are selected based on APN configuration. When the system receives a Create PDP Context Request message from the SGSN, it examines the APN that was provided. If the APN is not found on the system, the system rejects the request. After the APN has been found, the system may choose a different APN based on the system's virtual APN configuration. In any event, a final APN is selected by the system The system determines the destination context to use based on a parameter contained within the final APN configuration. If a valid destination context name is configured for this parameter, it is used. If the name is not valid, or if it is not configured, the system uses the context in which the APN is configured. Once the system locates the context in which the APN is configured, it uses that context for subscriber authentication and RADIUS-based accounting (if enabled). Any parameters returned by the RADIUS server during the subscriber authentication/authorization override APN configuration parameters. If GTPP-based accounting is enabled, the system uses the source context for accounting. That context may be overridden by configuring a different accounting context to use in the GGSN service configuration.
NEW YORK, Dec. 9 (UPI) -- A new species of cockroach that can endure freezing temperatures has been found living in New York, scientists said. Researchers confirmed the identity of the species, which is native to Asia and known for its ability to prosper in cold climates, LiveScience.com reported Monday. Researchers said the Periplaneta japonica hadn't been seen in the United States until an exterminator saw some odd-looking carcasses last year on the High Line, a park built on an old elevated railway. "About 20 years ago colleagues of ours in Japan reared nymphs of this species and measured their tolerance to being able to survive in snow," Rutgers University insect biologist Jessica Ware said in a statement. "As the species has invaded Korea and China, there has been some confirmation that it does very well in cold climates, so it is very conceivable that it could live outdoors during winter in New York." "That is in addition to its being well suited to live indoors alongside the species that already are here," she said. Ware and her colleagues say it will be hard to trace the species' route to Manhattan, but researchers suspect it arrived in the soil of one of the plants along the High Line, which opened in 2009. The researchers say it's too soon to tell what the species' impact will be, but they don't expect the cockroaches to be major nuisances, LiveScience.com said. "Because this species is very similar to cockroach species that already exist in the urban environment, they likely will compete with each other for space and for food," Rutgers doctoral student Dominic Evangelista said.
Access to education is not sufficient: the key is learning Washington, DC, October 17, 2007—Most countries in Latin American and the Caribbean have achieved almost universal primary school coverage and boosted enrollment rates in secondary and tertiary education. Average spending on education reached 4.3 percent of GDP in 2003, up from 2.7 percent in 1990. But some countries in the region trail far behind comparable nations in other areas of the world. In 1960, Latin America, East Asia, Scandinavia, and Spain had similar levels of school attainment. By 2005, however, Latin America had fallen behind, as measured by the number of children completing 12 years of education. Moreover, the countries of the region are now among the lowest performers in international assessments of student skills, with a high share of students scoring below the minimum threshold in all subjects. According to a new World Bank report—Raising Student Learning in Latin America: The Challenge of the 21st Century––suggests that in their quest for universal enrollment many countries in the region overlooked the goals of improving the quality of teaching and raising educational achievement. The oversight has proved unfortunate because the quality of education may have a greater bearing than years of schooling on economic growth, and because differences in educational quality can reinforce inequality in society. The report reveals wide disparities in the educational achievement of students of different backgrounds in several of the region’s countries: poor and minority students in the region score lower on international tests than do their peers of higher socioeconomic status. But even students from the region’s privileged groups score lower on the same tests than do students from the countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The latter finding dispels the myth that the region offers top-quality education for students of means. The fact is that quality and achievement are problems in most countries of the region and across all levels of society. “Latin America has relatively standard inequality levels in education, along with high income inequality,” said Pamela Cox, World Bank Vice-President for Latin America and the Caribbean. “Although the countries in the region have expanded educational coverage and provide equitable access to learning opportunities for most children, income inequalities, underdevelopment, and poverty are persistent.” Raising Student Learning in Latin America: The Challenge of the 21st Century marshals evidence that quality of education, not quantity, may be responsible for perpetuating income inequality. Fortunately, the converse is also true: education of good quality can help to shrink inequality, pointing to potential rewards for policies that raise quality. But even where education of high quality is available, it will translate into higher incomes for individuals and greater economic growth only in the presence of a conducive national macroeconomic framework and a labor market that encourages hiring and job mobility.
Health and health have turn into buzzwords in the previous couple of years. And whereas the significance of a nutritious diet and train have been repeated a number of occasions, what most individuals neglect to concentrate to is how their gut well being is. The gut, often known as the gastrointestinal tract is an extended tube that begins at the mouth, and ends at the again passage (anus). Research reveals that about 100 trillion micro organism reside in the gut, and so they produce metabolites that may have numerous repercussions in your well being. Moreover, 70-80% of your physique’s immune cells are centred in the gut. And this may sound stunning, however 95% of the physique’s whole serotonin can be situated in the gut. With a lot and extra, it turns into crucial to take care of the gut in correct form. But how will we do it, particularly in a world the place we’re uncovered to all types of meals? Can we reboot our gut after a degree? These are some pertinent questions that may solely be answered by an knowledgeable, which is why we now have Payal Kothari, an integrative nutritionist, gut well being coach, and founding father of GutAvatar & INUEN. In an unique chat with Health Shots, she tells us all the things associated to the gut, and a few tricks to preserve it functioning correctly. Gut, the ‘second brain’ Research says that the human gut has greater than 100 million nerve cells, nearly like your brain. It can be believed that your gut speaks together with your brain, releasing hormones into the bloodstream, and telling us how hungry you might be. It was in 2010 that neuroscientist Diego Bohórquez of Duke University Durham, found that enteroendocrine cells that line the gut produce hormones that speed up digestion and suppress starvation. Plus, these cells had foot-like protrusions that appear to be the synapses neurons which are used to speak with one another. “The gut is the second brain, as all diseases begin in the gut. Our gut has trillions of microorganisms helping us with immunity, metabolism and practically governs every detail of what transpires within the body. Your gut is also responsible for producing happy hormones which affects your moods and mental wellness as well,” says Kothari. Maintaining gut well being The fashionable world that we reside in is characterised by excessive stress ranges, much less sleep and consuming processed meals, which may all trigger hurt to the gut. If your gut doesn’t perform correctly, all the things in your physique can be affected, be it your brain, coronary heart, immune system, pores and skin, weight and a lot extra. So how are you aware in case your gut is just not in the proper form? In case you get an upset abdomen incessantly, have elevated sugar cravings, really feel fatigued, have unexplained weight modifications and get pores and skin issues every so often, your gut is making an attempt to sign how desperately it wants assist! “A number of easy methods to take care of well being and wellness of the gut are, consuming root greens like beetroot, garlic and ginger. Making positive 80% of your meal is plant-based. Regularly eat omega-3 in the type of flax seeds, olive oil and walnuts. To scale back irritation, supplementing your food plan with probiotic dietary supplements can be a good way to multiply your good and helpful micro organism,” provides Kothari. Can you reboot your gut? “A gut reboot is taking care of the gut starting with the 4R’s, reduce, redesign, recharge and repair. Reduce junk, reduce inflammation, redesign your gut microbiome with gut-soothing enzymes and pre-probiotics. Recharge your gut with plant-based foods and repair your gut with good fats,” explains Kothari. When you reboot your gut, you consciously take away meals that feed dangerous micro organism and trigger irritation. It can be vital to incorporate prebiotic meals that feed helpful micro organism. And it’s not only a nutritious diet that issues; you have to additionally get sufficient sleep, train and keep hydrated. There’s additionally a particular type of meditation to reboot the gut, says Kothari. “The gut reboot meditation is a targeted meditation to release stress from the gut. Most individuals store a lot of stress hormones in the gut, like relationship stress, work stress, releasing more and more cortisol – the stress hormone in their gut. This can make the body extremely vulnerable to low immunity, acidic and prone to simple to chronic illnesses. The gut reboot meditation can help release stress and balance the release of cortisol being produced in the body,” she provides. So girls, care for your gut and all the things else will fall into place!
Chemicals and Cancer: What You Can Do By Suzanne Dixon, MPH, MS, RD Healthnotes Newswire (May 27, 2010)—In a comprehensive, 240-page report, the President’s Cancer Panel has called attention to issues around environmental chemicals and cancer risk. Some groups have pointed out that many known lifestyle changes have been shown to help offset cancer risks, making the emphasis on external factors unnecessary. But others argue that environmental risks are not well understood by the public and deserve both consideration and further study. Supported with solid science noted in over 450 references, some scientists feel the report is an important step in understanding environmental causes of cancer, which may help people to better avoid them. Food for thought With many studies conflicting or difficult to perform on humans with meaningful results, advocacy groups on both sides are hashing out how harmful certain substances might be. While not definitive on those points, the new report does raise several findings worth noting: • Only a few hundred of the more than 80,000 chemicals in use in the US have been tested for safety, and many known and suspected carcinogens remain unregulated. • Chemicals typically are studied for safety one at a time, overlooking damage to health from exposure to multiple chemicals at once. • Existing regulatory frameworks assume that chemicals are safe unless strong evidence emerges to show that they are not. The Panel advises caution in such situations, rather than approving chemicals of unknown effect. • Exposure during pregnancy and childhood is particularly damaging to health. Over 300 chemicals can be found in the umbilical cord blood of newborn babies, pointing to the need to reduce exposures in these populations. Enjoy clean living for extra protection So, what’s a health-conscious person to do? While it’s safe to say that we all interact with chemicals that may increase cancer risk, you can lower your personal risk by taking care to control your exposure, especially at home. Though the final word is not in on all of the steps described below, the report makes some recommendations that make sense in the meantime: Healthy food habits: • Choose foods, house and garden products, play spaces, toys, medicines, and medical tests that minimize children’s exposure to potentially toxic substances. • Choose filtered tap water over bottled water for drinking. Store drinking water in stainless steel or bisphenol-A (BPA)-free containers. • Choose foods grown without artificial fertilizers, pesticides, and growth hormones whenever possible. • Microwave foods only in ceramic or glass, not plastic. • Women who are pregnant or planning a pregnancy should avoid exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (such as certain pesticides and some plastic food and beverage containers) and known or suspected carcinogens. Healthy household and lifestyle habits: • Properly dispose of medications, household chemicals, paints, and other materials according to the recommendations of your local waste management service. • Avoid exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke in the home, auto, and public places. • Consult information sources such as the Household Products Database to make informed decisions about products you buy and use. • Use recommended protective wear when using household and garden chemicals. • If work or house projects expose you to chemicals, remove shoes before entering the home and launder work clothes separately to minimize total household exposure. • Check radon levels in your home and address as necessary. • Work with your health care provider to keep accurate records of medical tests that may expose you to harmful substances such as radiation or chemicals. This will allow you to make informed decisions about whether the benefits of a particular medical test are worth the risk of exposure to environmental carcinogens. • Try to wear a headset when using a cell phone, text instead of calling, and keep calls brief. • Avoid excessive ultraviolet light exposure by using sunscreen and proper sun-protective clothing. Never use tanning beds. If you have concerns about specific toxins, the report also reminds us that we are free to support policymakers and companies who care about these issues, and you can let manufacturers and trade organizations know what is important to you. But in the meantime, don’t forget about the most important things you can do to lower cancer risk: maintain a healthy body weight, exercise regularly, get regular cancer screenings, limit processed foods, and eat a healthy diet with plenty of vegetables, fruit, whole grains, and beans every day. (President’s Cancer Panel 2008-2009 Annual Report. Reducing Environmental Cancer Risk. What We Can Do Now. Available at pcp.cancer.gov. Accessed May 24, 2010.) Suzanne Dixon, MPH, MS, RD, an author, speaker, and internationally recognized expert in chronic disease prevention, epidemiology, and nutrition, has taught medical, nursing, public health, and alternative medicine coursework. She has delivered over 150 invited lectures to health professionals and consumers and is the creator of a nutrition website acclaimed by the New York Times and Time magazine. Suzanne received her training in epidemiology and nutrition at the University of Michigan, School of Public Health at Ann Arbor. Copyright © 2010 Aisle7. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of the Aisle7® content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Aisle7. Healthnotes Newswire is for educational or informational purposes only, and is not intended to diagnose or provide treatment for any condition. If you have any concerns about your own health, you should always consult with a healthcare professional. Aisle7 shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. AISLE7 is a registered trademark of Aisle7. Healthnotes are made available on NOW Foods' website for educational and informational purposes only. To learn more about Healthnotes, go to www.healthnotes.com. NOW Foods is not responsible for the content of the Healthnotes published on the NOW Foods website, and does not edit these Healthnotes. \|Printable Version\|\|E-mail a Friend\| \|Golden Walnut Couscous Salad\| \|Full of flavor and nutrition with orange juice, bell peppers, radishes ...\|
The St. Lawrence seaway and power project – the 181.5 mile stretch of the St. Lawrence from Montreal to Lake Erie consisting of extensive navigation and hydro-power works – was an undertaking of the first magnitude: to illustrate, it is considered one of the greatest global engineering feats of the 20th century, and is the largest construction project in Canadian history. The construction of the St. Lawrence project required a massive configuring of the St. Lawrence basin, flooding some 20,000 acres of Canadian land and resulted in the dislocation of some 8,000 people, mostly in Ontario. My doctoral dissertation looks at the Canadian federal government’s role in the creation of the St. Lawrence seaway and power project. This chiefly involves exploring Canadian-American environmental diplomacy and the tangled negotiations stretching from the first half of the twentieth century and into the 1950s that culminated in the joint agreement to construct the St. Lawrence project, which was built between 1954 and 1959. In the wake of the Second World War, the economic and transportation advantages of a St. Lawrence project were joined by a growing need for hydro power and potential defence benefits (such as shipping iron ore from Labrador-Quebec to the Great Lakes steel mills). With the U.S. Congress continually preventing a joint Canadian-American waterway from coming to fruition, the Louis St. Laurent government began to consider “going it alone.” The idea of a unilaterally Canadian waterway seized the imaginations of Canadians, who I contend were motivated by an environmental – or hydraulic – nationalism that framed the St. Lawrence as an exclusively national resource. Moreover, this reveals a “high modernist” conception of the environment and river resources as something to be controlled and manipulated to further the goals of the state. However, the United States considered an all-Canadian seaway an economic and national security risk, and prevented Ottawa from proceeding without American participation. The history of the St. Lawrence seaway and power project is relevant to our current and future understanding of environmental issues in a number of respects. I will discuss just two here. Firstly, it speaks to what should be done today regarding the seaway. Secondly, it can inform debate about the future of Canadian water resources, particularly vis-à-vis the United States. The seaway has resulted in a range of environmental problems, with invasive species the most prominent. Although this was not the necessary result of the seaway and could have been avoided if there had been sufficient political will, these negative environmental effects will likely wreak further havoc in the St. Lawrence-Great Lakes basin if not adequately handled. But the seaway also provides a form of transportation (and hydro power) that is more environmentally friendly than other competing forms of moving bulk goods, which could become even more pertinent with the unstable future of fossil fuels. The St. Lawrence project thus has the potential to have either a positive or negative economic impact. The history of the seaway indicates that both Canada and the United States tend to act in their own self-interest concerning natural assets. This is especially pertinent for the future of Canadian water resources. Over the course of the St. Lawrence negotiations, the U.S. pressured Canada into abandoning its unilateral plans and allowing American participation; we are likely approaching a point where the U.S. begins to more actively seek Canada’s abundant water resources, be they waters solely in Canada, such as in the north, or shared resources, such as the Great Lakes. What will be the result? How should Canada approach such matters in the future? Will the United States respect Canadian sovereignty if there is a water crisis? Daniel MacFarlane is a PhD Candidate at the University of Ottawa Latest posts by Daniel Macfarlane (see all) - The Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement Turns 50 - April 14, 2022 - New Book Series: Environmental Studies of the Great Lakes - March 1, 2022 - Graduate Student Opportunity with the Canadian Museum of Nature - February 2, 2022 - The Climate Crisis and the Canadian Classroom - September 21, 2021 - Line 5 and the History of Canada-US Hydrocarbon Pipelines - June 17, 2021 - Hoover Dam in Hollywood - December 3, 2020 - Environmental Diplomacy, Envirotech, and Canadian History - May 5, 2020 - Canadians at ASEH & N\|H\|S Get Together - March 7, 2020 - The First Century of the International Joint Commission - February 26, 2020 - Book Launch: The First Century of the IJC - January 19, 2020
It contains all the keys, rods and pads that are used to change the pitch of the note that sounds. Saxophone NeckThe next piece down the line when you assemble your sax is the Neck which is the part that connects the mouthpiece to the body of the saxophone. They are usually made out of metal but like the mouthpiece, they are made out of lots of different materials like plastic, leather, gold and even string. Learn how to put your sax together and find your first notes ready to play some fun tunes. It’s better to be really systematic about the type of technique practice you’re doing so that it’s relevant to your playing goals right now. From an acoustic point of view, the saxophone mouthpiece is the most important part of the instrument. The mouthpiece connects the saxophonist to their instrument, and it is inside this small object that the sound is shaped. The https://www.wave-accounting.net/ tone holes are carefully cleaned to remove gunk and prevent pad “kiss” noise and stickiness. You’ll have to place the flat end (or the “head”) of the wedge or file below the pad, just at the point where it warps to the downside. The structure of the ligature is made of bubinga wood which provides a rich and bright sound. The structure of the ligature is made of walnut which provides a soft and slightly dark sound. It is the most dynamic brass woodwind its diversity has let it stay through all these years as well as the coming ones. What is the structure of tenor saxophone? The tenor saxophone is basically a conical tube that is constructed in two sections, the neck and the body, with a single-reed mouthpiece attached to its narrow end. Made from drawn brass, the tube is given a distinctive U-bend and a slightly flaring bell. It’s actually the part that makes the sound as when the musician blows into the mouthpiece it causes the reed to vibrate and create the sound. It’s the part of the horn that goes in the musicians mouth, so it’s where the sound is first generated by blowing into it. Saxophone MouthpieceThe first piece we’ll look at is the Mouthpiece which is one of the most important parts of The Structure Of The Saxophone the saxophone when it comes to tone quality. Parts of the SaxophoneIf you’re learning how to play the saxophone it helps to have a good idea of the different parts and its basic design. Here’s our guide to how to buy the best beginner saxophone for you. It’s a simple idea, but if you apply that framework to every one of your practice sessions it will make a huge difference. In more modern production operations, several tubes are loaded into a machine which automatically creates the tone holes. Computer controls ensure that the instruments are perfect each time. After the tubes are formed, the body is coated with a clear lacquer finish. The true potential of the sax was realized by jazz musicians during the early 1900s. Serge Chaloff, Gerry Mulligan, Pepper Adams and Leo Parker brought the baritone saxophone to prominence as a solo instrument. Steve Lacy renewed attention to the soprano saxophone in the context of modern jazz and John Coltrane boosted the instrument’s popularity during the 1960s. Smooth jazz musician Kenny G also uses the soprano sax as his principal instrument.
PASADENA, Calif., Jan. 22 (UPI) -- A telescope has made the first definitive detection of water vapor on Ceres, the largest and most planet-like object in the asteroid belt, U.S. astronomers say. While hydrated minerals thought to indicate the presence of water have previously been detected on Ceres, the Herschel space observatory has made the first direct observation of water vapor, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., reported Wednesday. Ceres, around 590 miles in diameter, is classified as a dwarf planet, larger than an asteroid and smaller than a planet. Herschel, a European Space Agency mission with important NASA contributions, used its far-infrared vision to see, finally, a clear spectral signature of the water vapor. "This is the first time water vapor has been unequivocally detected on Ceres or any other object in the asteroid belt and provides proof that Ceres has an icy surface and an atmosphere," said Michael Kuppers of ESA in Spain, lead author of a paper on the findings published in the journal Nature. Scientists say they believe Ceres contains rock in its interior with a thick mantle of ice that, if melted, would amount to more fresh water than is present on all of Earth. NASA has its own mission, dubbed Dawn, now headed toward Ceres after spending more than a year orbiting the large asteroid Vesta. It will arrive in Ceres in the spring of 2015, NASA scientists said. "We've got a spacecraft on the way to Ceres, so we don't have to wait long before getting more context on this intriguing result, right from the source itself," said Carol Raymond, JPL deputy principal investigator for the Dawn mission. "Dawn will map the geology and chemistry of the surface in high resolution, revealing the processes that drive the outgassing activity."
(Prerequisite: Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, and Grace Academy Issued Placement Test) – This course is designed to help students develop their proficiency in Algebra III and Trigonometry. Although the basic concepts of Algebra II are reviewed quickly in the class, a firm foundation in Algebra is necessary for success in college-level mathematics. Every opportunity to show how Algebra is a modern modeling language for real life problems will be explored. Examples, exercises, and group activities provide a real-life context to help students grasp mathematical concepts. Textbook: Pre-Calculus, 7th Edition – McDougal Larson/Hostetler Houghton Mifflin Publisher Supplies: Graphing Calculator TI 84 (Required), a 1½ -inch 3 ring binder, loose leaf paper, graph paper, pencils
The term 'cast iron' designates an entire family of metals with a wide variety of properties.It is a generic term like steel which also designates a family of metals.Steels and cast irons are both primarily iron with carbon (C) as the main alloying element.The cast irons by definition solidify as heterogeneous alloys and always have more than one constituent in their microstructure.No matter cast iron or steel is widely used in the steel castings,alloy castings,valve castings,pump casting parts,etc. Cast irons must contain appreciable silicon (Si),usually from 1–3%,and thus they are actually iron-carbon-silicon alloys.The high C content and the Si in cast irons make them excellent casting alloys.Their melting temperatures are appreciably lower than for steel.Molten iron is more fluid than molten steel and less reactive with molding materials.Formation of lower density graphite in the iron during solidification reduces the change in volume of the metal from liquid to solid and makes production of more complex castings possible.Cast irons,however,do not have sufficient ductility to be rolled or forged. The presence of certain minor elements also is vital to the successful production of each type of iron.For example, nucleating agents, called inoculants, are used in the production of gray iron to control the graphite type and size.Trace amounts of bismuth and tellurium are used in the production of malleable iron, and the presence of a few hundredths of a percent magnesium (Mg) causes the formation of the spheroidal graphite in ductile iron. In addition,the composition of an iron must be adjusted to suit particular castings.Small castings and large castings of the same grade of iron cannot be made from the same composition of metal.For this reason,most iron castings are purchased on the basis of mechanical properties rather than composition.The common exception is for castings that require special properties such as corrosion resistance or elevated temperature strength. The various types of cast iron can be classified by their microstructure.This classification is based on the form and shape in which the major portion of the C occurs in the iron. This system provides for five basic types:gray iron,ductile iron,malleable iron,compacted graphite iron (CGI) and white iron.Each of these types may be moderately alloyed or heat treated without changing its basic classification.The high-alloy irons,generally containing over 3% of added alloy, also can be individually classified as gray or ductile iron or white, but the high-alloy irons are classified commercially as a separate group. gear casting: http://www.fotaichina.com/products/p295.html
Yellow Jackets Are Now Building Super-Nests, Some the Size of a Volkswagen Beetle Yellow jackets are nasty little brutes. Where other insects, bugs, and assorted tiny, winged monstrosities will quickly scurry, slither, or fly far away from humans, yellow jackets will charge and attack. And attack again. And then attack again, as long as needed until the anguished human quickly scurries away in great distress. To make matters worse, while attacking, they recruit their nasty little brutish friends to join in on the aerial assault. This makes the news that yellow jackets are now building super-nests containing 10,000+ winged tormenters most terrifying. Lest you think I'm being hyperbolic or overly-fearful, I was once stung over 20 times by a horde of yellow jackets angry that I had stumbled upon their nest. While I'm not allergic to stings and bites, thankfully, that many yellow jacket stings left me with a high fever and the need for Benadryl — not to mention the immense pain. I'm very aware of the damage that can be inflicted by yellow jackets when one unwittingly comes across their nest. I guess the good news about the super-nests is that it will be much harder to accidentally "find" them. The super-nests, unlike the typical underground nests of yellow jackets, are usually perched on the sides of buildings and are very hard to miss, although many people may not be aware of what they are until it's too late. In an article posted on CBS's website, it's explained that: A typical yellow jacket nest is usually found in the ground or a cavity - peaking at around 4,000 to 5,000 worker wasps that don't make it through the colder winter. This causes the queen to leave and create new colonies in the spring when the weather improves. Milder winters, coupled with an abundant food supply, have allowed some colonies to brave the winter weather and fly into spring with higher than usual numbers. The "normal cues" that usually cause queens to disperse may "not happen," and researches have seen multiple queens living in the huge colonies. The phenomenon has been called a perennial yellow jacket nest. According to the article, yellow jacket super-nests were first observed by researchers in 2006. This year, though, they're being observed much earlier. Charles Ray, an entomologist at Auburn University, revealed that the nests he has seen this year "already have more than 10,000 workers and are expanding rapidly." Have you seen the meme about burning your house down when you find a spider? Imagine finding a yellow jacket super-nest filled with over 10,000 angry wasps perched on the side of your house. And then imagine that it's "expanding rapidly." Burning your house down may be required to save civilization. In all seriousness, though, entomologist Charles Ray urges people to stay away from the nests and to call qualified pest control expert to deal with it. As another entomologist pointed out in the article, almost all deaths caused by stings in America are from yellow jackets.
This #1 best-selling text in introductory biology combines the guiding principles of scientific accuracy, currency, and the power of text-art integration for teaching and learning biology. Biology: Concepts & Connections, Sixth Editioncontinues to be the most accurate, current, and pedagogically effective non-majors text on the market. This extensive revision builds upon the book’s best-selling success with exciting new and updated features. Key concept modules, seamlessly combining text and illustrations, help students keep the big picture in mind and pace their learning, while making it easy for professors to assign selected sections within a chapter. Also within the text, a variety of new chapter opening essays, Connection Modules, and new Evolution Connection Modules help students recognize and appreciate the connections between biology and the world they live in. BioFlix animations, available on the companion website and as part of the instructor resources, offer students unprecedented help in understanding important topics and help invigorate lectures, assignments, or online courses. This text now includes access to MasteringBiology®. All resources previously found on mybiology are now located within the Study Area of MasteringBiology.KEY TOPICS:THE LIFE OF THE CELL, The Chemical Basis of Life, The Molecules of Cells, A Tour of the Cell, The Working Cell, How Cells Harvest Chemical Energy, Photosynthesis: Using Light to Make Food, The Cellular Basis of Reproduction and Inheritance, Patterns of Inheritance, Molecular Biology of the Gene, How Genes Are Controlled, DNA Technology and Genomics, How Populations Evolve, The Origin of Species, Tracing Evolutionary History, The Origin and Evolution of Microbial Life: Prokaryotes and Protists, Plants, Fungi, and the Colonization of Land, The Evolution of Invertebrate Diversity,The Evolution of Vertebrate Diversity, Unifying Concepts of Animal Structure and Function, Nutrition and Digestion, Gas Exchange, Circulation, The Immune System, Control of Body Temperature and Water Balance, Hormones and the Endocrine System, Reproduction and Embryonic Development, Nervous Systems, The Senses, How Animals Move, Plant Structure, Reproduction, and Development, Plant Nutrition and Transport, Control Systems in Plants, The Biosphere: An Introduction to Earth's Diverse Environments, Behavioral Adaptations to the Environment, Population Ecology, Communities and Ecosystems, Conservation and Restoration Biology.For all readers interested in learning the basics of biology. 0321706943 / 9780321706942 Biology: Concepts & Connections with MasteringBiology™ Package consists of:0321489845 / 9780321489845 Biology: Concepts and Connections0321681770 / 9780321681775 MasteringBiology™ with Pearson eText Student Access Kit for Biology: Concepts and Connections (ME component) Back to top Rent Biology 6th edition today, or search our site for other textbooks by Neil A. Campbell. Every textbook comes with a 21-day "Any Reason" guarantee. Published by Benjamin-Cummings Publishing Company.
Soils of South Africa is the first book in seventy years that provides a comprehensive account of South African soils. The book arranges more than seventy soil forms into fourteen groups and then provides, for each group: • maps showing their distribution and abundance throughout South Africa • descriptions of morphological, chemical and physical properties • a detailed account of classification and its correlation with international systems • a discussion of soil genesis which includes a review of relevant research papers • appraisal of soil quality from a land use perspective as well as for its ecological significance • illustrative examples of soil profiles with analytical data and accompanying interpretations. There is also a fascinating account of the special relationship that exists between South African animals and soil environments. Soils of South Africa should interest students and researchers in the earth, environmental and biological sciences, as well as environmental practitioners, farmers, foresters and civil engineers. Back to top Rent Soils of South Africa 1st edition today, or search our site for other textbooks by Martin Fey. Every textbook comes with a 21-day "Any Reason" guarantee. Published by Cambridge University Press.
ADHD: Helping Your Child Get the Most From SchoolSkip to the navigation Success in school is important for the development of healthy self-esteem and confidence. You can help your child succeed in school by: - Working with teachers and other school personnel. - Educating yourself about ADHD. - Helping your child control his or her symptoms. How can you help your child be successful in school? You can help your child have the greatest chance of success in school by educating yourself, building relationships, maintaining open communication, working with your child, and keeping good records. Preschool or kindergarten is the best time to start using these techniques. But it is never too late to help a child improve his or her school performance. Learning as much as you can about ADHD and your child's education rights will help you work with the school system more effectively. - Learn about ADHD. Use the Internet to locate national organizations, ask your doctor, or visit your local library or bookstore for information about ADHD. - Know your child's symptoms and treatment plan. Talk with your doctor about your child's behaviors that may interfere with learning and about ways to control those behaviors. Develop a record of your child's treatment plan (What is a PDF document?). - Learn about your child's education rights. Laws exist ensuring education rights for children who have conditions that interfere with learning. These laws also stipulate that parents have a right to be informed about and participate in educational decisions concerning their child. Contact your state and local education departments for information about ADHD in the schools and your rights to educational accommodations. - Talk with other parents of children with ADHD. Join a support group for ADHD families. Find out how others have effectively worked with school systems. A positive relationship with teachers and other school personnel will improve your child's chances of being successful in school. - Start early. Before a school year begins, get to know the principal and other appropriate school personnel. Find out as much as you can about the school policies and rules, especially how behavior problems are handled. Find out if there are other children with ADHD in the school and how their behavior is being handled in the classroom. - Share what you have learned. Find out if the teachers and other personnel need information about ADHD. Look for ways to help them get that information, such as suggesting books, pamphlets, or any local educational programs. - Get to know your child's teacher. Before the school year begins, talk with your child's teacher about his or her style of teaching and discipline in the classroom. Find out whether the teacher has experience teaching children who have ADHD. Share with the teacher information about your child's symptoms and what behaviors may interfere with his or her ability to learn. You may want to share your child's treatment plan with the teacher. - Make a school plan (What is a PDF document?). Work with the teacher to design a plan to help your child perform to his or her potential. Address how to minimize misbehavior and how to react to it. Your plan will change as your child grows and develops. You may need to work with the school to develop an individual education plan (IEP) for your child. An IEP is a tool for classroom and homework adaptations for a child with a disability. For children with milder symptoms, the school may suggest a plan that is used for medical conditions that do not meet the IEP standards (called a 504 plan). - Ask school personnel for help when needed. Tutoring or services that help with study or organizational skills are sometimes provided through the school. If not, school personnel often have a list of local resources that can help your child. Keep communication open Open communication with your child's teacher can help resolve problems that may occur throughout the school year. The following are suggestions for working and communicating with your child's teacher: - Understand the demands upon your child's teacher. Most children with ADHD can be taught in a regular classroom, although adjustments are sometimes needed. Not all teachers are trained to do this. Also, teachers are stretched to their limits by large numbers of children in the classroom, making it difficult to give each child personal attention. Ask the teacher what he or she needs from you to help assimilate your child. - Keep the teacher informed. Share with the teacher any relevant changes in your child's treatment plan. Help facilitate the sharing of information among you, your child's teacher, and your child's doctor. - Visit the classroom. If possible, volunteer for school activities and parties. This will let the teacher know that you are interested in your child's education and willing to help. - Request progress reports. Children with ADHD often lose or forget their assignments. Ask the teacher to complete regular progress reports of your child's performance and behavior. - Have a final conference. Meet with the teacher at the end of the school year to discuss your child's overall progress and the teacher's suggestions for the next year. Ask him or her about possible teachers for the next year and how to help your child get the best chance for success in school. Work with your child - Use treatment methods as recommended by your child's doctor. This may include medicine and/or behavior management techniques. This will help your child control symptoms of ADHD at home and school. - Keep your child involved. Let your child know that you support his or her teacher. Clearly outline your expectations and the consequences of misbehavior. Talk with your child about how the teacher will let him or her know that a behavior is becoming inappropriate. - Link school and home. Use the same signals (such as hand signals) that the teacher uses at school to indicate when a behavior is becoming inappropriate. Also, you can reward your child with privileges for remembering to bring home school progress reports. You can further reward him or her if the report is positive. If your child fails to bring a progress report home, you may treat it as if he or she had an unsatisfactory report and withhold a privilege. - Help your child organize. Even young children can learn to use lists, daily planners, or calendars to keep up with homework assignments, tests, and activities. A young child may need a teacher's help in writing down assignments. - Use learning aids, such as tape recorders or computers. Teach your child how to take notes and to underline important information. If your child seems to learn best visually, ask about books that have helpful pictures and diagrams or workbooks. - Have short sessions. Keep homework sessions to no more than 20 minutes without a break. Keep good records Health and school records can help monitor your child's academic and behavioral progress as well as help identify when treatment adjustments are needed. You should keep and update the following records: - ADHD evaluations. Collect copies of any records that are used to evaluate your child for ADHD. These records often identify the type of ADHD that your child has, which helps with treatment. - Evaluations for any other conditions with similar symptoms. - History of medicines. Record all medicines (What is a PDF document?) that your child has taken or is taking to treat ADHD. - School progress records. Keep copies of any school plans, daily school progress reports, and formal progress reports throughout the year. Also, keep your child's final grades and any achievement test results. You may find them helpful as you develop school plans for the following year. - Individual education plan. If your school developed an individual education plan (IEP) for your child, ask for a copy. You may need to share that information with the health professionals working with your child. To learn more about Healthwise, visit Healthwise.org. © 1995-2017 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.
Planet Earth is the third planet from the sun in our solar system, and the only known planet to support life. It is a terrestrial planet, meaning that it is composed primarily of rock or metal, with a thin layer of atmosphere and large bodies of liquid water on its surface. Earth has a diameter of approximately 12,742 kilometers (7,918 miles) and a mass of about 5.97 x 10^24 kilograms. It is located about 149.6 million kilometers (92.96 million miles) away from the sun, and takes about 365.25 days to complete one orbit around it. The Earth’s atmosphere is composed primarily of nitrogen (78%) and oxygen (21%), with trace amounts of other gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, and ozone. This atmosphere protects the planet from harmful solar radiation and helps to regulate the Earth’s temperature. The Earth is home to a diverse array of plant and animal species, with an estimated 8.7 million species on the planet. It is also home to a wide range of geological features, including mountains, valleys, oceans, and deserts. The study of the Earth and its systems is known as Earth science, and includes fields such as geology, meteorology, and oceanography. Understanding the Earth and its complex systems is crucial for addressing a wide range of environmental and social challenges facing the planet, such as climate change, resource management, and biodiversity conservation.
The Princeton Guide to Ecology is a concise, authoritative one-volume reference to the field's major subjects and key concepts. Edited by eminent ecologist Simon Levin, with contributions from an international team of leading ecologists, the book contains more than ninety clear, accurate, and up-to-date articles on the most important topics within seven major areas: autecology, population ecology, communities and ecosystems, landscapes and the biosphere, conservation biology, ecosystem services, and biosphere management. Complete with more than 200 illustrations (including sixteen pages in color), a glossary of key terms, a chronology of milestones in the field, suggestions for further reading on each topic, and an index, this is an essential volume for undergraduate and graduate students, research ecologists, scientists in related fields, policymakers, and anyone else with a serious interest in ecology. Explains key topics in one concise and authoritative volume Features more than ninety articles written by an international team of leading ecologists Contains more than 200 illustrations, including sixteen pages in color Includes glossary, chronology, suggestions for further reading, and index Covers autecology, population ecology, communities and ecosystems, landscapes and the biosphere, conservation biology, ecosystem services, and biosphere management Back to top Rent The Princeton Guide to Ecology 1st edition today, or search our site for other textbooks by Simon A. Levin. Every textbook comes with a 21-day "Any Reason" guarantee. Published by Princeton University Press.
From the USA: I have had type 1 diabetes for eight years. Can too much insulin cause weight gain? Can a person with diabetes donate blood and organs? Certainly too much insulin causes weight gain. This is inevitable because the only way to avoid hypoglycaemia is to eat more. Of course, the trick is to balance an appropriate food intake with the correct dose of insulin thus maintaining the right body weight and good blood glucose control. This is the perpetual battle in diabetes. Yes, you can donate blood and organs provided you are otherwise healthy. Last Updated: Tuesday April 06, 2010 15:09:16 This Internet site provides information of a general nature and is designed for educational purposes only. If you have any concerns about your own health or the health of your child, you should always consult with a physician or other health care professional. This site is published by T-1 Today, Inc. (d/b/a Children with Diabetes), a 501c3 not-for-profit organization, which is responsible for its contents. Our mission is to provide education and support to families living with type 1 diabetes. © Children with Diabetes, Inc. 1995-2016. Comments and Feedback.
Antarctica Cruise Information Antarctica is the southernmost continent on Earth. It is a solid land mass, over which about 98% of its surface is covered by a permanent layer of ice, measuring in places to a depth of around 1.6 km, locking in about 90% of the world’s fresh water, and near its centre is the geographic South Pole. It is located in the Antarctic region of the Southern Hemisphere, almost entirely within the Antarctic Circle, surrounded on all sides by the Southern Ocean. It covers an area of almost 14.0 million km2 making it the fifth-largest continent in land mass after Asia, Africa, North America and South America and is almost twice the area size of Australia. In the winter months the surrounding sea also freezes over almost doubling the surface area of the ice sheet. Because of the fact that Antarctica is at the South Pole and covered in freezing-cold ice, it is the coldest, but also driest (not much moisture in the air – annual rain fall is at 200 mm on the coast and far less in its interior) and the most windy of all the continents, which makes it a formidable, hostile, isolated and inhospitable environment for most living creatures in which to survive. In many places the ice cap is constantly moving into glacial rivers that then flow from the land onto the sea where vast areas of ice float until they break into enormous icebergs that then float around its coastal perimeter causing a difficult obstruction for shipping to navigate around, and an almost impenetrable barrier to the early explorers. There is no permanent human city or conurbation on the land mass, except for a number of small scientific research settlements from the various countries that claim disputed territorial rights to the continent. These research stations are scattered across the continent, with most located near the coast, where cumulatively, between 1,000 to 4,000 scientific researchers from varying countries live during the year. The name Antarctica is attributed to the Scottish cartographer John Bartholomew, and comes from the Greek word “aviapktikn” (“antarktike”), feminine of “aviapktikoc” which means “opposite to the north”. In 1959 the Antarctic Treaty was signed by twelve countries to prohibit military activities, mining and general “development” on the continent. Today the number of signatory countries has risen to forty six and, unfortunately, some are now discussing the possibilities of mining for minerals. Early Human Antarctic History Since the 1st century AD, the Greeks calculated that the world must be I the shape of a globe and that there must therefore be a southern land mass (“Terra Australis”) in order to “balance out” the vast northern lands of Europe, Asia and North Africa; the general idea being that there had to be a “symmetry” between the then known land masses in the world. This large, “hypothetical”, southern land mass had been depicted on maps since the early 16th century. However on 17 January 1773, Captain James Cook became the first-known person to navigate across the Antarctic Circle on board HMS Resolution, accompanied by its sister ship HMS Adventure. Cook tried to get past the perilous natural floating ice barrier of giant icebergs on more than one voyage, but he was prevented from doing so. Nevertheless, Cook unwittingly “promoted”, via his ships logs, that this newly-discovered area contained an abundance of marine fauna, specifically seals and whales, which in turn led to the arrival of seal and whale hunters to the region shortly after. The fur pelts from seals and blubber from whales converted into easy money back in Europe and North America, although the journey to these waters and actual hunting in treacherous conditions was anything but easy. It was common for these pioneer hunters to find sought-after seal breeding grounds on Antarctic land, but such information they would keep secret for fear of a competitor coming in to take some of the bounty. As a consequence there were no official records logged of when the Antarctic land may have actually been first sighted. It was therefore not until 1820 when the first officially-recorded sighting of the Antarctic Peninsula land mass was logged. Officially the sightings were made by Russian Naval Captain Thaddeus von Bellingshausen (27 January 1820), followed three days later by British Royal Navy Captain Edward Bransfield (30 January 1820) and a little later by a North American seal hunter called Nathaniel Palmer from Connecticut (November 1820). With regards to an actual landing on the continent, the first logged landing on Antarctica mainland was on 7 February 1821 by sealer-hunter John Davis, but this is disputed by a number of historians. In 1909 an expedition led by Ernest Shackleton aimed to reach the South Pole, but ended just short, leaving this accomplishment to Norwegian Roald Amundsen who, on 14 December 1911 became the first explorer to reach the geographic South Pole, followed by the Scott expedition a month later. Antarctica is the highest continent on earth with an average height of 2,500m (by comparison the average elevation of Australia is only 340m) and it contains one of the longest mountain ranges in the world called the Transantarctic Mountains that stretch for a distance of approximately 4,800km (longer than the length of Chile), mostly buried under the Antarctic ice cap, but exposed in some places, with the highest peak above the ice cap called Vinson Massif at a height of around 4,897m. The height at the South Pole measures 2,835m and the highest point on the icecap is in the claimed Australian Antarctic Territory, at 4,100m. The Transantarctic mountains run from the north-west tip of the Antarctic Peninsula near the Weddell Sea down to Cape Adare in the south west, forming a natural dividing line between west and east Antarctica, but whilst the larger area of land under the ice cap on the east is at an elevation higher than sea level, the western-side land under the ice cap is mostly at an elevation below sea level. It has also been recently discovered that under the ice sheet are 70 lakes.
But, according to the Environmental Protection Agency's 2008-2009 National Rivers and Stream Assessment, U.S. rivers aren't out of the woods just yet. The report found that 55 percent of U.S. rivers and streams are in poor condition biologically and only 21 percent are in good health. While the causes of poor river health can be many, the EPA report noted that the biggest culprits are nutrients, primarily nitrogen and phosphorus. Normal amounts of nutrients may be good for rivers and aquatic life, but too much of a good thing increases algae growth, which decreases oxygen needed by other aquatic life. The excess nitrogen and phosphorus, common ingredients in fertilizers, are coming from farms, livestock feeding operations, cities and sewers. The report also found that 9 percent of waterways contained bacteria levels high enough to be a threat to human health, and it reaffirmed the high levels of mercury in fish in thousands of miles of U.S. rivers. Surely we can do better. The Clean Water Act brought us a long way, but there's more to be done. Yes, it costs money to keep our rivers clean and healthy. But it would cost considerably more to let them degrade further. -- Loveland (Colo.) Daily Reporter-Herald
Color spaces conversion HSV / HSB Value / Brightness Similar Colors Names Color Harmonies (Scheme) The complementary color of 156°, 75%, 17% is 336°, 75%, 17%. When combined, they cancel each other out: this means that they produce a grayscale color. When placed next to each other, they create the strongest contrast. A triadic color scheme use three colors that are evenly spaced around the color wheel. Triadic color harmonies tend to be quite vibrant, even if you use pale or unsaturated versions of your hues. To use a triadic harmony successfully, the colors should be carefully balanced - let one color dominate (156°, 75%, 17%) and use the two others for accent (276°, 75%, 17%, 36°, 75%, 17%). The square color scheme has four colors spaced evenly around the color circle. This creates a balance between warm (336°, 75%, 17%, 66°, 75%, 17%) and cool (156°, 75%, 17%, 246°, 75%, 17%) colors in your design. The square color scheme works best if you let one color be dominant. Adjacent / Analogous / Analogic Analogous color schemes use colors that are next to each other on the color wheel. They usually match well and create serene and comfortable designs. The nearest colors, with enough contrast, of 156°, 75%, 17% are 186°, 75%, 17% and 126°, 75%, 17%. Choose one color to dominate and a second to support. The third color is used (along with black, white or gray) as an accent. The split-complementary color scheme is a variation of the complementary color scheme. In addition to the base color 156°, 75%, 17%, it uses the two colors adjacent to its complement: 306°, 75%, 17% and 6°, 75%, 17%. This color scheme has the same strong visual contrast as the complementary color scheme, but has less tension. The split-complimentary color scheme is often a good choice for beginners, because it is difficult to mess up. The rectangle or tetradic color scheme uses four colors arranged into two complementary pairs: 156°, 75%, 17% and his complementary 336°, 75%, 17% with 216°, 75%, 17% 36°, 75%, 17% or 276°, 75%, 17% 96°, 75%, 17%. This rich color scheme offers plenty of possibilities for variation. The tetradic color scheme works best if you let one color be dominant. You should also pay attention to the balance between warm and cool colors in your design. Tints, Shades, and Tones Adding white to the color: same hue and saturation of 156°, 75%, 17%, but brighter. Adding black to the color: same hue and saturation of 156°, 75%, 17%, but darker.
General Motors Corporation (GM) is an internationally recognized, global enterprise based in the United States. The company was founded in 1908, and has some of the most recognizable names in the world including; Chevrolet, Hummer, Buick, Cadillac, and Pontiac. Measured by global sales GM was the world’s largest automotive manufacturer for 77 years, until the 2009 financial collapse, and subsequent bankruptcy and government bailout caused major restructuring throughout the company. GM then lost the global sales title in 2010 to Japanese auto manufacturer Toyota, although both GM and Toyota are likely to be ousted this year by German manufacturer Volkswagen (Bloomberg, 2011). GM has had to reevaluate the company’s organizational structure for financial solvency, and to gain a foothold against strong competition expanding into the US and developing markets abroad. The Company’s Traditional Structure The old GM historically had a Vertical organizational structure. The rigid hierarchy may have contributed to some of the problems they faced as globalization increased competition. GM had many different companies centralized and all tied to the GM name. This created many redundancies in management, and this reflected in the products. Both Chevrolet and GM each made a van, the Astro and the Sierra. For all intents and purposes these vans are identical, but they were manufactured by two different companies under the General Motors umbrella. The higher levels of management decided what was required for all subordinate levels, and that was a one way street. The CEO’s, CFO’s, and top executives made all decisions for middle management down to the individual dealerships. Executives even decided what customers desired, with no feedback from customers, dealerships, or operational level managers. When the economy began to slow GM did not reduce production in response. As the customer base shifted to smaller, more economical cars GM still pushed for...
Scientists say the fossils of an ancient "swamp monster" that roamed the wilds of West Texas are those of a new species. Two crocodile-like reptiles called phytosaurs died about 205 million years ago in an oxbow lake, where they were entombed for centuries. According to a recent study, the roughly 17-foot-long (5.2-meter-long) beast lurked in swamps during the Triassic period, when West Texas was a tropical rain forest lush with tall ferns and conifers. (Also see "Biggest Crocodile Found—Fossil Species Ate Humans Whole?") With its 2-foot-long (0.6-meter-long) snout, Machaeroprosopus lottorum would have resembled—and acted like—a modern-day gharial, ambushing prey such as fish and amphibians from beneath the water. Paleontologists dubbed the ancient creature M. lottorum after the Lott family, which owns the Texas Panhandle ranch where the two skulls were discovered in the summer of 2001. The first skull the scientists found wasn't well preserved, but a few weeks later, when Doug Cunningham, a field research assistant at the Museum of Texas Tech University and co-author of the study, dug up the second skull, they were shocked. "We were all kind of in awe of it," Cunningham said in a statement. "It had this long, skinny snout. It was quite a bit different" from the skulls of known phytosaurs. The odd-looking skull prompted the researchers to launch a lengthy effort to formally describe it as a new species. Now that it has been, scientists suspect there may be more species of Triassic phytosaurs than was previously thought. When other paleontologists began studying the skulls, says study co-author Bill Mueller, assistant curator of paleontology at the museum, they noticed something that suggested these phytosaurs were a new species: An opening at the top of the skull, called the supratemporal fenestra, was located in a different place than on known phytosaurs. The scientists think the two skulls represent a male and a female. One of the skulls sports a bony crest that stretches from nostril to beak tip. Many paleontologists believe these were female-attracting features found only on male animals. The other skull did not have such a crest, according to the scientists, whose study was published in the journal Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. Andy Heckert, a phytosaur expert and geologist at Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina, who wasn't involved in the study, agreed with the theory that males had a bony crest, and that the skulls represent different sexes. However, much of what's assumed about phytosaurs is speculation, as only a few skeletons have ever been found. If paleontologists could find an intact one, they could confirm if it really was a swamp-dweller by measuring its legs: Short, squat limbs would mean it lived in water. (Learn about sea monsters in National Geographic.) Their wish may be granted: Study co-author Mueller said his team just found a huge phytosaur skull that's now being excavated.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English - n. A hypothetical earth counter to ours, or on the opposite side of the sun. - n. Inhabitants of opposite hemispheres. from The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia - n. In Pythagorean astronomy, an imaginary invisible planet continually opposing the earth and eclipsing the central fire, round which it was supposed to revolve, in common with the earth, moon, sun, certain planets, and the fixed stars. - n. plural The inhabitants of an opposite hemisphere. Sorry, no etymologies found. No longer will you see the antichthon of Plato, the focus of Philolaüs, the spheres of Aristotle, or the seven heavens of the Jews with the great waters above the vault of crystal! " The Pythagoreans, on the other hand, attributed perfection to the number ten; but agreed in thinking that the perfect number must be somehow realized in the heavens; and knowing only of nine heavenly bodies, to make up the enumeration, they asserted “that there was an _antichthon_, or counter-earth, on the other side of the sun, invisible to us.” ( Wordnik is becoming a not-for-profit! Read our announcement here.
Femoral HerniaSkip to the navigation A femoral hernia occurs in the groin area when abdominal tissue (such as a loop of intestine) bulges through a weakness in the abdominal wall and moves into the upper part of the thigh. The hernia follows the path of the femoral canal, a narrow passage that carries blood vessels to the leg. Femoral hernias occur more frequently in women than in men, but they are less common than inguinal hernias. These hernias can be hard to diagnose because pain often is felt generally in the groin, not in a particular spot. Also, a femoral hernia mass may be too small for a doctor to feel during a physical exam. As a result, two out of three femoral hernias are found only when a portion of intestine has been trapped in the femoral canal and blood supply to the tissue has been cut off (strangulated hernia).footnote 1 Unlike inguinal hernias, a femoral hernia usually does not flatten when you lie down. Because it can be hard to diagnose, a femoral hernia sometimes is mistaken for an inguinal hernia, a lymph node, or a benign fatty tumor (lipoma). Primary Medical Reviewer E. Gregory Thompson, MD - Internal Medicine Adam Husney, MD - Family Medicine Specialist Medical Reviewer Kenneth Bark, MD - General Surgery, Colon and Rectal Surgery Current as ofAugust 9, 2016 Current as of: August 9, 2016 To learn more about Healthwise, visit Healthwise.org. © 1995-2017 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.
(Randii Oliver, artist)YORK, ENGLAND—It had been assumed that Neanderthals experienced harsh and dangerous childhoods, but a new study of the elaborate burials of Neanderthal children by researchers from the University of York and the Center for Human Palaeoecology and Evolutionary Origins indicates that they had strong emotional attachments within their social groups and played significant roles in society. Sick and injured children may have been cared for over long periods of time. “Interpretations of high activity levels and frequent periods of scarcity form part of the basis for this perceived harsh upbringing. However, such challenges in childhood may not be distinctive from the normal experience of early Palaeolithic human children, or contemporary hunter-gatherers in particularly cold environments. There is a critical distinction to be made between a harsh childhood and a childhood lived in a harsh environment,” team leader Penny Spikins told Red Orbit.