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One of the ancient biographies of Aesop begins: The fabulist Aesop, the great benefactor of mankind, was by chance a slave but by origin a Phrygian of Phrygia, of loathsome aspect, worthless as a servant, pot-bellied, misshapen of head, snub-nosed, swarthy, dwarfish, bandy-legged, short-armed, squint-eyed, liver-lipped—a portentous monstrosity. In addition to this he had a defect more serious than his unsightliness in being speechless, for he was dumb and could not talk.1 Our evidence does not make it clear if this portentous monstrosity ever actually existed, or, if he did, what contribution he made, if any, to the surviving body of animal fables associated with his name. The first mention of that name occurs in Herodotus (about 425 BCE), who seems to date its bearer to the first half of the sixth century BCE. A few years later Herodotus’ younger contemporary, the Athenian comic playwright Aristophanes, assumes his audience knows of fables identified as Aesop’s, and mentions that he was prosecuted by the people of Delphi on a charge of theft. The form of these citations does nothing to tell us if Aesop lore was circulating as written texts or only orally. The first clear evidence we have for a written collection of “Aesopian” fables dates to the end of the fourth century BCE, and from that point on collecting and rewriting them becomes a busy side industry of classical culture, continuing through the Renaissance to the present day. Over seven hundred Greek and Latin versions of Aesop’s fables have come down to us by one route or another.2 It is not the fables, however, with which Leslie Kurke’s Aesopic Conversations is primarily concerned. Her focus is on the biographical tradition (or Lives—Latin vitae), which comes to us in two rather loosely maintained textual “recensions”—families of manuscripts copied from earlier versions of the work. One of these, called W (for Westermann, its nineteenth-century editor) and long known to us, is preserved in both Greek manuscripts and a Latin translation. The other, seemingly older, is uniquely represented by a tenth- or eleventh-century manuscript that disappeared from the Basilian monastery at Grottaferrata, not far from Rome (after which it is called Vita G), sometime during the Napoleonic occupation, and resurfaced later in Paris, where it was acquired by J.P. Morgan in 1908. The text of Vita G is, editorially speaking, an utter mess: the scribes either were incompetent or had only bad material to copy from. What shines through the wreckage, however, are a stage of the Greek language and a few material details that indicate an era of Roman dominance. G probably dates to sometime from the first century BCE through the second century CE. Vita G is a picaresque novella whose bottom-of-the-heap antihero Aesop meets with a series of people and situations and proves master of most, if not all. The episodes are… This article is available to subscribers only. Please choose from one of the options below to access this article: Purchase a print subscription (20 issues per year) and also receive online access to all articles published within the last five years. Purchase an Online Edition subscription and receive full access to all articles published by the Review since 1963. Purchase a trial Online Edition subscription and receive unlimited access for one week to all the content on nybooks.com.
JUDGES CHAPTER 16, “Story Of Samson’s Demise: Samson And Delilah” 1.1. In our last study, we looked at chapters 14-15 and how that Samson had his parents arrange for him to marry a certain Philistine woman, and that situations then began to arise in Samson’s life that led him to exact revenge upon the Philistines. 1.2. In our study today, we are going to look at chapter 16 and Samson’s tragic demise as he continued down his spiral of spiritual decline and compromise and eventually has a tragic and early death. 1.2.1. The story of Samson and Delilah we are going to study today has been made into movies, popularized in television commercials, and captured the imaginations of millions. It has all of the ingredients that great stories have been known for in this world: love, sex, deception, and violence. 1.2.2. Warren Wiersbe described the life of Samson as being much similar to how Winston Churchill described the Russians in his day, “a riddle wrapped up in a mystery inside an enigma.” No other man among God’s people of the Old Testament had any greater opportunity or potential to be used greatly by the Lord, and yet because Samson did not walk closely with the Lord his life really is a life of tragedy and only worth remembering because of lessons to learn from his mistakes and because of the great ways in which the Lord worked through his life, yet really worked in spite of him. 1.2.3. We have seen that the Spirit of the Lord began coming upon Samson and giving him great power so that he could exact revenge against the Philistines. The Spirit of the Lord first came upon him and gave him the power to kill with his very hands a young lion that attacked him. 1.2.4. Then, we saw that the opportunities for Samson to exert revenge against the Philistines began occurring, and several times Samson demonstrated supernatural strength and abilities as he killed and brought harm to the Philistines, for instance: 188.8.131.52. Samson killed 30 men in order to pay off a gambling debt over a riddle he had propounded to some Philistine men. 184.108.40.206. He performed an incredible feat of capturing 300 jackals and in pairs tying their tails together around a torch which he set on fire, and then he let the animals run into the fields of the Philistines and they burned up all of the crops of the Philistines. 220.127.116.11. He killed 1,000 Philistines with the jawbone of a donkey. 1.2.5. We saw though that Samson had no real regard for his Nazarite vow that he was to be under, and thus no real regard for the Lord Himself, for we see that he began breaking each of the regulations of his Nazarite vow. He touched a dead animal carcass, went through a vineyard, and then attended a drunken wedding feast in which he most likely got drunk. 1.2.6. Also, we saw that Samson was not a spiritual man and he had no regard for the law of the Lord for though it forbid him to marry outside the nation of Israel, he had his parents arrange a marriage for himself to a Philistine woman. 1.2.7. Evidently, Samson was a man whom his parents had never properly disciplined and never learned to say ‘no’ to when he desired the things that the Lord had forbidden for his life. We see that this is probably the case because although Samson’s parents objected to his marriage outside of 1.2.8. Samson has become such a popular legend in our culture, with the various movies that have been made about his life, that we have tended to think of him as being this huge and powerful he-man. However, we have seen that the scriptures do not tell us that he was a huge man but rather that the source of his strength and power was the Spirit of the Lord. When the Spirit of the Lord came upon Samson he performed mighty supernatural feats and exacted revenge against the Philistines. 1.2.9. We have also seen that because Samson was not following the Lord closely that the works that he performed were not the battles of the Lord but Samson’s own personal vendettas and revenge. However, the Lord was allowing Samson to do these things and even empowering Samson in order that He might 1.2.10. Today, I want to propose to you that Samson was actually a very weak man. Although he was a man upon whom the Spirit of the Lord would sometimes fall and cause him to perform great feats, he none the less was so weak that he could not conquer his own passions and lusts. Samson could not conquer himself and thus was controlled by his passions to the extent that, being controlled by his fleshly sinful nature, he made very stupid decisions, decisions that eventually led to his complete demise and early and tragic death. 1.2.11. Samson’s main weakness in the flesh is women and sex. 18.104.22.168. He first saw a Philistine woman of Timnah in chapter 15 and just because she looked good to him and regardless that the Lord had forbid marriages outside of 22.214.171.124. Here we see in this chapter that Samson goes and has sex with a prostitute in the Philistine city of 126.96.36.199. Then, Samson later falls in love with this woman Delilah who ends up betraying him by getting him to confide in her that the secret to his great strength was that he was under a Nazirite vow and that if his hair were to be cut he would become weak. She then she tells this to the Philistines who cut off his hair and afflict and enslave him. Samson finally comes to an tragic death at an early age. 1.2.12. In Gary Inrig’s commentary he has the following quote about Samson from Ambrose an early Christian writer, “Samson, when brave, strangled a lion; but he could not strangle his own love. He burst the fetters of his foes; but not the cords of his own lusts. He burned the crops of others, and lost the fruit of his own virtue when burning with the flame enkindled by a single woman.” 2. VS 16:1-3 - “1 Now Samson went to 2.1. In the Old Testament law of Moses we read that the Lord strictly forbid sexual relations outside of marriage: 2.1.1. Lev. 19:29, “29 ‘Do not profane your daughter by making her a harlot, so that the land will not fall to harlotry and the land become full of lewdness.” 2.1.2. Deut. 22:20-21, “20 “But if this charge is true, that the girl was not found a virgin, 21 then they shall bring out the girl to the doorway of her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death because she has committed an act of folly in Israel by playing the harlot in her father’s house; thus you shall purge the evil from among you.” 2.2. There are many scriptures also that speak of the folly of Samson for not being in control of his own passions and lusts, including the following: 2.2.1. Prov. 25:28, “28 Like a city that is broken into and without walls Is a man who has no control over his spirit.” 2.2.2. Prov. 16:32, “32 He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, And he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city.” 2.3. Though he should have known better, Samson was a very undisciplined man, which was probably a reflection of how his parents raised him. Samson does not even attempt to live cautiously and prudently and instead is very reckless. It is Samson’s lack of discipline and recklessness that cause his spiritual demise that eventually leads to his death. 2.4. Samson here was flirting with temptation instead of fleeing from it and as a result he gets ensnared in sin. 2.5. Following lust leads a person to eventually lose all control of himself. The path to falling into sin, you see, is not a big cliff that one day a person inadvertently falls off. Instead, it is a gradually decline, one that involves gradual compromises with the world and flirting with sin. When a person has finally hit rock bottom he doesn’t even initially realize where he is at or how he got there. 2.6. Going to a prostitute in Gaza, Samson surely knew was a very foolish and risky thing to do, after all the Philistines were looking for any opportunity to kill or harm him. However, whenever a person has given himself over to living for the fulfillment of his lusts he loses all sense of logic and reason and as a result may do many a stupid thing. 2.6.1. In our world today, we are almost daily hearing stories of people who suddenly break and do something very violent such as commit a mass murder. This occurs because the person first had unbridled lust in his life. 2.7. The Philistines had been looking for an opportunity to kill or harm Samson, and now they have heard that he is in their city, so they lay a trap for him. They thought that they could contain Samson in the city because of the impregnable construction of their city gates. The city gates were constructed of wood covered with metal and nail studs and were very heavy. Their posts had been pounded deep into the ground. 2.8. Because the Philistine guards at the gate of the city thought that there was no way that anyone could escape out of the city, they evidently got lazy and fell asleep at their guard. 2.9. Knowing that a trap had been set for him and that the Philistines planned to capture him in the morning when he left, Samson decided to leave the harlot and the city at about midnight. 2.10. This time when the Spirit of the Lord came upon Samson He gave Samson great strength so that he picked up the doors of the city gate and carried them up either to a hill on the way to Hebron, or all of the way to Hebron itself, an uphill distance of 38 miles. The text allows either interpretation, and either feat can only be explained in supernatural terms. No strong man competition ever saw any feat performed that is even close to that performed by Samson on this day. 3. VS 16:4-5 - “4 After this it came about that he loved a woman in the 3.1. We don’t really know much at all about this woman Delilah. 3.1.1. Her name is Semitic not Philistine, however she lives among the Philistines, therefore she may be the result of an intermarriage. 3.1.2. She may very well have also been a prostitute, but we aren’t specifically told this. 3.1.3. She was evidently a very attractive woman and Samson surely had a sexual affair with her. 3.1.4. Samson desired her for more than just sex, he actually fell in love with her. 188.8.131.52. Love blinds a person. As an application here, many a Christian guy or gal has initially thought that a date with a non-believer would be harmless however after they have fallen in love they lost all reason and were willing to have sexual relations or a marriage relationship which is outside God’s will for their life (marriage for a Christian is only to be with those who are in the Lord). 3.2. Delilah was a woman who loved things and used people. She used the men in her life for her own purposes. She enjoyed being with Samson but she loved money and the finer things in life more than she loved him, therefore for a good price she was willing to sell him to the Philistines for what would be his torture, imprisonment, and perhaps death. 4. VS 16:6-14 - “6 So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me where your great strength is and how you may be bound to afflict you.” 7 Samson said to her, “If they bind me with seven fresh cords that have not been dried, then I will become weak and be like any other man.” 8 Then the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven fresh cords that had not been dried, and she bound him with them. 9 Now she had men lying in wait in an inner room. And she said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” But he snapped the cords as a string of tow snaps when it touches fire. So his strength was not discovered. 10 Then Delilah said to Samson, “Behold, you have deceived me and told me lies; now please tell me how you may be bound.” 11 He said to her, “If they bind me tightly with new ropes which have not been used, then I will become weak and be like any other man.” 12 So Delilah took new ropes and bound him with them and said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” For the men were lying in wait in the inner room. But he snapped the ropes from his arms like a thread. 13 Then Delilah said to Samson, “Up to now you have deceived me and told me lies; tell me how you may be bound.” And he said to her, “If you weave the seven locks of my hair with the web [and fasten it with a pin, then I will become weak and be like any other man.” 14 So while he slept, Delilah took the seven locks of his hair and wove them into the web]. And she fastened it with the pin and said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” But he awoke from his sleep and pulled out the pin of the loom and the web.” - Delilah tries to get Samson to tell her the source of his great strength 4.1. We see in these verses again that Samson is flirting with temptations instead of fleeing them. Knowing that Delilah is trying to find out his weakness to use it against him, Samson thinks that he is stronger than he is and that he has the ability in his own strength to withstand the temptation to tell his secret. 4.2. We see here that Samson had plenty of opportunities to flee this temptation, and that the promise in 1 Cor. 10:13 was surely true for him, “13 No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.” 4.2.1. Just as Joseph fled out of the bedroom of Potiphar’s wife when she tried to seduce him, so Samson at this point would have been wise to run fast and get as far away from Delilah as he could get. 4.2.2. Many years ago, Jon Courson once said that he came into one of his kid’s rooms when the child was a baby. As he walked over to the baby he noticed that the baby was reaching up trying to grab something. When he got closer he realized that his child was reaching up trying to grab a deadly Black Widow spider that was hanging from a web over the crib. This is the way we Christians look to the Lord whenever we are flirting with temptations in our lives. 4.2.3. If a person plays with fire they are eventually going to get burned, so a person who flirts with temptations will eventually succumb to sin. 4.2.4. Someone once spoke about the lives of Christians, especially those committed to ministry, that the hand of the Lord is not heavy upon their lives. Therefore, it is not wise to tempt and test the Lord by flirting with temptation for the Lord may allow you to fail and fall right on your face into sin. 4.3. Apparently, the Philistines were hiding in the house and listening whenever Delilah would tell Samson that the Philistines were upon him. If Samson could not break his bindings when Delilah woke him telling him that the Philistines were upon him then Delilah would yell and the Philistines would come quickly into the bedroom and capture him. But, if Samson broke his bonds then the Philistines would remain in hiding. 4.4. As Samson is flirting with this temptation to reveal the secret of his great strength, notice that he begins to get closer to the truth by suggesting to Delilah that his strength had something to do with his hair. 4.5. It is worth noting that Samson’s strength was not really the result of his long hair. It was the Spirit of the Lord who gave him the great strength, not his hair. 4.6. To this point, Samson has now broken every aspect of his Nazarite vow with the exception of not cutting his hair. Instead of Samson trying his best to be as faithful to the Lord as he can be, he thinks in terms of how far he can go outside God’s perfect will for him without losing the empowering from the Spirit of the Lord. The only thing left intact of his vow of separation as a Nazirite involved his hair. This I believe is the reason that Samson felt that if his hair were cut that the Spirit of the Lord would no longer strengthen him and use him against the Philistines. 5. VS 16:15-19 - “15 Then she said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heart is not with me? You have deceived me these three times and have not told me where your great strength is.” 16 It came about when she pressed him daily with her words and urged him, that his soul was annoyed to death. 17 So he told her all that was in his heart and said to her, “A razor has never come on my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If I am shaved, then my strength will leave me and I will become weak and be like any other man.” 18 When Delilah saw that he had told her all that was in his heart, she sent and called the lords of the Philistines, saying, “Come up once more, for he has told me all that is in his heart.” Then the lords of the Philistines came up to her and brought the money in their hands. 19 She made him sleep on her knees, and called for a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his hair. Then she began to afflict him, and his strength left him.” - Samson finally breaks and tells Delilah all of the secrets of his heart including the fact that if his hair were cut he would not be empowered by the Lord any longer 5.1. Samson underestimated the power of a woman’s tears. After Delilah’s continual crying, begging, and manipulating Samson to tell her the secret of his power, Samson finally gives in. 5.2. Foolishly, Samson trusted Delilah with his very life. Samson not only lusted after Delilah, he also loved her truly from his heart. However, Delilah was a woman with a divided heart, and she loved money and the finer things in life more than any man. She would betray Samson even to his death if it meant great gain for her. 5.3. Evidently Samson was quite the sleeper and whenever he slept he went into deep sleep. When Samson has finally fallen asleep on Delilah’s knees, Delilah has the Philistines come and cut off his seven locks of hair. 5.4. Then, to test Samson’s strength Delilah began to inflict him with injuries to see if he still regained his strength, but Samson’s strength had now left him. 6. VS 16:20-21 - “20 She said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And he awoke from his sleep and said, “I will go out as at other times and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had departed from him. 21 Then the Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes; and they brought him down to 6.1. Notice here how sad a thing it is that Samson didn’t know that the power of the Lord had now left him since his hair had been cut off. Samson was now out of fellowship with the Lord and therefore the Lord would not come upon him any longer and give him great strength as he had done at other times. 6.2. After flirting with sin for many years and compromising time and again his Nazirite vow, with his hair cut Samson now had nothing remaining intact of his Nazirite vow of separation from the world and unto the Lord. 6.3. How pathetic it is now to see Samson, our hero, bound with chains in the prison and working as a grinder (probably of meal). 6.4. Preachers have often preached about how what we see here with Samson is the grinding, binding, and blinding power of sin. 6.4.1. When we give ourselves over to our lusts and live in sin, the result is a “grinding” and wearing down of us. Sin gradually sucks the very joy of living right out of a person. 6.4.2. When we give ourselves over to our lusts and live in sin, the result is also that we find ourselves “bound” in our sin. Whatever a man submits himself to he becomes the slave of, and if it is sin then he becomes “bound” as a slave to sin. A person may think that he has control of his lusts, however when he begins to give himself over to them they begin to control him and slowly destroy his life. 6.4.3. When we give ourselves over to our lusts and live in sin, the result is yet again that we become “blind” to reality, “blind” to the truth, “blind” to our real condition and the real condition of the world around us. 7. VS 16:22-25 - “22 However, the hair of his head began to grow again after it was shaved off. 23 Now the lords of the Philistines assembled to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice, for they said, “Our god has given Samson our enemy into our hands.” 24 When the people saw him, they praised their god, for they said, “Our god has given our enemy into our hands, Even the destroyer of our country, Who has slain many of us.” 25 It so happened when they were in high spirits, that they said, “Call for Samson, that he may amuse us.” So they called for Samson from the prison, and he entertained them. And they made him stand between the pillars.” - The Philistines call a great feast and they send for Samson so that they can torment and torture him and amuse themselves thereby 7.1. This calling of Samson to the feast by the Philistines in order to amuse themselves by torturing him reminds me of what the Romans did when in the first 300 years of the church they persecuted Christians. In the coliseum in Rome they would make the Christians fight to the death wild animals, gladiators, or even each other, all to the cheer of the blood thirsty and sadistic crowd. Thousands of Christians were killed in this way in the first 200 years of the church. The Philistines were a “sea people” who had originally come to the The Philistines were exulting here that their god was more powerful than the God of the sons of 7.4. We aren’t told how that the Philistines tortured or taunted Samson to the crowd’s delight, however it must have been the most humiliating experience imaginable for Samson. 7.5. We see here that Samson’s hair began to grow, and we can guess that Samson had now also come to that place of realizing that he was just like the prodigal son of Jesus’ parable who had become estranged from his heavenly Father and living among the pigs and actually eating the food of the pigs. 7.6. Because Samson’s hair had begun to grow and because Samson had also now surely repented of his sins and asked the Lord’s forgiveness for his sins, he is now in fellowship with the Lord, and thus the Lord will use him again. 7.6.1. Isn’t it wonderful how that the Lord uses a man or a woman again after they have fallen into sin? 7.6.2. What grace is seen in this story, and this grace comes from the God of grace who is willing to restore all who have fallen into sin and then just like the prodigal son of Jesus’ parable have confessed and repented of their sins. 7.6.3. When we as Christians fall into sin we only need to confess our sins and repent and the Lord because of His grace can and will begin to work through our lives yet again. 8. VS 16:26-31 - “26 Then Samson said to the boy who was holding his hand, “Let me feel the pillars on which the house rests, that I may lean against them.” 27 Now the house was full of men and women, and all the lords of the Philistines were there. And about 3,000 men and women were on the roof looking on while Samson was amusing them. 28 Then Samson called to the Lord and said, “O Lord God, please remember me and please strengthen me just this time, O God, that I may at once be avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes.” 29 Samson grasped the two middle pillars on which the house rested, and braced himself against them, the one with his right hand and the other with his left. 30 And Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” And he bent with all his might so that the house fell on the lords and all the people who were in it. So the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those whom he killed in his life. 31 Then his brothers and all his father’s household came down, took him, brought him up and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of Manoah his father. Thus he had judged 8.1. This is the second and final prayer that Samson prays in the book of Judges, and it is a prayer in faith to the Lord to give him the strength to destroy a huge number of the leading men and women of the Philistines. Samson knew also that in performing this feat that he would die with the Philistines. 8.2. The Spirit of the Lord one last time comes upon Samson and he pushes two foundational pillars apart causing the roof to collapse upon the 3,000 Philstines gathered together, killing all of them. 8.3. One author I read mentioned at this point that Samson’s death here was really the death of a martyr since Samson was now in fellowship with the Lord and the Lord granted this request of his, and I guess that I agree with this assumption. 8.4. The Lord was using this opportunity to significantly alter and weaken the Philistines inner civil structure and aristocracy. 8.5. Samson’s family finally come and take home his body. 8.6. What a tragedy it is that this man who could not control his own passions and lusts had to die at such a young age and in such a pathetic way. 8.7. When we closely look at Samson’s life we have to realize that from him we need to learn what not to do in life, for there are really few positives that we can point to. His life is an enigma and a life lived of unfilled potential and wasted opportunity. 9.1. Learning from Samson’s life, we Christians must commit ourselves to becoming disciplined believers, people who have learned to control our own passions and lusts. 9.2. We must all realize that we cannot expect to flirt with temptation without being burned. Temptation must be fled from not flirted with. 9.3. When we look at Samson’s life we see that the Lord worked through his life, but worked in spite of him, and we wonder what great things the Lord could have done in his life if he had truly been surrendered to the Lord and obedient from the heart to the Lord. May each of us determine to be people who are in line with God’s will and purposes so that if He should choose to use our life that He wouldn’t have to work around or in spite of us.
When you need to dispose of household cleaning products, how do you do it? Do you use a special hazardous waste disposal service? Chances are that you will just dump everything down the drain. But what if those chemicals escape into the ecosystem, what damage might result? We shall attempt to prove that household chemicals have a negative impact upon the growth and development of plants. We are growing new plants in eighty cups in the Boyd greenhouse. One-fourth of those plants are recieving ordinary water, while the rest are recieving one of two household cleaning products, diluted in water. Our experiment is not yet completed, but already it has displayed interesting results. The plants that are recieving chemicals appear to growing at a noticibly slower rate than the control plants, and more of them are dying. We hope that this data will help us to prove our hypothesis. The purpose of our lab is test the effects of two common house-hold chemicals on the development of young plants. Specifically, we will be using glass cleaner and dish soap. We hypothesize that these chemicals will negatively affect plant growth and development, and result in abnormal coloration and smaller size. We also hypothesize that the ammonia in the glass cleaner will have a stronger effect than the dish soap. Through our studies we plan to see how the chemicals affects the plants. We decided on this project after much thought and group discussion. We all seemed to agree that we wanted to do an experiment involving plants. We wanted to test how something affected plants, but we couldnŪt decide on a factor to test. Eventually we narrowed it down to pollution, which is a major concern of modern day science. We finally chose to test the effects of toxic substance one would find around the home. Initially we chose to do motor oil and drain cleaner, but instead settled for dish soap and glass cleaner. After settling the matter of the ratio of chemical-to-water dosage to give the test groups of plants, we felt that we had a fairly sound experiment. This study is relevant because many common, potentially hazardous substance such as these are frequently disposed of by pouring them down drains, or even by dumping them directly into the ecosystem, which could allow these chemicals to seep into the water supply that plants depend on. We will try to find if the improper disposal of household chemicals might have a strong negative effect on plant development. We find this research interesting because we are using chemicals that are used everyday and they are disposed of without any consideration to if they might be harmful to nature. Our project is closely related to the study —The Effects of a Drought on Water Pollution,‚ by Leslie B, Jackie K, Adam G, David S, Peter K, and Matt W, in Nicholson«s section. Both are focused around water pollution, although our project is concerned more about the effects of pollution in water, not what effects pollution in water. Unfortunately, we were not able to find a large amount of articles that were directly related to our topic. We did find some articles on pollution. We also found some on-line resources concerning the toxic substances contained in household chemicals. One article we came across, Application of Diluted Chlorine Dioxide to Radish and Lettuce Nurseries Insignificantly Reduced Plant Development (Angel Carrillo, M.Esther Puente, AND Yoav Bashan, Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, pp 35, 57ŗ66, 1996.), described an experiment that actually suggested the conclusion that some diluted toxic substances have little or no effect on plants, which is the opposite of our proposal. Our research relates to the important issue of pollution«s effect on the ecology of our world. By finding out if plants are vulnerable to a common form of pollution, we hope to emphasize the importance of caring for our environment, and the importance of properly dealing with hazardous materials. Materials and Methods The following are materials we will use: Styrofoam beverage cups, soil, seeds, Ajax lemon liquid dish soap, ammonia glass cleaner, and water. The experiment will be conducted in the greenhouse adjacent to Boyd Hall. We decided that it would be best to grow the plants from seeds. We will purchase a large quantity of seeds, and distribute them among 80 Styrofoam cups. 20 of these cups will contain the control group of plants, which will receive 20 ml of ordinary water. 30 total will receive 20 ml of a solution containing water and dish soap. For 15 of these, the solution will be .5 ml of dish soap and 19.5 ml of water. The other 15 will receive 1 ml of dish soap and 19 ml of water. The remaining 30 cups will receive 20 ml of a solution containing water and glass cleaner. For 15 of these, the solution will be .5 ml of glass cleaner and 19.5 ml of water. The other 15 will receive 1 ml of glass cleaner and 19 ml of water. The plants will be watered three times a week, on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoons. Watering will begin when the seeds to sprout from the soil. We plan on running this experiment beginning the week of 10-3, and through 12-2. We will collect data about the development of the plants each time we water them. For each of the substances the plants recieve we will record the number of plants, the color of the plants, and the length of the leaves on the plants. The data will be placed on a data sheet, and we will compare the data from session to session, to see if any patterns emerge relative to the substances and the dosages given. We feel that we can get an accurate reading of how the plants were developmentally effected in this time span. Our experimental design was orginally fairly different from its present state, and it has been modified significantly to make it more realistic and statistically sound. Originally, we were only going to do about 20 groups of plants, instead of 80. We will include the class by having them discuss the possible effects that harmful chemicals in these household cleaners could have on the plants. We will also bring them out to the greenhouse to show them our plants, which would be unlabeled. The class will examine the plants, looking for the same specifications as we do, including number, size, and color. Then the class will have to guess which plants have been watered with what. Application of Diluted Chlorine Dioxide to Radish and Lettuce Nurseries Insignificantly Reduced Plant Development (Angel Carrillo, M.Esther Puente, AND Yoav Bashan, Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, pp 35, 57ŗ66, 1996.) 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Because psychedelic drugs are considered to be less addictive in general than stimulants and opioids, less likely to be abused in the long term, and less likely to cause intense physical side effects or overdose, they are often thought of as less harmful than other drugs. This is far from the truth, as psychedelic drugs are also dangerous in many of the same ways that other commonly abused substances are. For someone who is constantly abusing these drugs, there is always a chance for dangerous side effects, and certain hallucinogens (like PCP and MDMA) can cause overdose and death the first time they are abused. Understanding the dangers of psychedelic drug effects is necessary, and users of these substances should not think themselves immune to the same issues experienced by abusers of other types of drugs. Physical Dangers of Psychedelic Drug Effects While these drugs do not cause some of the same effects that make other substances dangerous, they can be problematic and even harmful in their own right. According to the NIDA, “Unpleasant adverse effects as a result of the use of hallucinogens are not uncommon. These may be due to the large number of psychoactive ingredients in any single source of hallucinogen.” Some of the physical effects of psychedelic drug abuse that could be dangerous include: - An increase in heart rate and blood pressure LSD, psilocybin, peyote, and PCP all cause these effects, as does MDMA. In acute use, it may not be a particularly problematic issue, but over time, the rise in blood pressure and heart rate caused by consistent psychedelic drug abuse can become dangerous. - An increase in body temperature While most hallucinogens cause this issue, MDMA may cause a person’s body temperature to become especially high, leading to dehydration and possibly even death. According to CESAR, “Ecstasy-related deaths have been reported, usually as a result of heatstroke from dancing in hot clubs for long hours without replenishing lost body fluids. Dehydration and heat exhaustion are the two biggest dangers when under the influence of MDMA.” - Loss of appetite Drugs like LSD and peyote can cause intense appetite suppression which, if they are abused in the long-term, can cause weight loss and malnourishment. - Nausea and vomiting Nearly all hallucinogens cause nausea, vomiting, and other issues of this type. The strong effect these drugs have on the stomach and gastrointestinal system can cause dangerous effects over time. - Ataxia and muscular issues Psilocybin and PCP, among other drugs of this class, can cause ataxia (or the inability to voluntarily move the muscles). PCP can even cause intense amounts of muscle rigidity which can also affect a person’s body in the long term as well as with acute abuse. Abusing psychedelics over a long period of time can cause these side effects to become more dangerous, but even taking one of these drugs once in an extremely large dose can be problematic. Especially with MDMA and PCP, there is a potential for hallucinogenic drug overdose as well as many other dangerous physical effects that can result. Psychological Dangers of Psychedelic Drug Effects Many people abuse these drugs for the psychedelic effects they cause, as they can give an individual an extreme “sense of heightened understanding,” an intensified sense of smell and hearing, synethesia (or the ability to “hear colors and see sounds,” also called mixed senses), and “the sense that one is undergoing a profound mystical or religious experience” (CESAR). However, there can be times where an individual experiences what is called a bad trip, or an adverse reaction to the drug’s psychological effects. This reaction can include: - Frightening hallucinations - Extreme depression - Rapid mood swings - The fear of disintegrating, not being real, or that one’s identity is no longer clear These bad trips are difficult to predict, as certain psychedelic drugs like LSD and psilocybin may create different effects in the same individual at different times of use based on changes in setting, tolerance, and mood (CESAR). With psychedelic drugs, there is no assurance that, just because someone used them once and had a good experience, they will continue to have positive experiences afterward. Also other psychological issues can result from the abuse of these drugs such as: - Toxic psychosis This disorder is characterized by visual disturbances and extreme paranoia. A person will require treatment for this type of psychosis. As long as the drug is taken in the long term, this condition can be caused by almost any psychedelic, from PCP to MDMA to LSD. - Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder HPPD causes flashbacks to previous drug trips, usually adverse ones, even months or years after the individual stops abusing these drugs. It can also mimic the signs of a stroke or brain tumor. Though not incredibly common, addiction can result from long-term psychedelic abuse. An individual can become addicted to PCP and MDMA more easily than other hallucinogens, though abuse over time is never healthy for a person’s mental state. Tolerance and cross-tolerance for all psychedelic drugs develops quickly and can cause users to bounce from substance to substance, looking for the effects they once felt. Behavioral Dangers of Psychedelic Drug Effects The psychological effects of these drugs can cause a person to behave dangerously. For example, drugs like PCP and MDMA can cause severe depression over long-term use, especially the latter when its use is suddenly cut off. This can lead to thoughts of harming oneself and attempts of suicide, causing the individual to need specialized care. PCP can cause extremely violent behavior and a person who is highly intoxicated should be approached with caution. According to CESAR, “There have been reports of death due to accidental drowning, leaping from high places, and motor vehicle accidents in addition to violent episodes of self-mutilation, suicides, and homicides.” In addition, people can hurt themselves by taking psychedelic drugs, even those which seem the least likely to cause harm, as these individuals may become confused or delusional as a result of the drugs. These drugs produce mind-altering effects (and also physical issues) which have the potential to become problematic and harmful no matter how you view them.
Individual differences \| Methods \| Statistics \| Clinical \| Educational \| Industrial \| Professional items \| World psychology \| This is a background article. See Psychological aspects of human trafficking Trafficking of human beings is the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of people for the purpose of exploitation. Trafficking involves a process of using illicit means such as threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability. Exploitation includes forcing people into prostitution or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs. For children exploitation may include also, illicit international adoption, trafficking for early marriage, recruitment as child soldiers, for begging or for sports (such as child camel jockeys or football players). Human trafficking differs from people smuggling. In the latter, people voluntarily request smuggler's service for fees and there may be no deception involved in the (illegal) agreement. On arrival at their destination, the smuggled person is usually free. On the other hand, the trafficking victim is enslaved, or the terms of their debt bondage are fraudulent or highly exploitative. The trafficker takes away the basic human rights of the victim. Victims are sometimes tricked and lured by false promises or physically forced. Some traffickers use coercive and manipulative tactics including deception, intimidation, feigned love, isolation, threat and use of physical force, debt bondage, other abuse, or even force-feeding with drugs to control their victims. In the case of children, such practices are considered child trafficking even if none of the illicit means previously described are used. Trafficked people usually come from the poorer regions of the world, where opportunities are limited, and are often from the most vulnerable in society, such as runaways, refugees, or other displaced persons, (though they may come from any social background, class or race. People who are seeking entry to other countries may be picked up by traffickers, and — typically — misled into thinking that they will be free after being smuggled across the border. In some cases, they are captured through slave raiding, although this is increasingly rare. Trafficking of children often involves exploitation of the parents' extreme poverty. The latter may sell children to traffickers in order to pay off debts or gain income or they may be deceived concerning the prospects of training and a better life for their children. In West Africa, trafficked children have often lost one or both parents to the African AIDS crisis. Women, who form over 80% of trafficking victims, are particularly at risk to become involved in sex trafficking. Potential kidnappers exploit lack of opportunities, promise good jobs or opportunities for study, and then force the victims to become prostitutes, participate in pornography or escort services. Through agents and brokers who arrange the travel and job placements, women are escorted to their destinations and delivered to the employers. Upon reaching their destinations, some women learn that they have been deceived about the nature of the work they will do; most have been lied to about the financial arrangements and conditions of their employment; and all find themselves in coercive and abusive situations from which escape is both difficult and dangerous. The main motive of a woman (in some cases an underage girl) to accept an offer from a trafficker is better financial opportunities for herself or her family. In many cases traffickers initially offer ‘legitimate’ work or the promise of an opportunity to study. The main types of work offered are in the catering and hotel industry, in bars and clubs, modeling contracts, or au pair work. Offers of marriage are sometimes used by traffickers as well as threats, intimidation and kidnapping. In the majority of cases, the women end up in prostitution. Also some (migrating) prostitutes become victims of human trafficking. Some women know they will be working as prostitutes, but they have a too-rosy picture of the circumstances and the conditions of the work in the country of destination. Men are also at risk of being trafficked for unskilled work predominantly involving hard labor. Other forms of trafficking include bonded and sweatshop labor, forced marriage, and domestic servitude. Children are also trafficked for both labor exploitation and sexual exploitation. On a related issue, children are forced to be child soldiers. Many women are forced into the sex trade after answering false advertisements, and others are simply kidnapped. Thousands of children from Asia, Africa, and South America are sold into the global sex trade every year. Often they are kidnapped or orphaned, and sometimes they are actually sold by their own families. Template:IIUS United States State Department data "estimated 600,000 to 820,000 men, women, and children [are] trafficked across international borders each year, approximately 80 percent are women and girls and up to 50 percent are minors. The data also illustrate that the majority of transnational victims are trafficked into commercial sexual exploitation." Due to the illegal nature of trafficking and differences in methodology, the exact extent is unknown. An estimated 14,000 people are trafficked into the United States each year, although again because trafficking is illegal, accurate statistics are difficult. According to the Massachusetts based Trafficking Victims Outreach and Services Networkin Massachusetts alone, there were 55 documented cases of human trafficking in 2005 and the first half of 2006 in Massachusetts. In 2004, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) estimated that 600-800 persons are trafficked into Canada annually and that additional 1,500-2,200 persons are trafficked through Canada into the United States. In the United Kingdom, 71 women were known to have been trafficked into prostitution in 1998 and the Home Office recognized that the scale is likely greater as the problem is hidden and research estimates that the actual figure could be up to 1,420 women trafficked into the UK during the same period. Trafficking in people is increasing in Africa, South Asia and into North America. Russia is a major source of women trafficked globally for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Annually, thousands of Russian women end up as prostitutes in China, Japan or South Korea. Russia is also a significant destination and transit country for persons trafficked for sexual and labor exploitation from regional and neighboring countries into Russia, and on to the Gulf states, Europe, Asia, and North America. The ILO estimates that 20 percent of the five million illegal immigrants in Russia are victims of forced labor, which is a form of trafficking. There were reports of trafficking of children and of child sex tourism in Russia. The Government of Russia has made some effort to combat trafficking but has also been criticized for not complying with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking. The majority of child trafficking cases are in Asia, although it is a global problem. In Thailand, non-governmental organisations (NGO) have estimated that up to a third of prostitutes are children under 18, many trafficked from outside Thailand. In Ukraine, a survey conducted by the NGO “La Strada-Ukraine” in 2001-2003, based on a sample of 106 women being trafficked out of Ukraine found that 3% were under 18, and the US State Department reported in 2004 that incidents of minors being trafficked was increasing. In the United Kingdom, Vietnamese human trafficking have been discovered in the past few years. Many Vietnamese people are trafficked to work in illegal Vietnamese cannabis factories throughout the country, as the recent police Operation Keymer showed. Another recent police Operation Pentameter discovered illegal Vietnamese are also smuggled in to work in Vietnamese nail salons. Recently the UK authority planned to deport over 500 children back to Vietnam who had been smuggled into the country. [How to reference and link to summary or text] Reporters have witnessed a rapid increase in prostitution in Cambodia, Bosnia, and Kosovo after UN and, in the case of the latter two, NATO peacekeeping forces moved in. Peacekeeping forces have been linked to trafficking and forced prostitution. Proponents of peacekeeping argue that the actions of a few should not incriminate the many participants in the mission, yet NATO and the UN have come under criticism for not taking the issue of forced prostitution linked to peacekeeping missions seriously enough. In the western world, Canada in particular has a major problem with modern-day sexual slavery. In a 2006 report the Future Group, a Canadian humanitarian organization dedicated to ending human trafficking, ranked eight industrialized nations and gave Canada an F for its "abysmal" record treating victims. The report, titled "Falling Short of the Mark: An International Study on the Treatment of Human Trafficking Victims", concluded that Canada "is an international embarrassment" when it comes to combatting this form of slavery. The report's principal author Benjamin Perrin wrote, "Canada has ignored calls for reform and continues to re-traumatize trafficking victims, with few exceptions, by subjecting them to routine deportation and fails to provide even basic support services." In the report, the only other country to flunk was the United Kingdom, which received a D, while the United States received a B+ and Australia, Norway, Sweden, Germany and Italy all received grades of B or B-. The report criticizes former Liberal Party of Canada cabinet ministers Irwin Cotler, Joe Volpe and Pierre Pettigrew for "passing the buck" on the issue. Commenting on the report, the then Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Monte Solberg told Sun Media Corporation, "It's very damning, and if there are obvious legislative or regulatory fixes that need to be done, those have to become priorities, given especially that we're talking about very vulnerable people." Cause of traffickingEdit Some causes of trafficking include: - Growing deprivation and marginalization of the poor - Insufficient penalties against traffickers - According to the UN a major factor that has allowed the growth of sexual trafficking is "Governments and human rights organizations alike have simply judged the woman guilty of prostitution and minimized the trafficker's role." - Driven by demand; demand is high for prostitutes and other forms of labor in host countries; therefore there is a very profitable market available to those who wish to become handlers. Trafficking in people has been facilitated by porous borders and advanced communication technologies, it has become increasingly transnational in scope and highly lucrative. Unlike drugs or arms, people can be "sold" many times. The opening up of Asian markets, porous borders, the end of the Soviet Union and the collapse of the former Yugoslavia have contributed to this globalization. Government action against human traffickingEdit Actions taken to combat human trafficking vary from government to government. Some have introduced legislation specifically aimed at making human trafficking illegal. Governments can also develop systems of co-operation between different nation’s law enforcement agencies and with non-government organisations (NGOs). Other actions governments could take is raise awareness. This can take on three forms. Firstly in raising awareness amongst potential victims, in particular in countries where human traffickers are active. Secondly, raising awareness amongst police, social welfare workers and immigration officers. And in countries where prostitution is legal or semi-legal, raising awareness amongst the clients of prostitution, to look out for signs of a human trafficking victim. Laws against trafficking in the United States are prosecuted at the federal level. The overwhelming majority of states do not have laws against human trafficking. For example, in Maryland it is a felony to have sex with a minor, but only a misdemeanor for making it available to those who wish to have sex with a minor. Criticism of Bangladesh on human traffickingEdit In June 2006, the government of Bangladesh issued a restraining order preventing Sigma Huda, U.N. special rapporteur on trafficking in persons, from leaving the country to deliver a key report on trafficking before the Human Rights Council in Geneva on June 11, 2007. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour has asked Bangladesh to clarify corruption charges against a U.N. human rights investigator, which will prevent her from addressing the main U.N. rights body. The Coalition Against Trafficking in Women issued a statement calling this "an outrage and a violation of her right to freedom of movement and freedom of speech." - Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children; and - Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air. All of these instruments contain elements of the current international law on trafficking in human beings. Council of EuropeEdit The Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings was adopted by the Council of Europe on 16 May 2005. The aim of the convention is to prevent and combat the trafficking in human beings. Of the 46 members of the Council of Europe, so far 31 have signed the convention and 1 has ratified it.(29 June 2006). United States Federal lawEdit The United States federal government has taken a firm stance against human trafficking both within its borders and beyond. Domestically, human trafficking is prosecuted through the Civil Rights Division, Criminal Section of the United States Department of Justice. Older statutes used to protect 13th Amendment rights within United States borders are Title 18 U.S.C., Sections 1581 and 1584. Section 1584 makes it a crime to force a person to work against his will. This compulsion can be effected by use of force, threat of force, threat of legal coercion or by "a climate of fear", that is, an environment wherein individuals believe they may be harmed by leaving or refusing to work. Section 1581 similarly makes it illegal to force a person to work through "debt servitude". New laws were passed under the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000. The new laws responded to a changing face of trafficking in the United States. It allowed for greater statutory maximum sentences for traffickers, provided resources for protection of and assistance for victims of trafficking and created avenues for inter-agency cooperation in the field of human trafficking. It also allows many trafficking victims to remain in the United States and apply for permanent residency. (http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2002/January/02_crt_038.htm). This law also attempted to encourage efforts to prevent human trafficking internationally, by creating annual country reports on trafficking, as well as by tying financial non-humanitarian assistance to foreign countries to real efforts in addressing human trafficking. International NPOs, such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have called on the United States to improve its measures aimed at reducing trafficking. They recommend that the United States more fully implement the "United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children" and the "United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime" and for immigration officers to improve their awareness of trafficking and support the victims of trafficking. United States State Law on Trafficking Several states have also written laws to address human trafficking in their borders. Florida has written trafficking statutes criminalizing forced labor, sex trafficking, and document servitude. Florida also provides for mandatory law enforcement trainings and victim services. On May 8, 2006, Connecticut passed an act addressing human trafficking that criminalized coerced work, and made trafficking a violation of the Connecticut RICO Act. - Child camel jockeys - Comfort woman - Commercial sexual exploitation of children - Prostitution of children - Trafficking of children - IREWOC International Research on Working Children (IREWOC) Articles and ResourcesEdit - Going to Kompienga; Child Labour Migration and Trafficking in Burkina Faso- IREWOC - 'Slavery in the 21st century - BBC - 'Asia's sex trade is 'slavery' - BBC - Asia's child sex victims ignored – BBC - 'Sex trade's reliance on forced labour - BBC - 'A modern slave's brutal odyssey - BBC - 'Child traffic victims 'failed'- BBC - Europe warned over trafficking - BBC - 'Balkans urged to curb trafficking - BBC - 5,000 child sex slaves in UK - The Independent - People trafficking: upholding rights and understanding vulnerabilities, Forced Migration Review, University of Oxford. - Child Laundering How the Intercountry Adoption System Legitimizes and Incentivizes the Practices of Buying, Trafficking, Kidnapping, and Stealing Children, David M. Smolin. - The Two Faces of Intercountry Adoption: The Significance of the Indian Adoption Scandals, David Smolin Seton Hall Law Review - Sex Slaves, Revisited - Slate.com - Russian women fall prey to sex slavery in Asia - Bosnia: Sex Slave Recounts Her Ordeal - Institute for War & Peace Reporting - Tall Americano, Hold the Paycheck - article on trafficking in the US from The Common Language Project - 'Moldova: Young Women From Rural Areas Vulnerable To Human Trafficking - People trafficking: upholding rights & understanding vulnerabilities - special issue of Forced Migration Review - 'Coalition Against Trafficking in Women Factbook - International Organization for Migration Data and Research on Human Trafficking 2005 - HumanTrafficking.com is a program of the Polaris Project. The website is a sizeable web-based resource of news articles, journal articles, books and country-specific resources - HumanTrafficking.org is a government sponsored resource regarding legislation, NGO partners and regional information. - 'Sex Trafficking of Women in the United States: International and Domestic Trends - Coalition Against Trafficking in Women - Fears of rising child sex trade – The Guardian - ‘They said I wasn’t human but something that can be bought’ – The Times - ‘Mine for £1,300: Ileana, the teenage sex slave ready to work in London’ – The Sunday Telegraph - 'Streets of despair - The Observer - 'Pakistani girls forced into prostitution in ME' - The News - Kidnapped children starve as camel jockey slaves - The Sunday Times - Women and Children First: The Economics of Sex Trafficking. Lydersen, Kari. LiP Magazine, April 2002 - Research based on case studies of victims of trafficking in human beings in 3 EU Member States - Human Trafficking, Fourth report of the Dutch National Rapporteur - Current WTO negotiations threaten to worsen the already precarious lot of migrant workers around the globe - Amnesty International UK trafficking/forced prostitution - Amnesty International USA - Human Trafficking - Amnesty International - Council of Europe: Protect victims of people trafficking - Amnesty International - Facts and figures on trafficking of women and girls for forced prostitution in Kosovo - Amnesty International - Serbia and Montenegro: Shameful investigation into sex-trafficking case Government and international governmental organizationsEdit - Antislavery International - Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking (CAST) - Human Trafficking.org: Web Resource for Combating Human Trafficking in the East Asia Pacific Region - iabolish - Anti-Slavery Portal is a project of the American Anti-Slavery Group (AASG), a grass-roots organization combating slavery around the world. - The Protection Project - a legal human rights research institute based at the School of Advanced International Studies of the Johns Hopkins University documenting and disseminating information about the scope of the trafficking problem, with a focus on national and international laws, legal cases and the implications of trafficking in other areas of US and international foreign policy. - Council of Europe - Slaves at the heart of Europe - European Union: European Commission - Documentation Centre - European Union: Eurojust and Human Trafficking - U.S. Department of State. Trafficking in Persons Report, 2005 - US State Department - Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons - US Department of Justice Human Trafficking Website - US Department of Health and Human Services: the campaign to rescue and restore victims of human trafficking - US Department of Labor, Bureau of International Labor Affairs - Report on US government activities combatting trafficking in 2005 - United States Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement - United States Federal Bureau of Investigation - International Organization for Migration - Counter-Trafficking Programme - United Nations - Trafficking in Human Beings (This site is an excellent source for international legislation and multi-media video files) - Trafficking in Minors - United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute - OSCE Special Representative on Combating Trafficking in Human Beings - International Labour Organization - Human Trafficking in Asia reports - Diplomacy Monitor - Human Trafficking - Warren, P. (2007). Human trafficking being debated in Annapolis. Retrieved 05/24, 2007, from http://wjz.com/local/local_story_067162903.html - ↑ http://www.uefa.com/uefa/keytopics/kind=2048/newsid=462974.html - ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20051221053940/http://www.victimology.nl/onlpub/national/NL-NRMEngels4.pdf - ↑ http://hrw.org/english/docs/2003/04/01/togo5489.htm] [http://hrw.org/reports/2003/togo0403/ - ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20070616010729/http://www.prostitutie.nl/studie/documenten/mensenhandel/researchcasestraffick.pdf - ↑ http://www.unicef.org/protection/index_exploitation.html - ↑ http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2005/46606.htm - ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20060926042032/http://www.usdoj.gov/ag/annualreports/tr2005/agreporthumantrafficing2005.pdf - ↑ http://www.patriotledger.com/articles/2006/03/27/news/news04.txt - ↑ http://gvnet.com/humantrafficking/Canada.htm - ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20030731061145/http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/prgpdfs/fprs125.pdf - ↑ http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/fromthefield/wvmeero/738456c77d801ec74eddb40555109d00.htm - ↑ http://gvnet.com/humantrafficking/Russia.htm - ↑ http://www.unicri.it/wwd/trafficking/minors/countries.php - ↑ http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,1211214,00.html - ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3686173.stm - ↑ http://www.refugeesinternational.org/content/article/detail/4146?PHPSESSID=8cd9d5b0df1ae0bbae8d3ddf647ec715 - ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4313617.stm - ↑ http://ottsun.canoe.ca/News/National/2006/03/02/1468900-sun.html - ↑ http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2006/mar/06030209.html - ↑ http://www.un.org/events/10thcongress/2098.htm - ↑ http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/trafficking_tv_campaign_2002.html - ↑ http://canada.justice.gc.ca/en/fs/ht/pub/poster/english/index.html - ↑ https://archive.is/20130226113518/www.coe.int/t/dg2/trafficking/campaign/Docs/Convntn/default_en.asp - ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20050308091924/http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGIOR300032005 - ↑ http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/Commun/ChercheSig.asp?NT=197&CM=7&DF=15/12/2005&CL=ENG - ↑ http://hrw.org/english/docs/2004/07/15/usdom9075.htm - ↑ http://www.amnestyusa.org/stopviolence/trafficking/index.html \|This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia (view authors).\|
By Mike Matejka Bloomington, Illinois had its wildest labor night a century ago, July 5, 1917, with famed labor organizer Mary “Mother Jones” (1837-1930) stoking striking transit workers. A night of mayhem brought 1,400 National Guard troops to town, but also won a contract for Amalgamated Transit Union Local 752. Local 752 will celebrate its centennial in July. Before the automotive age, people walked to work or rode electric trolleys or streetcars. The Bloomington & Normal Street Railway (B&N), which began as a horse-drawn railway in 1867, carried passengers on 26 route miles through Bloomington & Normal. Transit workers had formed a union in 1902, lost it after a six-month strike in 1904, and came back in 1917 to organize again. In 1917, the B&N was owned by U.S. Congressman William McKinley (1856-1926). McKinley controlled the streetcar systems in Champaign, Peoria, Galesburg and Danville, along with the Illinois Traction System, an electric interurban railroad that connected St. Louis with Peoria, Danville, Springfield, Champaign, Decatur and Bloomington. Thanks to its electric generating capacity, this eventually became the Illinois Power Company, today’s Ameren. Although the streetcar system meant a modern city a century ago, it was tough on workers. David Law (1852-1916) began work on the horse cars, standing on an open platform, exposed to the weather, for a fifteen-and-a-half-hour day. He said, “I have stood on this platform with the thermometer twenty-four to thirty degrees below zero, and I have made my way through mountainous snow drifts, and when the rails were a glare of ice, as well as through beating rains and burning suns. No, we haven’t a soft job and we literally earn our bread by the sweat of our brow.” The transit workers labored seven days a week for $50 per month. To get a day off, they pooled their funds so they could buy a replacement for one day off per month. Law noted that on that one day month off, his children asked, “who is that strange man in the house.” By 1917, the trolley workers made $2.25 a day, for a nine-and-a-half-hour workday. On May 17, 1917, 50 workers met in a midnight mass meeting, with the assistance of Jerry Burnette from Peoria Local 416 of the Amalgamated Association of Street & Electric Railway Men (today’s ATU – Amalgamated Transit Union). At first the company refused a pay increase, but eventually offered 20 cents per day. The workers wanted more – union recognition. The company refused. On May 28, the strike began. Half the workers, satisfied with the pay raise, stayed with the company. The workers made clear their goal – union recognition. “The strike of the Bloomington street car employees has been called for the reason that the company denies us the right which millions of workingmen all over the United States are exercising, and have been exercising for years – the right to organize. “We believe our cause is just and we ask for the support of the public in asserting our rights as citizens of a free country.” The strikers, and the Bloomington Trades & Labor Assembly, both asked Mayor E.E. Jones to mediate. The company refused the mayor’s offer. The workers asked the public to boycott the cars and support the strike. On June 9, at the company’s request, Judge Sain Welty issued a sweeping court injunction, which basically forbade almost all strike activities and public outreach. The court injunction forbade the union and its members from congregating on street corners, distributing hand bills, sending out any communication or asking people to boycott. On June 11, a strike rally was held, with speeches by Illinois Federation of President John Walker, a coal miner, and Bloomington & Normal Trades & Labor Assembly President John Lennon. The strikers were encouraged to refrain from violence and to win the public’s approval. That night, the streetcar company’s powerhouse workers walked out in a sympathy strike. After a month on strike, with the streetcars running and a repressive court injunction limiting strike activity, the situation was becoming desperate. To rally their cause, they turned to a famous worker advocate, Mary “Mother” Jones. Jones was an Irish immigrant, a child refugee from the potato famine. She lost her husband and children to a yellow fever epidemic in 1867. She came to Chicago, working as a dressmaker for wealthy families. As she neared her sixties, she became a living symbol of labor outrage. Labeled “the most dangerous woman in America,” by the early 1900s she was tramping across the United States, organizing coal miners, fighting against child labor, and finding herself thrown in and out of jail cells. On July 5, 1917, she addressed a packed audience at the Eagle’s Hall. What survived from her speech was her final admonition, to “go out get ‘em.” Leaving the Eagle’s Hall, the excited crowd attacked an approaching streetcar, beating the strikebreakers. They then marched on the Courthouse Square, where a strike breaker, Thomas Huett, fired a pistol into the crowd, grazing railroad worker Emmett Maloney. Huett was spirited away by police. A streetcar approaching from Miller Park was attacked and the strikebreakers taken away, for their own safety, but the police. Hoping to shut down the system’s electric power, the crowd surged down Main and Madison Streets to the B&N’s electric powerhouse. The Mayor, police chief and police were guarding the doors. Stones and bricks were thrown through windows. The Pantagraph reported, “Several women reported to be wives of the street car men sought to incite the men to action. With waving of arms and handkerchiefs and their shrill voices, they created much sympathy.” The streetcar workers’ President, John Nitzel, told the mayor the crowd would stop if the power was shut off. After Nitzel and the Mayor inspected the plant, it was shut down. The crowd returned to the courthouse square, confronted by police, with warning shots fired. Finally, Mayor Jones agreed to try and mediate again. The next morning, July 6, the Mayor convened a mediation. Looking at the striking workers, Daniel W. Snyder, the B&N’s superintendent, said, “I cannot recognize the car men’s union.” He then walked out the door. As this took place, Illinois National Guard troops arrived, encamping at the B&N’s power plant and the Courthouse, where they pitched camp and set up machine gun emplacements. Bloomington’s largest employer in 1917 was the Chicago & Alton Railroad, with its extensive repair shops on the west side. During lunch, almost 1,200 Shops’ workers laid down their tools, marching on city hall. The Mayor reached out to B&N Superintendent Snyder’s boss, the Illinois Traction System’s H.E. Chubback, and also the company’s owner, Congressman McKinley. The two agreed to talk. Congressman McKinley telegraphed back, “I recognize the right of men to organize.” On Monday, July 9, the mediation conference began. After four-and-a-half hours of negotiation, the union was recognized, the strikers reinstated to their jobs. The workers won a 35-cents a day increase and their work day was decreased from 9 and-a-half hours to mine. Thus, Amalgamated Association of Street and Electric Railway Men Local 752, today’s Amalgamated Transit Union Local 752, won their first contract, after a bitter strike, facing court injunctions and company refusal. Thanks to a fiery 80-year-old woman and union solidarity, a small band of transit workers built a union, which survives and thrives a century later.
Co-developed by the National Arts Council and the Singapore Association for Mental Health, the Sensory Art Toolkit explores how different art materials and art-making processes can stimulate the senses, and enhance mental wellness. There are 11 project ideas in this toolkit, each outlined with corresponding steps and accompanying visuals. The toolkit takes an integrated Occupational Therapy approach, and information on how each activity stimulates the senses is provided, along with alternative activity ideas. The toolkit will be helpful to social and healthcare practitioners, volunteers, and other professionals working with seniors, children, or clients with disabilities. It allows them to appreciate the relationship between art-making and one’s sensory experience, and plan an art activity that is suitable for their clients with this knowledge. To learn more about the Toolkit and to view a sample activity, please click here. For more information on workshops, please write to firstname.lastname@example.org.
Nursing Home MRSA Infection More people are living in nursing homes in the United States than ever before, as our life expectancy grows ever longer thanks to the effects of modern medicine. The lion’s share of these nursing homes are excellent places for our elders to live, but problems can arise in even the most well-funded of managed care facilities with the most professional and compassionate medical staff. One of the biggest, rapidly growing problems that nursing home residents face is the spread of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a bacterial infection that can cause serious harm to the elderly or anyone with a weakened immune system. MRSA – The Super-Powered Staph Infection At its core, MRSA is little more than a staph infection that’s grown too resistant to antibiotics to be treated quickly and easily. The explosion of MRSA on the scene is widely considered to be caused by over-prescription of antibiotics for illnesses or conditions that don’t actually respond to antibiotics like viral infections or the common cold; additionally, since a round of antibiotic treatments may not eradicate the entire bacterial colony causing an infection within a patient, those bacteria that survive the onslaught through a natural resistance pass on those characteristics to the next generation of bacteria – and since bacteria reproduce and grow at such a rapid rate, this leads to infections that are increasingly resistant to antibiotics. There are two types of MRSA, one that’s healthcare-associated (HA-MRSA) and one that’s community associated (CA-MRSA). The latter is common in communities with lots of physical contact or little in the way of hygiene such as prison inmates living in crowded cells, child care workers who see a myriad of different children on a daily basis, or athletes such as wrestlers who engage in frequent physical contact as a result of their sport. In comparison, HA-MRSA is almost entirely relegated to patients undergoing long or extended care at hospitals and nursing homes, especially those who are recovering from surgery, require dialysis, or have intravenous tubing or catheters. HA-MRSA is a growing concern in managed care facilities, as these care centers lack the same stringent disinfectant and contamination response capabilities that hospitals have. This makes nursing home MRSA infections increasingly common. Why It’s a Threat Staph infections such as MRSA can be an inconvenience at berst, as the bacteria that cause all staph infections – including MRSA – are usually present on the skin of healthy adults. It’s only when an open cut or sore isn’t cleaned or protected from infection that these otherwise benign bacteria can travel into the skin and begin to grow. Many times, a staph or MRSA infection will not go deeper than the skin and only cause rashes that look similar to insect bites. Advanced staph infections in the skin can result in painful boils and abscesses that need to be drained by a doctor; however, if a staph infection such as MRSA travels deeper into the body, it can result in highly dangerous blood, joint or vital organ infections that can cause serious and even fatal complications. Treating MRSA can also be difficult, thanks to its antibiotics-resistant nature. There are some non-Methicillin-based antibiotics that MRSA responds to, but medical professionals are highly cautious when treating a known antibiotic-resistant infection with additional antibiotics and provide the already hard-to-treat strain with even more protection in subsequent encounters. Some doctors will choose to treat MRSA by draining superficial abscesses close to the surface of the skin if possible, only reserving antibiotics for more serious, deeper bone or blood infections.
Uninterruptible Power Supply Topologies - Line Interactive The uninterruptible power supply (UPS) inverter only switches on (with a small break in supply) when the mains fails or fluctuates wildly outside the input voltage window of the built-in Automatic Voltage Stabiliser (AVS). An EMI filter will typically help to reduce spikes and electrical noise when mains is present. The normal output waveform on battery is a step wave or square wave. Some UPS offer sinewave supply such as the Dialog Vision. A line interactive UPS offers an economic alternative to an on-line system where the investment cannot be warranted. INTERMEDIATE level power protection - from 500VA to 5kVA (single phase only) - Voltage Independent (VI)according to BS EN 62040-3:2001. The line interactive uninterruptible power supply provides a clean and regulated output voltage. When the mains supply is within a specified input window (voltage or frequency) the output from the Uninterruptible Power Supply is stabilised to within a specific voltage tolerance or window; this is achieved using various voltage regulation techniques known as Automatic Voltage Regulation (AVR) or Buck/Boost. The size of variation is larger than that achieved with an on-line Uninterruptible Power Supply which will actually regulate to a much tighter tolerance. Once the incoming mains supply exceeds the specified window, the UPS switches on the inverter to continue to supply power to the load. There is a short inverter switch on time of a few milliseconds. How The Line Interactive Uninterruptible Power Supply Tackles Power Problems: When the mains supply is present it is filtered and stabilised by the UPS and passed through to the load. The output waveform from the inverter is normally either a true sinewave or pseudo sinewave (dependent on UPS type). The term pseudo indicates a step-wave or square-wave output. The step-wave or square-wave output may not be suitable for all types of loads. Sags and surges The load is supplied by the incoming mains supply which is filtered and stabilised using the automatic voltage regulation device; whilst the inverter remains switched off (provided that the input window is not exceeded). The battery charger continues to convert the mains AC into DC to charge the battery. If the sag or surge exceeds the input window then the inverter is switched on to maintain the required output voltage tolerance. Transients, spikes and electrical noise The output to the load is filtered by the Electro Magnetic Interference (EMI) and noise filters within the UPS. These filters attenuate (reduce) the incoming transients, spikes or electrical noise down to an acceptable level. These disturbances will not be completely prevented from passing through to the load and any large voltage spikes or transients that may exceed the input voltage window will cause the UPS to switch on the inverter. The output from the UPS is maintained to within a specific window; therefore the UPS will automatically adjust the transformer tap settings dependant on the incoming mains supply voltage. Once the incoming mains supply exceeds the specified window, the UPS switches on the inverter to continue to supply power to the load. Short duration mains failures During short duration mains supply failures the UPS will supply power to the load using the inverter. However constant short duration supply failures can lead to unnecessary discharging of the battery. Long duration mains failure - blackouts The load is supplied by the inverter which is switched on the moment the incoming mains supply fails. Some line interactive UPS have a battery extension pack capability, that enables additional battery packs to be connected. This in turn extends the autonomy of the UPS (battery operation time). The only other alternative is to oversize the UPS to achieve a longer runtime as most line interactive UPS are only provided with a short autonomy of approximately 10 minutes. The battery charger will generally recharge the battery to 80% within 8 hours to provide sufficient battery autonomy ready for the next supply failure. Where it is possible to extend the battery capacity (typically from 2kVA and above), additional battery chargers can be added to maintain a reasonable recharge time. The internally charger is not normally capable of supporting additional packs as the UPS is built to a tighter price specification than an on-line UPS. The advantages of a line interactive UPS are size and cost when compared to an on-line power solution. However they offer inferior power quality management capabilities, extended battery runtime options, have a short break in supply when the inverter is activated and do not have a built-in bypass facility for UPS fault or overload scenarios.
Here is my next list of asteroids named after members of the lgbt community. These asteroids were all discovered between 1986 and 1989. Again, quotes from the official citations are given within quotation marks. Isaac Newton (8000) Discovered 5 Sept. 1986. Name published 11 Feb. 1998. “Named for Isaac Newton (1643-1727), hailed by some as the greatest universal genius of all time. formulated the laws of motion, with the specific application to gravitation, and is known for his 1687 publication of the ‘Principia Mathematica’.” Newton Cyrano (3582) Discovered 2 Oct. 1986. Name published 1 Sept. 1993. “Named for the whimsical French poet and soldier Cyrano de Bergerac (1619—1655), who in some of his comedies made brisk use of fanciful ways of spaceflight.” Poseidon (4341) Discovered 19 May 1987. Name published 2 Jan. 1991. “In Greek mythology, Poseidon, a brother of Zeus, was lord of the sea and of earthquakes ... He ruled all that lived in the sea and gathered clouds and raised storms. Poseidon was the constant enemy of during the Trojan War.” Like his brother Zeus, Poseidon has male lovers, most notably Pelops. Troy Aristoteles (6123) Discovered 19 Sept. 1987. Name published 15 Feb. 1995. “Named for Aristotle (384—322 BC), one of the most significant Greek philosophers ... He was the first, and possibly the greatest, theoretician of the mechanism of thought and deduction, being at the same time well aware of the importance of what happens in the real world and in nature…” Pan (4450) Discovered 25 Sept. 1987. Name published 30 Jan. 1991. “Originally a shepherd god of Arcady, Pan developed into a hunter, fisherman and warrior ... He has been represented in art as a horned half-man, half goat.” Pan is also the name of a moon of Saturn, as is his male lover Daphnis. Loke (4862) Discovered 30 Sept. 1987. Name published 1 Sept. 1993. “Named after the strangest character in Norse mythology. Loke is one of the giants, but he lives among the Aesir in Asgaard. He is the symbol of falseness and intrigue—at the same time the enemy and the cunning helper of the gods...” Loke, also called Loki, appear in many myths as transgendered and once, in the form of a white mare, gave birth to a foal. Warhol (6701) Discovered 14 Jan. 1988. Name published 23 Nov. 1999. “The American painter and film-maker Andy Warhol (Andrew Warhola, 1928-1987) was a leader of the Pop Art movement. In the 1960s he attracted attention with exhibition of prints of startlingly ordinary images. Warhol worked also on experimental underground films”. Rimbaud (4635) Discovered 21 Jan. 1988. Name published 25 Aug 1991. “Named in memory of the French poet Arthur Rimbaud (1854-1891) on the occasion of the hundredth anniversary of his death. At the age of 17 he was already known for his ‘Dormeur du Val’ and ‘Le Bateau ivre’ … In 1872 he travelled with Paul Verlaine to England and Belgium ... After ‘Les Illuminations’, written at the age of 19 and issued by Verlaine only in 1886, nothing remains of the work of this great poet. As a precursor of symbolism Rimbaud enormously influenced Verlaine and the following generation...” Mallory (6824) Discovered 8 Sept. 1988. Name published 23 Nov 1999. “George Herbert Leigh Mallory (1886—1924) was a British mountain climber whose 1924 expedition to conquer Everest culminated in a bold and possibly successful drive with toward the summit. Just 75 years later Mallory’s body was recovered 600 meters below the summit after what had been a precipitous fall.” Irvine Zeus (5731) Discovered 4 Nov. 1988. Name Published 14 May 1995. “Originally Zeus was the god of the sky and of atmospheric phenomena, of winds, clouds, rain and thunder. Later Zeus, father of gods … became the supreme god of the Greeks, the protector of laws and morals and the dispenser of good and evil.” Saint-Saens (5210) Discovered 7 Mar. 1989. Name published 14 July 1992. “Named in memory of the French composer Charles Camille Saint-Saens (1835-1921), whose extensive musical creations ranged from church music to neo-classicism. Among his best known works are the symphonic poem ‘La danse macabre’ … and his third organ symphony.” Nietzsche (7014) Discovered 3 Apr. 1989. Name published 22 Feb. 1997. “Named in memory of the great German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900), renowned for his criticisms on religion, philosophy and morality… ‘The Birth of Tragedy from the Spirit of Music’ (1872), remains a classic in the history of aesthetics. His best-known work is ‘Thus spoke Zarathustra’ (1883-1885)…” Minos (6239) Discovered 31 Aug. 1989. Name published 12 July 1995. “… As king of Crete, he distinguished himself by the wisdom of his laws, which remained in force for nearly 1000 years, and by his sense of justice and moderation … These earned Minos, after his death, promotion to the dignity of judge of the Underworld.” Minos is said to have been the first man to practice pederasty – sex with boys. Asteroids that are not named after lgbt people but have lgbt links. Kaye (6546) Discovered 24 Feb. 1987. Name published 20 June 1997. “Named in memory of Danny Kaye (1913-1987, born David Daniel Kominski), actor and comedian on stage and screen. Kaye’s trademark screen role was the mild mannered bumbler who triumphs in the end, as in ‘The Court Jester’ (1956)...” Lots of rumour and speculation surrounds Danny Kaye’s sexuality. So far one group of people seem to be missing from the world of asteroids – lgbt asteroid hunters and discovers. I’m sure there are some out there and that they’ve discovered lots of asteroids, but none of them are “out” enough for me to mention with certainty. Who knows? Perhaps next time I can.
Organic farming does not use any chemicals for growing the fruits, vegetables or plants. It basically uses natural products like kitchen compost and dried foliage. Organic farmers use green manure, different cultivation practices to keep the soil productive and biological pest controls. The fact that no chemicals or synthetic fertilizers are used, ensure high quality food. Today, organic farming is being touted the best practice to save the environment from pollution and over-cultivation. However, organic farming has advantages and disadvantages, and both are discussed below. Advantages of Organic Farming: Organic farming ensures that less water is used for cultivation. In addition, this method of farming reduces soil erosion and carbon emission. It also helps to increase the biodiversity of the area. This method of farming can produce the same crops as those produced using conventional methods of farming, but the cost to cultivate those crops is reduced by 50 percent. Also, organic farming helps to retain 40 percent more topsoil compared to conventional methods of farming. Organic farming pays special attention to soil management. Even soil that is damaged, saline in nature or soil that is subject to erosion can be helped by using crop rotation, green manure and inter cropping methods. One of the main advantages of organic farming is that the farmer can deal with weeds and pests without using chemicals. Weeds can be plucked out with hands, or natural weed control methods like using mulch, garlic oil, clove oil, borax and table salt can be used to control weeds. Pests can be controlled used natural pesticides like neem or compost tea. Also, some organic farmers just remove and destroy the disease plant to ensure that the pests or diseases do not spread. Disadvantages of Organic Farming: The fact that kitchen compost is used for organic farming, it can increase the risk of E. coli when you consume the organic food. This has been proven via a study conducted in the year 1998 by the Hudson Institute. The biggest drawback of organic farming is the yield. The yield is much smaller compared to the yield one gets from conventional methods of farming. So, this means that organic farming can only cater to a small number of people. And finally, though organic farming claims that it helps the environment, studies have shown that the methods used to reduce carbon emissions actually do not have a significant impact. Hence, organic farming is not that effect in addressing the change in the global climate. More Articles :
Phylogeny and revision of the Anchomenus clade : the genera Tetraleucus, Anchomenus, Sericoda, and Elliptoleus (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Platynini). Bulletin of the AMNH ; no. 202 [New York] : American Museum of Natural History "Taxa comprising the Anchomenus clade within the carabid tribe Platynini, subtribe Platyni, possess the synapomorphy of a female spermatheca with a basal reservoir and a long apical filament. As presently constituted, this clade comprises 29 species arrayed in four genera; the monotypic Tetraleucus Casey in eastern North America, the Holarctic Anchomenus Bonelli with 10 species, the Holarctic Sericoda Kirby with 7 species, and the Mexican Elliptoleus Bates with 11 species. Seven species are newly described; Anchomenus capensis, n. sp. from Baja California Sur, Sericoda montana, n. sp. from Cuba, Elliptoleus corvus, n. sp. from México state, Elliptoleus zapotecorum, n. sp. from Oaxaca, Elliptoleus whiteheadi, n. sp. from Guerrero, Elliptoleus balli, n. sp. from Jalisco and Michoacan, and Elliptoleus tequilae, n. sp. from Jalisco. New combinations proposed include: Tetraleucus picticornis Newman (removed from Agonum Bonelli); Anchomenus virescens Motschulsky (removed from Chlaeniomimus Semenow, 1889, as that generic name is a new synonym of Anchomenus Bonelli, 1810); Anchomenus yukihikoi (removed from Agonum (Nipponanchus) Habu, 1978, as that subgeneric name is a new synonym of Anchomenus); Sericoda ceylonica (removed from Agonum Bonelli), and Sericoda lissoptera (removed from Anchomenus Bonelli). Species-level names placed into synonymy within Anchomenus, followed by their respective senior synonyms, include: Dohrni diana Sahlberg = dohrnii Fairmaire, discophorus Chaudoir = dorsalis Pontoppidan, cyaneus asturicus Heinz = cyaneus Dejean, gracilicollis Jakowleff = virescens Motschulsky. Batenus? borealis Motschulsky is removed from synonymy under Sericoda bogemannii, and is recognized as a junior synonym of Agonum consimile Gyllenhal. Lectotypes are designated for Anchomenus dohrnii diana Sahlberg, Anchomenus virescens Motschulsky, A. leucopus Bates, A. funebris LeConte, Sericoda lissoptera Chaudoir, S. ceylonica Motschulsky, Elliptoleus acutesculptus Bates, E. olisthopoides Bates, E. curtulus Bates, E. vixstriatus Bates, E. luteipes Csiki, and E. crepericornis Bates. A cladistic hypothesis of the phylogenetic relationships among the species is formulated based on 65 potential synapomorphies of adults, represented by 54 characters. The genera Sericoda and Elliptoleus are hypothesized as sister genera, with Anchomenus their sister group. Tetraleucus is the outgroup for the rest of the clade. The amount of character evolution is heterogeneous across the clade, with significantly less anagenetic change per internode of the cladogram within Elliptoleus compared to its sister group Sericoda. Elliptoleus species possess limited powers of dispersal and exhibit very restricted geographic ranges, whereas Sericoda species readily fly and possess some of the largest geographic ranges observed within Carabidae. Thus, relatively less anagenetic change is associated with speciation in the less vagile more endemic Elliptoleus, and extensive anagenesis occurs during the history of the vagile, widespread Sericoda species. First-instar larvae of 6 of the 29 species are described, and a cladistic hypothesis of relationships based on six larval characters is proposed. This hypothesis supports the monophyly of the sister genera Sericoda and Elliptoleus, but is otherwise discordant with the cladistic hypothesis based on adult characters. Autapomorphies of the first-instar larvae of the six taxa are listed in order to facilitate comparison of derived states in newly discovered larvae. The biogeographic patterns within the individual genera are analyzed using cladistic biogeographic methodology. The entire clade is hypothesized as Eocene in age, with the basal taxon Tetraleucus isolated from Old World progenitors of the rest of the clade due to amphi-Atlantic vicariance. Anchomenus is divisable into two clades; four New World species distributed along the Pacific coast from Alaska to Baja California, and six Old World species distributed from Japan to western Europe. Beringian vicariance in the Miocene is the likely cause of this pattern. Sericoda species exhibit a collective Holarctic distribution, with one species found in montane regions of southeast Asia and Indomalaya. Beringian vicariance has occurred at least twice during the diversification of the seven species leading to divergence of: (1) S. ceylonica from its sister group of S. bembidioides plus S. montana, (2) the sister species S. bogemannii and S. obsoleta. These vicariant events are hypothesized to have occurred in late Miocene or Pliocene times. Elliptoleus was probably isolated in México from its more northern sister group, Sericoda, in late Miocene. Cladistic biogeographic analysis allows derivation of a fundamental area cladogram for the temperate humid montane forest habitats occupied by Elliptoleus species. The Sierra Madre Occidental is hypothesized as the sister area of the Transvolcanic Sierra plus the more southerly Sierra de Oaxaca and Sierra Madre del Sur. Biotic connections of the Transvolcanic Sierra with montane regions to the south are via a filter bridge along the Atlantic versant, running from Pico de Orizaba to the Sierra de Oaxaca. Divergence events at the species level are geographically associated with river valleys, or regions of geological uplift near major volcanoes"--P. 5. 163 p. : ill.. maps ; 26 cm. Includes bibliographical references (p. 150-157). Includes bibliographical references (p. 150-157).
1. Definition of cold forging Cold forging, also known as cold volume forging, is a manufacturing process as well as a processing method. Basically the same as stamping process, cold forging process is composed of materials, molds and equipment. But the material in stamping processing is mainly plate, and the material in cold forging processing is mainly disk wire. Japan (JIS) called cold forging (cold forging), China (GB) called cold heading, outside screw factory like to call head. 2. Basic concepts of cold forging Cold forging refers to the metal recrystallization temperature below the various volume forming. According to the theory of metalology, the recrystallization temperature of various metal materials is different. T = (0.3 ~ 0.5) T melt. Minimum recrystallization temperature of ferrous and non-ferrous metals. Even at room temperature or normal temperature, the forming process of lead and tin is not called cold forging, but hot forging. But iron, copper, aluminum forming processing at room temperature can be called cold forging. In metallics, the forging of materials heated above the recrystallization temperature (about 700℃ for steel) is called hot forging. For steel forgings, the recrystallization temperature below and higher than normal temperature forging is called warm forging. Advantages of cold heading (extrusion) In fastener forming, cold heading (extrusion) technology is a main processing technology. Cold heading (extrusion) belongs to the category of metal pressure processing. In production, at normal temperature, the metal is applied external force, so that the metal in the predetermined mold forming, this method is usually called cold heading. The forming of any fastener is not only a deformation way of cold heading, it can be realized in the process of cold heading, in addition to upsetting deformation, but also accompanied by forward and back extrusion, composite extrusion, punching cutting, rolling and other deformation ways. Therefore, the name of cold heading in production is only a customary name, and should be called cold heading (squeeze) more accurately. Cold heading (extrusion) has many advantages, it is suitable for the mass production of fasteners. Its main advantages mainly include the following aspects: High utilization rate of steel, cold heading (squeeze) is a method of less, no cutting, such as processing rod, cylinder head hex socket screws, hex head bolt machining method, the utilization rate of steel in 25% ~ 35%, and only with cold heading (squeeze) method, and its utilization rate can be as high as 85% ~ 95%, is just a head, tail and hex head cut some of the consumption process. High productivity: compared with general cutting, cold heading (extrusion) forming efficiency is dozens of times higher than. Good mechanical properties: cold heading (extrusion) processing of parts, because the metal fiber is not cut, so the strength is much better than cutting. Suitable for automatic production: fasteners (also including some special-shaped parts) suitable for cold heading (extrusion) production are basically symmetrical parts, suitable for high-speed automatic cold heading machine production, is also the main method of mass production. In a word, the cold heading (extruding) method is a kind of processing method with high comprehensive economic benefit, which is widely used in the fastener industry. It is also an advanced processing method widely used at home and abroad with great development. Post time: Oct-30-2021
Social exclusion, the polarisation of the types of chances life offers to different groups of young people, is increasing, it is spatially concentrated in some regions and neighbourhoods and is arguably linked to social class. Race and gender can also contribute to this phenomenon, as can other inequalities such as disability. Social inclusion is therefore one of the central goals of European policies towards young people, especially in relation to employment, lifelong learning and vocational guidance. This book presents key findings from a research seminar organised by the European Youth Partnership on the theme of "Social inclusion and Young People" The articles included give a picture of the forms of social exclusion affecting young people nowadays and provide evidence of the progress of strategies to promote social inclusion. As part of the framework partnership agreement on youth between the Council of Europe and the European Commission, the research seminar and this publication support efforts in the fields of youth policy, education and training to build a more inclusive society for all.
Key: "S:" = Show Synset (semantic) relations, "W:" = Show Word (lexical) relations Display options for sense: (gloss) "an example sentence" - S: (v) keep, maintain, hold (cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., `keep clean') "hold in place"; "She always held herself as a lady"; "The students keep me on my toes" - S: (v) hold, take hold (have or hold in one's hands or grip) "Hold this bowl for a moment, please"; "A crazy idea took hold of him" - S: (v) hold, throw, have, make, give (organize or be responsible for) "hold a reception"; "have, throw, or make a party"; "give a course" - S: (v) have, have got, hold (have or possess, either in a concrete or an abstract sense) "She has $1,000 in the bank"; "He has got two beautiful daughters"; "She holds a Master's degree from Harvard" - S: (v) deem, hold, view as, take for (keep in mind or convey as a conviction or view) "take for granted"; "view as important"; "hold these truths to be self-evident"; "I hold him personally responsible" - S: (v) harbor, harbour, hold, entertain, nurse (maintain (a theory, thoughts, or feelings)) "bear a grudge"; "entertain interesting notions"; "harbor a resentment" - S: (v) restrain, confine, hold, constrain (to close within bounds, or otherwise limit or deprive of free movement) "This holds the local until the express passengers change trains"; "About a dozen animals were held inside the stockade"; "The illegal immigrants were held at a detention center"; "The terrorists held the journalists for ransom" - S: (v) retain, hold, keep back, hold back (secure and keep for possible future use or application) "The landlord retained the security deposit"; "I reserve the right to disagree" - S: (v) bear, hold (have rightfully; of rights, titles, and offices) "She bears the title of Duchess"; "He held the governorship for almost a decade" - S: (v) hold, support, sustain, hold up (be the physical support of; carry the weight of) "The beam holds up the roof"; "He supported me with one hand while I balanced on the beam"; "What's holding that mirror?" - S: (v) hold, bear, carry, contain (contain or hold; have within) "The jar carries wine"; "The canteen holds fresh water"; "This can contains water" - S: (v) accommodate, hold, admit (have room for; hold without crowding) "This hotel can accommodate 250 guests"; "The theater admits 300 people"; "The auditorium can't hold more than 500 people" - S: (v) hold (remain in a certain state, position, or condition) "The weather held"; "They held on the road and kept marching" - S: (v) hold, carry, bear (support or hold in a certain manner) "She holds her head high"; "He carried himself upright" - S: (v) prevail, hold, obtain (be valid, applicable, or true) "This theory still holds" - S: (v) hold (assert or affirm) "Rousseau's philosophy holds that people are inherently good" - S: (v) hold (have as a major characteristic) "The novel holds many surprises"; "The book holds in store much valuable advise" - S: (v) contain, take, hold (be capable of holding or containing) "This box won't take all the items"; "The flask holds one gallon" - S: (v) reserve, hold, book (arrange for and reserve (something for someone else) in advance) "reserve me a seat on a flight"; "The agent booked tickets to the show for the whole family"; "please hold a table at Maxim's" - S: (v) defend, guard, hold (protect against a challenge or attack) "Hold that position behind the trees!"; "Hold the bridge against the enemy's attacks" - S: (v) oblige, bind, hold, obligate (bind by an obligation; cause to be indebted) "He's held by a contract"; "I'll hold you by your promise" - S: (v) hold (hold the attention of) "The soprano held the audience"; "This story held our interest"; "She can hold an audience spellbound" - S: (v) hold (remain committed to) "I hold to these ideas" - S: (v) defy, withstand, hold, hold up (resist or confront with resistance) "The politician defied public opinion"; "The new material withstands even the greatest wear and tear"; "The bridge held" - S: (v) apply, hold, go for (be pertinent or relevant or applicable) "The same laws apply to you!"; "This theory holds for all irrational numbers"; "The same rules go for everyone" - S: (v) hold (stop dealing with) "hold all calls to the President's office while he is in a meeting" - S: (v) control, hold in, hold, contain, check, curb, moderate (lessen the intensity of; temper; hold in restraint; hold or keep within limits) "moderate your alcohol intake"; "hold your tongue"; "hold your temper"; "control your anger" - S: (v) hold (keep from departing) "Hold the taxi"; "Hold the horse" - S: (v) hold (take and maintain control over, often by violent means) "The dissatisfied students held the President's office for almost a week" - S: (v) halt, hold, arrest (cause to stop) "Halt the engines"; "Arrest the progress"; "halt the presses" - direct hypernym / inherited hypernym / sister term - derivationally related form - W: (n) halt [Related to: halt] (the event of something ending) "it came to a stop at the bottom of the hill" - W: (n) halt [Related to: halt] (an interruption or temporary suspension of progress or movement) "a halt in the arms race"; "a nuclear freeze" - W: (n) halt [Related to: halt] (the state of inactivity following an interruption) "the negotiations were in arrest"; "held them in check"; "during the halt he got some lunch"; "the momentary stay enabled him to escape the blow"; "he spent the entire stop in his seat" - W: (n) hold [Related to: hold] (time during which some action is awaited) "instant replay caused too long a delay"; "he ordered a hold in the action" - W: (n) arrester [Related to: arrest] (a restraint that slows airplanes as they land on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier) - sentence frame - S: (v) hold (cover as for protection against noise or smell) "She held her ears when the jackhammer started to operate"; "hold one's nose" - S: (v) carry, hold (drink alcohol without showing ill effects) "He can hold his liquor"; "he had drunk more than he could carry" - S: (v) hold (aim, point, or direct) "Hold the fire extinguisher directly on the flames" - S: (v) declare, adjudge, hold (declare to be) "She was declared incompetent"; "judge held that the defendant was innocent" - S: (v) agree, hold, concur, concord (be in accord; be in agreement) "We agreed on the terms of the settlement"; "I can't agree with you!"; "I hold with those who say life is sacred"; "Both philosophers concord on this point" - direct troponym / full troponym - S: (v) settle (end a legal dispute by arriving at a settlement) "The two parties finally settled" - S: (v) reconcile, patch up, make up, conciliate, settle (come to terms) "After some discussion we finally made up" - S: (v) see eye to eye (be in agreement) "We never saw eye to eye on this question" - S: (v) concede, yield, grant (be willing to concede) "I grant you this much" - S: (v) forgive (stop blaming or grant forgiveness) "I forgave him his infidelity"; "She cannot forgive him for forgetting her birthday" - S: (v) excuse, condone (excuse, overlook, or make allowances for; be lenient with) "excuse someone's behavior"; "She condoned her husband's occasional infidelities" - S: (v) absolve, free (let off the hook) "I absolve you from this responsibility" - S: (v) excuse, relieve, let off, exempt (grant exemption or release to) "Please excuse me from this class" - S: (v) frank (exempt by means of an official pass or letter, as from customs or other checks) - S: (v) justify ((used of God) declare innocent; absolve from the penalty of sin) - S: (v) wash one's hands (to absolve oneself of responsibility or future blame) "I wash my hands of this" - S: (v) shrive, absolve (grant remission of a sin to) "The priest absolved him and told him to say ten Hail Marys" - S: (v) remit (forgive) "God will remit their sins" - S: (v) pardon (grant a pardon to) "Ford pardoned Nixon"; "The Thanksgiving turkey was pardoned by the President" - S: (v) excuse, pardon (accept an excuse for) "Please excuse my dirty hands" - S: (v) subscribe, support (adopt as a belief) "I subscribe to your view on abortion" - S: (v) conclude, resolve (reach a conclusion after a discussion or deliberation) - S: (v) arrange, fix up (make arrangements for) "Can you arrange a meeting with the President?" - S: (v) firm up (arrange firmly) "firm up one's plans" - S: (v) concord (arrange by concord or agreement) "Concord the conditions for the marriage of the Prince of Wales with a commoner" - S: (v) settle (dispose of; make a financial settlement) - S: (v) prorate (make a proportional settlement or distribution) - S: (v) pay (discharge or settle) "pay a debt"; "pay an obligation" - S: (v) square (pay someone and settle a debt) "I squared with him" - S: (v) pay, pay off, make up, compensate (do or give something to somebody in return) "Does she pay you for the work you are doing?" - S: (v) liquidate (settle the affairs of by determining the debts and applying the assets to pay them off) "liquidate a company" - S: (v) clean up (dispose of) "settle the bills" - verb group - S: (v) agree (achieve harmony of opinion, feeling, or purpose) "No two of my colleagues would agree on whom to elect chairman" - derivationally related form - sentence frame - S: (v) hold (keep from exhaling or expelling) "hold your breath" - S: (adj) held (occupied or in the control of; often used in combination) "enemy-held territory"
The phenomena of the physical world collectively, including plants, animals, the landscape, and other features and products of the earth, as opposed to humans or human creations. An uncultivated, uninhabited, and inhospitable region. SEEMINGLY BENIGN, “nature” and “wilderness” frame a worldview we are often scarcely aware of. The words form an anthropocentric dichotomy between the human and the other-than-human, limiting and forming the world more than they describe it. To speak of “nature” or “wilderness” in California is to erase its First People. Yet, what is a city without wilderness? To Native Californians, the land is alive and inexorably tied to them as they are to it. Since Time Immemorial, Native Californian have tended to the land. Over time they formed a relational landscape of remarkable abundance scarcely equaled on the Earth. Colonizers mistook this relational landscape as “natural,” and the ramifications of this mistake grow annually. The City was not born from chance. Located at the convergence of seemingly innumerable biotic, geographic, geologic, and hydrographic networks—the City exists because of its heightened and localized potential to extract [verb. remove or take out, especially by effort or force] and consume [verb. use up (a resource)] the networks of the land. Indeed, the growth of the City depended on its consumption of Native lands and Native bodies—a period of time in California when it was bluntly referred to as extermination. The concepts of “wilderness” and “nature” engendered this genocide, transforming populated cultural landscapes into unpossessed lands, and ripe for extraction and consumption. “Wilderness” enabled the Gold Rush; it gave a moral rationale to clear cutting the redwoods and hunting the California Grizzly to the point of extinction. Through this lens, it can be said the City exists because of “wilderness.” In contrast, the Ohlone, Coast & Bay Miwok, Patwin, and Delta Yokuts have lived in reciprocity with the landscape since they came into being. To stand among the redwoods on Mount Tamalpais or the manzanitas of San Bruno is to be present within Native California culture and agency. Admittedly, Bay Area ecosystems are fractured and isolated—we can also see them as ardently defiant of the City and its sprawl. Coho and chinook salmon still migrate up the Sacramento River toward concrete tombstones, rebelliously spawning in the shadow of obliteration. The long-thought-to-be lost Presidio Manzanita awoke along the El Camino Real after more than a century of slumber—who knows what else is still sleeping? Wolves are remembering our woods, and one by one returning to reclaim what is theirs. It is no longer a question of if the Condor will return, but when. To ponder the fate of the City, I look to its birth—its purpose for being. Though its economy now hinges upon extracting the details of our lives rather than the essence of the land, an extractive ethos remains—and with it, assured collapse. This should come as no surprise in a landscape of sinking skyscrapers, rising seas, dying forests, tainted waters, depleted fisheries, apocalyptic fire-cycles, and lingering drought—all precariously balanced upon tectonic plates locked in a tango where one eventual move will obliterate every aspect of security and safety. To see the City we must see it weighted by “wilderness;” through reevaluating “nature” we interrogate our tacit assumptions of personhood and self. We must ask ourselves: Whose lands are we on? Whose abundance are we extracting? Whom are we harming for our convenience? These questions cannot be answered in isolation. But in the Bay Area, it’s a process that can begin with #LandBack and #SaveTheBerkeleyShellmound, led by Native Californian voices. The City’s boundaries are imaginary, an arbitrary circumscription in a vast living network stretching across the hills, creeks, rivers, valleys, mountains, through the earth and sea. The abundance of these networks served as the impetus for the City—I see no reason why they won’t direct its fate.
Operating safely in adverse conditions depends on a number of common sense procedures. Here’s a list of reminders for winter driving: • Traction is greater when you slow down. Slow speeds mean more control. • Stopping is harder than going. With ice, snow or water on the ground you will need more room to stop: back off. • Turning can be trouble. Ice and snow present bigger problems when you turn. Proceed very slowly and keep the wheels turning through a curve. • See and be seen. Check lights, wipers and defroster before you go and occasionally while en route. Use headlights. • You never know what will happen next. People, drivers and even the crest of a hill can create an unforeseen crisis. • Skidding is easier to avoid than to control. Slow speeds and gradual movement can help you avoid skids. Aggressive driving will create them. • Know when to stop. Sometimes the only safe thing to do is to park the bus. Know your limits. Source: Lancer Insurance Co. in Long Beach, N.Y. For more info, visit www.lancer-ins.com or call (800) 782-8902.
Improving the Lives of Children with Kawasaki Disease Kawasaki disease (KD) is an inflammatory condition affecting a child's eyes, lips, hands and coronary arteries. The disease is the leading cause of acquired heart disease in children in the U.S. and can lead, in rare cases, to heart attack and death. Many KD patients experience long-term coronary artery problems. The Portman Research Group is working to eradicate heart damage caused by KD. Pursuing Better Treatments for Kawasaki Disease The current treatment for KD is intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG). Immunoglobulin consists of concentrated antibodies that have been extracted from donated blood. Infusing this product into KD patients can significantly reduce their risk of certain heart problems. But IVIG is effective in only 70% to 80% of cases. Approximately 20% to 25% of patients treated with IVIG have recurrent or persistent fever and inflammation, and these patients are at especially high risk for coronary artery disease. The Portman group is developing ways to improve outcomes for children treated with IVIG. Dr. Portman and his colleagues made a key genetic discovery about why IVIG isn't effective in some patients. It is widely believed that IVIG works by binding to specific molecules - called FcGamma receptors, or FCGRs - on certain types of blood or inflammatory cells. Portman's team found that some patients have variations in the genes that regulate FCGRs, and that these variations lead to abnormal or mutated FCGRs that can't properly bind with the IVIG. The lab is building on this finding through a study that collects blood and saliva samples from hundreds of KD patients. By analyzing these patients' genes, the study is searching for further clues on how genetic variations influence a patient's response to IVIG. The Portman team made another potentially pivotal finding through a pilot study that found that when KD patients were treated with a combination of IVIG and the drug etanercept (commonly known as Enbrel), they had no recurrent fever and no new coronary artery inflammation. Now the lab is leading an FDA-sponsored clinical trial, which is taking place at six hospitals in the U.S. and Canada, to validate these results. Etanercept has been approved by the FDA as a treatment for rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory conditions, and the group's clinical trial could lay the foundation for using the drug in KD patients too. - Watch a KING 5 TV segment about how we're working to solve the mystery of Kawasaki disease. Investigating Kawasaki Disease's Causes While KD's causes are not understood, Portman developed an intriguing hypothesis that eating soy products could influence a child's risk for KD. This could help explain why the disease is unusually common in Asian populations, particularly in Japanese children. Soybeans and soy products are the richest sources of isoflavones, a plant hormone that resembles human estrogen. For many children, the earliest significant dietary exposure to isoflavones comes through breast milk or soy-based infant formulas. Portman hypothesizes that one of these isoflavones, called genistein, may limit how FcGamma receptors function. This could impair children's immune systems and make them more susceptible to KD. Portman outlined this theory in a recent paper in Pediatric Research. The paper explains how Portman and his colleagues analyzed data on soy consumption in thousands of Caucasian, Native Hawaiian and Japanese subjects. He compared this data with KD's incidence in Hawaiian populations. The data suggest that soy consumption is associated with a higher risk of Kawasaki disease among children under age 18. The Portman Research Group is now pursuing a case-controlled study that analyzes soy consumption among children of different ethnic backgrounds in the U.S. Philanthropy Accelerates Research Portman's group is making dramatic advancements toward improving the lives of children with Kawasaki disease. This progress wouldn't be possible without private donations, which fund innovative pilot studies and make up for shortfalls in grants from federal agencies and private foundations. The KD KIDS Guild was recently established to solicit financial support for this research. To learn more about supporting the guild, email us. You can also donate online. "Funding from private philanthropy gave me money to identify the genes that create susceptibility to Kawasaki disease. Because of this support, we are very close to finding a more effective treatment for the disease." Participate in Research Help us answer questions about childhood health and illness, and help other children in the future. Learn more.
The current implementation of the method is based on the cylindrical capacitor placed in the space inside the voice coil former and above the pole piece of magnet system. The inner surface (cylinder) of the capacitor is attached to the top of the pole piece and outer surface inside the voice coil former. Capacitance of this capacitor changes linearly according to the deflection of the cone. Principle of the measurement method and it's utilization in motional feedback is presented at the following figure (Parts added to "traditional" loudspeaker driver are coloured, insulators green, conductors red): Figure 1: Principle of the measurement method Capacitance of the measurement capacitor can be calculated using the following formula: εo = permittivity of vacuum (8,8542 * 10-12 C2 * N-1 m-2) εr = relative permittivity (for air approximately 1), l = length of the capacitor (m), r1 = inner radius of the capacitor (m), r2 = outer radius of the capacitor (m). In this formula, the length l is changed according to the movement of the loudspeaker cone. For calculating capacitance per unit of length, following formula can be used (l set to 1): Measurement circuit is implemented with simple current to voltage-converter. Providing that the capacitor in operational amplifier circuit is small enough, voltage generated from the circuit is proportional to the change of the capacitance of the measurement capacitor according to following formulas: Uout = output voltage of the current to voltage converter (V), R = value of the feedback resistor of the current to voltage converter (Ω), Ucap = voltage applied to the measurement capacitor (V), dQ/dt = derivative of the charge of the measurement capacitor (As/s (=A)), dC/dt= derivative of the capacitance of the measurement capacitor (F/s (=A/V)), dl/dt = derivative of the length of the measurement capacitor (m/s). With sine signal the deflection of the cone and length of the measurement capacitor follow the following formula: xmax = peak value of the deflection (one way), l = length of the capacitor, f = frequency of the sound. The output voltage of the current to voltage converter can be derived from the formulas 5 and 6 (for sine signal): Shortly: You get an velocity of the loudspeaker cone from the operational amplifier output terminal. When voltage of around 1kV is connected to the outer surface of the measurement capacitor, the feedback resistor of the op-amp is 1MΩ, excursion of the speaker is +-10mm and frequency 20Hz, you will get output signal of around one volt. Since the sound generated by loudspeaker is proportional to the acceleration of the cone, either velocity measurement have to be converted to acceleration (by differentation) or sound signal converted to velocity (by integration) to get a comparable signals for the correcting loop. For more information, construction of the prototypes and measurements read the whole document (PDF, 403 kB).
If learning a new skill is stressful for you, don't despair. According to a new study, people who work hard at improving their competence at something may feel stressed in the moment, but experience greater happiness on a daily basis and longer term. The study examined whether people feel happier when they fulfill certain psychological needs, specifically, the need to be competent, to feel connected to others, and to be autonomous or self-directed. ScienceDaily reports in the article "No Pain, No Gain: Mastering A Skill Makes Us Stressed In The Moment, Happy Long Term": Contrary to previous research, the study found that people who engage in behaviors that increase competency, for example at work, school or the gym, experience decreased happiness in the moment, lower levels of enjoyment and higher levels of momentary stress. Despite the negative effects felt on an hourly basis, participants reported that these same activities made them feel happy and satisfied when they looked back on their day as a whole. This surprising find suggests that in the process of becoming proficient at something, individuals may need to endure temporary stress to reap the happiness benefits associated with increased competency. While behaviors that increase competency were associated with decreased happiness in the moment, people who spent time on activities that met the need for autonomy or feeling connected to others experienced increased happiness both [on] an hourly and daily basis. The greatest increase in momentary happiness was experienced by participants who engaged in something that met their need for autonomy -- any behavior that a person feels they have chosen, rather than ought to do, and that helps them further their interests and goals. According to Ryan Howell, assistant professor of psychology at San Francisco State University, these findings may have implications for workplace stress management: Our results suggest that you can decrease the momentary stress associated with improving your skill or ability by ensuring you are also meeting the need for autonomy and connectedness, for example performing the activity alongside other people or making sure it is something you have chosen to do and is true to who you are.
Obesity in Children According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, more than 17% of children ages 2 to 19 were overweight in 2003 and 2004 and their numbers, already into millions, continue to rise every year. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Service blame the unhealthy and costly epidemic on Americans sedentary lifestyle. This agency found a lack of physical activity and hours spent watching TV, playing video games or sitting in front of a computer combined with unhealthy habits are generally the cause for overweight and obesity in our families, as children, generally, will copy their parents’ healthy or unhealthy lifestyle. What to do??? - We need to review the child’s overall health. - If you are unsure about your child’s healthy weight, talk to your pediatrician. The Doctor will use a body mass index (BMI) growth chart to assess whether a child is overweight and rule out medical problems. - If your child is overweight, he or she probably knows it, and needs your support. - Let your child know that she or he is loved and appreciated whatever the weight she or he is carrying. What your child needs * Three meals throughout the day. * Healthy snacks between meals. * Regular exercise. Some points to take in consideration: · It is important that you reassure your child the progress that’s been done. · When exercising, take in consideration that a child’s physical and physiological needs are very different from those of the adults. · Make your child’s activity plan a as fun as possible. · If your child likes the outdoor, then provide activities like biking, walking, swimming or playing any sport like soccer, baseball or basketball. · A non-competitive atmosphere is a must, as this will only focus your child into winning, rather than achieving its personal goals for physical improvement. · Obese children tend to be stronger than non-overweight children, so focus on strength-training to give them a sense of accomplishment. · Cardio training is harder for overweight children. Where are children taking that role model?
Check out Carnal Carnival #1: Essentials of Elimination, hosted by Bora at A Blog Around the Clock. It's a fascinating collection of blog posts all about poop. (The post I put up yesterday on sanitation is among them.) Many of the posts are about the interesting things scientists can learn by studying excrement - human or animal, fresh or fossilized. A couple of the posts deal with a topic that seems to be attracting more and more attention: gut flora, or the microbiome. Basically, our digestive systems are colonized by a range of microbes, some of which assist us with digestion and vitamin synthesis. As a whole, these microbes may protect us by occupying space that might otherwise allow harmful bacteria to establish themselves. Mike the Mad Biologist focuses on the statistics in a recent study that compared the bacteria present in the stool of children from Europe who ate a Western diet to those present in the stool of children from rural Burkina Faso who ate a less-processed, more fiber-rich diet. The Lorax at Angry By Choice describes a study in which 15 patients suffering from severe Clostridium difficile infections received stool transplants from family members with "normal" microbiota - and 13 of the 15 recovered almost immediately. (Tara Smith at Aetiology has another interesting post on an earlier case series involving such "fecal transplants.") So, this month's Carnal Carnival includes one post about the importance of eliminating exposure to excrement and another about how exposure to certain excrement may be beneficial - plus many other poop-related posts that are well worth a read. Next month's topic will be regurgitation; host Dr. Carin Bondar has the details.
Our brain is an organ that is well protected from most of the damages that can occur to it since it is located inside a bony skull. There are layers of membranes and fluids that act as shock absorbers and provide extra protection to the brain. In spite of all this, the brain is still prone to injury under certain circumstances. Once the brain is damaged, it will interfere with our thinking, movement and healthy life. Traumatic Brain Injury is one that affects the brain after a blow to the head. Hurting the brain The brain gets shaken with a hard blow to the head, this results in bruises, broken blood vessels and nerve damage. Though such injury does not cause an open wound in the skull, it is a closed brain injury. Similarly, an open brain injury is one where the head is penetrated by an object, causing an opening into the brain. Mild and severe injury A brain injury or Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) can be mild or severe. A concussion is a mild TBI, and an injury which can knock a person unconscious is a severe TBI. A severe TBI can even lead to coma and death. What is a concussion? A hard hit to the head can happen in many situations, it could be a football tackle or a car accident. Such a blow can shake the brain back and forth inside the skull and cause injury. This kind of injury is called a concussion. Even though relatively a milder injury, it could cause permanent damage if proper medical care and rest are not administered to the patient. Symptoms of concussion Usually when concussion occurs the person will black-out, but in some cases nothing of that sort happens. Still the person may experience a variety of symptoms like headaches, dizziness, vomiting and have trouble thinking clearly. What is a brain injury? When the head injury is severe, it can crack open the skull. This is called a skull fracture and the fractured pieces will then injure the brain. The pieces will pierce the delicate tissues of the brain and cause excessive bleeding. Clear fluid is seen draining from the nose or ears. A bleeding brain Sometimes a brain injury will lead to blood pooling inside the brain cells and causing a bump, this is called as hematoma. This can cut off blood flow to the brain. The symptoms of hematoma include dizziness, headache and vomiting. This causes a medical emergency. Issues of brain injury Memory loss is a significant issue, mainly when the damage is to that part of the brain which stores and retrieves memories. A brain injury can also affect that part of the brain that helps in balance and walking. It can also affect the ability of the brain to see clearly and gauge distance and depth. A brain injury will also cause health issues like depression, lingering sadness and sleeplessness. Mood swings, anger and anxiety are all part of the effects of a brain injury. Treatment and recovery When mild injuries like concussion occur, the best treatment is to give the brain enough rest and a chance to heal on its own. For severe injuries a patient may require emergency surgery along with best of rehabilitation. Physical, occupational and speech therapy can restore physical and mental health while lessening side effects.
Clinical trials for breast cancer research There are many breast cancer clinical trials and studies underway across the United States and in other countries. They are sponsored by government agencies, health care organizations, private industry, and nonprofit foundations, working together in an unprecedented spirit of collegial and collaborative cooperation. In this country, trials and studies are overseen by the government, under the auspices of the Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, FDA, and others. Most breast cancer trials are managed under the guidance of the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project. Clinical trials are studies, managed by government agencies, educational institutions, private not-for-profit organizations, or commercial businesses, to develop, produce, and evaluate the effectiveness of new treatments and therapies for diseases. According to the National Cancer Institute, there are different types of cancer clinical trials, including: Most clinical research progresses in an orderly series of steps or phases. Clinical trial protocols are the action plans or guidelines that must be followed during the course of any study. Guidelines may cover: Several research centers may be involved in the study, and each uses the same protocols to ensure that information from all centers can be combined and compared. Large cancer centers, university hospitals, local medical centers, or doctor offices; all may be included in managing clinical trials. Informed consent is a process designed to protect potential participants through detailed description of important facts about a specific clinical trial. There may be only one or two locations involved in a particular study, or hundreds around the country, or even around the world. Each protocol in a trial defines specific characteristics, called eligibility criteria, that participants should have in order to participate in the study. Characteristics may include type of disease and its stage, as well as the participant's age and general health. Eligibility criteria help assure that the study results answer the research question and identify who will benefit in the future from the approach being studied. There are several procedures in place, as part of the protocols, to protect the safety of the participants. Informed consent is a process designed to protect potential participants through detailed description of important facts about a specific clinical trial. Two groups that oversee the safety procedures are the: Some clinical trials, especially Phase III trials, also have a special group called a Data Safety and Monitoring Committee that looks at the test results, monitors the safety of the participants, and decides whether the study should go forward as originally planned. For information on how to participate in a clinical trial, please talk with your doctor. Click here to view the Online Resources of Women's Center
What are the distinctions between a freedom fighter and a terrorist? The debate over the meaning of Nat Turner's slave rebellion has been at the heart of race relations in the United States for the past 178 years. Charles Burnett, MacArthur Award-winning American filmmaker, Frank Christopher, award-winning producer, director, writer and editor, and Kenneth S. Greenberg, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Suffolk University and Distinguished Professor of History, screen their film Nat Turner: A Troublesome Property and explore the significance of Nat Turner today. Charles Burnett is a MacArthur Award-winning American filmmaker. His most original work concentrates on the lives of the African-American middle-class, who were seldom treated in films. He made his first feature, Killer of Sheep (1977), while a graduate student at UCLA. Award-winning producer, director, writer, and editor, Frank Christopher has worked on such films as The Battle of Midway (1999), Fei Hu: The Story of Flying Tigers (1999), and Great White Down Under (2000). He is a long-time friend and associate of the Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences, Kenneth S. Greenberg, and has partnered with him to create Nat Turner: A Troublesome Property (2003) and the PBS series, Remaking American Medicine (2006). Christopher is the recipient of several awards including, the Blue Ribbon winner at the American Film Festival (1984), the Grand Coral winner at the Festival of Latin American Cinema (1984), and the the Gold Award winner at the Houston International Film Festival (1988); in addition, he has been nominated for both an Academy Award (Best Feature Length Documentary, 1984) and an Emmy Award (Outstanding News Documentary Program Achievement, 1987). Kenneth S. Greenberg, nationally acclaimed history filmmaker and author, is the Dean of Suffolk University's College of Arts and Sciences. Greenberg joined the History Department at Suffolk University in 1978 and has chaired the History and Philosophy departments since 1989. He became Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 2000 and was named Distinguished Professor of History in July 2003.
Space Dust — Not an Alien Megastructure — Explains Odd Behavior of Tabby’s Star New data on the most mysterious star in the sky, KIC 8462852, suggests its celestial twinkle is caused by dust rather than orbiting planets — or aliens. In what might be regarded as something of a space bummer, scientists have concluded that the odd stellar phenomenon known as Tabby's Star is not evidence of an orbiting alien megastructure. Well, probably not. You might remember the excitement from a few years back: A team of professional and citizen scientists from the Planet Hunters project were sorting through data from NASA's Kepler space telescope. It appeared that the star KIC 8462852, which lies more than 1,000 light-years from Earth, was sending out irregular light fluctuations that couldn't be explained away by the usual suspects: orbiting planets or moons, for example. In other words, something was causing a shadow to appear intermittently between Earth and the remote star located in the Cygnus constellation. All the cosmic weirdness sparked the imagination of both amateur and professional researchers, who proposed explanations ranging from rogue comets to black holes. Among the scientific theories that gained traction: Tabby's Star could be home to an alien megastructure that occasionally blocks the star's light from reaching Earth. Alas, new evidence published this week suggests the light fluctuations are almost certainly caused by random space dust. The research was led by Louisiana State University astronomer Tabetha Boyajian — the Tabby of Tabby's Star — who also served as lead author on the original research describing the star. "Dust is most likely the reason why the star's light appears to dim and brighten,” Boyajian said in a statement released with the new research, published Tuesday in The Astrophysical Journal Letters. “New data shows that different colors of light are being blocked at different intensities. Therefore, whatever is passing between us and the star is not opaque, as would be expected from a planet or alien megastructure." The new information was collated from direct observations of the star at the Las Cumbres Observatory in California from March 2016 to December 2017. Beginning in May 2017, astronomers were able to directly capture and document four distinct episodes when the star's light dipped. The new research also incorporated data from more than a dozen other high-powered telescopes in the northern hemisphere. The team's time at the Las Cumbres Observatory was paid in part by a crowdfunding campaign that raised more than $100,000 from supporters around the world. The cosmic dust theory was viewed as the most likely explanation among researchers. The data strongly suggests that the source of the shadow is not a solid structure or celestial body, like a moon or planet. Orbiting planets regularly obscure stars, and astronomers can track them with precision, even when they're thousands of light-years away. But confirmation of the dust theory still leaves several mysteries to sleuth out. The dust particles generate shadows of varying intensity at unpredictable times. This indicates the dust is probably still being generated, and is not simply a floating debris field that orbits the star regularly. In the newly published research, Boyajian expressed gratitude to the volunteer sky watchers who sifted through data from both the initial NASA Kepler mission and the more recent observations. "If it wasn't for people with an unbiased look on our universe, this unusual star would have been overlooked," Boyajian said. "Again, without the public support for this dedicated observing run, we would not have this large amount of data." WATCH: Why We Blame Everything on Aliens
The Plague can be read at many levels, but I suggest the best way to approach this is to imagine if you are put into a situation where you are trapped in a plague-ridden town and your whole world is turned upside down: you could die at any moment and your friends and loved ones are dying around you. How would you respond? How do the characters in the novel react to this situation? Can you blame them for their actions and who, if anyone, remains 'true' to him/herself? I would also suggest you familiarise yourself with the basic existential themes. A good starting-point is: Flynn, Thomas, Existentialism: A Very Short Introduction, OUP (ebook), 2006. Note this is a library ebook so you can access this on your computer, print it off etc. Although it has its critics, we will also be looking at a number of passages from Sartre’s Existentialism is a Humanism (E&H), published by Yale University Press. Feel free to post any of your thought here.
Slothful induction Fallacy consists of an unfair argument. Proof is presented, however the opposing side is denying all proof due to their own reasoning. However the reasoning is not accurate, and ignorant to the facts. A person who is arguing against all facts, can be manipulative in what they really want to focus the argument on. A sloth is referred to as a slow moving, lazy individual who lacks in motivation to do what is best. The induction increases the argument, makes you think as well as wonder how a person could come to that specific conclusion. The fallacy is the unwillingness to even try to understand the proof given. This would fall alongside with telling someone they are lying to you, although they are really telling the truth. However the truth can vary based on the induvial. The sloth in this fallacy would ignore each and every person coming with proof, explanation, facts and evidence. The sloth would matter of fact come up with their own conclusion and reasoning. Even though it will not make sense the argument will still advance by the opposing side explaining why the sloth is wrong. Which would change the argument itself, into a new focus of who is right and who is wrong. The sloth doesn’t focus on the specific problems, instead creates another issue, and reasoning that makes no sense. Trusting someone is hard to do. In any situation, as a person tells their side of the story it can be true to the extent they believe it. The fact could simply be the same problem is reoccurring, there for why deny it is happening? A coincidence would be a remarkable concurrence of circumstances or events with apparent connection. This would be the reason a person would go to instead of believing the proof given. Being involved in the slothful induction also involves a game of goalposts. Regardless of what is being told to you, your response is always different from the information shown. For example, a female could be head over heels in love with a man. Even though this man cheats and does it often, she still loves him and will not leave. She is the sloth in this situation because the situation was reoccurring and still she chose to stay with the cheating man. Instead of understanding he may not love her the same way back, she figures he cheats when she makes him upset. I think the slothful induction is often used so outsiders who may not understand your personal reasoning can mind their business. People often want to speak on what does not concern them, or introduce information to start conversation or evoke emotion. By playing the ignorant, “that’s not the only reason”, I need more examples brings an arguer annoyance. By doing that, the conversation may end sooner, and the sloth doesn’t have to engage with conversation that is demeaning to their common sense. Perception is different among all people, being blind to certain facts may be how some people choose to live their life.
By Aisha El-Awady The US-led war on Iraq has resulted in the looting and destruction of thousands of priceless historical and archeological relics from civilizations that date as far back as 6000 years ago. Paul Zimansky, an archaeologist of the University of Boston, described the loss of such irreplaceable exhibits as “a wide-scale catastrophe.” The extent of damage caused by the bombings and looting is not yet known, but in a country that contains from 10,000 to 100,000 ancient sites, any bombing must have resulted in damage especially since a large number of the country’s relics are found in Mosul, Tikrit, and Nasiriya, which were all sites of heavy bombing during the war. What’s at stake? Mesopotamia, the ancient land between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, is considered the cradle of Western civilization. This region was the center of the first civilizations, those of the Sumerians, Akkadians and Babylonians. These cultures built cities and developed irrigation systems, a legal system, a postal service, a system of writing and also explored sciences such as astronomy and mathematics. In later times, Baghdad also played a role as a center of Islamic learning and civilization. According to archaeologist McGuire Gibson of the University of Chicago's Oriental Institute, “The whole country is an archaeological site….People don't understand that Iraq is more important than Egypt in world heritage.” The bombings and the looting that occurred after the war have caused substantial harm to unique cultural heritage in the form of damage or loss of irreplaceable artifacts, ancient structures and archeological sites. During the first Gulf War, US bombing of Iraq damaged a number of ancient and historic structures, such as the damage caused by shellfire to the brickwork of the ziggurat at Ur, which was built in 2100 B.C. Ziggurats were temple towers and were the first major building structures of the Sumerians. They were constructed of sun-baked mud bricks and were usually colorfully decorated with glazed fired brick. The ziggurat housed the city-state's patron god. Other structures destroyed include thousand-year-old bridges in Baghdad, and a 10th century church in Mosul that was partially destroyed. The 13th century Mustansiriya and the Kaplannya Mosque in Baghdad and a 4,500-year-old royal cemetery were also seriously damaged. The extent of damage resulting from the bombings in this recent war on Iraq has yet to be discovered. Following the war, looters ransacked and set fire to Iraq's National Library, turning to ash priceless books, including Ottoman historical documents. They also raided and burned Iraq's main Islamic Library, which contained Qur’ans from the very early Islamic period. The looters also destroyed or stole priceless artifacts from the National Museum. Among the works missing are tablets containing the Code of Hammurabi, one of the earliest known codes of law. King Hammurabi, who became ruler of Mesopotamia in 1792 B.C., had the code carved upon an eight-foot-high black stone monument. It provided uniformity among the various city-states. Other missing artifacts include a 4,000-year-old copper head of an Akkadian king, golden bowls, bejeweled lyres, colossal statues, and ancient cuneiform tablets containing some of the first examples of written words. The Anglo-American forces have drawn criticism and worldwide condemnation for their failure to stop and prevent the looting and destruction of Iraq’s cultural heritage. At a recent news conference, Gibson revealed that he had received unconfirmed information that some looted items were already on sale in Paris and Iran. "It looks like part of the theft was a very planned action, probably by the same gangs that have exploited and destroyed sites in Iraq over the past 12 years," said Gibson, "I have a suspicion it is organized from outside the country by people who pay those in the country to loot the sites. People have no money and will do anything to feed their family. But once it was organized, there were 300 or 400 people working on a site." Now that the war is over, an international group of archeologists and museum directors has decided to send a fact-finding mission to Iraq in order to assess the damage inflicted upon the museums and archeological sites of the country. UNESCO (UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) has set up a special fund for the purpose of buying back stolen artifacts in Iraq. Italy has already donated $1 million, and France, Qatar, Egypt and Britain have made other offers of financial aid. UNESCO has also appealed for the tightening of controls on stolen artifacts by the World Customs Organization, Interpol, and neighboring countries. The United Nation's cultural agency and the British Museum declared that teams will be sent to help in the restoration of the ransacked museums and artifacts, but no matter what measures are taken, the loss and damage to Iraq’s rich heritage is irreparable. Professor John Russell of the Massachusetts College of Art expressed it this way: “In a sense, it is a total war against the past. History is being erased, with no possibility of being recovered."
Information about apprenticeship records in Durham County Record Office. Apprentices were of two kinds; trade apprentices and poor or pauper apprentices. Apprenticeship usually started when the child was ten (or seven for the navy) and seldom after eighteen, and lasted seven years or until the age of twenty one. Apprentices were usually bound by their parents to a master to learn a trade. From the early eighteenth century indentures were drawn up as evidence of the apprenticeship agreement and they were held by the master and the father, and so are usually lost. You may find details of apprentices in guild records. Search the catalogue and type apprenticeship in the Keywords box. In 1710 a stamp duty was levied on bindings and this caused the establishment of a central register of apprentices kept by the Inland Revenue. The registers are among the Inland Revenue records at The National Archives. You will find indexes to some of the registers with the Society of Genealogists. The Poor Law Act of 1601 gave Churchwardens and Overseers of the Poor the power to apprentice to any trade or husbandry any child under sixteen whose parents or family were unable to provide maintenance. Until 1757 apprenticeship was by indenture; after that by any properly stamped deed. Before and after that date it was often done merely by agreement and entered in the vestry minute book. These records were usually kept in the Parish Chest and have been transferred to the Record Office. search the catalogue for apprenticeship records in the Church of England parish collections. Type apprenticeship in the Keywords box and select Ecclesiastical Parish Records from the Category drop-down list.
Council aims to provide clean and accessible water by managing activities that impact on water quality and quantity. Nelson’s water is a valuable resource for social, cultural, economic and environmental reasons. While water quality and ecosystem health are generally good in the upper reaches of most river catchments in Nelson, the effects of urban, pastoral, and production land uses are apparent with degraded water quality in the lower part of some catchments. When Council spoke to the community in November 2015 about the Nelson Plan review, support was given for the actions and planned improvements to the Maitai and other waterbodies. Respondents also raised concern in relation to discharges to waterways and the need for a precautionary approach for water takes, particularly groundwater. The government’s ‘National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management’ (NPS-FM) sets up a new direction for the management of freshwater resources in New Zealand. Freshwater quality in Nelson needs to be maintained and enhanced. For freshwater quantity, there needs to be an improvement in the way we use and allocate water. As required by the NPS-FM, Council is developing a framework which will identify freshwater outcomes (how we desire our waterbodies to be now and in the future), and set limits and methods to achieve these outcomes. The draft Regional Policy Statement identifies what we value about Nelson’s waterbodies and indicates our work to date in developing region-wide outcomes. Over the remainder of 2016 we will continue to work with our stakeholders to confirm the freshwater framework and this information will be used to inform both our rules and non-regulatory methods in the Nelson Plan. Does this draft RPS section on Freshwater miss any significant resource management issues? Is Council responding appropriately to the issues related to this topic?
Analysis: Calling Card Black Americans and the Blues Langston Hughes wrote blues poetry about the experience of being black. He was inspired by black blues singers, especially those of the Harlem Renaissance. Like the blues, his poetry is about what it means to keep on singing even when despair has taken your will to pray, and it's infused with the rhythms and rhymes we'd hear from any number of blues singers. "Song for a Dark Girl" is a classic example. It's blues all the way.
Heart Disease Prevention - Heart Statistics Each year, heart disease is at the top of the list of the country's most serious health problems. In fact, statistics show that cardiovascular disease is America's leading health problem, and the leading cause of death. Consider the most recent statistics released by the American Heart Association: - Approximately 82 million people in this country suffer from some form of cardiovascular disease, causing about 2,200 deaths a day, averaging one death every 39 seconds. - Almost one out of every three deaths results from cardiovascular disease. - The direct and indirect costs of cardiovascular disease and stroke are about $300 billion; this includes an increased cost of over $11 billion from 2007 to 2008. - An estimated 16 million U.S. adults carry the diagnosis of coronary heart disease. - Approximately 76 million U.S. adults carry the diagnosis of hypertension, an estimated 98 million carry the diagnosis of high cholesterol, and an estimated 18 million carry the diagnosis of diabetes. - It is estimated that an additional 7 million adults have undiagnosed diabetes and 81 million have pre-diabetes. - Heart failure carries a prevalence of well over 5 million U.S. adults. - Cardiovascular disease is the cause of more deaths than cancer, chronic lower respiratory diseases, and accidents combined. - It is a myth that heart disease is a man's disease. In fact, cardiovascular diseases are the number one killer of women (and men). These diseases currently claim the lives of over 400,000 females every year, compared with just under 400,000 men. - About one-third of cardiovascular disease deaths occurred prematurely, before age 75. - Rheumatic heart disease/rheumatic fever kills over 3,000 Americans each year. - On average, someone in the U.S. suffers a stroke every 40 seconds; someone dies every 4 minutes from stroke. - Stroke is a leading cause of serious, long-term disability that accounts for more than half of all patients hospitalized for a neurological disease. - Women have a higher lifetime risk of stroke than men. Each year approximately 55,000 more women than men have a stroke. - Approximately 20 percent of U.S. adults smoke cigarettes, costing $193 billion per year. - An estimated 68 percent of U.S. adults are overweight or obese and 32 percent of children ages 2 to 19 are overweight or obese. When compared with previous trends, the cardiovascular disease death rates have declined about 30 percent from 1998 to 2008, but there is a worsening prevalence of diabetes and obesity. Click here to view the Online Resources of Heart Center
Centrality measures such as the degree, k-shell, or eigenvalue centrality can identify a network's most influential nodes, but are rarely usefully accurate in quantifying the spreading power of the vast majority of nodes which are not highly influential. The spreading power of all network nodes is better explained by considering, from a continuous-time epidemiological perspective, the distribution of the force of infection each node generates. The resulting metric, the expected force, accurately quantifies node spreading power under all primary epidemiological models across a wide range of archetypical human contact networks. When node power is low, influence is a function of neighbor degree. As power increases, a node's own degree becomes more important. The strength of this relationship is modulated by network structure, being more pronounced in narrow, dense networks typical of social networking and weakening in broader, looser association networks such as the Internet. The expected force can be computed independently for individual nodes, making it applicable for networks whose adjacency matrix is dynamic, not well specified, or overwhelmingly large. Networks have become the premier approach to describing spreading processes such as epidemics or information transfer because they express the heterogeneity of interactions characteristic of many human activities1. Thirty years of innovation have refined our ability to identify nodes which are highly influential to the outcome of almost any spreading process on a given network via features such as betweenness centrality2,3, eigenvalue centrality4, degree5, or k-shell6. Yet highly influential nodes are rare by definition and the just listed measures are not informative for the vast majority of network nodes. These centrality measures only rank nodes and are not designed to quantify spreading power6,7,8. While the rankings accurately identify the few highly influential nodes, they can considerably underestimate the spreading power of non-hub nodes9. Nor do these rankings explicitly incorporate the dynamics of spreading processes10,11. This leaves open the question of quantifying the spreading power of the vastly more numerous non-highly influential nodes and indeed understanding the nature of node spreading power itself. As highly influential nodes only rarely originate spreading processes, be they pathogenic disease12,13, innovative ideas14, or chatter15, there is deep intellectual hunger and practical utility in accurately measuring and understanding the spreading power of each individual node in a network. A node's spreading power is the force with which it can push a spreading process to the rest of the network. This definition can be made more precise by reference to the common epidemiological models of spread. In a susceptible-infected (SI) spreading process without recovery, which inevitably reaches the entire connected component of the network, the spreading power of the seed node predicts the delay before half (or some other large percentage of) the network is reached. In a process with recovery to either the susceptible (SIS) or immune (SIR) state, spreading power correlates to the probability that a node can seed an epidemic given that the ratio of the per-contact transmission rate to the rate of recovery allows for, but does not guarantee, an epidemic. When this ratio exceeds the critical range, the dynamics approach the SI system as a limiting case. Several approaches to quantifying the spreading power of all nodes have recently been proposed, including the accessibility16,17, the dynamic influence11 and the impact8. These extend earlier approaches to measuring centrality by explicitly incorporating the dynamics of spread. The accessibility is a modified form of hierarchical degree which controls for both transmission probabilities and the diversity of walks of a given fixed length17. The dynamic influence, like the eigenvalue centrality, is the proportion of infinite walks starting from each node, where walk steps are scaled such that the linear dynamics of the system are expected to converge to a non-null steady state11. The impact sums, over increasing walk lengths, the probability of transmission to the end node of the walk and that the end node has not been previously visited by a shorter walk8. These new spreading power metrics have been shown to be distinct from previous centrality measures and more highly correlated with epidemic outcomes8,11,18. Yet they retain the common foundation of the more usual approaches to centrality, counting walks on the network10,19,20,21. As the walks are counted using powers of the adjacency matrix, spread is observed only in discrete time. Epidemiology, in contrast, studies the continuous-time dynamics of the force of infection (FoI), defined as the current rate at which susceptible nodes are becoming infected22. In network models, the FoI is directly proportional to the current number of edges between infected and susceptible nodes. The critical distinction between FoI and walks is that the FoI is determined by the number of infected-susceptible edges, independent of their distance from the seed node. The critical distinction between continuous- and discrete-time is that continuous-time allows resolution down to the first two transmissions, a level not easily expressed in a discrete-time framework where multiple transmissions may occur at each time step. The distinction is acute, as the number of events per time step grows at a double-exponential rate in scale-free networks23, the type of network most representative of human structures24 and perhaps even life itself25. The continuous-time epidemiological perspective suggests that node spreading power can be accurately quantified by appropriately summarising the distribution of the number of infected-susceptible edges after a small number of transmission events arising from a seed node in an otherwise fully susceptible network; that is, by the expected FoI generated by that node. We here propose such a measure, named the expected force (ExF) and show that it outperforms the accessibility, k-shell and eigenvalue centrality in predicting epidemic outcomes in SI, SIS and SIR spreading processes, in both discrete- and continuous-time. The basis in local neighborhood structure means the ExF is applicable even when the full adjacency matrix is either unknown or inherently unknowable. The metric naturally extends to weighted and directed networks. Most importantly, the expected force is able to illuminate the factors responsible for node spreading power. Definition of the Expected Force The expected force is a node property derived from local network topology, independent of the rest of the network or any specific spreading process. It is formally defined as follows. Consider a network with one infected node i and all remaining nodes susceptible. Enumerate all possible clusters 1, …, J of infected nodes after x transmission events, assuming no recovery (See Figure 1). Generally speaking, x = 2 is sufficient and assumed for the rest of this manuscript. Hence J includes all possible combinations of i plus two nodes at distance one from i and i plus one node at distance one and one at distance two. The enumeration is over all possible orderings of the transmission events. Two neighbors of the seed (a and b) form two clusters ([i → a, i → b] and [i → b, i → a]) or, if a and b also share an edge, four clusters. After two transmissions without recovery, the FoI of a spreading process seeded from node i is a discrete random variable taking a value in (d1, …, dJ), allowing for the proportionality constant equal to the transmission rate of the process. The expected force of infection can be approximated by the entropy of the dj after normalisation where i refers to the seed node and , ∀k ∈ J. The entropy is needed for generating the expected value due to the extreme variability in the shape, number of modes and number of terms in the distributions of dj for different seed nodes. Complex networks have scale-free degree distributions. The moments of scale-free distributions are divergent, implying that the distribution of dj may not have a mean value in the traditional sense. The entropy is a standard tool for taming unruly distributions due to its close relation to cumulant generating functions, motivating the use of Equation 1 to generate a quasi-expected value of the FoI. A loose analogy can be made to the use of entropy in statistical physics to summarise the macrostate of a system (e.g. the pressure of a gas) based on the distribution of its microstates (the positions and momentums of molecules in the gas). The analogy is that pressure is a combination of the number and the heat of the molecules, likewise, a node's expected force is a combination of the number of possible transmission clusters it can form and the FoI generated by each cluster. An in-depth discussion of the relationship between entropy, cumulants and statistical physics can be found in Touchette's review26. Setting x = 2 is recommended but not required. Supplementary investigations show that increasing the number of transmissions beyond two adds very little information while increasing the computational cost (see Supplementary Note 1), in agreement with other proposed spreading power metrics8,11 and consistent with the decaying influence of longer paths in the calculations of the eigenvalue, subgraph and related centralities4,7,20,21. In certain cases, however, it may be desirable to consider more transmission events. For example, a node at the end of a chain of length two can only form one transmission cluster of size two, hence its expected force is zero. Comparing two such nodes requires setting x = 3, in which case a subscript can be used for clarity (e.g. ExF3). One modification may be in order for SIS/SIR processes, inspired by the following. Imagine a node with degree one connected to a hub. While such a node will have a high expected force, its chance of realizing this force depends entirely on transmitting to the hub before recovery. Such nodes are common in dense social networks. For example, 84% of the 225K nodes in an EU institution email network27 have degree one. In such networks, it may be helpful to account for the dependence on the initial transmission by multiplying the ExF by the log of the seed node's degree after first rescaling the seed's degree by some factor α > 1. The rescaling is motivated in that the log of one is zero and the ExFM is most informative in networks where many nodes have degree one. The rescaling factor must be greater than one and should also be small to avoid overpowering the influence of the degree. In the rest of this manuscript, we use α = 2, the smallest integer which satisfies these criteria. Supplementary Note 2 shows that computing the ExFM for α ranging from 1.0001 to 16 does not substantively alter the metric, as all such variations show correlations greater than 0.99 to ExFM computed with α = 2. Straightforward calculation of the expected force has time complexity , where n1 and n2 are the number of neighbors at distance one and two from the seed. It is difficult to analytically compare a time complexity computed on individual nodes with time complexities whose calculation is based on the entire adjacency matrix. Further, since the metric relies only on local information, it can be computed in a massively parallel fashion, or only computed on nodes of interest. It also allows meaningful (partial) computations even on massive graphs, i.e. those whose size overwhelms computer memory. Nonetheless, some comparison to run-times of existing metrics is required. We benchmark the median run time over fifty Pareto networks of 1,000 nodes for all measures discussed here. Run time on each network is measured as the median computation time over ten runs on that network, with computation time measured at sub-microsecond accuracy28. Computing the ExF for all non-hub nodes takes 0.16 seconds. The k-shell is computed in 2% of that time (0.003 seconds) and the eigenvalue centrality in 20% of that time (0.03 seconds). Computing the accessibility takes several hundred times longer. The benchmarking is then repeated with the same protocol on 10,000 node Pareto networks. Increases in running time for the k-shell (6x), eigenvalue centrality (9x) and expected force (16x) have roughly linear correspondence to the tenfold increase in the number of network nodes. Recall that the proven time complexity for the k-shell and expected time for the eigenvalue centrality are both O(\|V\| + \|E\|), i.e. linear. As expected, the accessibility does not scale well, with a ten-fold increase in network size leading to a 265 fold increase in median running time. Recall that it is computed by taking powers of the adjacency matrix, i.e. something worse than O(\|V\|2.4). Benchmarking was performed within the R29 programming environment running on a commodity laptop computer. K-shell and eigenvalue computations are computed via standard functions in the Igraph package30. The accessibility is computed in native R29 code using sparse matrix multiplication from the Matrix package 1.0-1031. The expected force is computed in C code via an R interface. Example code providing an implementation of the expected force is available at https://github.com/glennlawyer/ExpectedForce. Correlation to epidemic outcomes We measure correlations between expected force and epidemic outcomes on five families of simulated networks chosen such that their densities and degree distributions span a wide range of human contact structures, as listed in Table 1. One hundred random networks of 1,000 nodes are generated in each family. Further comparison is made using a suite of twenty four real-world networks ranging from 1,133 to 855,800 nodes, as listed in Table 2. Epidemic outcomes are the time to half coverage for SI processes and the epidemic potential for SIS and SIR processes. These are observed by simulating multiple epidemics in both continuous and discrete time from a number of seed nodes in each network. Correlations are measured between these outcomes and the expected force, ExFM, accessibility, eigenvalue centrality and the k-shell of the seed nodes. Motivations for these choices and additional details are given in the methods. The expected force is highly predictive of all epidemic outcomes on all networks tested, simulated and real. Mean correlation to SI process outcomes is 83% on simulated and 74% on real networks. For processes with recovery, mean correlation is 91% on simulated and 82% on real networks. Standard deviations over the one hundred simulated networks in each family are typically 0.02–0.03. The 95% confidence bounds on real networks are in the same range. In all cases the ExF (or ExFM) significantly outperforms the accessibility and the eigenvalue centrality (difference in mean correlations greater than the standard deviation of the higher mean). It typically outperforms the k-shell, significantly outperforming it in 82 cases, showing equivalent performance in 11 cases (difference in mean correlations less than the standard deviation of the higher mean) and significantly lower performance in 6 cases (simulated Internet networks SIS-C, SIR-C, SIR-D; simulated Astrophysics networks SIR-D, simulated Facebook networks SIR-D, “email-EUAll” network SI). The performance of the k-shell was surprisingly strong, given that two previous studies by independent groups have observed rather poor performance for this metric11,18. The observed correlations on 100 simulated networks in each family are shown in violin plots (Figure 2); the information is duplicated in tabular form in Supplementary Table 5. Likewise, the measured correlations and their standard errors for all real networks are shown in Figure 3, given in tabular form in Supplementary Tables 6, 7 and 8 and plotted individually in Supplementary Figures 1-6. The expected force's predictive power is robust to variation in network structure. The theory behind the ExFM suggests that the ExF might lose performance for SIS/SIR processes on denser networks, yet mean correlation for continuous time SIS processes is barely changed between the loose Pareto/Amazon networks (0.93/0.95) and the dense Astrophysics/Facebook networks (0.92/0.90). As expected, the predictive power of the ExFM improves on the denser networks (mean correlations: Pareto/Amazon 0.89/0.92, Astrophysics/Facebook 0.94/0.95). The accuracy of the accessibility metric, in contrast, collapses for all spreading processes on the dense networks (mean correlation over all spreading processes: Pareto/Amazon 0.74/0.90, Astrophysics/Facebook 0.28/0.20.) A previous analysis which observed similar poor performance for the accessibility on dense networks concluded that spreading processes seeded from nodes with low accessibility are not capable of entering the epidemic phase18. Our results show this is not the case, as these nodes have a small yet observable epidemic potential which the expected force is able to capture and quantify. Performance of the k-shell and the eigenvalue centrality is also strongly influenced by network structure. For SIS/SIR processes, both showed higher mean and sharply reduced variance on the denser networks. In an interesting contrast, the k-shell's predictive power for SI processes is reduced in denser networks. The eigenvalue centrality's performance also varies by spreading process, showing its best performance on discrete time SIS models– though again this variation is modulated by network density. Two other independent groups have observed that relationships between centrality rankings and epidemic outcomes are strongly influenced by network structure and the parameters of the spreading processes8,9, leading the authors of ref. 9 to conclude that these measures severely underestimate the epidemic impact of structurally peripheral nodes. The expected force generalizes to graphs with weighted edges, where we assume the edge weights correspond to per-edge transmission likelihoods. Use these weights to calculate the probability of each way that each cluster could occur and re-define the cluster degree as the sum of all edge weights leading out from that cluster. The extension to directed graphs is also straightforward; limit the enumeration to edges leading from an infected to a susceptible node. We test this generalization by computing the weighted and unweighted expected force on 1,000 node networks with Pareto (1,2.3) degree distributions and edge weights chosen according to one of the following three distributions: uniformly distributed between one and three, uniformly distributed between one and ten and exponentially distributed with unit rate, weights rounded up to the nearest integer. Fifty networks were simulated for each distribution of edge weights. Correlation between the weighted and unweighted ExF was greater than 0.99 for all network edge weighting distributions tested. As expected from the tight correlation, the weighted and unweighted ExF showed no meaningful difference in predictive ability, which remained high. Observed correlations between node expected force and epidemic potential in discrete-time SIS processes were 0.88/0.89 ± 0.03 (unweighted/weighted ExF) under the uniform-3 scheme, 0.83/0.04 ± 0.03 under the uniform-10 scheme and 0.80/0.79 ± 0.05 under the exponentially distributed weighting scheme. The expected force predicts all types of epidemic outcomes with high accuracy over a broad range of network structures and spreading processes. The low variance in observed correlations over multiple simulated network and epidemic models shows that the measure is robust, as do the tight confidence bounds on real world networks. What, then, does it tell us about the nature of node spreading power? The definition of the expected force implies that spreading power is determined by both the degree of the node and the degree of its neighbors and that the relative influence of these two factors is different for nodes of low versus high spreading power. Weaker nodes gain what strength they have from their neighbors, whereas more influential nodes get their strength from their large number of connections. These relationships are accentuated by network density. This is a result of the combinatorics behind the enumeration over transmission clusters. The number of paths with one edge (p1) contributes quadratically to the number of transmission clusters, while the number of two-edge paths (p2) contriutes linearly, since J = p1 * (p1 − 1) + p2. Node degree is exactly p1. Neighbor degree is at most p2. Weaker nodes tend to have lower degree, hence neighbor degree contributes more heavily to their expected force. The influence of network density comes in part from the ExF's sensitivity to network motifs such as triangles and squares. Each triangle is traced by two paths with two edges, increasing the proportion of p2 associated with node degree. More importantly, the ExF is the entropy of the onward connectivity of each transmission cluster. A triangle generates four such clusters, each of which has identical cluster degree. Likewise, each square represents two clusters. These network motifs, which are more common towards the cores of dense networks, reduce the disparity of the cluster degree distributions thus increasing entropy. The combinatorics become more complicated when the enumeration is based on more than two transmissions, but these general patterns remain. These relationships can be seen by plotting ExF against the sums of the degrees of nodes at increasing geodesic distance from the seed (Figure 4, Supplementary Table 3). The approach taken by the expected force is fundamentally different than that taken by most centrality measures. Centrality measures typically set out to produce a ranking which identifies the most influential nodes in the network, under the assumption that highly influential nodes are those with the maximal sum of some type of walk8,10,19,20,21. The choice of the appropriate type, scaling and length of walks contain implicit assumptions regarding network flows10, cohesion structure19, and/or other topological characteristics20,21 of the network. The k-shell is a slight exception, as it was originally intended to precipitate out the most cohesive regions of the network rather than to explicitly rank nodes within cohesive regions32, yet it is now recognized as one of the best centrality measures for identifying a network's most influential spreaders6. Spreading power metrics generalize the walk counting framework by explicitly including transmission probabilities when scaling the walks8,11,16,17. The question not asked is if the type, scaling and lengths of walks best suited to identifying the most important nodes applies equally well to the rest of the network. To the extent that the optimal choice of factors depends on network topology, then the difference in topology between core and periphery suggests that choices well suited to the core are less appropriate for the remainder of the network. Both the combinatorics behind the expected force and the walk counting behind most centrality measures agree that influential nodes are those which combine high degree with a preponderance of influential neighbors. The ExF has high rank correlation with both the eigenvalue centrality and the k-shell (0.62–0.92 across the simulated network families, see Supplementary Note 3). Likewise, the ExF has 60–90% agreement with the eigenvalue centrality on the top ten network nodes and 100% agreement with the k-shell. The difference between walk counting and the expected force is that the expected force adopts the relative influence of different walks and walk lengths based on local connectivity, whereas approaches based on functions of the adjacency matrix apply a fixed protocol. The eigenvalue centrality is weighted node degree, where the weights are the importance of the neighbors4,7. But the eigenvalue centrality is strictly a global measure, unable to distinguish more subtle variations in local structure7,21. The k-shell erodes node degree to match the number of neighbors with similar degree. Since this discards remaining information on the individual degree of nodes within a common shell, the accuracy of its predictions is heavily influenced by the number of shells in the network. The accessibility combines node and neighbor degree into a measure of the number of nodes likely to be reached by walks of a given length17. But this approach has difficulties quantifying nodes in dense, small diameter networks, which accentuate differences between core and peripheral topology. The expected force offers additional advantages over existing spreading power and centrality measures in that its calculation depends only on the local topology. This allows epidemic outcomes on the whole network to be predicted with high accuracy even when only a small portion of the network is known. It is rare for the full structure of a real network to be fully known; typically the network structure is inferred from indirect, incomplete and often biased observations. Specification of an adjacency matrix is even more difficult when the underlying network is dynamic. These limits have practical implications. Estimates of eigenvalue centrality fluctuate depending on which nodes are sampled33. Both the pagerank34 and the k-shell35 are highly sensitive to pertubations in network topology, making them unreliable for incomplete or noisy systems. Reliance on a local neighborhood is consistent with established theory showing that topological information content falls off quickly with distance. Bonacich demonstrated in 1987 that the eigenvalue centrality can be expressed in terms of sums over walks of length k, k = 1 … ∞, establishing that the influence of walks must decay at least exponentially in k to guarantee convergence4. More recent work shows that almost all centrality measures, including those based on matrix resolvents, can likewise be expressed as infinite sums over walks and that decay rates faster than exponential are often motivated20,21. The fall-off in information can also be shown by the following example. Consider a long linear chain of nodes which ultimately connects to a network hub. Let β be the transmission/recovery ratio in a process with recovery and Δi the distance from the ith node of the chain to the hub. If the spreading process reaches the hub, an epidemic is almost certain. The probability of this occuring is at best . For β < 0.1, this probability is estimatable to three of four decimal places using only local information. More generally, since epidemic spread is almost instantaneous on scale free networks23,36, the expectation is that the time-step which takes a process outside the local neighborhood of its origin brings it to the majority of the network. Reliance on a local network does, however, lead to one weakness in the expected force. A network may contain large but disparate communities. Here, a node serving as a bridge between two communities might be able to spread a process to the entire network with more force than a node far from the bridge, even when the second node has more (local) spreading power than the bridging node. The expected force's local nature makes it blind to these larger topological constraints on spread. This work defines the epidemic outcome in SIS/SIR processes as the probability that an epidemic occurs. This is in contrast to the measure typically used, the mean number of infected nodes (i.e. refs. 6, 8, 9, 11, 17, 18, 37). We are not convinced that the mean is a good summary statistic. In over 20,000 simulated continuous-time SIS spreading processes, no processes which went extinct reached more than 20 nodes, while processes which did not go extinct reached the majority of the network. It has been argued that such bifurcation in outcomes is predicted by theory38. Given that the distribution of the number of infected nodes is characterized by two well separated modes, the mean is best seen as an indirect estimate of the likelihood of the higher mode. It is this likelihood which we directly measure as the epidemic potential. The expected force predicts epidemic outcomes from local features of specific nodes on a specific network, with only passing reference to the nature and parameters of the spreading process. Seminal work has approached the question from the other side. Given the parameters of a SIR spreading process and a class of networks characterized by its degree distribution, exact solutions for typical values of a number of epidemic outcomes are available37 and their time course can be expressed as paired ordinary differential equations39. Node spreading power can be thought of as explaining that portion of the variance around these typical values which is due to the choice of seed node. The expected force is strongly correlated to epidemic outcome, outperforming existing metrics of node spreading power and centrality. The measure depends only on local network topology, allowing its use in dynamic as well as static networks. For most nodes, the most important determinant of their spreading power is the sum of their neighbors' degree. As node power grows, so does the importance of the node's own degree. This relationship is accentuated in denser networks. The predictive power of the expected force is compared to one spreading power metric and two centrality measures. Spreading power metrics are a recent theme in the centrality literature specifically designed to quantify the spreading power of all nodes. They have consistently been shown to have better correlations with epidemic outcomes than previous centrality measures8,11,18. The accessibility is chosen to represent them as it is the most general, most powerful and most theoretically developed existing spreading power metric. In contrast, the authors of the dynamic influence write that their metric is only accurate when the actual transmission probability is close to the assumed optimal value contained in their method11. The impact is not defined for SI models, has a different definition for SIS than for SIR models and directly depends on the transmission probability of a specific spreading process8. Comparison is also made to traditional centrality measures. With the understanding that almost all of these are based on sums of walks of various lengths10,19,20,21 and that the best choice for walk length is influenced by network topology8,9,19, we here make comparison to measures which represent both ends of the spectrum. The eigenvalue centrality counts the number of infinite walks and degree counts walks of length one. We here compare to the k-shell instead of degree, as the k-shell can be thought of as the minimal degree of a node32 and is a better measure of node influence6. No comparison is made to subgraph centrality as it is computationally too expensive to compute for large graphs30. No comparison is made to pagerank because its rankings are highly dependent on the damping factor, including frequent rank reversals after small changes40,41 and as it is also unstable in the face of small pertubations in network topology34. The crux of the comparisons is this: For each network, a set of seed nodes is selected. Then, for each seed node, the outcome of each spreading process is noted. The correlation between the observed outcome and each metric is measured over all seed nodes for the given network. The eigenvalue centrality and the k-shell are computed using the Igraph package version 0.6.530. We implement the latest version of the accessibility17 in R, following python code supplied by the authors and using sparse matrix multiplication from the Matrix package version 1.0-1031. Seed nodes for the simulated networks are selected as follows. For each network, the ExF is computed for all non-hub nodes, with hubs defined as nodes whose degree is greater than 60% of the maximum degree node in the network. The range of observed ExF values is split into 15 equal width bins. Five seed nodes are selected uniformly at random from each bin, giving approximately 75 seed nodes for each of the hundred simulated networks in each of the five network families. The reason for the binning is that in scale free networks, the distribution of any centrality measure is strongly biased towards low values. Selecting seed nodes across the full range of the ExF ensures that nodes with high and medium ExF are also included in all tests. That hubs have maximal spreading power is already firmly estalished and also the reasons why; they also have the highest ExF values. Further, under this definition, less than 0.1% of nodes are hubs. Epidemic simulations and outcomes Spreading processes without recovery will eventually cover the entire network. The epidemic outcome is the time to half coverage (tthc); the time until exactly half the nodes in the network are infected. This is measured at each seed node by simulating 100 spreading processes and fitting the observed tthc from all simulations to a gamma distribution. Simulations are run in continuous time, with the time of the next transmission event drawn from an exponential distribution with rate equal to the current number of infected-susceptible edges. The exponential distribution, which models the distribution of waiting times until the next event in a Poisson process, is standard for such simulations as it is memoryless. These simulations are conducted only in continuous time as discrete time does not provide sufficient resolution for SI processes. Spreading processes with recovery are of interest when the ratio of transmissibility to recovery for the process β is in the critical range which allows for but does not guarantee an epidemic. The epidemic outcome is a node's epidemic potential (EPo), the probability that a given node can seed an epidemic. The EPo is measured by simulating 100 outbreaks per seed node and counting the number which result in at least half of the network nodes becoming infected. Continous-time simulations model the time of the next transmission as in the SI model just described, except the transmission rate parameter scales the current number of infected-susceptile edges by some β in the critical range (see below) and the time of the next recovery from a unit rate exponential distribution weighted by the number of infected individuals. In each round of the discrete-time simulations, transmission occurs along each infected-susceptible edge with probability r = −log(1 − β) (to convert the continous time rate into a discrete time probability) and nodes recovering at the end of the round. The critical range for β can be defined empirically using the criterion that if β is in the critical range, then a large majority of nodes will have EPo ∈ [2%, 98%]. We here set β independently for each network to a fixed multiple of 1/λ, where λ is the largest eigenvalue of the adjacency matrix. Similarity in network structure allows the same multiple to be used for both the Pareto and Amazon networks, likewise the Astrophysics and Facebook networks. Though the Internet lies between these two other classes, the multiples from the social networks yields good results. This proceedure resulted in at least 96% of nodes in continuous-time simulations with EPo in the critical range; in discrete time the relevant figure is 76% or better. Supplementary Table 4 gives the multiples used and the percentage of nodes fulfilling the criterion for all simulated networks and spreading processes. The five families of simulated networks are defined by their degree distributions, one theoretical (Pareto) and four derived from the following real-world human contact networks: the Amazon co-purchase network from May 200342, the graph of the Internet from the 2002 Google programming contest43, the collaboration network from ArXiv Astrophysics between 1993 and 200327 and Facebook wall posts from the New Orleans network44. The Pareto and Amazon networks are characterized by large diameter and low density. The Astrophysics and Facebook networks are two orders of magnitude more dense and have correspondingly smaller diameter. Google's map of the Internet lies in between the other two families. The networks can also be characterized by the largest eigenvalue of their adjacency matrix, as theory suggests that the critical disease transmission probability dividing epidemic from extinction regimes is the inverse of this value11, which further implies that a network's inherent susceptibility to disease spreading is reflected by this eigenvalue. Again, the selected network families cover a wide range of inherent susceptibility to disease. The networks used for the simulations are characterised in Table 1. Simulations are conducted using giant components of 1,000 nodes. Networks with a Pareto (1,2.3) degree distribution are simulated using the Chung Lu protocol, a versatile and general method for constructing random graphs with given expected degree sequence45. The remaining networks are simulated by randomly sampling 1,000 values from the degree sequence of the actual graph without replacement and generating a graph from these values using the Igraph function “degree.sequence.game” which generates undirected, connected simple graphs matching the input degree sequence30. Simulated networks allow testing on multiple networks of the same type. This is critical, in that the templates used to create the simulations are themselves static snapshots of dynamic processes. Multiple simulations give some indication of the underlying probability space of the network family. The disadvantage is that the simulated networks model only the degree distribution of the base network, ignoring higher order structure such as communities. In our defense, we note that even defining network community structure remains an open problem, let alone replicating it. Further, certain measures of community structure suggest that the size and composition of commmunities is a factor of network size43 implying that it is impossible for a simulated network with 1K nodes to replicate the community structure of i.e. the 876K nodes in Google's map of the internet. Real world networks were selected and downloaded from the Stanford Large Network Repository (SNAP) and Alex Arenas's collection according to the following criteria: having between 1,000 and 1,000,000 nodes in the largest connencted component, representing one clear network structure, and, in the case that the same network is sampled at multiple timepoints, the latest timepoint meeting the other criteria. Twenty one networks from SNAP and two from Alex Arena passed these criteria. The simulated Amazon networks are derived from the earliest Amazon co-purchase network in SNAP. For completeness, this network is also included in the suite of real networks. The Facebook network was downloaded from the Max Planck Institute for Software Systems. For the purpose of testing, networks are treated as undirected graphs with multiple and self-edges removed. All twenty four real networks are characterized in Table 2, which includes the internet address of the collections. The size of the real world networks required some slight modifications to the overall approach. Seed nodes are 1,000 nodes selected uniformly at random. Epidemics with recovery are simulated only in discrete time. As can be seen from the results on the random networks, discrete time simulations provide approximately the same mean outcome as continuous time and only slightly higher variance. The transmission/recovery probability ratio β is determined independently for each network by binary search over possible values until one is found such that a minimum of 80% of tested nodes have EPo between 0.05 and 0.95. 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Sci Rep 5, 8665 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/srep08665 This article is cited by Node-of-Influence Network Analysis for Targeted Condition Sequencing in Plasma Chemical Reaction Networks Plasma Chemistry and Plasma Processing (2023) Journal of Ambient Intelligence and Humanized Computing (2023) Scientific Reports (2022) Nature Communications (2022) Communications Physics (2022)
How to Stop Binge Eating: Practical Strategies for Overcoming Food Cravings. Learn effective strategies to overcome binge eating and conquer food cravings with this comprehensive guide. Discover the importance of addressing binge eating and understand its causes and triggers. Differentiate between hunger and cravings and identify personal triggers for food cravings. Develop healthy eating habits, practice mindful eating, and plan meals in advance to prevent impulsive choices. Manage emotional triggers by finding alternative coping mechanisms, seeking support from loved ones, and addressing underlying emotional issues through therapy. Create a supportive environment by removing temptations, surrounding yourself with positive influences, and communicating your goals and needs. Implement stress management techniques, prioritize self-care, and learn to overcome setbacks with resilience. Know when to seek professional help and explore various treatment options. Recap the strategies for overcoming binge eating, get motivated, and remember the importance of self-compassion and patience. Take control of your relationship with food and enjoy a healthier, balanced lifestyle. Introduction of How to Stop Binge Eating Binge eating refers to the consumption of large quantities of food in a short period, often accompanied by a loss of control and feelings of guilt or shame. It is a common eating disorder that affects many individuals around the world. Unlike occasional overeating, binge eating is characterized by frequent episodes of excessive food intake. Addressing binge eating is crucial for both physical and mental well-being. Binge eating can lead to weight gain, obesity, and various health issues such as heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure. Additionally, it can significantly impact an individual’s self-esteem, relationships, and overall quality of life. By understanding and implementing strategies to overcome binge eating, one can regain control over their eating habits and improve their overall health and well-being. Understanding Binge Eating A. Causes and triggers of binge eating Binge eating can be caused by a combination of factors, including genetic, environmental, and psychological influences. Emotional distress, such as stress, anxiety, or depression, can trigger episodes of binge eating as individuals may turn to food as a way to cope with their emotions. Dieting and restrictive eating patterns can also contribute to binge eating by creating a cycle of deprivation and overindulgence. B. Emotional and psychological factors Emotional and psychological factors play a significant role in binge eating. Many individuals who engage in binge eating use food as a way to comfort themselves or numb their emotions. Feelings of sadness, loneliness, boredom, or even happiness can trigger a binge episode. Understanding and addressing the underlying emotional issues that contribute to binge eating is crucial for long-term recovery. C. Impact on physical health Binge eating can have severe consequences on physical health. The excessive consumption of high-calorie foods during a binge can lead to weight gain and obesity. This, in turn, increases the risk of developing chronic conditions such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain types of cancer. Additionally, the frequent intake of large amounts of food can cause digestive issues, such as bloating, stomach pain, and discomfort. Recognizing Food Cravings A. Differentiating between hunger and cravings Understanding the difference between hunger and cravings is essential in managing binge eating. Hunger is a physical sensation that occurs when the body needs nourishment, while cravings are often driven by a desire for specific foods, usually high in sugar, salt, or fat. Cravings are typically unrelated to true physiological hunger and can be triggered by emotional or environmental cues. B. Common types of food cravings Food cravings can vary from person to person, but there are some common types that many individuals experience. These include cravings for sugary foods, salty snacks, carbohydrates, or specific comfort foods. Recognizing and understanding the specific types of cravings one experiences can help in developing strategies to address them effectively. C. Identifying personal triggers for food cravings Identifying personal triggers for food cravings is an important step in overcoming binge eating. These triggers can be specific situations, emotions, or even certain foods that elicit a strong desire to overeat. Keeping a food diary and tracking cravings can help identify patterns and uncover the underlying triggers that contribute to binge eating episodes. Developing Healthy Eating Habits A. Building a balanced and nutritious meal plan Creating a balanced and nutritious meal plan is crucial in overcoming binge eating. Focus on incorporating a variety of nutrient-dense foods, including fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats. This helps provide the body with essential nutrients and promotes a feeling of fullness and satisfaction, reducing the likelihood of experiencing intense food cravings. B. Practicing mindful eating Mindful eating involves paying attention to the present moment and savoring each bite without judgment. This practice helps individuals develop a better understanding of their body’s hunger and fullness cues, allowing them to make more conscious and satisfying food choices. By slowing down and truly experiencing the flavors and textures of food, individuals can reduce the tendency to overeat. C. Planning and preparing meals in advance Planning and preparing meals in advance can help prevent impulsive food choices and reduce the likelihood of binge eating. Set aside time each week to plan meals, create a shopping list, and prepare nutritious meals and snacks. Having healthy options readily available can make it easier to resist cravings and make mindful choices when hunger strikes. Managing Emotional Triggers A. Finding alternative coping mechanisms Instead of turning to food for comfort, finding alternative coping mechanisms is essential in managing emotional triggers. Engaging in activities such as exercise, meditation, journaling, or talking to a supportive friend can help alleviate stress and reduce the desire to binge eat. Experiment with different strategies to find what works best for you. B. Seeking support from friends, family, or professionals Seeking support from friends, family, or professionals can provide valuable assistance in overcoming binge eating. Share your struggles and goals with loved ones who can offer encouragement and understanding. Consider reaching out to a therapist or counselor specializing in eating disorders who can provide guidance and support throughout the recovery process. C. Addressing underlying emotional issues through therapy Addressing underlying emotional issues through therapy is crucial in overcoming binge eating. Therapy can help individuals explore and understand the root causes of their emotional struggles and develop healthier coping mechanisms. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) are commonly used therapeutic approaches for treating binge eating disorder. Creating a Supportive Environment A. Removing temptations from the home Creating a supportive environment involves removing temptations from the home. Clear out the pantry and refrigerator of trigger foods that may lead to binge eating. Replace them with nourishing alternatives and keep healthier snacks readily available to reduce the likelihood of impulsive food choices. B. Surrounding yourself with positive influences Surrounding yourself with positive influences can greatly contribute to overcoming binge eating. Seek out supportive friends and family members who understand and respect your journey towards recovery. Consider joining a support group or online community where you can connect with others facing similar challenges and share experiences and strategies. C. Communicating your goals and needs to loved ones Communicating your goals and needs to loved ones is crucial in creating a supportive environment. Clearly express your intentions to overcome binge eating and let them know how they can best support you. Open and honest communication can foster understanding and encourage loved ones to be mindful of the food-related challenges you may face. Practicing Stress Management A. Identifying sources of stress Identifying sources of stress is an essential step in managing binge eating. Stress can often trigger emotional eating or food cravings. Take time to identify the situations, events, or relationships that contribute to your stress levels. Once identified, explore strategies to reduce or cope with stress more effectively. B. Incorporating stress-reducing activities into your routine Incorporating stress-reducing activities into your routine can help prevent binge eating episodes. Engage in activities such as yoga, meditation, deep breathing exercises, or hobbies that promote relaxation and help you unwind. Regular physical activity is also beneficial for reducing stress levels and improving overall well-being. C. Prioritizing self-care and relaxation Prioritizing self-care and relaxation is vital in managing binge eating. Make time for activities that bring you joy and help you recharge. Engage in self-care practices such as taking relaxing baths, practicing mindfulness, getting quality sleep, or engaging in hobbies that fulfill you. Nurturing your overall well-being helps reduce stress and promotes a healthier relationship with food. A. Understanding that setbacks are normal Understanding that setbacks are normal is crucial in overcoming binge eating. It’s important to recognize that recovery is not a linear process and that occasional slip-ups may occur. Instead of viewing setbacks as failures, use them as learning opportunities and a chance to recommit to your goals. B. Learning from past experiences Learning from past experiences is an essential part of the recovery journey. Reflect on past binge eating episodes and identify the triggers or situations that contributed to them. Use this knowledge to develop strategies to prevent similar situations in the future. Focus on progress rather than perfection and celebrate small victories along the way. C. Rebuilding motivation and commitment Rebuilding motivation and commitment after a setback is key to overcoming binge eating. Take time to reconnect with your reasons for wanting to overcome this challenge. Set realistic goals and break them down into smaller, achievable steps. Find inspiration through success stories, books, or podcasts that highlight the journey of others who have conquered binge eating. Seeking Professional Help A. Knowing when to seek professional assistance Knowing when to seek professional assistance is crucial in overcoming binge eating. If your attempts to manage binge eating have been unsuccessful or if your relationship with food is significantly impacting your quality of life, it may be beneficial to seek help from a healthcare professional specializing in eating disorders. B. Working with a therapist or counselor Working with a therapist or counselor can provide valuable support and guidance throughout your recovery journey. They can help you explore the underlying causes of binge eating, develop coping strategies, and provide a safe space for emotional healing. Therapy sessions can be tailored to your specific needs and can greatly enhance your chances of long-term success. C. Exploring treatment options and resources Explore the available treatment options and resources for binge eating disorder. There are various evidence-based therapies, such as CBT, DBT, and interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT), that have shown effectiveness in treating binge eating. Additionally, support groups, online forums, and self-help books can provide valuable insights and tools for managing binge eating. Conclusion of How to Stop Binge Eating Overcoming binge eating requires a multi-faceted approach that encompasses various strategies. By building healthy eating habits, managing emotional triggers, creating a supportive environment, practicing stress management, overcoming setbacks, and seeking professional help when needed, individuals can break free from the cycle of binge eating and develop a healthier relationship with food. Embarking on the journey to overcome binge eating can be challenging, but it is a worthwhile endeavor. Remember that you are not alone, and support is available to help you through this process. Stay committed, take small steps each day, and celebrate every achievement along the way. Lastly, it’s crucial to emphasize the importance of self-compassion and patience throughout the recovery process. Overcoming binge eating takes time and effort, and there may be ups and downs along the way. Be kind to yourself, practice self-care, and remember that each day is a new opportunity to make progress towards a healthier relationship with food and yourself.
Jatropha curcas belongs to the Euphorbiaceae family which has potential economically. This plant has been reported to contain toxic compounds such as curcin and phorbol ester and its derivatives. These compounds may become a problem if J. curcas will be explored as a source of biofuel. In order to provide safety plants, the research on the study of phytochemical and initiation of cell and organ culture have been carried out. J curcas which has been collected from different regions in Indonesia showed to contain relatively the same profile of chemical contents. Dominant compounds that were detected by GCMS are hidrocarbon such as 2-heptenal, decadienal, hexsadecane, pentadecane, cyclooctane etc, fatty acid such as oktadecanoate acid, etthyl linoleate, ethyl stearate, heksadecanoate acid and steroid such as stigmasterol, fucosterol, sitosterol. No phorbol ester and its derivatives have been detected yet by the GCMS method. Callus and suspension cultures of J. curcas have been established to be used for further investigation.
Yoga, the 5,000-year-old Indian practice, has positive effects on mild depression and sleep complaints, even in the absence of drug treatments, and improves symptoms associated with schizophrenia and ADHD in patients on medication, according to a systematic review of the exercise on major clinical psychiatric disorders. The review of more than one hundred studies focusing on 16 high-quality controlled studies looked at the effects of yoga on depression, schizophrenia, ADHD, sleep complaints, eating disorders and cognition problems. Benefits of the exercise were found for all mental health illnesses included in the review, except for eating disorders and cognition problems as the evidence for these was conflicting or lacking. Dr. P. Murali Doraiswamy, a professor of psychiatry and medicine at Duke University Medical Center, US, and author of the study, explained that the emerging scientific evidence in support of yoga on psychiatric disorders is "highly promising" and showed that yoga may not only help to improve symptoms, but also may have an ancillary role in the prevention of stress-related mental illnesses. The review found evidence from biomarker studies showing that yoga influences key elements of the human body thought to play a role in mental health in similar ways to that of antidepressants and psychotherapy. One study found that the exercise affects neurotransmitters, inflammation, oxidative stress, lipids, growth factors and second messengers. While there has been an increase in the number of medications available for mental health disorders, many of which can be life saving for patients, there remains "a considerable unmet need," according to Dr. Meera Balasubramaniam, lead author of the study, who is also based at Duke University, US. Poor compliance and relapse as well as treatment resistance are growing problems, and medications are expensive and can leave patients with significant side effects. "The search for improved treatments, including non-drug based, to meet the holistic needs of patients is of paramount importance and we call for more research into yoga as a global priority," said Doraiswamy. "If the promise of yoga on mental health was found in a drug, it would be the best selling medication world-wide," he added. There are many benefits associated with practicing yoga for improving mental health, including, fewer side effects, relatively low cost, generally good access and the improvement of physical fitness, the researchers added. The review has been published in the open-access journal, Frontiers in Psychiatry. (ANI)
It's in the news on a near-weekly basis. Research studies address various aspects of it. National organizations and expert panels issue recommendations on it. Your patients are probably asking about it at an increasing rate. "It" is cholesterol. How much do you know about the complexities of cholesterol? Can you answer your patients' questions accurately, and provide them with appropriate recommendations? What you tell them is vital to their lifelong health: According to the American Heart Association (AHA), an estimated 70 million Americans suffer from one or more forms of cardiovascular disease (CVD). These diseases claimed 927,448 lives in the U.S. in 2002 - more than the total lives claimed by cancer, accidents, and HIV combined. And in case you view CVD as a condition exclusive to the elderly population, take note that more than 150,000 of those killed by CVD in 2002 were under the age of 65. The major type of cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease, is caused by arteriosclerosis -the thickening or hardening of the coronary arteries. Here's where cholesterol enters the picture. Findings from the massive Framingham Heart Study, which began in 1948 under the direction of the National Heart Institute (now known as the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute), show that blood cholesterol is a risk factor for coronary heart disease, and that the higher the cholesterol level, the greater the CHD risk Cholesterol is a soft, wax-like lipid that occurs naturally in the bloodstream and in cell walls and membranes. It is a normal and important part of a healthy body, because of the essential role it plays in cell membrane, hormone, and vitamin D production, and the digestive process. The liver produces approximately 1,000 mg of cholesterol daily from other fats, which is all the cholesterol the body needs. In other words, you don't need to consume cholesterol from dietary sources to stay healthy. (Infants are the exception: During the growth process, their bodies make new cell membranes so rapidly that they require a certain amount of dietary cholesterol.) Because the body doesn't need dietary cholesterol, particularly not cholesterol with "no place to go," it means that consumption of cholesterol-laden foods can cause plaque formation/buildup and resulting cardiovascular problems. First, a little background: Dietary fat is absorbed by the intestine and transported to the liver. The liver then converts fat into cholesterol and releases it into the bloodstream. Because cholesterol isn't water-soluble, cholesterol and triglycerides (a blood lipid) combine with proteins to form lipoproteins, which then transport cholesterol through the watery blood system. Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) are the two main types of lipoproteins; they differ markedly from one another in their ratio of cholesterol and triglycerides to protein, and thus, in their effect on blood levels of cholesterol. LDL cholesterol: LDLs carry a great deal of cholesterol, because they help transport it from the liver to the rest of the body. Too much LDL cholesterol circulating in the blood can cause buildup on the inner walls of the arteries that feed the heart and brain. Over time, LDL cholesterol can contribute to the formation of plaque - a thick, hard deposit that clogs arteries, resulting in atherosclerosis. As arteries narrow, the oxygen supply to the heart is gradually compromised, and the risk for a heart attack grows. HDL cholesterol: HDLs carry relatively little cholesterol - they actually circulate in the bloodstream, helping remove excess cholesterol from blood and tissues. Specifically, evidence suggests that HDLs tend to carry cholesterol away from the arteries and back to the liver, where it is then eliminated from the body; and that HDLs also remove excess cholesterol from plaque in the arteries, resulting in a slower potential buildup of plaque. Triglycerides transport and store fat in the body. It's clear that high triglyceride levels aren't good for the body, and can be particularly problematic when combined with excess levels of LDL cholesterol. People with high triglycerides often have high total cholesterol, high LDL cholesterol, and low HDL cholesterol. And some lipoproteins are rich in triglycerides that also contain cholesterol. The National Cholesterol Education Program, developed by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health, has set the "safe" total cholesterol level at 200 mg/dL. A score of 200 or higher signifies increased risk for developing heart disease; over 240 puts the patient in the high-risk category. An LDL cholesterol level of less than 130 mg/dL is acceptable for most people; less than 100 mg/dL is ideal. The desirable level of LDL cholesterol depends on whether an individual has risk factors for coronary artery disease, or a pre-existing health condition caused by atherosclerosis or diabetes. The AHA and the American Diabetes Association currently recommend HDL levels of at least 40 mg/dL for men and at least 50 mg/dL for women. A blood level of 60 mg/dL or above is ideal. The HDL:LDL ratio is crucial - perhaps more so than the total cholesterol score. For example, a patient with a total cholesterol score of less than 200 mg/dL could still be at risk for developing cholesterol-related atherosclerosis - if his or her LDL level constitutes a large percentage of that score. By comparison, a patient whose total cholesterol is higher than 200 mg/dL may actually be at less risk, if his or her HDL score is high. The ideal ratio of total cholesterol to HDL cholesterol is 3.5:1. The Coronary Primary Prevention Trial (1984) demonstrated that reducing total and LDL cholesterol levels significantly reduced the incidence of CHD; more recent investigations have affirmed this association. Dietary habits play a major role in determining your total blood cholesterol level, as well as the relative distribution of HDL and LDL cholesterol. Consumption of foods high in saturated fat and LDL cholesterol are a major reason for out-of-control cholesterol levels and rising heart attack rates in the United States. All foods that contain fat have different distributions of saturated and unsaturated fats. Saturated fat is found primarily in foods that come from animals - red meat (particularly fatty cuts), poultry with the skin on, whole-milk dairy products (whole milk, butter, cheese, ice cream), and tropical oils (coconut, palm kernel, etc.). Consumption of saturated fat increases LDL and total cholesterol in the bloodstream. On the other hand, unsaturated fats do just the opposite: They increase HDL cholesterol and reduce LDL cholesterol and triglycerides. Good sources of monounsaturated fat are canola, peanut and olive oil; olives; avocados; and most nuts. Polyunsaturated fat can be found in corn, soybean, safflower, and cottonseed oils, as well as in fish. And let's not forget omega-3 fatty acids, a type of polyunsaturated fat. Evidence suggests omega-3s, good sources of which are fatty fish, such as mackerel, salmon, sardines, or swordfish, may help prevent heart disease. That's one reason why the American Heart Association currently recommends that everyone eat at least two servings of fish on a weekly basis. Trans fats are liquid vegetable oils that are transformed via hydrogenation into solids at room temperature. This chemical process transforms healthy vegetable oils into unhealthy fats that have been shown to raise LDL cholesterol. In today's world of processed foods, more and more non-animal products contain hydrogenated fats/oils, a source of trans fats - which actually cause your body to make more cholesterol. Foods that contain trans fats include margarines, vegetable shortening, partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, countless fast foods (especially French fries), and most commercial baked goods (crackers, donuts, potato chips, etc.). The good news, if there is any, regarding trans fats is that as of 2006, the Food and Drug Administration is requiring that food manufacturers list amounts of trans fats on the nutrition information labels of products. The egg is perhaps the ultimate cholesterol question mark. On the one hand, eggs are a great source of important nutrients, including vitamin D, vitamin B12, riboflavin and folate, that may help reduce the risk of heart disease. They also provide high levels of protein, iron and phosphorus. However, since the 1960s, when the connection between cholesterol and heart disease first became a public health concern, it was recommended that egg consumption be restricted to only one egg per week. Why? Because one large egg contains a whopping 213 milligrams of dietary cholesterol. (The American Heart Association recommends limiting dietary cholesterol to 300 mg per day.) But studies conducted at Harvard University found that people who ate one egg per day were actually no more likely to develop heart disease or suffer a stroke than people who ate one egg per week or less. The egg yolk contains all the cholesterol (and fat), so limiting consumption of egg yolks (to no more than four per week, according to the AHA's current recommendation), and products that contain egg yolks, may be an important aspect of managing cholesterol. Moderation is probably the best message to share with your patients, whether it's eggs or any other food that can affect cholesterol. Helping your patients find a healthy balance of diet, exercise, weight management and stress reduction are vital steps in winning the battle against high cholesterol. - Cholesterol. The American Heart Association (www.americanheart.org). - Diseases and Conditions: Cholesterol. www.intelihealth.com. - The National Cholesterol Education Program. Information available online at www.nhlbi.nih.gov. - Fats & Cholesterol. Harvard School of Public Health. www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/fats.html. - The many benefits of boosting HDL. The John Hopkins Medical Newsletter, June 2005. - High Cholesterol. In: Baltch JF, Baltch PA. Prescription for Nutritional Healing, 2nd edition. Avery Publishing Group: Garden City, New York, 1997. - Cholesterol in Your Body. North Central Regional Extension Publication 332 - U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C. - Bird, Patrick J. Eggs and Cholesterol. University of Florida College of Health and Human Performance.
Wendy M. Ross's sculpture Radiolaria (2006) rests in the Bennett Park Apartment's courtyard in historic Rosslyn. In 1860, William Henry Ross bought land that turned into a farm called Rosslyn. Over the next century and a half, Rosslyn has grown into a bustling center of art, business, commerce, and news reporting. Ross's sculpture brings to mind Rosslyn's history. That history actually goes back much farther than Ross's purchase of land. The current construction boom in Rosslyn is a faint echo of the big bang that created the universe. Dinosaurs preferred Rosslyn to Clarendon because Rosslyn was more convenient for wading in the Potomac. Ross's sculpture moves across Rosslyn's deep history, connecting its prehistoric past to its vibrant present.
Burbank, Luther–1849-1926–main office, San Francisco, California; experiment farms, Santa Rosa; proving grounds, Sebastopol; nurseries, Sonoma and Alameda Counties; seed farms, Santa Clara Valley; spineless cactus nurseries, Santa Rosa and Livermore Valley; warehouse and distributing, Oakland–was born in Lancaster, Massachusetts on March 7, 1849. He was an extraordinary plant breeder. At 21 he bought a farm in Lunenberg, Massachusetts and began his 55-year plant breeding career. He went to California in 1875 after having produced his Burbank potato in 1873 in Lunenburg. After arriving in Santa Rosa, California, he established his nursery garden, greenhouse, and experimental farms. He developed over 800 new types of plants including over 113 varieties of plums and prunes, roses, giant Shasta daisy, and the Fire poppy. The 1924 catalog claimed they had 65,000 customers world-wide. He died on April 11, 1926 in Santa Rosa, California. Burbank was a cousin of W. Atlee Burpee (his mother was a Burpee). Sources: Burbank; Dreyer; CHSJ-Jul. 1961; CHSJ-Jan.
A link in one of the comments at Mathematics dying on the vine in Australian universities drew my attention to a paper called â€œMathematicsâ€ vs Mathematics by I. Bokor of the School of Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science, University of New England, Armidale NSW. This paper attempts to dispel some myths such as: - The view seems to be commonly held, even amongst mathematics and science educationists, that mere passing familiarity with rudimentary facts is more than adequate for teaching these subjects at school. School teachers, and even those who train them, frequently argue that it is actually preferable to know less about mathematics and science in order to teach them better. There is a confusion of numeracy with mathematics, a fallacy as crude as equating literacy with literature. For while one must be numerate in order to attempt to learn or appreciate mathematics, there is a qualitative difference between mathematics and mere computation, just as a narrative text does not become literature solely because it is free of grammatical errors and spelling mistakes. Partly as a consequence, there is a pervasive belief, including among those who use and apply mathematics, that any mathematical problem has a unique solution, which can be readily computed numerically if one just had the right computer with the right programme, or, failing that, by being adept enough. If I had not experienced this myself I wouldn’t have believed that these myths are all too common these days. The author illustrates the difference between mathematics (the reality) and â€œmathematicsâ€ (the myth) by discussing the mathematics involved in answering a supposedly simple problem like . A paper worth reading. Those of us who live and work in the UK are worried about the crisis in mathematics in this country, both in schools and universities. It appears that there are similar problems in Australia as described in Mathematics dying on the vine in Australian universities. As Alexandre Borovik of Mathematics under the Microscope, who pointed me to the post, says (well almost, I’ve slightly altered what he wrote) - We continue to underestimate the gravity of the crisis of mathematical, and, more generally, scientific education [in] Western civilization. So the question is What are we going to do about it? Two blog posts have caught my eye. The first is Time Lag in Learning Mathematics which talks about the time it takes for a student to learn mathematics followed by the observation that one cannot be said to understand a topic until one can apply it. This often only occurs in the year after one has learnt the subject which is why I often tell my university students that it will always be true that Last year’s course was easy, this year’s is hard and next year’s is impossible. A very important point that Mathematics under the Microscope makes is that anyone teaching mathematics should have a qualification at least one level higher than that being taught. It is so hard to convince non-mathematicians that teaching and learning mathematics is very different from most other subjects. This partly accounts for the appalling state of teacher training and observation in the UK and why I absolutely refused to be judged by unqualified observers. In the second post the secret life of numbers gives a quote from the book it is discussing which gives a better alternative to a question I often ask Why are people happy to admit to being innumerate but prefer to hide their illiteracy? PS Mathematics under the Microscope has an interesting response to this.
Belgian urban drainage design rules revised Design parameters for urban drainage systems in Belgium have been revised. The revision involves extrapolation of the design rainfall statistics, taking into account the current knowledge on future climate change trends till 2100. Uncertainties in these trend projections have been assessed after statistically analysing and downscaling a broad ensemble set of 44 regional and 69 global climate model runs, based on three different emission scenarios (A1, A1B, B1). The simulation results were considered for the scenario period 2071–2100 and the control period 1961–1990. The current urban drainage design guidelines are based on rainfall statistics, derived for Uccle (Brussels). Given that the rainfall statistics are nearly uniform in the northern flat Flanders region of Belgium, except for the near-coastal zone, the Uccle rainfall statistics are considered valid for any inland place in Flanders. It was shown that the 10-year design storm intensity can increase up to about 50% by the end of this century. Or, systems currently designed for a 20-year return period of flooding, might flood with a mean recurrence interval of – in order of magnitude – 5 years by the end of the century. It is found that increase in storage capacity of 11–51% is required to keep the overflow frequency to the current level. Thus, sewer surcharge or flooding might occur up to about twice to four times more frequently than in the present climate (if no other environmental or management changes are accounted for). It is clear that this might have a significant impact on future urban water management and planning, and that adaptation strategies will be required. Conducting climate change studies on urban drainage is extremely complicated: - because of the small (temporal and spatial) scales of hydrological processes in urban catchments. Climate model simulations still remain relatively coarse in space and time resolution and are unable to describe accurately the rainfall process at the fine scales of urban drainage systems, and - because current state-of-the-art climate models have limitations in the accuracy of describing precipitation extremes. Statistical downscaling was used to bridge the gaps between the climate model scales and the local urban drainage scales and to account for the inaccuracies in describing precipitation extremes. One way to deal with the huge uncertainties in the future climate change is to consider (in addition to the traditional range of return periods up to 5 years) a 20-year design storm for scenario investigation. Research has shown that a 20-year storm could become – in order of magnitude – a 5-year storm. If after a design for a 5-year storm, the 20-year scenario investigation would conclude that specific zones along the sewer system would have severe additional impacts, changes could be made to the design or flexible adaptation measures designed for the future. Source: Willems, 2013. Journal of Hydrology 496: 166–177. Photo: FaceMePLS (www.flickr.com)
Mudras: A Guide to Symbolic Gestures in Yoga Updated: Apr 26 Unlock the Power of Mudras: A Guide to History, Benefits, and How to Perform Them in Yoga Yoga is not just about physical postures and breathing exercises. It is a holistic system that involves a wide range of practices, including meditation, pranayama (breathing techniques), mantra chanting, and mudras. Mudras are symbolic gestures that are used to harness and direct the flow of prana (life force energy) in the body and to connect the practitioner to the divine. History of Mudras The origin of mudras can be traced back to ancient India, where they were used in various spiritual and religious practices, including yoga, Tantra, and Buddhism. The earliest references to mudras can be found in the Vedas, which are the oldest sacred texts of Hinduism, dating back to around 1500 BCE. Over the centuries, mudras evolved into a complex system with hundreds of different gestures, each with its own specific purpose and symbolism. In the 14th century, a text called the Hatha Yoga Pradipika was written, which provided detailed instructions on the practice of mudras in yoga. Benefits of Mudras Mudras are believed to have a wide range of physical, mental, and spiritual benefits. Here are some of the most commonly cited benefits: Balancing and Harmonizing Energy: Each mudra is said to stimulate a specific energy channel or chakra in the body, helping to balance and harmonize the flow of prana. Enhancing Concentration and Focus: By directing the flow of prana to specific parts of the body and brain, mudras can help improve concentration, focus, and mental clarity. Reducing Stress and Anxiety: Mudras can have a calming effect on the mind and nervous system, helping to reduce stress, anxiety, and other emotional imbalances. Boosting Immunity and Vitality: Mudras are believed to help improve circulation, digestion, and overall vitality, thereby boosting the immune system and promoting good health. How to Perform Mudras Mudras are typically performed by placing the hands and fingers in specific positions, either on their own or in combination with other yoga practices such as pranayama or meditation. Here are some basic mudras that you can try: Gyan Mudra (Mudra of Knowledge): Place the tip of the index finger and the tip of the thumb together while keeping the other three fingers extended. This mudra is said to enhance concentration and memory. Prithvi Mudra (Mudra of Earth): Touch the tip of the ring finger and the tip of the thumb together while keeping the other fingers extended. This mudra is said to help improve digestion and boost vitality. Varuna Mudra (Mudra of Water): Touch the tip of the little finger and the tip of the thumb together while keeping the other fingers extended. This mudra is said to help balance the water element in the body and can be helpful for those with dry skin or other dehydration-related issues. Apana Mudra (Mudra of Digestion): Touch the tip of the middle finger and the tip of the thumb together while keeping the other fingers extended. This mudra is said to help improve digestion and elimination and can be helpful for those with constipation or other digestive issues. In conclusion, mudras are a powerful tool for balancing and harmonizing energy in the body, mind, and spirit. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced yoga practitioner, incorporating mudras into your practice can help deepen your connection to yourself and the divine. So go ahead, try a mudra or two, and see how they can enhance your yoga practice!
Worksheets: Maximal Oppositions. Worksheets: Maximal Oppositions Details Created: Friday, 10 February 2012 09:01 Updated on Wednesday, 07 September 2016 10:22 This resource page contains many examples of picture-and-word work sheets intended for use in speech-language pathology intervention. The sheets were made in Microsoft Word, using copyright-free pictures from Microsoft Clip Art and Media and converted into portable document files (pdfs) with Adobe Acrobat. The vocabulary represents (non-rhotic) Australian English pronunciation, and although most of the words and minimal pairs will 'work' in other dialects of English you may need to discard some. SLPs/SLTs and students are invited to use these worksheets and other resources when working with children with speech sound disorders. Please read this before downloading pdf or pptx files Please avoid downloading the same file multiple times as it increases my bandwidth usage and drives up my costs. Elbert, M., Powell, T. /m/ Contrasts /m/ vs. /m/ vs. Target Selection in Phonological Intervention. Target Selection in Phonological Intervention Details Created: Saturday, 12 November 2011 14:51 Updated on Tuesday, 24 November 2015 15:38. Index. Details Created: Friday, 28 October 2011 15:34 Updated on Sunday, 01 January 2017 08:19 This is the RESOURCES INDEX. Scroll down for child speech assessment and intervention resources, and CPD links, articles and information. The intervention resources include Singleton Consonant and Consonant Cluster pictures, Vowel pictures and vowel contrasts, Consonant Minimal Pair pictures, Near Minimal Pair pictures, and wordlists and worksheets based around facilitative articulatory contexts, nonlinear phonology, complexity principles and lexical properties. There are also Slide Shows about the assessment of, and evidence-based intervention for, children's speech sound disorders. Please consider donating to the upkeep of this site. Continuing Professional Development Resources Alphabetical list of linked resources referred to in Continuing Professional Development (CPD) events with Caroline Bowen. English Pronunciation - Guía de la pronunciación del inglés. Edwards, Cristal: 5th Grade / WRITING. Writing Workshop is an exciting time in Class 5E. Sessions include reading/analyzing mentor texts as a classroom community, students writing independently, and peer and/or teacher conferences. Each student maintains a writer's notebook as a gathering place for ideas. Notebook entries are varied (e.g., , memories, poetry) and are influenced by the writing unit in which the class is currently immersed. Students will develop "publish" their writing by following the stages of the Writing Process: Rhetorical Devices in the Oral Tradition. Short and Long English Vowels. The English vowels are A, E, I, O, & U. (Sometimes Y is a vowel, pronounced as if it were I, and sometimes W substitutes for U.) Each can be pronounced in several ways.This page explains when each sound is commonly used. (It's also available now as a 4-page pdf to download and print, as requested in the page comments.) Short Vowels The most common sound for each vowel is its “short” sound: Las vocales en inglés. Internet Institute for Speech and Hearing. Contents: What is 'The Science and Technology of Speech and Hearing'? This broad field of study includes the production of speech sounds by humans and by machines, the perception of speech and other sounds by humans, and the analysis of speech sounds by machines. We are interested in how speech sounds are made, how these sounds are used to communicate in language, how the significant properties of those sounds can be analysed, how sounds are analysed by the human hearing mechanism, how humans and machines can recover the linguistic content of speech sounds. There is a large body of scientific knowledge about how we use speech to communicate, and an increasing body of knowledge about how this scientific understanding can lead to technological applications, in for example: the generation of speech by machine, the recognition of speech by machine, the efficient communication of speech signals, the identification of an individual by their voice, the rehabilitation of hearing impairment, etc. Interactive Sagittal Section 2.0. Interactive Sagittal Section. Info.pronuntiapp. English Pronunciation Online: 2. Advantages of using Internet in the teaching and learning of pronunciation/Beneficios de la red para la enseñanza y aprendizaje de la pronunciación. Air and Phonation. The vocal tract and larynx( and exercises are at 1. The vocal tract If the human head were to be cut in half down the midline, the organs of speech would appear like this. (Click on the MRI image to see a movie clip showing what it looks like during speech.) The lungs, which are in the chest, are connected to the tube which goes up to the vocal cords (the trachea or windpipe). The space between the vocal cords is called the glottis. Vocal tract anatomy. Más de 1000 ideas sobre Alfabeto Fonético en Pinterest. 1957re55estudios02. Maclean's Archives: Canada's history, politics and personalities. Recommended Exploring Canada In the spirit of the true north strong and free, this collection of eye-opening narratives travels back in time to the vast and spectacular landscapes across our country. In 1971, Mordecai Richler shared pages from his journal in Maclean’s on his travels from his hometown in Montreal to discover the West. In 1973, adventurer and author Farley Mowat wrote with profound outrage at the gradual devastation of Canada’s North by white civilization. Finally, a 1994 column asks: is it possible that we have become, in decades since the Group of Seven roamed the wilderness, a nation afraid of its scenery? Political Partnerships Maclean’s has been writing about this country’s most famous and important personalities for more than a century. Untitled Document. Pronunciacion del sonido consonante de la letra H en ingles. Materiales Didácticos. Lo que el terapeuta debe saber sobre fonética y la fonología. Apuntes de Fonética - II. Curso pronunciación y dicción. Curso de fonética, que, además de tratar sus elementos básicos, pronunciación y dicción, nos da las pautas sobre lo que implicaría el aprendizaje o la adaptación hacia la fonética inglesa, y lo que, por supuesto, nos depararía el aprendizaje de la pronunciación en inglés. En los primeros capítulos del curso, nos centraremos en la fonología, es decir, en la parte anatómica que tiene que ver con la generación de sonidos por parte de nuestro aparato fonador o del habla. Los procesos fonológicos. Help Yourself to English: December 2010. In this audio activity from the Business English pod site, you will learn some vocabulary associated with air travel and some other expressions for making requests. Audio time: 16 minutes. Activity time: 25 to 45 minutes Task: 1 Match the words and expressions in A with those in BA to check in.. baggage.. a tight.. to check.. to be.. a carry-on.. a boarding.. window or.. immigration..B ..aisle seat ..connection ..and customs ..over the limit ..pass ..bag ..allowance ..for a flight ..your baggage 2 Listen to the introduction, then to the dialogue in the airport. Stop the audio and check your answers to 1. 3 Listen to the dialogue again. Phonetics. Download & Streaming : Audio Archive. By Community Audio collection eye You are invited to view or upload audios to the Community collection. My English Factory 1. John Maidment's Blog. John Wells’s phonetic blog. Swphonetics. Alphabetic Code Charts - Home Page. Practical Phonetics and Phonology: We don’t need to tell you that the Internet is a wonderful source of information, education and entertainment. And that it’s especially useful for many aspects of phonetics, phonology, and dialect research. Furthermore, most of what it provides for the student phonetician comes absolutely free of charge. Be warned, though! Internet websites, like mushrooms, suddenly appear – and then, like ghosts, just as mysteriously disappear, sometimes only to reappear under a changed name. You have to keep your wits about you when using web resources. We list here just a very small selection of the best (and most permanent) of the numerous websites concerned with phonetics now available on the Internet. The following links are presented as recommendations. Vowel alternation: aɪ ~ ɪ. A Course in Phonetics: Extras. A Course in Phonetics UC Berkeley Linguistics one two three four five six seven eight nine ten eleven extras Extra material 0. Using the "Course in Phonetics" Web site Audio examples \| Homework exercises \| Web recorder. Alex's phonetic thoughts. Phonics International - Free Resources. English is not Phonetic. Phonics International - Online Synthetic Phonics Programme (Program) El blog para aprender inglés: ¿Para qué sirve la fonética? Índice. El blog para aprender inglés: Enlaces de Fonética Inglesa. Pronunciation. El blog para aprender inglés: Recursos para estudiar fonética. Features of the Synthetic Phonics Teaching Principles. Phonics International - Hear the Sounds. The English Alphabetic Code complete picture chart. Pronunciation. English Phonetic Transcription) Links. Phonetics resources. Page maintained by Jennifer Smith ( Last revision and link check: August 2016 This is a list of web sites that might be useful in an introductory phonetics course for classroom demos or homework assignments; most of these sites include audio, images, or interactive material. The list began in 2000 with some of the phonetics resources compiled by Karen Steffen Chung (see LINGUIST List posts 11.1812, 11.1869, and 11.1964). Glossary of Linguistic Terms. Throughout the SIL-Mexico website, green underlined words are links to definitions in this glossary. For best results, leave all windows open that are created by the glossary until you are finished using it; the new windows will be re-used. You may want to adjust the size and locations of the windows so that you can see more than one at the same time. Although the glossary is still in preliminary form, we hope that it will be useful, and for that reason we are making it available in its present condition. Bickford, J. Albert and David Tuggy, 2002. Half the consonant chart. Pronunciation and Linguistics. February 2, 2017 by gpointon6 Comments Whenever I hear a word that is new to me, or is used in a new way, I now take the precaution of looking in the OED before claiming in these posts that it is either a mistake or a … Continue reading. Newton. Oiin. Paratrans. Paratrans presents English texts accompanied by a parallel General British phonemic transcription. The initial state shows neither of these, but both can be displayed or hidden at will. The Vowel Machine. The Vowel Machine is a program designed to help you to learn to recognise English vowel sounds. Each time you click the SPIN button, three words will appear and you will hear one of them. Your task is to choose the right one. If you want to hear the target word again before choosing, click the small triangle in the box marked PLAY TARGET. Practical Phonetics and Phonology: English - Habla Idiomas EOI - Escuelas Oficiales de Idiomas. International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) Chart Unicode “Keyboard” Place of Articulation Exercise 1. PhoTransEdit (English Phonetic Transcription) Home Page. Alpozo's Phonetic Blog. BBC Learning English. Homophones in English RP. Homographs. Minimal pairs for English RP. Minimal pairs for English RP. Phonemic flash cards. Benvenuti in English Gratis, la comunità online di tutti gli appassionati di lingua inglese! LANGUAGES ON THE WEB - THE ONE AND ONLY WEB SITE TO LEARN FOREIGN LANGUAGES ONLINE. English to French, Italian, German & Spanish Dictionary. El blog para aprender inglés: ¿Qué inglés debo estudiar "americano" o "británico"? Phonetics. Guide to English Phonetic System: Learn IPA Sounds in Phonetics. English Phonetic Transcription) Type IPA symbols. English Phonetic Transcription) Links. PhoTransEdit (English Phonetic Transcription) Links. English Phonetic Transcription) Text to Phonetics. Pronunciación inglesa. Ejercicios para mejorar la pronunciación de las contracciones. El blog para aprender inglés: Cuando doblamos las consonantes en inglés. 6 Trucos para mejorar tu pronunciación en inglés con vídeos de Youtube. Índice. Pronunciation Terms. Pronunciation. My English Factory 1. Sonidos vocálicos (vowel sounds) El blog para aprender inglés: Cómo aprenderse las vocales en inglés para deletrear sin problemas. ¿Qué idioma quieres aprender? Pronunciation I (La pronunciación) Pronunciation of English ⟨a⟩ - Wikipedia. Phonological history of English vowels - Wikipedia. Vowel length - Wikipedia. English Pronunciation Lessons with JenniferESL. ESL / EFL / English video lessons from EnglishMeeting.com. Free online Dictionary of English Pronunciation - How to Pronounce English words. ESL English free video pronunciation lessons, the "r" sound. Phonological history of English high front vowels - Wikipedia.
Second-generation Japanese-Americans interned at the Heart Mountain “Relocation Center” in Wyoming used this form letter to protest the government’s demand that they register with Selective Service. The letter was entered as evidence in a court case brought against seven organizers of draft resistance at Heart Mountain. In 1942 and 1943, Japanese-Americans, who were classified as “enemy aliens,” were exempt from the draft; beginning in 1944, they were newly eligible. The leader of the Heart Mountain resisters, Kiyoshi Okamoto, an internee in his mid-50s, was personally ineligible for the draft, but saw the government’s service requirement as another in a long list of wartime outrages against Japanese-Americans. Okamoto, by all accounts a remarkable man, undertook a campaign to convince the Nisei (second-generation Japanese-Americans) to refuse the government’s request. The sixty-three Heart Mountain draft resisters weren’t opposed to military service; many indicated that if they were given an answer as to their citizenship status, they would be happy to enlist. Kiyoshi Okamoto wrote in an impassioned essay also entered into the court record: “If the Nisseis are Americans and Citizens of this Nation by right of birth and Constitutional grant then, let be decided once and for all and without equivocation our positions as members of this Nation.” Okamoto and six other leaders of this resistance were convicted of violating the Selective Service Act, and sentenced to four years in federal prison. Their sentences were overturned on appeal in 1946. 26,000 Japanese-Americans served in the military during the war.
Anxiety Management Plan When students are facing periods of intense anxiety which is limiting their ability to attend classes and/or school, the following plan should be implemented as early as possible. The plan has three components: - Parental Strategies and Support - Student Management Guidelines - Procedural Steps for School Personnel Parental Strategies and Support When children refuse or avoid school – “in the moment” tips for parents. - A key to success is rapid intervention; the longer the behavior occurs, the harder it is to treat. Avoid the temptation to see how they feel in a few days, etc. These situations can unfold quickly, so taking action is important. - If there is no medical reason to be absent, your child should be at school. Anxious students often feel actual physical symptoms of illness (headaches, stomachaches etc.). It is important to recognize that these are common symptoms of anxiety. Students will often exclaim they are truly ill or this is different from other stomachaches, headaches, etc. Unless there is a fever or vomiting, your child should be at school. In the rare case that they are ill (and not just anxious), the school nurse will determine if they can remain in school. - Let your child know that, while they may feel sick in the morning, staying home and avoiding the issues will make the problem worse. Make it clear to your child that you expect them to be at school unless they have a fever or are vomiting. Make sure your child eats breakfast. Bread products will help to absorb acid; avoid fruit juices. - A firm, caring and quick separation is usually better for both parent and child. The more you discuss, argue, cajole, etc. the more the student will usually dig their heels in. - The parent should attempt to discover if there is a specific problem causing the refusal, but school mornings are NOT usually a good time for this conversation. Express care and concern and set aside some time to discuss the concerns later in the day. If your child is able to pinpoint a specific concern (such as worry about tests, teasing, etc.), then the parent should immediately talk to their teacher about developing an appropriate plan to solve the problem. - Set clear expectations AHEAD OF TIME regarding the rewards and consequences of both attending and staying home from school. The morning of school is NOT the time to discuss these issues. Attempts to discuss concerns and/or issues related to school attendance at this time will exacerbate the anxiety. - If your child refuses to attend school, calmly remind them of the predetermined consequence. “OK, but remember, you will not have access to any electronics or your telephone and cannot see friends until after you return to school”. - If your child does not board the bus, drive your child to school if you are able. If they refuse to get out of the car, please come to the main office and ask staff to locate Mrs. Fajen, Mrs. Maynard, Mrs. Angell or your child’s guidance counselor. - If your child refuses to get in your car, consider having another family member bring your child to school. - If your child does stay home then rewards such as snacking, tv, toys, etc. should be eliminated. Inform the school that your child refuses to attend. Parental attention should be reduced to a minimum level of care; giving extra attention to a child who refused to attend school makes them more likely to refuse again. - An important reminder: School anxiety is common and very treatable. Many children may have started to avoid school for one reason (e.g., fear of being disciplined by a teacher, feeling socially inadequate) but are now staying home for another reason (e.g., access to video games, lack of academic pressure, etc.). Helping your child to relax, develop better coping skills, improve social skills, using a contract, etc. are all examples of possible treatments. - We will likely recommend that you have your child evaluated by the pediatrician to rule out medical issues. - We may also recommend outside counseling. Short term cognitive behavioral therapy can be extremely beneficial in helping your child develop strategies to manage their anxiety.
EIA: Renewables will outpace fossil fuels Recent research from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) presents findings showing how evolving consumer preferences, improved technology, and economic changes are pushing the nation toward more domestic energy production, greater vehicle efficiency, greater use of clean energy and reduced energy imports. The Annual Energy Outlook 2013 focuses on factors that shape U.S. energy markets through 2040, under the assumption that current laws and regulations remain generally unchanged throughout the projection period. Some of the 2013 findings, as compared to 2012, project that industrial production will grow due to the initial competitive advantage of low natural gas prices; renewable fuel use will expand at a much faster rate than fossil fuel use; and, with improved energy-use efficiency and a shift away from the most carbon-intensive fuels, energy-related CO2 emissions will remain more than 5 percent below their 2005 level through 2040. - see the report
Key: "S:" = Show Synset (semantic) relations, "W:" = Show Word (lexical) relations Display options for sense: (gloss) "an example sentence" - S: (n) stare (a fixed look with eyes open wide) - S: (v) gaze, stare (look at with fixed eyes) "The students stared at the teacher with amazement" - S: (v) stare (fixate one's eyes) "The ancestor in the painting is staring down menacingly"
Asthma is characterized by coughing, chest tightness, shortness of breath and wheezing. Asthma symptoms can be triggered by several factors, including: allergens or irritants; viral or sinus infections; exercise; reflux disease (stomach acid flowing back up the esophagus); medications or foods; and emotional anxiety. Caffeine and Asthma If you feel an asthma attack coming on and don’t have your inhaler handy, try a couple cups of coffee, tea, hot chocolate, or chocolate bars. The caffeine will help open your airways. Controlling Your Asthma If you find yourself using your quick-relief inhaler to stop an asthma attack more than twice a week, it may be time for a different medication. In fact, if you have to refill your inhaler more than two times a year or are awakened by asthma symptoms two nights or more per week, you also probably need a change. Correct Inhaler Use If you use an inhaler to treat your asthma, remember that it’s not a breath freshener. You must deeply inhale the medication into your lungs and hold it for three to five seconds before exhaling slowly. NSAIDs, Aspirin and Asthma Asthma sufferers should use the non-aspirin pain reliever acetaminophen (Tylenol) because the use of aspirin and NSAIDs (Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs), such as Advil/Motrin (ibuprofen) and Aleve (naproxen sodium), have the tendency to worsen asthma.
A curriculum map is a way to show how program learning outcomes are developed across the entire curriculum. To develop your map: - Use the college's curriculum map template (PDF) to list the program outcomes across the top of a table and all required program courses (in the order in which they are generally taken) down the left-hand side of the table. - As a faculty, examine each outcome in the context of each course to determine if the course addresses the outcome in a meaningful way. There are 3 ways a course might be related to an outcome: - Introduce (I): Students first learn about key ideas, concepts or skills related to the outcome. This usually happens at a general or very basic level, such as learning one idea or concept related to the broader outcome. - Develop (D): Students gain additional information related to the outcome. They may start to synthesize key ideas or skills and are expected to demonstrate their knowledge or ability at increasingly proficient levels. - Master (M): Students are expected to be able to demonstrate their ability to perform the outcome with a reasonably high level of independence and sophistication. In building your map, place an I, D, M in the table cell for each course that meaningfully assesses something related to the outcome at one of those levels. Simply touching on a topic is not sufficient; the topic related to the outcome should be covered in some depth and assessed (e.g., by a paper, text, presentation) in some way in the class. You can access the college’s curriculum map template below: Once you’ve created your map, take a moment to assess the overall alignment of your curriculum with your learning outcomes. A “healthy” map looks like the following: - Each learning outcome (each column) is introduced, developed and mastered at least once across multiple courses. Note: 1) if every cell in the column is filled, it suggests you might be over-covering that outcome in your curriculum; 2) if few cells are filled or you are missing an I, D, or M, it suggests the curriculum might not be covering the outcome as completely as faculty would like. - Each course (each row) supports at least one and ideally more than one learning outcome. Meaningfully addressing all learning outcomes in a single course is difficult, unless it is at an introductory level in a survey course. If a required course does not seem related to any program learning outcomes, you might ask whether the course still should be required or whether an important learning outcome has been missed. Your completed map has multiple important uses. You can use it to: - Identify the courses in which to offer signature assignments. It is generally best to assess student learning in courses where you expect them to demonstrate mastery of any outcome, since by this point students should have had the opportunity to develop and refine the skills and abilities related to the outcome. - Help interpret program data on candidate performance. If you find candidates struggling with a particular outcome, faculty can use the curriculum map to inform a discussion of which course might be appropriate for increasing student related to that outcome.
Sandy beaches will become slimmer, or might be submerged under ocean water all together. Water levels will rise nearly to the level of docks in some spots of harbors, and bay water might even spill over sea walls. Surfers will be stuck in mushy waves swamped out by the high tide, messing up the shape of the surf. Hopefully, streets will not be flooded over with water. The highest tide of the year – called the "King Tide" – will happen today, and the extreme tides are creating a buzz along the California coastline and here in Orange County. Water levels will reach a high tide of 7.11 feet about 8:14 a.m. today, before slowly coming down the next few days. For the Orange County Coastkeeper, it means a chance to document what rising sea levels might look like in the future. Already, the public has submitted images from Wednesday's high tide to the Coastkeeper flicker account from various spots along the coast like San Francisco and San Rafael, and the group is hoping Orange County residents will do the same. Locations that could show evidence of high tides include Sunset and Seal Beach, Huntington Harbour, and Balboa Peninsula and Island in Newport Beach. In Northern California, the San Francisco Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve has been working to do long-term research on rising sea levels along with the National Oceanic Atmospheric Association. Heidi Nutters, coastal training program coordinator, said that there's no correlation between the king tides and rising sea levels, but the incident gives a glimpse at what coastlines may look like when sea levels do rise in the future. The Coastkeeper group cited a report released this year by the National Academy of Sciences projects that predicts sea levels to rise about one foot by 2050, and by 2100 it is expected to rise five feet above sea level. Nutters said several roads were closed on Wednesday in San Francisco because of flooding, and these high tides can prepare people and show them how to be more resilient to sea level rises in the future. The high tide happening today is the second of four winter king tides events. The first was mid-November, and the next happens Jan. 9 through Jan. 11. This is the highest tide so far this year. The closest its come was an extreme tide on Jan. 22 at a 6.36 foot high tide, said Pamela Crouch, director of communications for Orange County Coastkeeper. It's a chance to make a case for adding natural buffers like restoring tidal wetlands or adding eelgrass beds between the waterfront and buildings, rather than putting up sea walls that can be destructive to beaches after they are built. Sea walls limit public access and can be costly to build and maintain, said Crouch. To add a photo of the king tides, go to: flickr.com/groups/cakingtides Contact the writer: firstname.lastname@example.org - Photos and video: See how workers are disposing of gray whale washed up on beach - San Bernardino shooting: Shooter's brother, 2 Russian women arrested - Lexus rolls off Balboa Island Ferry, gets submerged - Why Sports Authority is throwing in the towel and closing all of its stores - Donald Trump in Orange County: What you need to know about Thursday's rally in Costa Mesa
Biomimicry 3.8 Homepage - Biomimicry 3.8. Vibrant OS Learning. If you take this course, you will be able to: Describe what biomimicry is and how it relates to other forms of bio-inspired design Use the Biomimicry for Design methodology (the Biomimicry Design Spiral) for technical and non- technical design challenges Articulate why biomimicry is valuable for your organization Integrate biomimicry into your design process or innovation pathway Content and Overview The first part of the course is an overview of the what, why, and how of biomimicry and the Biomimicry Design Spiral. The core of the course shows you how to use the 6 steps of Biomimicry Design Spiral: Identify, Translate, Discover, Abstract, Emulate, and Evaluate. Here you will learn how to apply biomimicry to real design challenges. Algorithmic Botany: Publications. Vintage animal prints. Here are some sample images – right click to print or save. Scroll down for more. Related pages: V&A · Elytra Filament Pavilion. Biomimicry. Glowee. Bio-Mathematics in Busby Berkeley Musicals. JF Ptak Science Books Post 1133 There's a certain amount of Leggy Geometry going on in the many films of the great and often-troubled Busby Berkeley. Berkeley was about 38 when he came into great prominence as a choreographer for movies with music--they were grand and spectacular, intricate dances involving dozens, many times employing overhead shots looking straight down on a full-kaleidoscope productions. (A kaleidoscope mirrors the great majority of its displayed image; Berkeley mirrored almost nothing, And he didn't really produce movie musicals per se, I think; those would come later with Fred Astaire and the like, where there were story lines and plots and associated happenings along with the terrific dancing and music. "Plot" was a throw-in with Berkeley, but everything else was just so grand that storyline really didn't get in the way of entertainment.) The motion, the offset camera work, the constant motion, almost gives you the sensation of falling into a Phoenix Set. The Gang's All Here (1943) Full Movie (Blu-ray Version) Berlage drawings. Hendrik P. Berlage's designs are based on the concept of the Gesamtkunstwerk, meaning that the architect not only designs the building, but is also involved in the interior design, taking care of furniture, lighting or carpeting. In the following 18 drawings we can find parquet and lamp designs among other ornaments and decorative patterns. The geometrical scheme and evocation of nature in these drawings refer directly to the artforms and compositions as drawn by Haeckel in his book Kunstformen Der Natur. Click on the link listed at the bottom of every image to go to their equivalent Haeckel's artwork. Please note that when they refer to a detail in Haeckel's print, the number of the specific organism is marked with '#'. These 18 water colours by Dutch architect H.P. Special thanks to Het Nieuwe Instituut for loaning Berlage's drawings and to the sponsors for making Kunstformen der Natur possible. Prints. Biomimicry » Biomimicry » Leaf Litter Newsletter » Biohabitats Inc. When faced with a design challenges, we ask a lot of questions. “What defines this place? What is its history, and how is it projected to change? What vegetation and microclimates exist here? What people, plants and wildlife can use this site?” These questions are important to the process, as they help us explore potential, but what if we began by first asking, “What would nature do?” Janine Benyus says yes. How do fireflies light up. Fireflies or lightning bugs make light within their bodies. This process is called bioluminescence and is shared by many other organisms, mostly sea-living or marine organisms. Fireflies light up to attract a mate. To do this, the fireflies contain specialized cells in their abdomen that make light. The cells contain a chemical called luciferin and make an enzyme called luciferase. To make light, the luciferin combines with oxygen to form an inactive molecule called oxyluciferin. Janine Benyus: Biomimicry in action. Insects - Insecta - Details. Animal / pathogenAspergillus flavus infects Insecta Animal / pathogenAspergillus fumigatus infects Insecta Animal / pathogenAspergillus niger infects Insecta In Great Britain and/or Ireland:Animal / carrion / dead animal feederAsterophlyctis sarcoptoides feeds on dead dead, shed exuvia of larva of Insecta. AskNature. Biomimicry. BIOMIMICRY. Biomimicry is a 20-minute film featuring Janine Benyus. It premiered at SXSWEco to a standing ovation and is now being screened around the world in theaters. Biomimicry will appear on LinkTV this winter and is available to the public on social media. Biomimicry, the practice of looking deeply into nature for solutions to engineering, design and other challenges, has inspired a film about it's ground-breaking vision for creating a long-term, sustainable world. This film covers how mimicking nature solves some of our most pressing problems, from reducing carbon emissions to saving water; and gives Janine the space to explain these subtle yet powerful solutions. How do fireflies light up?" Design Challenges – Biomimicry Institute. If you've ever caught fireflies and kept them in a mason jar, you're one of many who have encountered the enchanting glow of bioluminescent organisms. Fireflies may be the most widely known bioluminescent creatures, but the phenomenon is surprisingly common in nature. Not so surprisingly, designers have taken an interest in the subject with the hope of creating a free energy lighting source. Read on to learn about some of the species that have inspired their work.
1846 - Thomas Livingstone Mitchell First View from Mount First View 30th April.-Obliged to keep at some distance from the river, I came upon open forest land, where gentle undulations took the place of the rugged gullies. Thus we travelled over a beautiful country, due north, with sufficient indications of the river on our right, in the slopes that all fell to that side. There were ponds in some hollows, and we made the river itself at various parts of our route. At length, where it bit on a high scrubby bank, I again proceeded northward, and came upon a large lagoon, sweeping round to S. W. and S. S. W., further than we could see. It had on its surface numerous ducks, and a large encampment of native huts appeared at one end. We encamped by this lagoon, in latitude 27° 20' S. Again vast plains and downs to the N. E. were seen by Dicky, our youngest native, from a tree. Thermometer, at sunrise, 27°; at 4 p. m., 65°; at 9, 43°. 1st May.- On leaving the lagoon, passing between its head and the river, we were soon enveloped in a thick scrub of Casuarinae, on ground broken into gullies falling to the river. I tried to pass by the lower margin of this, but gullies in the way obliged me to ascend and seek a passage elsewhere. Forcing our way, therefore, through the scrub and out of it we found outside of it, in an open forest, the box and Angophora, and could go forward without impediment, first to the N. W., afterwards northward, and N. E. At length the woods opened into fine grassy plains, bounded on the east by trees belonging to the river berg. There I saw still the trees we had so gladly got away from, the Casuarina; also the cheering white arms of the Yarra, or blue gum. The prospect before us improved greatly; fine plains presented a clear way to the northward, with the river apparently coming thence, and even round from the N.W. From a tree, Yuranigh descried hills in the N.E. and the plains extending before us. I also perceived, from the wide plain, a distant low rise to the N. W. We crossed two hollows on these grassy plains, each containing deep ponds, and descended towards what seemed a branch of the river; we encamped near it, in latitude 27° 15' 4" S. As we approached this spot, natives were seen first looking at us, and then running off - Yuranigh said he recognized one of them as a countryman of his own. I endeavoured to make him cooey to them, or call them, but they made off, setting fire to the grass. Any information from natives of these parts might have been very useful to us then, and I hoped they would at length come to us. Thermometer, at sunrise 72.6°; at 4 p. m., 62°; at 9p.m., 48°; - with wet bulb, 46°. 2d May. - There was a decided difference between the river we were now upon, as well as the country along its banks, and the large river by which we had travelled so far. This was undoubtedly but a small tributary, as its direction seen this day showed, being from the westward, while its waters, meandering in various narrow channels amongst plains, reminded us of some of the finest parts of the south. Which was the principal channel, and which to cross, which to travel by, was rather difficult to determine. The country was very fine. These water courses lay between finely rounded grassy slopes, with a few trees about the water's edge, marking their various courses at a distance. A considerable breadth of open grassy plain, intervened between this river and the woods back from it. At length, sloping, stony bergs came near the river's bed, but there the smooth naked water-worn clay was the best ground we could have for wheels, and we thus hugged each bend of the river, passing close to the channel. I hoped thus to find plains on the next change of the river's course. And so it turned out for some way, but the receding bergs guided me, even when only seen at a considerable distance, in shaping my course. Keeping my eye on their yellow slopes, I travelled far along a grassy flat which brought me to a lake containing water like crystal, and fringed with white lotus flowers. Its western shore consisted of shelving rock. An immense number of ducks floated on its eastern extremity. From this lake, following a grassy flat to the N. W., we at length reached the river, or rather its bed, seared into numerous channels. The lake, and long flat connected with it, appeared to me more like the vestiges of a former channel, than as the mere outlet of surplus waters; nor did it seem that the water is now supplied from the floods of the river. I followed this a few miles further, and then encamped just beyond, where much gravel appeared in the banks. While the men were erecting the tents, I rode some miles to the westward, and found an open iron-bark forest covering it, with much luxuriant grass. This was rather peculiar, as compared with any other part passed through. It was also undulating; and, from a tree ascended by Yuranigh, it was ascertained we were approaching mountains, as he saw one which bore 77°, also a hill to the eastward, in which latter direction (or rather in that of 333°), he saw also an open country. Thermometer, at sunrise, 47°; at 4 P. m., 62°; at 9 p. m. 57°; mean height above the sea, 694 feet. 3rd May.- Natives were heard near our camp during the night, and we perceived the smoke of their fires, in the bushes, behind in the morning. Yuranigh went up to them, accompanied by one of the party bearing a green branch, and he prevailed on three of their tribe to come to our tents. One stood amongst the carts and tents, apparently quite absorbed in observation. Intense curiosity in these men had evidently overcome all their fears of such strangers. They were entirely naked, and without any kind of ornament or weapon, offensive or defensive. With steady -fixed looks, eyes wide open, and serious intelligent countenances, what passed in their minds was not disguised, as is usual with savages. On the contrary, there was a manly openness of countenance, and a look of good sense about them, which would have gained my full confidence, could we but have understood each other. They asked for nothing, nor show any covetousness, although surrounded by articles, the smallest of which might have been of use to them. There must be an original vein of mind in these aboriginal men of the land. O that philosophy or philanthropy could but find it out and work it! Yuranigh plied them with all my questions, but to little purpose; for although he could understand their language, he complained that they did not answer him in it, but repeated, like parrots, whatever he said to them. In the same manner, they followed me with a very exact repetition of English words. He, however, gathered from them that the lake was called "Turánimga", this river "Cogoon", a hill to the eastward "Toolumbá", &c. They had never before seen white men, and behaved as properly as it was possible for men in their situation to do. At length we set out on our journey, and in mounting my horse, which seemed very much to astonish them, I made signs that we were going to the mountains. Travelling by the river bank was easy, over grassy forest land. The deep ponds were tolerably well filled, but the quantity of water was small, in comparison with that in the Balonne; which the natives seemed to say we had left to the right, and that this was "one of its brothers". Malga scrub crowned the bergs of the river, where they bounded one of these forest flats forming its margin, and the mere sight of that impervious sort of scrub was sufficient to banish all thoughts of making straighter cuts to the north-west. Our course, with the river, was, however, now rather to the west of north-west; and that this was but a tributary to the Balonne, was evident. That river line, as traced by us, pursued a tolerably straight direction between the parallel of 29° and 27°, coming round from nearly north-east to about north. For these last three days we had travelled with this minor channel, to the westward of north-west; in which direction I had, therefore, good reason to expect that we should soon find mountains. As soon as we arrived at an eligible spot for the camp, I proceeded, with Yuranigh, towards a height presenting a rocky face, which I saw through the trees, and seemed distant about two miles. From that crest, I perceived woody ridges on all sides, but all apparently sloping from the south-west; and a misty valley beyond the nearest of them in the northeast, like the line of the Balonne. But the most interesting sight to me then, was that of blue pics at a great distance to the north-west, the object of all my dreams of discovery for years. No white man had before seen these. There we might hope to find the divisa aquarum, still undiscovered; the pass to Carpentaria, still unexplored: I called this hill Mount First View, and descended, delighted with what I had seen from its rocky crest. Journal of an Expedition into the Interior of Tropical Australia, in Search of a Route from Sydney to the Gulf of Carpentaria London 1848, Reprint New York 1969
The Chronicler is a generous judge of Judah’s kings. King Joash “did what was right” (2 Chronicles 24:2), even though he murders Zechariah the prophet, son of Joash’s savior, Jehoiada (24:20–21). Amaziah “did right” (25:2), even though he worshiped Edomite gods for a time (25:14–15). Uzziah “did right” (26:4), although he spent the latter part of his reign as a leper because of his sacrilegious attempt to offer incense (26:16–21). Alone among the kings of Judah, Ahaz merits the negative judgment, “he did not do right in the eyes of Yahweh” (28:1). Unlike other kings, Ahaz doesn’t fall from early faithfulness and success. He rebels from the outset, walking in the way of the kings of Israel, setting up Baals, offering his sons in the fire in the valley of Hinnom (28:2–4). Usually, the Chronicler punningly contrasts sacrilege (ma’al) with exaltation (ma’alah). With Ahaz, the latter modifies the former: Ahaz is superlatively unfaithful, his sacrilege towers to the skies (28:19; Heb. ma’ol ma’al). For the first time, the Chronicler uses the ominous term “abomination” (to’evah) and charges Ahaz with following Canaanite practices that led to their expulsion (28:3). The threat of exile begins to loom over Judah. Exile isn’t merely a distant prospect. It’s an immediate danger. Yahweh delivers Ahaz into the hands of the surrounding nations. Aram attacks from the east (28:5), Israel from the north (28:6), Edom from the south (28:17), and Philistia from the west (28:18). When Ahaz turns to Assyria for help, things get worse, as the Assyrians besiege Jerusalem and extract a bribe (28:20–21). In a superb bit of understatement, the Chronicler sums up: the Assyrians “did not help him” (v. 21). The Chronicler devotes a sizeable chunk of his account of the reign of Ahaz to the war with the northern kingdom of Israel, ruled by Pekah ben Remaliah. As William Johnstone observes, when Judah is faithful, they are the undefeatable host of Yahweh; when they turn from him, they no longer function as Yahweh’s army. Ahaz’s host isn’t Yahweh’s, and Pekah scores a massive victory. Israel slaughters 120,000 warriors of Judah (28:6), and one of his mighty men penetrates far enough into Jerusalem to kill high-ranking members of the court (28:7). Pekah heads home with 200,000 women and children, captured captives (the Heb. uses the verb and noun), along with spoil (28:8). It’s the beginning of an exile for Judah, not in Egypt or Babylon, but enslaved to their brothers, the Israelites. Then things take an astonishing twist. Somehow in the midst of the corrupted northern kingdom is a “prophet of Yahweh,” Oded. He meets the host of Pekah as they return to Samaria. He interprets Pekah’s victory as a sign of Yahweh’s burning anger against Judah, but then rebukes Israel’s army: “you have slain them in a rage that touches heaven” (28:9). He rebukes Pekah for enslaving those who were spared. The suffering of Judah has risen like prayer, like the smoke of incense or sacrifice, and Yahweh has responded. “Hear,” says the prophet: “return the captured captives” to turn away the Lord’s anger from Israel (28:11). Don’t enslave your “brothers.” That a prophet like Oded is in the northern kingdom at all is a shock. But the bigger shock is what happens next: Four of the leading men from Ephraim/Israel listen to the prophet and stop the returning army before they get to Samaria. They confess that their guilt (ashamah, 3x in 28:13) has provoked Yahweh’s anger, and they convince the army to release the captives and return the spoil. It’s one of the most beautiful passages in Chronicles: They lay the spoil before the “assembly” (qahal) of Israel, and from the spoil, they clothe the naked women and children, put sandals on their feet, feed them and give them water, anoint them with oil, seat the feeble on donkeys, and send them back to Jericho, the oasis “city of palms” (28:15). Israel treats the captives of Judah not as slaves but as brothers and sisters. They are generous even to the “least of these.” For a brief moment, Israel is what Israel should be, one nation, a brotherhood of generosity, ears open to the voice of Yahweh through His prophet. The echoes of this passage in the judgment scene in Matthew 25 aren’t accidental. Johnstone observes (1 & 2 Chronicles, 2.184), “The magnanimity on the part of the north and their faithful response to the prophetic word merely serves to highlight still further Ahaz’s inadequacy on every front.” Ahaz walks in the ways of the kings of Israel more than the kings of Israel do. But there’s another aspect: Soon Judah will be removed from the land for 70 years instead of for a brief time; Babylon will cart away the spoils and enslave their men, women, and children. But the God who sent Oded to deliver Judah from Pekah of Israel will also stir the heart of Cyrus to let His people go. And, as in the days of Ahaz, they will come out with much spoil.
Teacher's aides are called by a variety of different names depending on the school district or region, including teacher's assistants, paraprofessionals and educational technicians. The term "teacher's aide" is something of a misnomer, because while the presence of a paraprofessional is indeed a boon to a classroom teacher, the job of a modern teacher's assistant is to help children who need more attention. Some teacher's aides work one on one with children in the special education department, while others are present in general education classrooms. Many districts require teacher's aides to have at least an associate's degree before working. Average Salary Information Across the United States, the average annual salary of a teacher's aide as of 2011 was $25,270, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The median of all reported salaries for this occupation was $23,580, and 50 percent of teacher's aides reported annual incomes ranging from $19,000 to $30,000. The 10 percent of teacher's assistants who earned the most reported annual salaries of $36,500 or more. Income Variations by Employer As of 2011, more than 75 percent of all teacher's aides worked at elementary and secondary schools, according to the BLS, and they reported average annual salaries of about $24,500. Those working in child daycare facilities reported some of the lowest levels of income, averaging just over $21,000 per year. Teacher's aides working at the collegiate level tended to earn the most; those employed by junior colleges averaged about $29,000 per year, and those who worked at colleges and universities made just under $31,000 per year on average. Average Salaries by Region According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, teacher's aides in the West and Northeast earned the highest average salaries in 2011, while those in the Southeast and South-Central states tended to earn the least. Alaska ranked first, with an average salary of nearly $35,000, while teacher's aides in Rhode Island, Delaware, Maryland and Nevada averaged between $30,000 and $32,000 per year. The lowest average salary for teacher's aides, just over $18,000 per year, was reported by Mississippi. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that employment of teacher's aides will grow at a rate of 15 percent between 2010 and 2020, about the same as the average rate of growth projected for all occupations. This occupation also has a high turnover rate, so employment prospects for those looking to enter the field should be good. Those who have formal postsecondary education should experience the best employment prospects, especially those who have had postsecondary schooling related to special education. - Thinkstock Images/Comstock/Getty Images
Most young parents are concerned about everything when it comes to their children – their health, their schedules, the toys they play with, and of course, their development. Parents want their children to behave appropriately, and meet their “milestones.” Sometimes, however, you may notice that your child is not sitting during “circle time,” or seems cranky more than expected. Every child is different and sometimes parents begin to question if their child is “okay” or not. When these behaviors persist, parents may wonder if their child has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), one of the most common disorders affecting children. Children are often not identified as having ADHD until they are in school, but children as young as three or four can be tested for ADHD. The main characteristics associated with ADHD are inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. Left untreated, those with ADHD can struggle with organization, sitting still, and maintaining focus, which impacts their ability to learn and maintain relationships. While there is no cure for ADHD and children do not “outgrow” ADHD, early intervention and treatment can significantly help those with ADHD be successful. Since most young children can be hyperactive, impulsive, and inattentive at times, it can be difficult to know if your child is exhibiting typical behavior or showing signs of ADHD. As a parent, you know your child best, but relying on the expertise of your child’s teachers and mental health professionals is important for proper evaluation and treatment. If you notice the following symptoms both at home and at school (or preschool or daycare) consistently, it may be time to have your child evaluated for ADHD. Symptoms of Attention Deficit: - Inattention to detail; frequent mistakes in school or work - Inability to maintain attention for periods of time, i.e. cannot sit during story time, cannot read for extended periods of time - Easily distracted; not focused during conversations; does not seem to pay attention - Poor time management; often misses deadlines - Misplaces possessions; loses toys or materials at school - Difficulty with following directions, especially with multi-step tasks - Avoids homework or projects that require extend periods of effort - Appears messy or disorganized Symptoms of Hyperactivity and Impulsivity: - Difficulty sitting still – fidgets or taps hands or feet when sitting - Frequently leaves seat or walks around when expected to remain in place - Runs or engages in activities during inappropriate times - Unable to play or engage in activities quietly - Uncomfortable being still, always seems to be “on the go” - Difficulty waiting for their turn, blurts out answers - Interrupts others - Talks excessively - Makes hasty decisions; Inability to delay gratification - Behaviors that can result in high risk of harm such as running into street - Easily angered, frequent temper tantrums While parenting is challenging, know that having a child with ADHD is not your or your child’s fault. Although there is not a definitive cause linked to ADHD, know that there is nothing you as a parent did wrong. What you are doing right, is getting your child the help that he or she needs. Want to learn more about ADHD? Visit the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry’s ADHD Resource Center.
The Spectacular Evolution of Disney Fireworks: Past and Present For decades, Disney has captivated audiences with its dazzling fireworks displays, transforming the night sky into a magical canvas of colour and wonder. From humble beginnings to state-of-the-art pyrotechnics, the history of Disney fireworks is a tale of innovation, imagination, and pure enchantment. It all started in 1956, when Disneyland in California introduced its first fireworks show. “Fantasy in the Sky” marked the beginning of a new era, using traditional fireworks to illuminate the park’s iconic Sleeping Beauty Castle. This groundbreaking display set the stage for the awe-inspiring spectacles that would follow. As technology advanced, so did Disney’s fireworks. In 2000, Walt Disney World Resort in Florida unveiled “Illuminations: Reflections of Earth” at Epcot. This groundbreaking show combined fireworks, lasers, water fountains, and music to celebrate the spirit of unity among nations. It became a beloved tradition, showcasing the power of storytelling through pyrotechnics. Fast forward to the present, and Disney continues to push the boundaries of what is possible with fireworks. The introduction of projection mapping technology has revolutionized the nighttime experience at Disney parks. With shows like “Happily Ever After” at Magic Kingdom and “Epcot Forever” at Epcot, fireworks are seamlessly integrated with iconic Disney stories, bringing characters and scenes to life like never before. But the magic doesn’t stop there. Disney has also embraced drones as part of its nighttime entertainment. At Disney Springs in Florida, the “Starbright Holidays” show featured hundreds of illuminated drones creating mesmerizing formations in the sky, choreographed to holiday music. Disney’s commitment to innovation extends beyond its theme parks. In 2020, Disneyland Paris premiered “Disney Illuminations,” combining fireworks with cutting-edge technology, including castle projections and LED lighting effects. This enchanting show transports audiences into the world of beloved Disney characters and stories. Through the years, Disney fireworks have evolved from simple displays to immersive storytelling experiences. They continue to enchant guests of all ages, igniting a sense of wonder and creating cherished memories that last a lifetime. As technology continues to advance, one can only imagine what future fireworks displays will hold, promising even more extraordinary moments of magic and imagination.
- Heymans , Corneille Jean François - (1892–1968) Belgian physiologist and pharmacologistHeymans was educated at the university in his native city of Ghent, where his father was professor of pharmacology, obtaining his MD in 1920. He began as a pharmacology lecturer there in 1923 and in 1930 succeeded his father, holding the chair until his retirement in 1963.In 1924 Heymans began a series of important cross-circulation experiments. The relationship between respiration and blood pressure had been known for some time – high arterial pressure (hypertension) inhibited respiration while low arterial pressure (hypotension) stimulated it – but the mechanism of such a response was far from clear. Heymans's basic experiment consisted of separating the head of a dog from its body in such a way that its only remaining contact with the body was the nervous supply to the heart. The body of the dog could be made to respire artificially while its head could be linked up to the blood supply of a second dog. Even in such circumstances, hypotension produced an increase in the rate of respiration while hypertension inhibited it. This suggested to Heymans that the process was due not to direct action of the blood pressure on the respiratory center but to nervous control.Heymans went on to show the important role played in the regulation of heart rate and blood pressure by the carotid sinus, an enlargement of the carotid artery in the neck. By severing the sinus from its own blood supply while maintaining its nervous connection and linking it up to the blood supply of another animal he was able to show that changes of pressure initiated nervous reflexes that automatically reversed the process. The sinus was in fact a sensitive pressure receptor. He also demonstrated that a nearby glandlike structure, the glomus caroticum, was a chemoreceptor, responding to changes in the oxygen/carbon dioxide ratio in the blood.For his work on the regulation of respiration Heymans was awarded the 1938 Nobel Prize for physiology or medicine. Scientists. Academic. 2011.
California is among the most aggressive jurisdictions in the world in its pursuit of public policies to reduce its emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs), linked with climate change. At a time when the Trump administration in Washington is working to reverse the Obama administration’s climate policy achievements, California and other sub-national entities are taking the lead in the development and implementation of meaningful domestic policies to mitigate the impact of human activity on the climate. At the same time, California is a producer of crude oil. Is this inconsistent, or even counter-productive? In a recent report, advocates have criticized Governor Jerry Brown, and proposed a ban on crude oil production within the State, in furtherance of California’s climate policies. The thinking goes, crude oil production leads to environmental impacts, so how can it be allowed? The logic is flawed, and the prohibition – if adopted – would impose tremendous costs on the State with little or no environmental benefit. As California has developed its climate policies, the need to balance the benefits of these policies with their economic and human consequences has always been a challenging issue. Achieving aggressive climate goals will not be cheap, so designing sensible, effective policies is critical. Simply adopting any and all restrictions that might achieve some emission reductions would unnecessarily raise the human cost of limiting GHG emissions. This is no doubt obvious to some readers of this blog, but for others, let me explain. At its heart, the climate problem arises because of CO2 emissions associated with the use of energy and related services. We heat our homes in the winter and cool them in the summer using electricity and natural gas. We use gasoline to get to work and take vacations. As each country or state – including California – tries to reduce its GHG emissions, the policies and regulations adopted to achieve this end nearly always target the activities that lead to GHG emissions – the generation of electricity, the use of transportation, and the heating of living spaces. The proposed ban on crude oil extraction would flip this on its head, focusing instead on the supply of a fossil fuel. But the simple reality is that the sources of fossil fuel supply are so ubiquitous that crude oil from other regions of the world will replace supplies from California, if California chose not to supply its own on-going needs. Oil and gas used to heat homes and to power vehicles comes not only from California, but from most every region of the globe. Many of these regions have expanding supplies of crude oil due to technological improvements, including the Bakken shale of North Dakota, and vast supplies available with relatively little effort, such as in the Middle East. Advocates claim that reduction of California crude oil production would reduce global consumption of crude – a claim of questionable validity. But that is not even the right question. There are many things that can be done to reduce GHG emissions, and a sensible, affordable, and sustainable policy will be one that achieves reductions at the lowest cost. Even if restricting California’s oil production might reduce global crude consumption, California would certainly bear all of the economic consequences of this policy, as the state would then rely solely on crude oil imports. In fact, a restriction on California’s crude production is unlikely to reduce GHG emissions within California. The State’s total GHG emissions are limited by the cap of California’s GHG cap-and-trade system. The most a restriction on California’s crude production can do is to increase costs, while achieving little or no incremental improvement in GHG emissions. Moreover, supply-side restrictions can limit technological progress that can have very positive economic and environmental consequences. The same advocates oppose shale “fracking,” but the innovative combination of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling has led both to tremendous economic benefits by expanding supplies of low-cost domestic energy and reducing energy imports, and to environmental benefits by allowing lower-carbon natural gas to displace higher-carbon coal in the generation of electricity across the United States. By focusing on policies aimed at achieving the appropriate policy goal of reducing GHG emissions – rather than trying to choose winners and losers among technologies and energy sources used to achieve those goals – California can achieve its climate policy goals in ways that are environmentally effective, economically sensible, and ultimately sustainable. In my view, Governor Brown merits compliments rather than criticism for California’s progressive environmental and energy policies. In the past, I have periodically advised the Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA), although on a very different issue, namely the design of California’s CO2 cap-and-trade system. That was about two years ago, and neither WSPA nor any of its member companies are aware of my writing this essay. As always in this blog, I am expressing my personal views, and not speaking on behalf of any of the institutions, organizations, or firms with which I am or have been associated.
Malacostraca \| Decapoda Holthuis, L.B. 1980. (Ref. 8) Size / Weight / Age Max length : 6.8 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 8); 7.69999980926514 cm TL (female) Benthic; depth range 13 - 183 m (Ref. 83922) Climate / Range Tropical; 32°N - 8°S, 116°W - 77°W Eastern Pacific: Mexico to Peru. Maximum carapace length: 1.72 cm (male); 2.28 cm (female) (Ref. 8). This is a benthic species found on sandy bottoms (Ref. 83922). Members of the order Decapoda are mostly gonochoric. Mating behavior: Precopulatory courtship ritual is common (through olfactory and tactile cues); usually indirect sperm transfer (Ref. 833). IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 114614) CITES status (Ref. 94142) Threat to humans \| FisheriesWiki \| Estimation of some characteristics with mathematical models Low vulnerability (10 of 100)
From this meeting came the birth of the American Indian Movement, commonly known as AIM. With this came the emergence of AIM leaders, such as Dennis Banks and Clyde Bellecourt to name a few. Little did anyone know that AIM would become instrumental in shaping not only the path of American Indians across the country, but the eyes of the world would follow AIM protests through the occupation at Alcatraz through the Trail of Broken Treaties, to the final conflict of the 1868 Sioux treaty of the Black Hills. This conflict would begin on February 27, 1973 and last seventy-one days. The occupation became known in history, as the Siege at Wounded Knee. It began as the American Indian's stood against government atrocities, and ended in an armed battle with US Armed Forces. Corruption within the BIA and Tribal Council at an all time high, tension on the Pine Ridge Indian reservation was on the increase and quickly getting out of control. With a feeling close to despair, and knowing there was nothing else for them to do, elders of the Lakota Nation asked the American Indian Movement for assistance. This bringing to a head, more than a hundred years of racial tension and a government corruption. On that winter day in 1973, a large group of armed American Indians reclaimed Wounded Knee in the name of the Lakota Nation. For the first time in many decades, those Oglala Sioux ruled themselves, free from government intervention, as is their ancient custom. This would become the basis for a TV movie, "Lakota Woman" the true story of Mary Moore Crowdog, and her experiences at the Wounded Knee occupation. During the preceding months of the Wounded Knee occupation, civil war brewed among the Oglala people. There became a clear-cut between the traditional Lakota people and the more progressive minded government supporters. The traditional people wanted more independence from the Federal Government, as well as honoring of the 1868 Sioux treaty, which was still valid. According to the 1868 treaty, the Black Hills of South Dakota still belonged to the Sioux people, and the traditional people wanted the Federal Government to honor their treaty by returning the sacred Black Hills to the Sioux people. Another severe problem on the Pine Ridge reservation was the strip mining of the land. The chemicals used by the mining operations were poisoning the land and the water. People were getting sick, and children were being born with birth defects. The tribal government and its supporters encouraged the strip mining and the sale of the Black Hills to the Federal Government. It is said that at that point in time, the tribal government was not much more than puppets of the BIA. The sacred Black Hills, along with many other problems, had become a wedge that would tear apart the Lakota Nation. Violent confrontations between the traditional people and the GOONS (Guardians of Our Oglala Nation) became an everyday occurrence. The young AIM warriors, idealistic and defiant, were like a breath of fresh air to the Indian people, and their ideas quickly caught on. When AIM took control of Wounded Knee, over seventy-five different Indian Nations were represented, with more supporters arriving daily from all over the country. Soon United States Armed Forces in the form of Federal Marshals, and the National Guard surrounded the large group. All roads to Wounded Knee were cut off, but still, people slipped through the lines, pouring into the occupied area. The forces inside Wounded Knee demanded an investigation into misuse of tribal funds; the goon squad's violent aggression against people who dared speak out against the tribal government. In addition they wanted the Senate Committee to launch an investigation into the BIA and the Department of the Interior regarding their handling of the affairs of the Oglala Sioux Tribe. The warriors also demanded an investigation into the 371 treaties between the Native Nations and the Federal Government, all of which had been broken by the United States. The warriors that occupied Wounded Knee held fast to these demands and refused to lay down arms until they were met. The government cut off the electricity to Wounded Knee and attempted to keep all food supplies from entering the area. For the rest of that winter, the men and women inside Wounded Knee lived on minimal resources, while they fought the armed aggression of Federal Forces. Daily, heavy gunfire was issued back and forth between the two sides, but true to their word, they refused to give up. During the Wounded Knee occupation, they would live in their traditional manner, celebrating a birth, a marriage and they would mourn the death of two of their fellow warriors inside Wounded Knee. AIM member, Buddy Lamont was hit by M16 fire and bled to death inside Wounded Knee. AIM member, Frank Clearwater was killed by heavy machine gun fire, inside Wounded Knee. Twelve other individuals were intercepted by the goon squad while back packing supplies into Wounded Knee; they disappeared and were never heard from again. Though the government investigated, by looking for a mass grave in the area, when none was found the investigation was soon dismissed. Wounded Knee was a great victory for the Oglala Sioux as well as all other Indian Nations. For a short period of time in 1973, they were a free people once more. After 71 days, the Siege at Wounded Knee had come to an end; with the government making nearly 1200 arrests. But this would only mark the beginning of what was known as the "Reign of Terror" instigated by the FBI and the BIA. During the three years following Wounded Knee, 64 tribal members were unsolved murder victims, 300 harassed and beaten, and 562 arrests were made, and of these arrests only 15 people were convicted of any crime. A large price to pay for 71 days as a free people on the land of one's ancestors.
1.2 The structure of the book is, appropriately, chiastic: the first six chapters deal with various aspects of the context against which the works themselves are examined. A central chapter considers the practical problems surrounding the creation and performance of the music, including the transmission of the repertoire, the training of the musicians, and the vexed question of performance practice. The final four chapters are devoted to analyses of pieces written by or dedicated to Milanese nuns; a short conclusion and no fewer than six appendices round out the volume. 2.2 Even as he develops a powerful insight, however, Kendrick resists the temptation to simplify complex situations to accord more smoothly with his theses. He notes for example that the Milanese patriciate was no monolithic formation, providing ample supporting evidence, and he carefully delineates differences between various female monastic traditions. 2.3 Another feature that contributes to this book's richly nuanced texture is the striking facility, even virtuosity, with which Kendrick handles the literature from a variety of disciplines. The six chapters dealing with contextual issues are informed by ideas from fields as far-flung as feminist theory, ethnomusicology, architectural history, ethnography, and sociology. Moreover, the details that support many of the book's bolder ideas are based on what seems to be an astonishing command of local history, sanctoral iconography, the intricacies of the Ambrosian, monastic, and Roman rites, music-theoretical traditions from the fourteenth to the seventeenth centuries, and the holdings of relevant archives. What is more, when Kendrick draws on constructs from other fields, his borrowing never seems forced or merely trendy. When he suggests that Oestreich's concept of Sozialdisziplinierung provides a cogent model for understanding Carlo Borromeo's efforts to curtail musical activities within the monasteries, the idea is developed in a way that seems natural and entirely convincing. Nor is Kendrick uncritical in his treatment of ideas from other disciplines. Indeed, he is often able to point out ways in which the evidence from nuns' music cuts against the prevailing wisdom in other fields. In one telling passage, for example, he challenges the notion that the Renaissance necessarily represented a setback in women's 3.2 The treatment of the musical repertoire is divided among four chapters. Chapter Eight covers the period from the 1590s until about 1630; though devoted primarily to pieces dedicated to nuns, it also considers the motets of Claudia Rusca's Sacri concerti (1630). Chapters Nine and Ten are devoted principally to the works of one of the most important and prolific nun-composers of the seventeenth-century, Chiara Margarita Cozzolani, and Chapter Eleven considers solo motets from the second half of the century, including Cozzolani's Scherzi di sacra melodia a voce sola (1648), the Motetti a voce sola (1684) of Rosa Giacinta Badalla, and numerous solo motets with dedications to nuns. Kendrick's decision to define the repertoire broadly by including not only music written by nuns, but also music dedicated or inscribed to nuns is commendable. Nevertheless, I wish that he had dealt in somewhat more detail with the ways in which the categories "inscribed to," "written for," and "performed by," may (or may not) have intersected. 3.3 The musical analyses, however, are always keenly attuned to contemporaneous musical thought. Thus, the treatments of works from the late sixteenth-century draw upon the eight-mode system, particularly as it was described by theorists with close connections to Milan, especially Pietro Pontio. The discussion of these early pieces also draws heavily on theories of rhetorical figures, above all as codified in Burmeister's Musica poetica. For works of the early Seicento, however, the analytical models shift to Banchieri's system of twelve modes or toni, and the description of figures in Bernhard's Tractatus compositionis augmentatus and Kircher's Musurgia universalis. A sample from one of Kendrick's analyses, drawn from his discussion of Cozzolani's *Colligite, pueri, flores, conveys his attention to the structure and meaning of the verbal text, as well as his concern for both large-scale modal structure and local rhetorical detail. While none of the elements of Kendrick's analytical approach is entirely new, they have never been integrated and applied in such a unified and systematic way to the intractable repertoire of Seicento sacred composition. Kendrick's method provides a cogent and potentially fruitful way of grappling with this music, one that could profitably be applied to other seventeenth-century repertoires. 3.4 The analyses are also sensitive to the ways in which chant continued to influence polyphonic composition, even in works not overtly based on a cantus firmus. For instance, a setting of Laudate pueri by Costanzo Antegnati, from a collection dedicated to female Benedictine house, emerges as a polyphonic projection of the psalm tone, both in its large-scale organization and in its local details. 3.5 Particularly impressive is Kendrick's treatment of Aquilino Coppini's Il secondo libro della musica di Claudio Monteverde . . . fatta spirituale (1608), a collection of sacred contrafacta on madrigals by Monteverdi and others. Kendrick shows that one piece from this collection, dedicated to a Milanese nun, Bianca Taverna, was reworked for her monastery, S. Marta, since it refers to all three saints who were particularly venerated at her house. He goes on to show how these same saints were commemorated in the altar-piece for the chiesa esteriore, and suggests that Coppini's contrafacta "should be considered not as a 'chastened' version of salacious madrigals, but rather as a rereading, a dramatic reinterpretation in sacred terms of an entire work of art" (pp. 229-33). Equally important is his trenchant description of the new style of Lombard motet cultivated in the 1640s (pp. 280-83). 4.2 Perhaps most movingly, Celestial Sirens is able to convey a more fundamental insightthat this music was more than spiritual recreation or a lyric articulation of some tenets of nuns' belief system. For the nuns themselves, it provided the embodiment of their entire being. This truth is summed up in a remarkable series of letters that Kendrick has unearthed, written by the Milanese nun Angela Confaloniera to the sympathetic archbishop Federigo Borromeo. In a typical passage, Confaloniera writes: One recent Sunday after supper, many of my companions were walking along, and meeting me, asked me to accompany them. And as I was there, I began to sing, and sang a motet by heart, while they rested from their weariness, and while I sang, I felt my heart catch on fire, so that it seemed to the others as if I were mad (p. 427).4.3 Confaloniera's letters recall the texts of much of the mid-century motet repertoire, simultaneously invoking the fierce immediacy of divine love; the nuns' close, quasi-physical identification with the Virgin; their identification with angelic music-making; and the transfiguring sweetness of music itself. It is Robert Kendrick's great achievement in Celestial Sirens to open a window onto the world of these remarkable women and their music. 1. A recurring motif of Kendrick's book is that female monastic music, precisely because of its elevated status and its projection beyond the walled off chiesa interiore, remained intensely problematic for episcopal authority throughout the early modern era. In 1665, the archbishop actually prohibited the performance of polyphony at S. Radegonda, owing to a series of supposed scandals involving the nuns' polyphony. These offenses arose when foreign cavalieri stayed at the monastery to fraternize with the nuns after "going to the church of these nuns, under the pretext of entering to hear the music," and when the Benedictine sisters performed a lavish polyphonic Mass and Vespers for the Protestant Duke and Duchess of Brunswick. Return to text Sample: Kendrick, Celestial Sirens, pp. 294-6: "The motet sets the typical floral Eucharistic conceit, this time with specific reference to Corpus Christi. Indeed, its opening imperatives invoke the most public and famous activities of nuns: 'Servants [of the Lord], collect your flowers, cover the ground with flowers; servants, strike up your song, sing to the citharas; virgins strike the cymbals' . . . The motet begins with a triple-time solo, firmly based on the finalis G, which introduces two motifs to become of great importance later on (Ex. 9.16). Cozzolani crafted her melodic periods carefully: the first sixteen bars outline the modal fifth, rounded off with an idea (bars 12-14) that recalls the earlier descents, and a bass transitional phrase. This recurs at the end of the second idea ('floribus sternite terram'), with a cadence now on the lower d', providing another musical end-rhyme. The entire period is concluded by the statement of 'sternite' a second higher (bars 33-5), finally cadencing on the g' finalis after the previous breaks on the mediant (b. 14) and the repercussio (b. 24) of the tono; again a symmetry whose balance is obscured but real. Another parallel textual construction, again referring to music ('Inducite, pueri, cantus'), evoked a metabasis, bringing in the second voice as an unusual surprise (bars 36 ff.)." Return to text Copyright © 1997 by the Society for Seventeenth-Century Music. All rights reserved. Copyrights for individual items published in The Journal of Seventeenth-Century Music (JSCM) are held by their authors. Items appearing in JSCM may be saved and stored in electronic or paper form, and may be shared among individuals for purposes of scholarly research or discussion, but may not be republished in any form, electronic or print, without prior, written permission from the author(s), and advance notification of the editors of JSCM. Any redistributed form of items published in JSCM must include the following information in a form appropriate to the medium in which the items are to appear: This item appeared in The Journal of Seventeenth-Century Music in [VOLUME #, ISSUE #] on [DAY/MONTH/YEAR]. It was authored by [FULL NAME, EMAIL ADDRESS], with whose written permission it is reprinted here. Libraries may archive issues of JSCM in electronic or paper form for public access so long as each issue is stored in its entirety, and no access fee is charged. Exceptions to these requirements must be approved in writing by the editors of JSCM, who will act in accordance with the decisions of the Society for Seventeenth-Century Music. Citations to articles from JSCM should include the URL as found at the beginning of the article and the paragraph number; for example: Jonathan Glixon, "Far il buon concerto: Music at the Venetian Scuole Piccole in the Seventeenth Century," Journal of Seventeenth-Century Music 1 (1995) <http://www.sscm-jscm.org/v1/no1/glixon.html>, par. 2.3. This document and all portions thereof are protected by U.S. and international copyright laws. Material contained herein may be copied and/or distributed for research purposes only.
Generative AI, also known as generative artificial intelligence, refers to advanced deep-learning models capable of generating diverse content, including text, images, and more. These models create content based on patterns and information gleaned from the data on which they were trained. This transformative technology has evolved rapidly in recent years, offering applications in various domains. Generative AI Overview: - Generative AI encompasses deep-learning models that produce high-quality content, such as text and images, by learning from training data. - OpenAI’s ChatGPT, a prominent example, can create poems, jokes, essays, and more that closely resemble human-generated content. - Generative AI’s prominence has shifted from computer vision to natural language processing, enabling models to generate text on a wide range of topics and domains. - These models extend beyond language and can also generate software code, molecules, and other data types. - Generative AI finds applications in software development, scientific research, conversational AI, and data generation. Evolution of Generative AI Models Generative AI models have their roots in statistics and the analysis of numerical data. The advent of deep learning expanded their capabilities to handle complex data types like images and speech. Variational autoencoders (VAEs), introduced in 2013, marked a significant milestone in the development of generative models. They were among the first deep-learning models used for realistic image and speech generation, setting the stage for future advancements. - VAEs encode data into a compressed representation and then decode it to create variations of the original data. - Autoencoders, including VAEs, are built on the architecture of encoders and decoders, which is also fundamental to large language models like Transformers. - Transformers, introduced by Google in 2017, revolutionized language models by using a text-processing mechanism called attention. This architecture allows models to understand and generate text more effectively. Types of Language Transformers Language transformers, a key category of generative models, can be categorized into three main types: - Encoder-Only Models (e.g., BERT): These models are used for non-generative tasks like search engines and customer-service chatbots. They excel at classifying data and extracting information from documents. - Decoder-Only Models (e.g., GPT): These models predict the next word in a sequence without encoding representations. They are known for their generative abilities and can generate text, including dialogue and essays. - Encoder-Decoder Models (e.g., T5): Combining features of both encoder-only and decoder-only models, encoder-decoder models can perform a wide range of generative tasks. They are compact, making them efficient for various applications. Supervised Learning in Generative AI Recent advancements in generative AI involve a resurgence of human supervision to improve model performance. Instruction-tuning, as seen in Google’s FLAN models, enables models to interact more effectively by pairing instructions with responses. This method allows models to provide human-like answers and perform tasks without the need for extensive labeled data. - Zero-shot and few-shot learning techniques significantly reduce the data required to train AI models, but they come with formatting challenges. - Techniques like prompt-tuning and adaptors help tailor models to specific tasks without the need to adjust their massive parameter counts. - Reinforcement learning from human feedback (RLHF) aligns generative models with human preferences and has contributed to the development of highly engaging conversational AI. Future Directions in Generative AI There are several trends and factors that will affect generative AI in the future: - The trend of building larger models is being challenged, as smaller, domain-specialized models show promise, particularly when domain-specific performance is crucial. - Model distillation calls into question the necessity of large models for emergent capabilities. - Alignment methods like reinforcement learning from human feedback (RLHF) play a crucial role in shaping the behavior of generative models to align with human expectations. Challenges and Considerations While generative AI offers substantial potential, it presents challenges, including issues related to: - Truthfulness: Generative models may produce information that sounds accurate but is not, known as “hallucinations.” - Bias: Models can generate biased content that may be objectionable. - Privacy and copyright: Models may inadvertently output personal or copyrighted information from their training data, posing legal and ethical challenges. How EACOMM Can Help EACOMM Corporation is leveraging the power of generative AI in its current and future projects. Completed and current projects using generative AI include: - Articulate AI chatbots that can be deployed with no programming and minimal training - Real-time evaluation and filtering of social media content to detect relevant information and news - Utilization of Generative AI to conduct Qualitative Analysis of unstructured data - Automated content generation based on tabular or database data EACOMM utilizes a suite of generative AI tools from Google, OpenAI, IBM, as well as open-source sources, to provide comprehensive solutions to our clients. To cater for enterprises, EACOMM has partnered with IBM to offer watsonx.ai, watsonx.data, and watsonx.governance in the Philippine market. Watsonx includes a studio for new foundation models, generative AI, and machine learning; a fit-for-purpose data store built on an open data lakehouse architecture; and a toolkit to accelerate AI workflows that are built with responsibility, transparency, and explainability. Incorporate generative AI into your business application systems and prepare your organization for the next industrial revolution. Contact EACOMM Corporation today!
Women of the Apatani Tribe, in India’s Apatani plateau, are famous for the bizarre nose plugs they’ve been wearing since times long passed. The Apatani, or Tani, are a tribal group of about 60,000 members, often praised for their extremely efficient agriculture, performed without animals or machinery. They have no written record of their history, and traditions are passed down orally, from generation to generation. One tradition that is quickly fading into the mist of time is the traditional Apatani nose plugs, worn by most of the elder women in the tribe. There was once a time when every woman had to wear these bizarre accessories, but since the middle of the 20th century, the custom began to die. According to the Apatani, the nose plug was born as a way of protecting the women of the tribe. Apparently, Apatani women have always been considered the most beautiful among the Arunachal tribes, their villages were constantly raided by neighboring tribes, and the women kidnapped. To make themselves unattractive to the other tribes, Apatani women began wearing these hideous nose plugs and tattooing their faces with a horizontal line from the forehead to the tip of the nose, and five lines on their chins. Let’s face it, that turns off any raider in search of beautiful women to have his way with. But the tradition of the Apatani nose plug hasn’t been practiced by any woman born after 1970, and as time passes, this custom will probably soon be forgotten. Well, at least we still have the Ethiopian lip plug. Photos by raikumar1220
SMARTBoards enrich learning time and, through the donation of 26 of these high tech teaching aids to schools for learners with disabilities, DionWired is changing lives. At the handover of six SMART Boards at the Hope School in Westcliff, JHB, DionWired CSI Practitioner, Iris Naidoo, said, "The area where technology has the most impact is education. We are honoured to play a role in helping these children reach their full potential and gain the good educations that they need to take their place in the world." Two SMART Boards went to the Hope School, two to the Con Amore School, Kempton Park and two to the Forest Town School. Each SMART Board is valued at R50 000. SMARTBoards combine a data projector to project screen data on to a large interactive, touch screen, white board and have completely revolutionized education for disabled learners, overturning negative perceptions of learning and lessening the frustration children often feel when battling to express themselves. "Children with disabilities often benefit from a more tactile learning experience and educators can now appeal to one or more senses when presenting information. By presenting information visually, language becomes more meaningful. SMART Boards also hold children's attention and keep them interested in lessons for longer periods." SMART Boards are equipped with SMART Notebook's which allows teachers to create and deliver interactive lessons. Internet access introduces educational resources such as Google Earth and YouTube. An innovative child-friendly word processor, Clicker, is included in the schools' package for students who benefit from hearing words, picture-to-text correlation and word prompts. A text-to-speech feature reads back what students have typed and learners can click on any word to hear it read. Pupils are also record themselves.
Steamboat Springs Scientists studying the effects of acid precipitation in the Mount Zirkel Wilderness Area will be in Steamboat Springs Sept. 19 to discuss the anticipated benefits of new pollution-control devices on coal-fired power plants in the Yampa Valley. A major retrofit of the Hayden Station power plant was completed in January 2000. And officials of Tri-State Generation and Transmission power plant and the attorneys for the Sierra Club recently announced a settlement that will result in similar efforts being undertaken at the power plant near Craig next summer. Routt County Environmental Health Director Mike Zopf told the county commissioners he expects the meeting room to be packed next week. "The reason for the meeting is to discuss pollution-control efforts at the Hayden and Craig power plants and what this will mean to air quality in and around the Yampa Valley," Zopf said. "There is a lot of public interest and there hasn't been much information." The multimillion-dollar remediation efforts at the two power plants are a direct result of lawsuits filed by the Sierra Club against the owners of the power plants. The Sierra Club alleged in the suits that the power plants have violated daily federal limits on smokestack emissions numerous times. Reed Zars, a lead attorney for the Sierra Club, will talk about the history of the lawsuits and both planned and actual pollution reductions at the two power plants. Zopf said representatives of the power plants have also been invited to participate but have expressed reluctance. The genesis of the pollution-control efforts can be found in studies of the Zirkel wilderness that began in 1993 and intensified in 1997. They found evidence of high levels of acid precipitation in lakes in Zirkel. Specifically, the study zeroed in on acid deposition in the snowpack in Zirkel. Acid snow is potentially more threatening to the environment than acid rain because the melting snowpack in spring can flush a winter's worth of acidity into the watershed. The studies by U.S. Geological Survey scientists Jon Turk and Donald Campbell, among others, found that evidence of acid precipitation in Zirkel was more than twice that found elsewhere in the Rocky Mountains. Studies pointed a finger at the coal-fired power plants upwind from Zirkel as the source of sulfates and nitrates that are equated with acid precipitation. The equivalent of the "canary in the coal mine" in the acid precipitation study has been the tiger salamander and the survivability of its eggs. One study documented biological damage at Dumont Lake on Rabbit Ears Pass, which is close to Steamboat but 10 miles south of the 140,000-acre wilderness area. It found salamander egg mortality ranging from 20 percent in less acid ponds surrounding Dumont Lake, up to a range between 60 and 100 percent in more acid ponds.
What is the meaning of the term delete junk files in Pc? System stores junk files on the hard disk of your Pc. Moreover, hard disk stores all the Window operating system and all your confidential data and files. No doubt, we use a computer regularly and, all the temporary files are stored on the hard drive. Junk files are mainly created by Window. A hard disk is the storage device in PC when it runs out of space your system stops running smoothly. A hard disk has a specific amount of space. When it is overload with junk files, the system starts hanging, and its smooth function is disabling. This unwanted file disturbs the workflow, and the system slows down automatically. Temporary files, duplicate files, unnecessary music, games and videos apps, and thumbnails are few examples of junk files. Thus, it is essential to delete junk files from your system as quick as possible. Why junk files slow down a system? Junk files not only slow down the speed of the computer; however, it creates a negative impact on the smooth performance of the Pc. As these insignificant data accumulate in the hard disk, it occupies more space in hard drive and RAM. These unwanted files eat up lot amount of space on CPU also. When you install or delete files or apps, the system does not remove those file from the internal memory of your Pc. Furthermore, the system also stores these files in the memory. Programs start running when you put on your Window. The slow startup also invites virus in your system. Therefore, it hangs frequently due to an overload of the insignificant files. A user should delete Junk files from its system for the smooth performance of Pc. The process of removing junk files from a Pc They are several successful methods to delete junk files from a Pc some of them are as follows- - Use good cleaner to clean up the hard drive. - Install updated version of Pc Optimizer. - Delete junk files from your computer or laptops. - Do schedule scanning. - Contact certified technician. Benefits of removing junk files from a Pc The benefits of cleaning junk files are as follows- - The speed of the system is boosted. - The computer will run smoothly. - Long battery life - The system is optimized. - User full control during Window startup, the scope of running unmanageable program is nullified. - Free space, available on hard disk. - The system will run smoothly, without any hassle. - The system is clean.
November 30, 2012 Not Too Late to Benefit from Flu Vaccine Many people at high risk still unprotected Citing a recent report by the New York State Department of Health declaring a sharp rise in the number of flu cases in 34 counties in New York State, including Suffolk County, Dr. James Tomarken, Commissioner of the Suffolk County Department of Health Services, is urging all residents who have not yet received their annual flu vaccinations to do so as soon as possible. Flu season usually peaks in January or later and can last as late as May. “Influenza is a serious disease that should be treated as such,” said Dr. Tomarken. “Most people who become infected with the flu will suffer with fever, congestion, cough, sore throat, and muscle aches over the course of a week or two and will eventually recover completely. However, some are at greater risk for serious complications that can lead to hospitalization or even death. The good news is that immunization can protect us from the flu.” Individuals who are particularly vulnerable are mature adults over 65 years of age, young children, pregnant women, those with diabetes, heart disease, neurological conditions, or chronic lung diseases, such as asthma and COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), and those who are severely obese persons. The most important thing these individuals and their loved ones can do to protect against influenza is to get a flu vaccine each flu season. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) recommends that children six months of age and older should be immunized against influenza. Children under age nine may need to return for a second dose of immunization. Flu vaccines are offered in many locations, including doctors’ offices, clinics, local health centers, pharmacies, college health centers and places of business. Contact your health care provider today for your flu vaccine. National Influenza Vaccination Week runs from December 2 through December 8, 2012. For more information, visit www.cdc.gov. For flu-related questions contact FluInbox@cdc.gov.
Our Kepler-186f paper came out last week and we got a lot of press attention (lots more than I expected!). Tim Pyle and Robert Hurt at Caltch/JPL did an amazing job of of creating a beautiful image which was shown around the world on TV and in print. I received a couple of questions from people about why the image looks the way it does and whether there is some scientific basis to the depiction. First, I want to say that the magic was all performed by the artists at Caltech/JPL. However, Elisa Quintana and I discussed with them at length about how we wanted the planet to look. There was a lot of very fun back-and-forth where we tweaked things to get them how we wanted. The artists turned our blurry vision into a high resolution reality (if I sound gushing here it’s because I am truly in awe of their work). The information we have at hand are the size of the planet, the size and temperature of the star and the distance the planet is from the star. This actually provides us with quite a bit of information to work with. The temperature of the star is roughly 3800 Kelvin. There has been some interesting work on convolving the spectrum of various stellar types with the response function of the human eye. Without an atmosphere, the Sun would appear almost white to our eyes (not yellow as you might imagine). We started with using the correct color for this star. However, rendering the star the true color made it look very much how we might imagine the Sun to be (i.e. a yellow/orange color). Part of the story we wanted to tell was that this star is not Sun-like, so we did make the star slightly more orange than it would really appear (the color show is correct for a star a few hundred Kelvin cooler). The planet is bathed in orange light from the star, the planet receive the correct level of illumination from the star given its orbital distance. We wanted to show the planet illuminated and also show the star. This meant we had to alter the angle of incoming light from the star in order to see some of the planet’s surface. In essence, the star is shown at the wrong phase angle relative to the planet. If we didn’t do this we would only see the night side of the planet which would be fairly boring and not allow us to show a depiction of surface conditions on the planet. The planet is shown with yellowy continents and grey/blue oceans. There are ice caps and clouds that appear orangey. Oceans on the Earth appear a deep rich blue color, this is because of the blue light from the Sun Rayleigh scatters off the ocean. This star emits very little blue light which we represented by making the sea a dull grey/blue color. Ice and clouds Mie scatter light which is fairly uniform across all wavelengths hence clouds and ice appear the same color as the star. Then we come to the color of the continents – we had fun with this one. When we were designing the image Elisa Quintana found an article by Nancy Kiang titled The Color of Plants on Other Worlds. Nancy is a scientist based at NASA Ames (she moved to Ames from GISS the week after we talked to her, small world heh!) who works with the Virtual Planetary Laboratory. We called her up and chatted about what colors plants might be on planets orbiting cool stars. While this is a very complex issue involving evolution of photosynthesis, she recommended a dark yellow/green color as a potential color for alien planet life on this world. We wanted to highlight the differences between this world and Earth. The low illumination level is purely because this planet receives less light from its star than we do from the Sun. Because of this lower illumination, we speculated that this planet may be a little colder (note that a planet’s temperature is determined by its atmosphere, something we know nothing about). So we made the planet have prominent ice caps and also had the plant life (i.e. the yellow color on the surface) cluster at the equator, similarly to how we see lots of green colors at mid-latitudes on Earth in temperate regions – temperate regions in the artists concept are clustered around the equator. Finally, we wanted to depict the other planets. Three of the other planets are clearly seen nearby the star. They are near to the star because they much closer to the star than Kepler-186f. One of my favorite parts of the image is that we have one of the interior planets transiting the star. We wanted to make the planet just large enough to be detectable. This meant increasing its size a little – in reality it would be able 1/30th the size of the star. The purpose of having the planet there was to show how we detect planets with Kepler. I hope this post has been informative and demonstrates that a lot of thought goes into making these artists concepts. They are necessarily speculative, for instance we don’t know whether the planet has water, continents, ice, clouds etc. but we do know that Earth has these things. Hopefully this image provides a nice tool to explain what might be the same and what might be different between this planet and Earth.
DAN Medical Frequently Asked Questions Back to Medical FAQ List >When any of the arteries supplying the heart become blocked, a myocardial infarction, or heart attack, will occur if the blockage (or "infarct") is not eliminated quickly. The heart muscle supplied by that artery then becomes starved for oxygen and eventually dies. If the infarct is large enough, the heart's ability to pump blood is compromised, and circulation to all the body's other critical organs is affected. The heart's electrical system may also be adversely affected, resulting in an abnormal rhythm known as ventricular fibrillation. ad:media]The main cause of myocardial infarction is coronary artery disease (CAD), or a gradual narrowing of the arteries that supply the heart with blood. Eventually, a piece of the fatty plaques affixed to the arteries' inner walls may break free and lodge in a smaller vessel, resulting in total occlusion. CAD affects 3 million Americans and kills more than 700,000 each year; it is the most common life-threatening disease. A blockage that results in a myocardial infarction can also be caused by a bubble of gas or a clot within a blood vessel. But, simply stated, whatever the cause of the occlusion, it means the oxygen required by the heart muscle can no longer be supplied through the blocked vessel. >The classic symptoms of myocardial infarction include radiating chest pain (angina) or pain in the jaw or left arm. Other symptoms include heart palpitations; dizziness; indigestion; nausea; sweating; cold, clammy skin; and shortness of breath. >If a myocardial infarction is suspected, it is essential that emergency medical care be called and the affected individual evacuated to a hospital. In the meantime, keep the individual calm and administer oxygen. At the hospital, the treatment options include conservative medical management, anticoagulation drugs, heart catheterization or stenting or even coronary artery bypass surgery. >Preventing myocardial infarction calls for addressing any risk factors, such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension or smoking. A healthy diet and regular exercise are also important preventatives.Anyone with active ischemic CAD should not dive. The physiologic changes involved in diving, as well as the exercise and stress of a dive, may initiate a cascade of events leading to a myocardial infarction or to unconsciousness or sudden cardiac arrest while in the water. Divers who have been treated and evaluated by a cardiologist may choose to continue diving on a case-by-case basis; essential aspects of such an evaluation include the individual's exercise capacity and any evidence of ischemia while exercising, of arrhythmias or of injury to the heart muscle.
Upon completing this unit, students will be able to: 1.) Clarify their ideas about the nature of science and identify historical changes in its theory and practice. 2.) Identify, and compare, distinctive characteristics of science during the Middle Ages and during the sixteenth-eighteenth centuries (early modern period). 3.) Describe changes and continuities in science from the tenth through eighteenth centuries; analyze the appropriateness of the label “Scientific Revolution.” 4.) Outline major historical developments that influenced science during the period covered in this unit. 5.) Formulate a hypothesis, identify historical evidence relevant to the hypothesis, and revise it in view of the relevant historical evidence.
Over long periods of time, the popularity of certain symbols seems to rise and fall. Some even take on different meanings although their forms remain essentially the same. The Maltese cross is an excellent example of one of these types of symbols and one whose current popularity begins to eclipse its past uses. It takes its name from the island of Malta and, more specifically, the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta, better known as the Sovereign Order of Malta, an organization somewhat akin to the Red Cross but with medieval roots in both care for the sick and knighthood. The Order of St. John was founded in Jerusalem in 1099 by the armies of the First Crusade, beginning as a monastic community which was dedicated to St. John the Baptist, offering hospice and medical care to pilgrims in the Holy Land. Soon after however, they also undertook military functions for the protection of the sick and their newly won territory. It was Fra Raymond du Puy, the second head of the order, who introduced the white cross on a red field which even today is their emblem. That this particular cross was known elsewhere is evidenced by another 11th-century use. On the Angby Stone, a memorial stone found in Sweden, the Maltese cross is in the center, surrounded by two intertwining snakes, and it’s also carved with runes. However, the specific form that is currently popular in tattooing bears the closest resemblance to the variation used as a military decoration in Europe. It was Frederick William III, King of Prussia, who instituted the use of the Iron Cross (a Maltese cross of cast iron with a silver border) in 1813. For over one hundred years, during times of war, the Iron Cross was revived for use by various leaders but perhaps none more famously than Adolf Hitler in 1939, on the day that German forces invaded Poland. Hitler decreed that the cross be conferred for exceptional bravery or leadership in the face of the enemy and expanded the number of grades to eight – second class Iron Cross, first class, etc., up to the Grand Cross, awarded only once to Hermann Goring. Whether found on a Knight of Malta, a Swedish memorial, a military decoration, or even in combination with a tribal tattoo, it is the symmetric simplicity of the cross with the accentuated and flared ends that has ensured its enduring appeal.
[Text-only version for printing] [back to graphical version] The following guide provides Web site links, a list of selected books, and access to online periodical articles about this subject. The Web site links have been researched, evaluated, and annotated by Rio Hondo College Librarians. The Librarians have specifically selected these Web sites to meet the research needs of Rio Hondo College students Web Site Links Civil Liberties Union - Death Penalty This abolitionist site contains articles on various aspects of the death penalty, particularly lethal injection, race and death penalty, habeas reform, and the execution of innocent people. A searchable database of ACLU news articles in also available. Extensive links to other death penalty sites. Pro and con arguments, interviews, cases, and a death penalty chronology are presented. Based on "The real life cases in Dead Man Walking." From the Bureau of Justice Statistics--the Annual BJS Capital Punishment Bulletin gives prisoner characteristics and movement on death sentence status ; statistics on race, executions, prisoners awaiting execution, and correctional populations are also included. Penalty Information Center Site maintained by the Death Penalty Information Center, a nonprofit group serving the media and public on issues concerning capital punishment. Click on "Information Topics" on the page to find up-to-date facts and figures, a list of executions, the cost of executions, etc. Penalty Information Web Site Arguments for and against the death penalty, the stages in a capital case, history, methods of execution, state-by-state data, courtroom cases and additional links. Excellent site from Michigan State University. Death Penalty News and Includes information on current executions in the United States, death penalty-related news, statistics on executions by state, statistical summaries, and more. The site is against the death penalty and provides information on contacting U.S. law makers and on actions regarding the death penalty. Human Rights-Death Penalty Links Derechos Human Rights is a human rights organization maintaining a site that has regional information, pro death penalty arguments, abolition information, and a list of countries that have the death penalty (dated August 1997). Cost of the Death Penalty to Taxpayers The group Death Penalty Focus of California has calculated the cost of the death penalty in Los Angeles County. Online Databases(Rio Hondo Students only) Gale Virtual Reference Library http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itweb/cclc_rio?db=GVRL An interesting database that provides chapters on the subject from various perspectives, including historical and constitutional. Health and Wellness Resource Center http://find.galegroup.com/menu/start?userGroupName=cclc_rio&prod=HWRC-2 This database provides a medical perspective about the subject and addresses the issue of doctors being involved in the process. Controversies @ Facts.com This database currently has "Lethal Injection" listed as one of its Issues in the Headlines, as well as other information found by searching for the subject. This database already has 'capital punishment' selected as one of its 'leading issues' topics and further breaks it down into categories such as, religious aspects, juveniles, economic aspects and statistics. The following books can be located in the Rio Hondo College Library. Death penalty on trial : a handbook with cases, laws, and documents (ABC-CLIO's on trial series) Call number: Ref KF9227.C2G47 2005 Encyclopedia of capital Call number: Ref HV8694.G76 1998 Encyclopedia of crime & Call number: Ref HV6017.E52 2002 Encyclopedia of crime and punishment Call number: Ref HV6017.E524 2002 Illustrated great decisions of the Supreme Court Call number: Ref KF4549.M334 2006 Macmillan encyclopedia of death and dying Call number: Ref HQ1073.M33 2003 Problems with death Call number: Ref HQ1073.5.U6P76 2006 West’s encyclopedia of Call number: Ref KF154.W47 2005 Suggested Subject Headings For additional titles on this topic at Rio Hondo, click on the following Library of Congress subject headings: Capital punishment--Moral and ethical aspects Capital punishment--Political aspects Capital punishment--United States The following media can be located in the Rio Hondo College Library, to be viewed in the Library. Dead man walking Call number: Video 001101 Honoring the request of a lonely and desperate man, Sister Helen Prejean writes to Matthew Poncelet, the condemned killer of two teenage lovers, and is wholly unprepared for the relationship which follows. When the date is set for Matthew's execution, he asks Sister Helen to be his spiritual advisor and she complies. As she comes to see the terrfied human beneath Matt's brash, unrepentant facade, she becomes increasingly disturbed, not only by his terrible anguish, but also by the rage of the victims' families. With the clock ticking away his final days, she struggles for the life, dignity and soul of a confused and angry man. It is her faith and courage that sustains her when she stands with Matthew and with the victims' families. The death penalty : right or wrong? Call number: Video 001221 Designed to encourage students to question and contemplate the issues involved in capital punishment. Call number: Video 000499 Explores capital punishment through the story of Clifford Boggess, a 30-year-old who spent almost a decade on death row. In the United States, executions have become almost routine, especially in Texas, where Boggess, a pianist, artist, class valedictorian and convicted murderer awaited the execution chamber. And while he waited, the families of his two victims impatiently awaited his death in June 1998. The Rio Hondo College Library provides online access to full-text articles through our online databases - http://library.riohondo.edu/online_databases/index.htm. Please note: you must be a Rio Hondo College student, faculty, staff or board member to use these services. The 3 sample searches below are from the ProQuest database. Use Advanced Search and type each term in a separate box: SU(capital punishment) [from 2. SU(capital punishment) AND SU(criminal sentences) [from Peer-Reviewed Journals] 3. SU(capital punishment) AND SU(supreme court decisions) [from Peer-Reviewed Journals] Researched and evaluated by: D. Yashar, Librarian 12/1997 last update: D. Yashar, Librarian 8/2008 [back to text-only Subject Guide Index]
Why doctors fail \| Atul Gawande \| News \| The Guardian: But Forssmann just had to give it a try. So he stole into the x-ray room, took a urinary catheter, made a slit in his own arm, threaded it up his vein and into his own heart and convinced a nurse to help him take a series of nine x-rays showing the tube inside his own heart. He published the evidence – and was fired. Then in 1956, he was awarded the Nobel prize in medicine with André Cournand and Dickinson Richards who, some 20 years later at Columbia University, had taken Forssmann’s findings and recognised that you could not only put a catheter into the human heart but also shoot dye through the catheter. That enabled them to take pictures and see from the inside how the heart actually worked. Together the three had founded the field of cardiology.
Top 25 Names in Boston, 1710-1715 A few things struck me about this data: The top names are overwhelmingly popular. For girls, the top three names account for 49% of all names and the top ten account for 81%. For boys, the top three names account for 39% of all names and the top ten account for 69%. Compare these numbers with their modern equivalents: today's top 10 names account for less than 10 percent of all names given in a single year. Also, I was astonished by the number of different boys' names (116) vs. girls' names (61). The male names are taken from the Bible, traditional English names, and surnames, while the girls' names are Biblical, English, and virtue names. I suppose it makes sense that a mostly Bible-based name pool would yield more male names, but I wasn't expecting twice as many. Yet, I am also surprised by the Biblical names that are not on this list. As David Hackett Fischer noted in Albion's Seed, there were oodles of New England men named John, but not many named Paul, Mark, Luke, or Matthew (none in my sample). It seems that these Bostonians may have recognized three distinct classes of Biblical names: Old Testament names, New Testament names that were already popular in England, and New Testament names that had shallower roots in England. The first category gives you Abraham, Isaac, and Ephraim, the second offers John and Thomas, and third might include names like Andrew and Bartholomew. The third category is not well represented on the top 25 list. What accounts for the abundance of English, non-biblical names among the top 25 names in Boston? Did the practice of naming children for their parents (as outlined by Fischer) preserve a thread of Englishness in naming practices? Was 18th-century Boston more worldly than 17th-century Windsor? Was Boston home to increasing numbers of immigrants, English and otherwise, during the first decades of the 18th century? These are all questions historians have been chewing over since Bernard Bailyn wrote The New England Merchants in the Seventeenth Century in 1955. I think that name data is an interesting way of rethinking Boston.
Creator(s): Central Okanagan Heritage Society The First Mill in Kelowna, British Columbia Frederick Brent was one of the earliest settlers in the Kelowna region of British Columbia, and when he built a grist mill there in 1871, it was the first industrial enterprise in the Okanagan Valley. It was an amazing accomplishment. Brent went to San Francisco to find what he needed, then imported a portable mill, a hopper and other necessary supplies. It took a ship, freight wagon, river steamer, a borrowed home-made wagon, row boat, and horse-drawn sledge to get the mill to its new home on Brent's land. It was a testimony to pioneer determination. Through photographs, images and text, this Community Memories exhibit explores and brings to life the story of Brent and the mill's arduous journey. It is more than just the tale of a man and a mill; it shows the relationship of the mill to a growing community within an agricultural economy and underscores its importance as an example of the legacy of the early pioneers. The exhibit ultimately discovers that the grist mill is an apt metaphor for a province searching for roots beyond the fur trade economy upon which it was established.
MEASUREMENT Accuracy, Precision, Percent Error, Precision of Measurement, Significant Figures, & Scientific Notation 101 Learning Objectives • The Learners Will (TLW) collect data and make measurements with accuracy and precision, and will be able to calculate percent error and precision of measurement (TEKS 2.F) • TLW be able to express and manipulate quantities and perform math operations using scientific notation and significant figures (TEKS 2.G) Agenda • Part 1 – Units of Measurements • A. Number versus Quantity • B. Review SI Units • C. Derived Units • D. Problem Solving • Part 2 – Using Measurement • A. Accuracy vs. Precision • B. Percent Error • C. Precision of Measurement • D. Significant Figures • E. Scientific Notation • F. Using Both Scientific Notation & Significant Figures A. Number vs. Quantity • Quantity = number + unit UNITS MATTER!! B. SI Units Quantity Symbol Base Unit Abbrev. Length l meter m Mass m kilogram kg Time t second s Temp T Kelvin or Centigrade K or C Amount n mole mol mega- kilo- k M 106 103 BASE UNIT deci- --- d 100 10-1 centi- c 10-2 milli- m 10-3 micro- 10-6 nano- n 10-9 pico- p 10-12 B. SI Units Prefix Symbol Factor M V D = C. Derived Units • Combination of base units. • Volume (m3 or cm3) • height width length 1 cm3 = 1 mL 1 dm3 = 1 L • Density (kg/m3 or g/cm3) • mass per volume D. Problem-Solving Steps 1. Analyze - identify the given & unknown. 2. Plan - setup problem, use conversions. 3. Compute -cancel units, round answer. 4. Evaluate - check units, use sig figs. WORK: D = M V D = 25 g 29 mL D. Problem Solving Example – Density • A liquid has a volume of 29 mL and a mass of 25 g? What is the density? GIVEN: V = 29 mL M = 25 g D = ? D = 0.87 g/mL D. Problem Solving Example – Density • An object has a volume of 825 cm3 and a density of 13.6 g/cm3. Find its mass. GIVEN: V = 825 cm3 D = 13.6 g/cm3 M = ? WORK: M = DV M = 13.6 g/cm3 x 825cm3 M = 11,200 g Let’s Experiment… • Measure the level in the two graduated cylinders • Measure of the level in the beaker • Write your name on the chart at the front of the room and record the above measurements in the columns indicated Actual Measurement in each is _8.3___ • How close to the actual measurement is our data? • How close are our readings to one another? • What could account for the differences in your own measurements? • What could account for the differences between your readings and those of your classmates? A. Accuracy vs. Precision • Accuracy - how close a measurement is to the accepted value (published, target) • Precision - how close a series of measurements are to each other ACCURATE = CORRECT PRECISE = CONSISTENT A. Accuracy vs. Precision • PRECISE – a golfer hits 20 balls from the same spot out of the sand trap onto the fringe of the green. Each shot is within 5 inches of one another. Wow – that’s CONSISTENT • ACCURATE – the golfer’s 20 shots aren’t very accurate, because they need to be much closer to the hole so she can score easily – that would be CORRECT Audience Participation Let’s Play The Accuracy? or Precision? Game your value accepted value B. Percent Error • Indicates accuracy of a measurement obtained during an experiment as compared to the literature * value (* may be called accepted, published, reference, etc.) • Error is the difference between the experimental value and the accepted value For our purposes a percent error of < 3% is considered accurate • In the real world, percent error can be larger or smaller. • Considering the following areas that need much smaller percents of error • Landing an airplane • Performing heart surgery % error = 2.9 % B. Percent Error • A student determines the density of a substance to be 1.40 g/mL. Find the % error if the accepted value of the density is 1.36 g/mL. B. Percent Error • In groups of 2 calculate the percent error • Raise your hand when your team is done 1. Experimental Value = 5.75 g Accepted Value = 6.00 g 2. Experimental Value = 107 ml Accepted Value = 105 ml 3. Experimental Value = 1.54 g/ml Accepted Value = 2.35 g/ml Let’s Experiment… • Measure the wooden block with the metric measuring stick • Bring measurement of the level in the two graduated cylinders • Bring measurement of the level in the beaker • Write your name on the chart at the front of the room and record the above measurements in the columns indicated Lab Results • Did we all come up with exactly the same numbers? • Why or Why not? • Which are most precise measurements? • Why? • Which are most accurate measurements? • Why? • What is the percent error? • Perform the calculations C. Precision of Measurement • Even the best crafts people and finest manufacturing equipment can’t measure the exact same dimensions every time • Precision of Measurement determines the spread from average value (tolerance) Precision of Measurement • “Tolerance” is used constantly in manufacturing and repair work • Example – parts for autos, pumps, other rotating equipment can have a small amount of space between them. • Too much and the parts can’t function properly so the equipment won’t run • Too little and the parts bind up against each other which can cause damage Precision of Measurement • To calculate precision of measurement: • Average the data • Determine the range from lowest to highest value • Divide the range by 2 to determine the spread • Precision of measurement is expressed as the average value +/- the spread • Smaller the spread the more accurate and precise the measurement • You may have a spread that has 1 more significant figure that original values Precision of Measurement Gap Between Piston & Cylinder 0.60 μm 0.62 μm 0.59 μm 0.60 μm 0.65 μm 0.60 μm 0.58 μm Total = 4.24 μm • Average (mean) = Total No. of samples 4.24 μm / 7 = 0.61 μm • Range = highest – lowest 0.65 μm – 0.58 μm = 0.07 μm • Spread = Range / 2 0.07 μm / 2 = 0.035 μm • Precision of Measurement = Average +/- Spread 0.61 μm +/- 0.035 μm Precision of Measurement – Let’s Practice Together • Given the following volume measurements: 5.5 L 5.8 L 5.0 L 5.6 L 4.8 L 5.2 L • Determine Precision of Measurement: • Average: L • Range: L • Spread: L • Precision of Measurement L + / - L Precision of Measurement – Practice in Pairs • Determine Precision of Measurement for: 6.25 m 6.38 m 6.44 m 6.80 m • Determine Precision of Measurement for: 80.6 g 81.3 g 80.5 g 80.8 g 80.2 g 81.1 g Check for Understanding • Accuracy – Correctness of data • Precision – Consistency of results • Percent Error – Comparison of experimental data to published data • Precision of Measurement – Determining the spread from average value (tolerance) Check for Understanding • How can you ensure accuracy and precision when performing a lab? • What is the percent error when lab data indicates the density of molasses is 1.45 g/ml and Perry’s Handbook for Chemical Engineering shows 1.47 g/ml? Independent Practice • Accuracy and Precision Worksheet 1 C. Significant Figures • As we experienced first hand from our lab, obtaining accurate and precise measurements can be tricky • Some instruments read in more detail than others • If we have to eyeball a measurement we can each read something different, or we can make an error in estimating C. Significant Figures • Measuring… Sig Figs and the Role of Rounding • TeacherTube Video Clip – Why Are Significant Figures Significant? C. Significant Figures • Indicate precision of a measurement • Recording Sig Figs (sf) • Sig figs in a measurement include the known digits plus a final estimated digit • Sig figs are also called significant digits 2.33 cm C. Significant Figures • The Pacific/Atlantic Rule to identify significant figures • Let’s go over a few examples together • Then we’ll practice independently C. Significant Figures • Gory details and rules approach C. Significant Figures • All non-zero digits are significant. • Zeros between two non-zero digits are significant. -- 2.004 has 4 sf. • Count all numbers EXCEPT: • Leading zeros -- 0.0025 • Trailing zeros without a decimal point -- 2,500 (Trailing zeros are significant if and only if they follow a decimal as well) C. Significant Figures • Zeros to the right of the decimal point are significant. 20.0 has 3 sf. • A bar placed above a zero indicates all digits including one with bar and those to the left of it are significant. 210 has 3 sf. • When a number ends in zero and has a decimal point, all digits to the left of the decimal pt. are significant. 110. has 3 sf. C. Significant Figures • Exact Numbers do not limit the # of sig figs in the answer. • Counting numbers: 12 students • Exact conversions: 1 m = 100 cm • “1” in any conversion: 1 in = 2.54 cm • Constants – such as gravity 9.8 m/s2 or speed of light 3.00 m/s • Number that is part of an equation (for example area of triangle 1/2bh) • So, sig fig rules do not apply in these cases!!!!! C. Significant Figures • Zeros that are not significant are still used • They are called “placeholders” • Example – • 5280 ~ The zero tells us we have something in the thousands • 0.08 ~ The zeros tell us we have something in the hundredths C. Significant Figures Counting Sig Fig Examples 1. 23.50 1. 23.50 4 sig figs 3 sig figs 2. 402 2. 402 3. 5,280 3. 5,280 3 sig figs 2 sig figs 4. 0.080 4. 0.080 Significant Figures - Basics • Independent practice – Problem Set 1 link 3 SF C. Significant Figures • Calculating with Sig Figs • Multiplying / Dividing - The number with the fewestsig figs determines the number of sig figs in the answer. (13.91g/cm3)(23.3cm3) = 324.103g 3 SF 4 SF 324g C. Significant Figures • Calculating with Sig Figs • Adding / Subtracting - The number with the fewest number of decimals determines the place of the last sig fig in the answer. • If there are no decimals, go to least sig figs. 224 g + 130 g 354 g 224 g + 130 g 354 g 3.75 mL + 4.1 mL 7.85 mL 3.75 mL + 4.1 mL 7.85 mL 350 g 7.9 mL 5. (15.30 g) ÷ (6.4 mL) 2.4 g/mL 2 SF C. Significant Figures Practice Problems 2 SF 4 SF = 2.390625 g/mL 6. 18.9 g - 0.84 g 18.1 g 18.06 g C. Significant Figures • One more rule…. • Be sure you maintain the proper units • For example – you can’t add centimeters and kilometers without converting them to the same scale first • 1 m = 100 cm • 4.5 cm + 10 m = 4.5 cm + 1000 cm = 1004.5 cm 1005 cm C. Significant Figures • When adding and subtracting numbers in scientific notations: • You must change them so that they all have the same exponent (usually best to change to largest exponent) • Then add or subtract • Round answer appropriately according to proper significant figure rules • Put answer in correct scientific notation C. Significant Figures • When multiplying numbers in scientific notations: • Multiply coefficients, then add the exponents • When dividing numbers in scientific notations: • Divide coefficients, then subtract the exponents • For Both • Round answer appropriately according to proper significant figure rules • Put answer in correct scientific notation C. Significant Figures • Exception to Rule • The rule is suspended when the result will be part of another calculation. • For intermediate results, one extra significant figure should be carried to minimize errors in subsequent calculations.
How Old Can Dogs Have Puppies? Dogs are known for being loyal and loving companions. Many dog owners consider breeding their pets to continue their lineage or simply because they love puppies. However, it is essential to understand that not all dogs are suitable for breeding, and there is an appropriate age for dogs to have puppies. The age at which dogs can have puppies can vary depending on their breed and overall health. Generally, female dogs reach sexual maturity between six and twelve months of age. However, it is not advisable to breed dogs at such a young age, as their bodies are not fully developed yet. Breeding a dog too early can lead to complications during pregnancy and delivery. On the other hand, waiting too long to breed a dog also comes with risks. As dogs age, their fertility decreases, and they become more prone to health issues. It is generally recommended to breed female dogs between the ages of two and five. By this time, they have reached full maturation and are less likely to experience complications. Here are some frequently asked questions about the age at which dogs can have puppies: 1. Can small dog breeds have puppies earlier than larger breeds? Yes, small dog breeds tend to reach sexual maturity earlier than larger breeds. However, it is still not recommended to breed them until they are fully grown. 2. Is there an age limit for male dogs to breed? Male dogs can father puppies throughout their entire lives. However, their sperm quality may decline as they age, resulting in a decreased ability to impregnate females. 3. Can a dog have puppies after the age of five? While it is possible for a dog to have puppies after the age of five, it is not advisable. The risks of complications during pregnancy and delivery increase as dogs age. 4. What are the risks of breeding a dog too young? Breeding a dog too young can lead to stunted growth, malnutrition, and difficulties during pregnancy and delivery. 5. Are there health risks associated with breeding older dogs? Yes, older dogs are more prone to health issues such as complications during pregnancy, reduced fertility, and higher chances of genetic abnormalities in puppies. 6. Should female dogs be spayed after a certain age to prevent pregnancies? It is recommended to spay female dogs if they are not intended for breeding. Spaying can help prevent unwanted pregnancies, as well as reduce the risk of certain health issues, such as uterine infections and mammary tumors. 7. How many litters can a dog have in her lifetime? Ideally, a dog should only have a limited number of litters to ensure her health and well-being. Breeding dogs responsibly means considering their overall health and not overburdening them with repeated pregnancies. In conclusion, the appropriate age for dogs to have puppies is between two and five years. Breeding dogs too early or too late can lead to various health complications. Responsible dog breeding involves considering the well-being of both the mother and the puppies. Always consult with a veterinarian before deciding to breed your dog to ensure the best possible outcome.
New Zealand has much to be proud of in its gender equality record, and with the marking on Monday this week of International Women's Day, there is cause for celebration. In the most recent Global Gender Gap Report of the Geneva-based non-profit World Economic Forum, New Zealand is ranked fifth out of 134 countries in an index that assesses countries on how well they are dividing their resources and opportunities among their male and female populations - regardless of the overall levels of these resources and Ahead of it are Iceland, Finland, Norway and Sweden, with South Africa at six and Denmark at seven. Lagging behind are those countries with which New Zealand likes to benchmark itself in such international surveys: the United Kingdom (15th), Australia (20th), Canada (25th) and the United States (31st). So, on the face of things, the country is doing well and surely only curmudgeons and unreconstructed feminists would New Zealand was the first country to give women the vote - in 1893 - and has been among those enlightened countries setting the equity agenda ever since. Such generalisations can be misleading. Challenges set down in a report on the status of women's rights, distributed this week for public consultation by the Human Rights Commission, suggest why unduly enthusiastic self-congratulation might be said to be premature. These include poverty for women, violence against women and female representation in public life. "Women are one and a-half times more likely than men to live in a household with a total annual income of $30,000 or less," the report says, while noting that 75% of people with income over $75,000 are men. Figures for gender-based violence come in various forms, but most note a serious bias towards women as victims of it. In New York last week, Minister of Women's Affairs Pansy Wong told the United Nations' 54th session of the Commission on the Status of Women that "we deeply regret that we have not made greater progress in combating violence against women. In New Zealand, one in five women will be subjected to violence in their lifetime, compared to one in 20 men." Women's Refuge puts that proportion - in the more specific context of domestic violence - as high as one in three, and notes that in 2009 the organisation received 52,739 "crisis Campaigns have been mounted to increase awareness of the issue of domestic violence - notably the Campaign for Action on Family Violence-sponsored "It's Not OK!" promotion - but there has been little publicity about public representation. This may be a legacy of having had, in recent years, a highly visible quotient of women in prominent public positions, from prime ministers Jenny Shipley and Helen Clark to Chief Justice Dame Sian Elias, Governor-General Dame Silvia Cartwright, to Speaker of the House Margaret Wilson and Telecom CEO Theresa Gattung. While women in politics and the judiciary have made gains in recent years - there are still imbalances - the glass ceiling to the nation's boardrooms appears to remain firmly in place and largely opaque to the aspirations and contributions of A survey conducted by the New Zealand Human Rights Commission, released in 2008, showed that 60 top-100 companies on the stock exchange had no women on their boards, and in total only 8.65% of total directorships for those Does it matter, and if so why? In his speech marking this year's International Women's Day, United Nations Secretary-general Ban Ki-moon stated that gender equality was a matter "of basic human rights", but, further, that it was an economic and social imperative. "Until women and girls are liberated from poverty and injustice, all our goals - peace, security, sustainable development - stand in jeopardy," he said. Likewise, most New Zealanders will agree that while any amount of domestic violence is unhealthy, the disproportionate amount directed at women is unacceptable. There are also compelling arguments for enhancing the numbers and roles of women in business and public life - including that we are simply too small and under-resourced a nation to be able to squander the demonstrable talents of half the population - and for looking closely at gender-weighted poverty and pay gaps. By most international measures, New Zealand does extremely well in gender equality, but when women's lives are forensically surveyed, it is clear that there is little room And another thing As the 11th iD Fashion Week kicks off, congratulations are in order for all those involved, from the tireless organising committee to the designers themselves, the all-important sponsors - without whom the week would not exist - and the members of the public who contribute by supporting the This has become a trademark event on the Dunedin calendar, showcasing the city's abundance of talent and underlining its creative culture and heritage. Long may it continue.
There are lot of activities in sea which gives us fun and helps us enjoy. We consider seas as an interesting spot but it can be a dangerous place and can cause a lot of damage if you come across some of the deadly animals. If the dangerous creatures of sea are provoked they can smash up swimmers, divers and people on the coastal areas. This article will show us some of the furious and feared, from deadliest to venomous predators of the sea. So here we provide you with the top ten deadliest sea creatures which can cause you a serious harm: 10) Sea Lion: Sea lions are considered to be cute animal. They can be easily trained and many became the stars in zoo. But the cuteness of this animal fades away in the sea as sea lion attacks often on human beings. In 2006, United States and California reported few cases of attacks at Manhattan Beach, San Francisco and Newport. Some of the local scientist there predicted that the behavior of sea lion is erratic and can rapidly become destructive. 9) Lion Fish: Lionfish is the part of the ‘Scorpion fish’ family. It is believed to be one of the most attractive and beautiful fish in the sea. They have very large and separated spines which gives away majestic air. But don’t let the good gaze fool you. Although the sting of lion fish is not deadly but it can give you painful attack by inserting its venom into human being. Poison can cause vomiting, headaches and respiratory problems. These symptoms can last for weeks. These fish are generally found in Eastern Atlantic and Caribbean Sea. 8) Puffer Fish: This fat bodied Puffer fish contains a deadly poison or toxin called as Tetrodotoxin (TTX). This toxin is more powerful than cyanide and cause difficulty in breathing before leading to death. A single puffer fish contains enough toxins to easily kill more than 30 human. In Japan these fish are considered as delicate in spite of the fact that one cut by these can certainly cause death. In Japan this fish is served as a delicious meal after removing the poison. 7) Stone Fish: There are two most important reasons behind its danger. First is that it is the world’s top most toxic fish. Second reason is that since its body is in stone shape so it can easily hide among rocks underwater, thus adding to the danger. The size of this fish is small approximately 12 inches. The dorsal area of the fish is creased wish thirteen spines which release toxin that causes severe pain, temporary paralysis, tissue death and can even lead to death if medical attention is not provided. Swelling and excruciating pain remains for months even after treatment. They are generally found above Tropic of Capricorn and in Indo-Pacific Ocean. 6) Chrionex or Box jellyfish: Box jellyfish is one among the largest jellyfish. They are also referred as ‘sea wasp’ or ‘marine stinger’. They have a bell which can grow as large as a soccer ball. Each end of the bell contains 15 tentacles. These fish are very popular as they have the ability to kill a person within 4 minutes of attack. It is faster than any type of snake. Sting from box jellyfish can cause intense pain and is often links to brutal effects on heart and nervous system of victim. Applying vinegar can prevent from nematocyst. Anti-venom for this type of jellyfish does not exist making the above and other natural methods important. They are generally transparent in nature therefore one cannot see them coming. Hence, making it the most dangerous fish. Most of the people die not because of the sting but from the deadly shock caused by the excruciating pain. These are generally found in Northern Australia and a single jellyfish can kill 60 people.. So the divers there should be very careful while diving. 5) Tiger shark: Although the tiger shark is not as large as great white shark but they can be around 4 meters long and can weigh up to tons. They are often known for their eating habit of old materials which can include seal, birds, small sharks, squid, dolphins, fish and even tiers can be demolished by their sharp pointed tooth. These are next to great white shark when it comes to fatal attacks. The reason behind this fact is those tiger sharks are generally found closer to shore as compared to white shark. Also these are found in greater number. They are often found in tropical areas. Severity of the attack of this creature was found on 4 September 2006 when Steve Irwin was attacked by one. Steve Irwin was a biologist and host of Crocodile Hunter. The incident shocked the world and became international headline. The majority of incidents with this specie occur when divers, swimmers or cameraman steps on them making it a defensive attack by their side. These creature possesses a tail of spear shape and contains lot of toxins that can be stabbed into human and can cause heart failure. 3) Sea Snake: Although these snakes are not very aggressive but the amount of toxic it can transfer on biting spots them into most dangerous and deadliest sea creature. They resemble between an eel and a land snake. The prime difference between an eel and a sea snake is that sea snakes do not have gills. Also they need to return to top of surface for exchange of air. They can have length up to 4 to 5 feet. Some species can also reach up to 10 feet. These snakes are highly venomous and can be fatal to us. They are usually quiet unless provoked. The bite can cause paralyses and cardiac arrest within eleven hours of attack. These creature are generally found in warm waters in Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean. 2) Saltwater Crocodile and Alligators: They have the reputation of most ferocious predators in world. Alligators and saltwater crocodiles are exceptionally lethal because of their length which can be up to 17 feet and their weight of over 1500 kilo grams. They prowl under water and wait for the meal so that they can drag them to death. They wait under marshes and other murky surface for the varieties of prey which includes kangaroos, shark, buffalo, monkeys, and even human beings. Since they have great power they twist the prey under water and paralyze it. Primary difference between behaviour of alligators and crocodiles to great white shark is that great white shark generally attacks for feeding purpose but both alligators and crocodile remain aggressive all time and hunt humans at territories. Attack on small boats or canoes are often reported. It is advised to speak to locals of the area about marshes and sea before diving. 1) Great White Shark: They are at the top of ocean’s food chain. This exceptionally large creature is found all around the world. It is listed as one of the most furious and dangerous animal in ocean and they eat anything. These sharks have amazingly strong jaw which is embellished with more impressive razor sharp teeth. They can be up to 6 meters in length making them as the largest and deadliest predators on list. Their nature are often misunderstood as they attack human only when they are hunting for food or if they are provoked, which is a basic instinct for every living organism.
Beyond the Textbook: Exploring American History Beyond the Textbook: Exploring American History (Beyond) will help teachers in New York's Lower Hudson Valley to rediscover the practice of historical inquiry; the grant's service area includes a middle school in need of improvement, and the history teachers there will be especially encouraged to participate. Each year, participating teachers will engage in professional development that helps them explore historical topics and methods in depth: an October kick-off event during which participants are assigned to small-group learning communities and receive the year's readings, two full-day in-service workshops and one after-school workshop on content and pedagogy, a 5-day summer institute featuring lectures and collaborative lesson development, two independent assignments, and two day-long field trips. All activities will be aligned to the Beyond blueprint, a description of the ideal history classroom that is based on the Concerns-Based Adoption Model. A program Wiki will enable teachers to participate in threaded discussions about their independent reading assignments. A single cohort of 50 teachers will take part in the program for all five years. Topics for each year will be aligned to state history standards, and the thematic focus will be on unraveling the tangled issues of history, such as the confluence of personal, racial, cultural, and societal forces that produced the Peekskill Riots of 1949. Teachers will learn to make history relevant to young people through the use of primary source documents, historical inquiry, debates, Socratic seminars, and technology tools. A project Web site will feature recordings of content presentations, teacher-developed lessons, and pictures and handouts from content and pedagogy sessions.
Healthy Tips: Eat vitamine A for for healthy eyesight Did you know that vitamin A is important for healthy eyesight? There is a lot of vitamin A in orange coloured fruits and vegetables such as mango, pawpaw, and pumpkin as well as in leafy greens. Stat of the week: Food nutrients contained in Pacific food Taro leaves contain 5.7g of dietary fibre per 100g. Eating a variety of foods high in fibre has a protective effect against colon cancer and helps to control your weight. Are you interested to know the nutrient composition of some other common Pacific… Healthy Tips: Aim to eat from each food group at every meal Aim to eat from each food group at every meal. Your meal should contain food from the 3 food groups: Energy, body building and protective foods. Fill half your plate with vegetables and remember that one plate is enough. Find out more here. Healthy Tips: Send your children back to school with healthy lunches Send your children back to school with healthy lunches. Be sure to make use of locally available produce. Don't forget to remind them to keep practising proper handwashing. Find out more about nutrition on the Public Health Division's website. Meet Elisiva Na’ati – Non- Communicable Disease Adviser, Public Health Division - SPC Working with people living with diabetes and having worked with them to change their diet and to see their joy in their achievements and improvement in their diabetes control, is always rewarding! SPC Food Systems for Health and Nutrition Integrated Programme successfully completes online design workshop series Participants of the Food Systems for Health and Nutrition integrated programme workshop series on Zoom. (Ed Boydell) Pacific Community announces the results of the Pacific Healthy Recipe Contest The Pacific Community’s (SPC) Public Health Division launched a recipe contest in February this year to promote healthy eating and to encourage the use of local ingredients. It is important to promote healthy, locally sourced recipes with reduced levels… The Pacific Community launches the Pacific Healthy Recipe Contest The Pacific Community (SPC) is calling for contestants to join the Pacific Healthy Recipe Contest and showcase their cooking skills and creativity to promote healthy eating and prevention of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). World Diabetes Day 2017 - Statement by the Pacific Community Director-General, Dr Colin Tukuitonga On 14 November, the Pacific Community (SPC) joins the world in commemorating World Diabetes Day (WDD). The theme of WDD 2017 is ‘Women and diabetes – our right to a healthy future’. This year’s campaign promotes the importance of affordable and equitable… Pacific Nutrition Bingo promotes healthy eating The Pacific Community (SPC) has released its latest version of Pacific Nutrition Bingo, a fun educational tool to promote healthy eating and combat the serious threat of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in the region. Released in the lead up to World…
Strengthening Skeletons With Age: The Bone-Boosting Benefits of Sprint and Impact Training From facilitating movement and allowing us to stand upright without dissolving into a puddle on the floor to forming new blood cells, the 206 bones that make up the human skeleton perform a wide variety of functions that are vital to maintaining life as we know it. Our bones are constantly being remodeled — meaning, aged bone tissue is removed or resorbed, and new bone tissue takes its place to maintain skeletal integrity. Although this is a lifelong and ongoing process, the balance of bone remodeling changes as we grow older. These age-related alterations cause a loss of bone mineralization and density in older adults — eventually leading to the highly prevalent bone disease called osteoporosis. However, new research out of Finland finds that older adults can prevent this typical bone deterioration by participating in regular strength and impact training, even well into their 80s. As the authors of this paper state, “If intense strength and impact training is maintained on a regular basis from midlife to late adulthood, it could attenuate the aging-related deterioration of bone structure and strength to ultimately reduce the risk of osteopenia [the precursor to osteoporosis] and osteoporosis.” The Benefits of Bone-Bearing Exercise As bones become more brittle with age, the skeletal system cannot fully support the body, leading to fractures, falls, and frailty, with decreased independence and quality of life. And, bone strength begins to decline earlier than most would imagine, dropping by about 1% per year beginning at age 40. In our younger years, the bone is highly adaptable and responsive to exercise. It has been previously thought that aged adult bones don’t retain this plasticity, leading to osteoporotic decline. Many older adults — even ones who were highly active in their earlier life — cease or dwindle their exercise routines as they advance in age, whether from pain, fatigue, lack of mobility, or perceived inability, which can further the imbalance of bone remodeling. It’s well-known that high-intensity exercises, like strength, jumping, and sprint training, are beneficial to maintaining bone health and remodeling. Known as weight-bearing or bone-bearing exercise, these activities put additional stress on the bones. Although this sounds detrimental, the added stress actually helps bones to stimulate calcium deposition and encourage bone-forming cells to create more, resulting in stronger and denser bones. A Longitudinal Look at Bone Health Despite this knowledge of bone-bearing exercise’s benefits, there have not been any long-term studies that look at whether or not these activities can mitigate the age-related bone loss that leads to osteoporosis. In this study, Suominen and colleagues followed several aspects of bone health in a group of 69 male adults over 10 years. The men, who ranged in age from 40 to 85, were previous or current sprint athletes with long-term training and background in national sprint competitions. At the beginning of the 10-year follow-up period, all of the men were actively training and competing. To tease out the differences between those who maintained their exercise habits as they aged, the research team split them into two groups. First, the “well-trained” men were actively competing and undergoing two or more strength, sprint, or impact training sessions per week within the last year of the study. The second group, the “less-trained” men, were retired from sprint competing and were solely doing endurance exercises, or none at all. The researchers split the groups this way because it’s thought that sprint training, which combines running, jumping, and strength exercises, provides the strongest foundation for maintaining bone mass and structural integrity with age. Sprinting Their Way to Stronger Bones Suominen and colleagues measured bone properties by computed tomography (CT scans, or computerized x-rays), looking primarily at the tibia. Also known as the shinbone, the tibia is often studied in exercise research because it shows a typical decline in strength with age. At the end of the 10-year follow-up period, the well-trained group exhibited significantly higher levels of bone mineral content and density in their tibial bones. While the well-trained men maintained these bone measurements over 10 years, the less-trained showed losses of tibial bone mineral content, density, and compressive bone strength index, ranging from -3-6%. The researchers also split the well-trained men into two age groups, finding that men aged 65 to 85 had more pronounced structural improvements in their tibial bones. This suggests that the continued strength and sprint training may be more effective for preserving bone in older age, compared to the middle-aged men in the 40- to 64-year-old group. In all of the well-trained men, the beneficial effects of training were most pronounced in the trabecular bone — the light, porous, spongy bone that gives bones their honeycombed appearance. As the primary function of trabecular bone is to provide strength and transfer the load away from the joints, it makes sense that impact training would strengthen or maintain this part of the bone. The researchers speculate that not only does this type of training benefit bones directly, but it also further strengthens bones from the effects of training on increasing muscle mass and power through complex muscle-bone interactions. Staying Strong Through the Decades Normal aging can create limitations on training and exercise tolerance, including reduced mobility and recovery, leading many older adults to perceive themselves as unable to maintain their training intensity. However, the researchers urge the continuation of strength, impact, or sprint training with age, as this study finds it can prevent bone deterioration and, with it, reduce the risk of osteoporosis. This research also supports the theory of aging bones retaining their adaptability and plasticity, highlighting the importance of regular, intensive training for maintaining bone health. "Although the intensive training of the athletes as such is not possible for all aging people, strength and power training is highly recommended at all ages, regardless of the functional status," Suominen says. "In the present study, the benefits of high-impact training were most evident among middle-aged while strength training may be effective in preserving bone in older populations. Muscle strength and power are highly important also in preventing falls and related fractures." Suominen, T.H., et al. (2021) Regular Strength and Sprint Training Counteracts Bone Aging: A 10-Year Follow-Up in Male Masters Athletes. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research. doi.org/10.1002/jbm4.10513.
"Biomass: Any organic matter that is available on a renewable or recurring basis, including agricultural crops and trees, wood and wood residues, plants (including aquatic plants), grasses, animal residues, municipal residues, and other residue materials." - the Bioenergy Feedstock Information Network, managed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory Biomass has been used as a source of energy for thousands of years, helping to make human development as we know it possible. Today, we use bioenergy in myriad ways from creating electricity on a large scale to providing warmth and something to cook over around a simple campfire. Along that scale are new kinds of combustion equipment that compete with the best fossil fuel-fired equipment in terms of high efficiency and low emissions (see Comparing Combustion Equipment and other pages in our Heating with Wood section), with the advantage of being very low net carbon—because even though wood is almost 100% carbon-based, trees are part of the natural carbon cycle. In a sustainable cycle, when a dead tree rots or is burned, the carbon released is recaptured by other trees. This is in stark contrast to fossil fuels, which represent decomposed plants and animals that died millions of years ago and have been turned into liquid and solid matter such as oil, gas, and coal, which we have been extracting at rates that are not sustainable—simply put, using these "fossil fuels" through the industrial revolution to today has put far more carbon into the atmosphere than trees (or other biomass) can absorb. Which is why, if used responsibly, keeping emissions low and making sure we allow for more growth than harvest, bioenergy is considered an important part of the solution to climate change. Last updated July 12, 2021
News about space There are many news about space recently: - Chinese rover analyzes moon rocks: First new ‘ground truth’ in 40 years - Our first view of a black hole Newly landmark research published in science from NASA, which took place from 2015-2016, reveals some interesting, surprising and reassuring data about how one human body adapted to -- and recovered from -- the extreme environment of space, 11th April. What’s NASA's landmark Twins Study? Identical twin astronauts, Scott and Mark Kelly, are subjects of NASA’s Twins Study. Scott (right) spent a year in space while Mark (left) stayed on Earth as a control subject. Researchers looked at the effects of space travel on the human body. What Scott has experienced in space for 340 days? Telomeres: The ends of each strand of DNA (also known as deoxyribonucleic acid; a nucleic acid in the cell’s chromosomes, containing the cell’s coded genetic instructions) have special features called telomeres. Scott experienced a change in telomere length dynamics during spaceflight and within days of landing. Results from this investigation may help to evaluate general health and identify potential long-term risks. Immunome: Scott received three flu vaccines, each one year apart; first on Earth, second in space (the first time an astronaut was given a vaccine while in space), and third back on Earth. This study found that Scott’s body reacted appropriately to the vaccine. This is a significant finding because it allows NASA to have greater confidence that the immune system responds appropriately in space, should a vaccine ever be needed, during long-duration missions. Gene Expression: Samples taken before, during and after Scott’s mission in space revealed some changes in gene expression. Mark also experienced normal-range changes in gene expression on Earth, but not the same changes as Scott. Changes Scott experienced may have been associated with his lengthy stay in space. Most of these changes (about 91.3%) reverted to baseline after he returned to Earth; however, a small subset persisted after six months. Some observed DNA damage is believed to be a result of radiation exposure. Gene expression data corroborated and supported other findings in the Twins Study, including the body’s response to DNA damage, telomere regulation, bone formation and immune system stress. These findings help demonstrate how a human body was able to adapt to the extreme environment of space and help researchers better understand how environmental stressors influence the activity of different genes, leading to a better understanding of physiological processes in space. The unique aspects of the Twins Study created the opportunity for innovative genomics research, propelling NASA into an area of space travel research involving a field of study known as "omics," which integrates multiple biological disciplines. Long-term effects of research, such as the ongoing telomeres investigation, will continue to be studied. Twin studies provide a way for scientists to explore how our health is impacted by the environment around us, independent of the physical variations that naturally occur between most of us as individuals. Scott provided a test case to measure in space, and Mark provided a baseline test case to compare those measurements on Earth. Original title：NASA's landmark Twins Study reveals resilience of human body in space
EcoloxTech Water Disinfection The EcoloxTech 1200 Electrolyzer can disinfect water on-site and on-demand from just salt, water, and electricity. How much water can it disinfect? Each system can generate enough free available chlorine in the form of hypochlorous acid to disinfect 200 Liters of water per minute. The systems can be stacked to disinfect any volume of water How does it work? The EcoloxTech 1200 Electrolyzer generates a mixed oxidant solution primarily composed of hypochlorous acid ) but also other powerful oxidants such as ozone and chlorine dioxide. Hypochlorous acid is a powerful oxidant that is stable in solution that can kill microbial pathogens immediately upon contact by damaging cell walls and disrupting internal proteins, lipids, and DNA. Has it been researched? In the last 30 years we have collected over 300 published research articles supporting the use of Electrolyzed Oxidizing Water for disinfection. Nearly every common bacteria has been studied as well as . To learn more please visit our and search by to find applicable research. What about EPA regulation? Because electrolytically generated hypochlorous acid is a free chlorine molecule, it falls under the Safe Water Drinking Act (42 U.S.C. 300f et seq. 1974) which allows for a free chlorine concentration of up to 4 ppm. Cooling towers provide ideal environments for microbial pathogens such as Legionella to grow. Legionella can easily grow in cooling tower water, especially if algae and scale are present. Legionella is dispersed with aerosolized drift or with the evaporate and may also enter the air-conditioning system if there is a break between the ducts of the cooling tower and evaporative condenser. Inhalation of small particles of contaminated water (aerosols) is a common method of spread of Legionella. The Legionella microbes reach the lungs and then produce disease. The EcoloxTech 1200 Electrolyzer can maintain water disinfection by recirculating the water to generate an electrolyzed water (hypochlorous acid ). Electrolyzed water, also called superoxidized water, is a mixed oxidant solution primarily composed of hypochlorous acid . By recirculating through the electrolyzer, the cooling tower water can be maintained with a free chlorine concentration of 4 ppm. The EcoloxTech 1200 Electrolyzer is a compact system that uses patented electrolysis cells to generate a stable molecule of hypochlorous acid with just salt, water, and electricity. The system can disinfect up to 200 liters of water a minute using as little electricity as that of four standard light bulbs.
The IgG ELISA Food Intolerance Test Better Control of Health's IgG ELISA Food Intolerance Test utilizes the ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay) method to detect circulating IgG (Immunoglobulin G) antibodies, which recognize and bind to food antigens. The ELISA method is used extensively in immunology and biochemistry. The technique has been shown to be reliable and reproducible in detecting a variety of antibodies and antigens of clinical importance. In the ELISA method, food antigens are immobilized on to the surface of polystyrene micro-titre plates. To protect the unstable antigens, the micro-wells are then further coated with a stabilizing polymer layer, which is dried on top of the food antigens. Additionally, our food extracts are obtained from FDA approved sources to ensure the highest quality extracts and lot-to-lot reproducibility. The coating levels of the extracts have been optimized for sensitivity to ensure the reactions identified are real rather than false positive reactions (something which plagues other competing tests). The measurement of food antibody levels depends on the ability of the patient's food antibodies to attach themselves specifically to the food antigen. After the antibody has bound to the antigen, the micro-titre plates are rinsed to remove other antibodies and blood constituents. The food antibodies are then detected using a second antibody which is chemically tagged with an enzyme. The enzyme causes a color to develop at the end of the process. The color density obtained is an accurate indication of the original anti-food antibody concentration in the patients blood sample. The color produced by calibrated antibody reference standards is compared with the patient's result, allowing the laboratory to accurately estimate the amount of each food antibody. The laboratory then interprets the results and places each food in the relevant category of "no reaction", "rotate" or "avoid". A positive control sample is always included in each test to confirm that the assay system is working correctly. The "Finger-Stick" Method Just as different facilities have different qualities of tests, so do they have different specimen requirements. Some laboratories in the food intolerance industry require 1-3 full tubes of whole blood while others might require as little as less than 1cc of a blood specimen. Better Control of Health made the painstaking effort to introduce to the USA the IgG ELISA food intolerance "finger-stick" technology in the late 1990's, which is now recognized internationally. Here is how it works: Step # 1: The patient's hands are washed with warm water and dried thoroughly.* Step # 2: The area where the blood specimen will be collected is further sterilized with the provided alcohol swab. (Note: Many medical professionals report the side of the tip of ether the finger or thumb as being an ideal location to have the blood specimen collected from.)* Step # 3: Twist the cap of the provided lancet off. (Refer to step-by-step illustrated instructions included with the kit.) Step # 4: The opened lancet is firmly pressed against the area to be "pricked". The end of the lancet (plunger) is quickly depressed so to deploy the sterile device, which will "prick" the finger or thumb. (Note: Each lancet is used only once per individual and for a single specimen collection.) Step # 5: The finger or thumb is massaged from the base and worked up to the area "pricked". This forms a small droplet of blood, which is collected for testing. Step # 6: The fiber pad on the end of the small collection strip is a proprietary, detergent-coated material; which preserves the specimen in a "dry" state until it can be received for analysis. Place the fiber pad against the blood on the finger or thumb. The blood will be absorbed into the pad. The pad MUST be completely colored "red" from end to end in order for the test to be performed. Step # 7: After air drying, the soaked pad is then inserted into the provided transportation package, which is included with the kit. The patient's name is clearly written to the outside of the transportation package as it appears written on the required paperwork, which is also included with the kit. Step # 8: Everything is then shipped in the provided postage-paid return mailer. * Note: Please fully review the illustrated, step-by-step instructions included in the kit before performing the above steps. All that is now left to do is to have the US Postal Service deliver your specimen. Once your specimen has been processed, the results will be sent directly to you along with your Optimum Health Resource Guidebook. Additionally, anyone whose specimen is screened through our facility for IgG-mediated food allergy (food intolerance) is provided 12 months of complimentary telephone and email support at no additional cost! You can order your very own at-home, finger-stick 96-Food IgG ELISA Food Intolerance Test HERE. Content © 1999-2014
Researchers at Queen’s University Belfast, Northern Ireland, designed a wireless antenna that channels signals along human skin could broadcast signals over your body to connect up medical implants or portable gadgets. The new power-efficient approach could make more of established medical devices like pacemakers or help future implants distributed around the body work together. Skin-tenna works by taking advantage of the creeping wave effect that allows waves to travel along a surface, due to mismatches between the air and the surface, and allows wireless devices (like pacemakers) to communicate more efficiently with devices anywhere on the body. Signals are channeled out sideways along the skin by this reflection and the conducting plate. That makes the antenna more efficient, which could double the battery life of body-worn gadgets. - What Happens in an Internet Minute? - Microsoft Acquires Nokia’s Devices & Services Business - Facebook launches Internet.org Initiative To Connect The Unconnected World - Google Glasses: Specs And Other Details - What Will The World Look Like When We Connect The Unconnected, Internet Of Everything Info-graphic By Cisco CategoriesApple Astronomy Biology Blackberry Cloud Computers Digital Camera Embedded Energy Fiction First Future Gadgets Google GPhone Ideas Innovative Internet iPhone Laptop Life Linux Microsoft Mobile Linux Mobiles Networking Nokia Open Source OS Research Science Science Fiction Services Sky Smart Phone Software Space Storage Super Computing Technology Telecoms Tips & Tricks Trends Video Windows
(Greek ρεύμα, rheuma, flowing current) is a sub-specialty in internal medicine, devoted to diagnosis and therapy of rheumatic diseases. Physicians who specialize in rheumatology are A physician who specializes in the field of medical sub-specialty called rheumatology. A rheumatologist holds a board certification after specialized training after attaining a medical degree (M.D. or D.O.) through fellowship programs in the United States, or specialist registrar positions in the United Kingdom, or DM in India or equivalent programs elsewhere in the world. In the United States, training in this field requires four years undergraduate school, four years of medical school, and then three years of residency, followed by two or three years additional Fellowship training. Rheumatologists are internists who are qualified by additional postgraduate training and experience in the diagnosis and treatment of arthritis and other diseases of the joints, muscles and bones. Many Rheumatologists also conduct research to determine the cause and better treatments for these disabling and sometimes fatal diseases. Rheumatologists treat arthritis, autoimmune diseases, pain disorders affecting joints, and osteoporosis. There are more than 200 types of these diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, gout, lupus, back pain, osteoporosis, and tendinitis. Some of these are very serious diseases that can be difficult to diagnose and treat. They treat soft tissue problems related to musculoskeletal system sports related soft tissue disorders. Diseases & Conditions Diseases diagnosed or managed by a rheumatologist: Systemic conditions and connective tissue diseases: The modification date for all health, and medical content on this page was last updated, and checked on May 12th, 2018 PST U.S.A.
1) Meaning of Fraud : Fraud means dishonestly making a false (untrue or misleading) representation with a view to gain or with intention to cause loss. If the fraud results in injury to the deceived party, he/ she may claim damages for the tort of deceit. A contract obtained by fraud is voidable on the grounds of fraudulent misrepresentation. 2) Definition of Fraud : Section 17 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872 defines Fraud - “Fraud” means and includes any of the following acts committed by a party to a contract, or with his connivance, or by his agents, with intent to deceive another party thereto his agent, or to induce him to enter into the contract; (1) the suggestion as a fact, of that which is not true, by one who does not believe it to be true; (2) the active concealment of a fact by one having knowledge or belief of the fact; (3) a promise made without any intention of performing it; (4) any other act fitted to deceive; (5) any such act or omission as the law specially declares to be fraudulent. Mere silence as to facts likely to affect the willingness of a person to enter into a contract is not fraud, unless the circumstances of the case are such that, regard being had to them, it is the duty of the person keeping silence to speak, or unless his silence, is, in itself, equivalent to speech. (a) A sells, by auction, to B, a horse which A knows to be unsound. A says nothing to B about the horse’s unsoundness. This is not fraud in A. (b) B is A’s daughter and has just come of age. Here the relation between the parties would make it A’s duty to tell B if the horse is unsound. (c) B says to A—‘‘If you do not deny it, I shall assume that the horse is sound”. A says nothing. Here, A’s silence is equivalent to speech. (d) A and B, being traders, enter upon a contract. A has private information of a change in prices which would affect B’s willingness to proceed with the contract. A is not bound to inform B 3) Essential Elements of Fraud - a) False statement of true facts b) Active Concealment of Facts c) Promise without intention to perform it. d) Any other act fitted to deceive e) Any act or omission which the law declares or fraudulent.
This sentence, when I first saw it in an IBM manual, totally confused me. "What is the point," I asked myself, "of having this sentence? Of course I can see that the page is blank. What's more, doesn't the sentence actually contradict itself, because the page really ISN'T blank anymore?" Then I thought about it some more, and realized that they had a reason for printing that message: they didn't want people to think they had "messed up" by forgetting to print material on that page. The material from the previous page DID really end on that page, and the material on the following page DOES really start there. In other words, they were saying, "It's OK, we know what we're doing, and we didn't make a mistake here." When working with your customers, having credibility with them and gaining their trust is critical. If they have questions about your ability, or if they're nervous about what you're asking them to do, they will resist. In that case, your time to resolve the problem ticket will increase, and your productivity will decline. Think to yourself, "Where might the customer have a problem or be nervous about my instructions?" It may be helpful to remember what Sun Tzu wrote in his classic book "The Art of War": "If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles." Your general approach, when giving instructions in this area, is to emphasize that you know what you're doing and you know why the customer might be nervous. For example, - A customer attached a file to an e-mail message, but now wants to dis-attach it. In stepping the customer through the process, and if it's applicable, say to the customer, "Now just be aware that when you press the 'delete' key, all you're doing is preventing the file from being sent along with the note. That file still exists on your computer. It's not being deleted even though you're pressing the 'delete' key." - A customer is calling about a new release of a particular application. In working with that customer, be aware of key differences from the earlier release, and emphasize that awareness. You might say, for example, "Yes, I know that in that earlier release, you had to do [x]. However, in this release, you now have to do [y]. That was a major change." - A customer is calling about Windows updates. Think about saying something like, "Yes, EVEN IF your virus definitions are current, you STILL need those Windows updates." When you talk with customers this way, you gain their trust and show your awareness of their situation. Questions or comments: e-mail me at firstname.lastname@example.org Calvin Sun is an attorney who writes about technology and legal issues for TechRepublic.
The country was young in 1812, but Louisiana had already been around for a while. Although we achieved statehood only on April 30, 1812, we had been a colony under France from 1699-1763 and Spain from 1763-1803. With the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, of course, Louisiana became an American possession. Although it was rough going at first, with the Louisiana Catholic French and Spanish Creole culture colliding with the Americans, we all pulled together when the country went to war. In many ways, America gained its identity as a nation during the War of 1812. Certainly, that’s when our “song” was written– what later became our national anthem, The Star Spangled Banner. This week, we get to relive those events of 200 years ago, when the very young United States of America went to war with England in the War of 1812. Louisiana played a part in the war, of course, and NOLA Navy Week is kicking off the commemoration of the war this week, from April 17 through April 23. Similar celebrations will take place in Norfolk, New York, Cleveland, Boston and Baltimore, but we get the honor of beginning and ending the celebration. In 2015, on the bicentennial of the Battle of New Orleans, there’ll be another celebration. And that’s only appropriate, because the British were out to get us here in 1812, and we stood our ground at the Battle of New Orleans, Battle of Lake Borgne, and another assault in Algiers and later at Fort St. Philip in lower Placquemines Parish before the British finally gave up. On April 17, Class A Tall Ships from around the world will make their way up the Mississippi River, and can be seen between Erato Street and the Upper Poland Avenue wharf. U.S. Navy warships, frigates and tall ships from France, Canada and Britain will be greeted loudly with a 21-gun salutes from the former Navy pier located in Algiers, by the Washington Artillery. It’s going to be an amazing sight, and the public can tour the vessels during afternoons. See http://nolanavyweek.com/.for a schedule of the ships’ arrivals and tour times, and other events. There’ll be National Park Service exhibits at the Chalmette battlefield, a military drill demonstration in Jackson Square, and war-related exhibits at the Cabildo in the Louisiana State Museum. Since it wouldn’t be a party without food, on Thursday, April 19, there’s also going to be a Louisiana Seafood Cookoff at Woldenberg Park, where Louisiana chefs get to do battle with chefs from the visiting chefs and armed services. On Saturday and Sunday, April 21 and 22, the Navy and Marine Corps’ Blue Angels will soar in the skies as they perform several air shows over the Lake Pontchartrain, with other performances by Air National Guard aircraft, Navy, and local Coast Guard. So, from the rocket’s red glare, to the bombs bursting in air, it’s going to be quite a show here in New Orleans. In the air and on the seas, we’ll get to see it all.
Cytosurge is a spin-off company from ETH Zurich, and it has become known for its FluidFM 3D printing technology, which was commercialized and made consumer-friendly via the FluidFM 3D printer. FluidFM is a metal 3D printing technique capable of creating components at the nano level. It involves a moveable pipette, mounted on a cantilever leaf-spring, through which a liquid metal solution flows and exits through an aperture of 300 nanometers. An electrode produces a voltage under the aperture, which solidifies the metal as it exits the nozzle. Once the gap between the surface and the pipette is filled with solid metal, the pipette moves to the next position and repeats the process. In this way a 3D object is built. FluidFM technology has been applied to many applications, from metal nanoprinting to medical research, and now it has been applied to something new: so-called impossible objects. Not to be confused with the company Impossible Objects, an impossible object is an optical illusion of a two-dimensional object that is interpreted by the viewer as a 3D image. It also appears to have an entirely different shape when viewed from different perspectives. The drawings of M.C. Escher are examples of such objects, and now Professor Kokichi Sugihara, a mathematical scientist at Meiji University, has found a way to 3D print these objects, using FluidFM technology. Sugihara has a long history in mathematical engineering, having received a Bachelor, Master and Doctor of Engineering from the University of Tokyo. He worked at the Electrotechnical Laboratory in the Ministry of International Trade and Industry of Japan, Nagoya University and the University of Tokyo before moving into his current position at Meiji University. He has done a lot of work with computer vision, and that work led him to experimentation with impossible objects or impossible solids. “A trompe l’oeil, referring to an art genre, is painted by using optical illusions,” Sugihara explains. “One day, I tried to confirm if my software determines that it is impossible to construct solids from stereoscopic objects depicted in a trompe l’oeil. Unexpectedly, the software reconstructed solids that we never could imagine are possible through human eyes. This interesting result inspired me to create ‘impossible solids’. We visualize a 3D object from a 2D drawing based on the preconceived assumption that is obtained through common sense and visual experience. The stereoscopic objects in the trompe l’oeil are painted by exploiting these preconceived assumptions and appear unlikely to our eyes to exist. However, the computer is not influenced by any assumption. The computer examines every possibility in order to reconstruct a 3D object and concludes that it is ‘Able to do it.’ I applied this theory also to create impossible motion.” Sugihara won the Best Illusion of the Year contest three times, and finished in second place twice. Now he has teamed up with Cytosurge to 3D print one of those illusions, in three nanoscale sizes: 0.1 mm diameter, 0.03 mm and 0.01 mm, or the size of a red blood cell. The tiny objects were 3D printed from copper. The objects have been imaged at high resolution with an electron microscope, and you can see the illusion from different angles below: Discuss this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below. You May Also Like Additive Manufacturing Strategies 2020: Sign Up for Our 3D Printing Startup Competition Coming up in February 2020, the annual Additive Manufacturing Strategies summit, co-hosted by 3DPrint.com and SmarTech Markets Publishing, will be held in Boston for the third year running. This year, the event, titled... Interview with Alexandre Donnadieu-Deray of 3YOURMIND Alexandre Donnadieu-Deray is the Managing Director of the company 3YOURMIND. 3YOURMIND provides software to manage and optimize your end-to-end Additive Manufacturing workflows. There organization gives an interesting value proposition to their end users. They sit in between technical expertise as well as customer service. Inside 3D Printing Seoul 2019 Day One Inside 3D Printing Seoul is one of the world’s largest 3D printing shows. Set in the giant maelstrom that is Seoul, the show brings together people from all over the... Presentations on 3D Printing Trends and Projects at RAPID 2019 I didn’t just visit companies at their booths during the recent RAPID + TCT – I made time in my schedule to attend a few interesting sessions as well, including... View our broad assortment of in house and third party products.
The elemental complexity of emergency medical care leads to barriers that must be overcome for meaningful Emergency Medicine Artificial Intelligence (EMAI) to exist. Accurate data extraction is at the core of a successful AI tool. As EMRs mature, the information contained becomes more trusted. The structured data is relatively easy to extract and subsequently used for standard machine learning or statistical applications. This is illustrated by current claims of EMAI use, which in reality is little more than analysis of the structured EMR data. The bulk of the acute care information is unstructured data buried in the text of the history, exam, and medical decision-making portions of the patient chart. The successful application of natural language processing (NLP) extraction is where an EMAI goes from a limited use tool to a truly invaluable augmented decision-making instrument. Further, Integration of the individual patient data with patient records from the vast pool of patients within the health system, along with millions of patient records worldwide, further adds to the power of an EMAI tool. Both rare and common conditions coupled with the unique characteristics of the patient suddenly finds commonalities in an artificial brain containing other similar patients. The impact of Emergency Medicine Artificial Intelligence (EMAI) in the emergency department EMAI begins assisting the emergency medicine provider and improve emergency department (ED) workflow from the moment initial patient contact occurs and data is gathered. As the ED evaluation proceeds, the synthesis of thousands of data sources results in appropriate triage, reduction in initial exam times, the development of comprehensive focused differentials, directed evaluations, diagnoses and treatment plans. All of this results in reduced morbidity and mortality. Unnecessary testing and treatments are reduced, while data that can be overlooked the clinician is incorporated into the care plan. The results are accurate primary and secondary diagnoses, treatments, and disposition. Although the ED is an environment that is ripe for human error and limitations, it is most amenable to AI. Current EMAI is being developed that takes advantage of the vast quantities of EMR data, practice guidelines, and current research. The incorporation of unstructured data through the use of NLP from EMR data with clinical treatment information is the basis of a meaningful EMAI that allows for augmented clinical decision making resulting in improved efficiency and improved care. Whether the emergency department is rural, urban, academic or community, the care becomes standardized and more comprehensive through the application of the EMAI tool. Rourke M. Yeakley, MD, MHA Board certified and practicing emergency medicine physician for over 15 years. Founder of Precision EM. Medical Director, Air St. Luke’s since 2007. Boise Regional Dean for Pacific Northwest University of Health Science. Clinical faculty at the University of Washington School of Medicine. Inventor of the Avepax medical device for single dose delivery of liquid medications, vaccines and nutritionals that are mixed at the point of care. Seven patents have been issued worldwide for this device. Mayur Saxena, Ph.D Healthcare strategy enthusiast \|\| Passionate for artificial Intelligence implementations on noisy datasets \|\|Always curious about B2B technology strategy \|\| Healthcare market and policy dynamics
Bringing the concept of an “artificial leaf” closer to reality, a team of researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology has published a detailed analysis of all the factors that could limit the efficiency of such a system. The new analysis lays out a roadmap for a research program to improve the efficiency of these systems, and could quickly lead to the production of a practical, inexpensive and commercially viable prototype. Such a system would use sunlight to produce a storable fuel, such as hydrogen, instead of electricity for immediate use. This fuel could then be used on demand to generate electricity through a fuel cell or other device. This process would liberate solar energy for use when the sun isn’t shining, and open up a host of potential new applications. The new work is described in a paper this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences by associate professor of mechanical engineering Tonio Buonassisi, former MIT professor Daniel Nocera (now at Harvard University), MIT postdoc Mark Winkler (now at IBM) and former MIT graduate student Casandra Cox (now at Harvard). It follows up on 2011 research that produced a “proof of concept” of an artificial leaf—a small device that, when placed in a container of water and exposed to sunlight, would produce bubbles of hydrogen and oxygen. The device combines two technologies: a standard silicon solar cell, which converts sunlight into electricity, and chemical catalysts applied to each side of the cell. Together, these would create an electrochemical device that uses an electric current to split atoms of hydrogen and oxygen from the water molecules surrounding them. The goal is to produce an inexpensive, self-contained system that could be built from abundant materials. Nocera has long advocated such devices as a means of bringing electricity to billions of people, mostly in the developing world, who now have little or no access to it. “What’s significant is that this paper really describes all this technology that is known, and what to expect if we put it all together,” Cox says. “It points out all the challenges, and then you can experimentally address each challenge separately.” Winkler adds that this is a “pretty robust analysis that looked at what’s the best you could do with market-ready technology.” The original demonstration leaf, in 2011, had low efficiencies, converting less than 4.7 percent of sunlight into fuel, Buonassisi says. But the team’s new analysis shows that efficiencies of 16 percent or more should now be possible using single-bandgap semiconductors, such as crystalline silicon. “We were surprised, actually,” Winkler says: Conventional wisdom held that the characteristics of silicon solar cells would severely limit their effectiveness in splitting water, but that turned out not to be the case. “You’ve just got to question the conventional wisdom sometimes,” he says. The key to obtaining high solar-to-fuel efficiencies is to combine the right solar cells and catalyst—a matchmaking activity best guided by a roadmap. The approach presented by the team allows for each component of the artificial leaf to be tested individually, then combined. The voltage produced by a standard silicon solar cell, about 0.7 V, is insufficient to power the water-splitting reaction, which needs more than 1.2 V. One solution is to pair multiple solar cells in series. While this leads to some losses at the interface between the cells, it is a promising direction for the research, Buonassisi says. An additional source of inefficiency is the water itself—the pathway that the electrons must traverse to complete the electrical circuit—which has resistance to the electrons, Buonassisi says. So another way to improve efficiency would be to lower that resistance, perhaps by reducing the distance that ions must travel through the liquid. “The solution resistance is challenging,” Cox says. But, she adds, there are “some tricks” that might help to reduce that resistance, such as reducing the distance between the two sides of the reaction by using interleaved plates. “In our simulations, we have a framework to determine the limits of efficiency” that are possible with such a system, Buonassisi says. For a system based on conventional silicon solar cells, he says, that limit is about 16%; for gallium arsenide cells, a widely touted alternative, the limit rises to 18%. Models to determine the theoretical limits of a given system often lead researchers to pursue the development of new systems that approach those limits, Buonassisi says. “It’s usually from these kinds of models that someone gets the courage to go ahead and make the improvements,” he says. “Some of the most impactful papers are ones that identify a performance limit,” Buonassisi says. But, he adds, there’s a “dose of humility” in looking back at some earlier projections for the limits of solar-cell efficiency: Some of those predicted “limits” have already been exceeded, he says. “We don’t always get it right,” Buonassisi says, but such an analysis “lays a roadmap for development and identifies a few ‘levers’ that can be worked on.” The work was supported by the National Science Foundation, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, the Singapore National Research Foundation through the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology, and the Chesonis Family Foundation.
A new study estimates that cheap batteries paired with rooftop solar panels is a new sort of threat to the traditional utility business model, hastening the day when on-site power is cheaper than grid power and utilities struggle to pay off the power plants and transmission lines they've already bought. By as soon as 2020, the report asserts, tens of millions of businesses and homeowners in California and New York may be able to combine solar panels, batteries and sometimes a backup diesel generator to get local electricity cheaper than that from the grid. Much of the rest of the country may be able to do the same by the 2030s, it states. The report is the work of the Rocky Mountain Institute, a think tank focused on sustainability. An analyst took issue with one of the report's central contentions: that the battery-solar panel combo will be so robust that it creates the opportunity for a "utility in a box" that will allow large numbers of buildings to abandon the grid entirely -- "from grid connected to grid defected," as the report puts it. "The concept of people leaving the grid because they have batteries and solar panels, I don't think that's going to happen," said Sam Jaffe, an analyst who specializes in batteries at Navigant Research. "There is going to be a point, probably pretty often, where you run out of battery power, and that time you will pay any amount to get electricity." One of the surprising findings in the report, titled "The Economics of Grid Defection," is that solar power plus batteries and diesel backup is already cheaper than grid power for some commercial buildings in Hawaii, which has the highest electricity rates in the country. Supplying all of a building's needs with sun power has long been the dream of hobbyists and off-the-grid types but is now poised to enter the mainstream in a big way. The nation's largest rooftop solar installer, SolarCity, announced a partnership with the electric automaker Tesla in December to lease batteries to businesses and homeowners the same way it does with solar panels. Other battery startups such as Green Charge Networks and Coda Energy are striking similar deals with solar leasing companies. The study examined the impact of paired solar and batteries in states that have different electricity rates, regulations and penetration of solar photovoltaics, including Kentucky, New York, California, Hawaii and Texas. In Los Angeles and Westchester County, N.Y., a commercial building with a battery bank, solar panels and a backup diesel generator will able to beat the grid on price by 2025, the report projects. The rest of the country may take 30 years to reach that point. The report adds that regions that have the most solar panels today may be able to produce commercial-scale power more cheaply than utilities by the 2030s, even without a supplemental diesel generator. Homes would trail that trajectory by five or 10 years. Solar panels cost half what they did in 1998, and prices for battery storage have declined nearly as much just in the last four years, according to one estimate. The concern for utilities, the report notes, is that these seismic shifts could take place well within the 30-year life span of costly assets like power plants and transmission lines. They may become difficult to maintain as the number of those paying for power is in decline. "Even before mass defection, a growing number of early adopters could trigger a spiral of falling sales and rising electricity prices that make defection via solar-plus-battery systems even more attractive and undermine utilities' traditional business models," the report says. The study taps into utilities' growing fear of a "death spiral," a concept that gained currency when it was explored in a report by the Edison Electric Institute in early 2013. It speculated that the challenges of updating a creaky grid infrastructure, along with flat or declining use of electricity and possible future limits on the use of fossil fuels, could force utilities to raise rates even as alternative power systems become common and affordable. The Edison Electric Institute yesterday declined to comment on the new report. Like what you see? We thought you might. Start a free trial now.
Bachelor of Arts~ Elementary Education Carthage College, Kenosha Wisconsin “Teachers inspire dreams, shape lives, and gives hope for the future” (author unknown). As an early childhood teacher, I feel like it is important to understand that all children learn differently. It is important to know the strengths and needs of each child. All children are unique and should be respected. As an early childhood teacher, we are giving the children their first impression of learning. Children learn very rapidly in their early childhood stages. They need to develop pride, confidence, and skills to be successful throughout their lives. All experiences should be positive and encouraging. I believe that all students should be active in their learning. Lessons should be student centered and have a hands-on approach. Teachers should be there to support the students learning, gather data, and learn alongside the child. Children learn through experiences such as touching, moving, listening, seeing, and hearing. The more hands-on experiences children have, the more curious and capable they become and, best of all, the more joy they feel about learning. In a classroom, students should feel welcome and safe. Students should feel a sense of community. The environment needs to be a place that stimulates the children. The classroom should be a place where children feel comfortable to ask questions, make mistakes, accomplishments, and develop friendships. Parents and teachers need to work together to further support the children’s development in the classroom. Early Childhood Teacher
Complete today's Fast Maths sheet. Today's lesson continues with division, dividing by 2s, 5s and 10s and using bar models to represent problems. Follow the PowerPoint and then complete the activity (apologies, there is a pause in the audio on the final slide of the PowerPoint - it does resume!). Follow the PowerPoint and complete the grammar warm up. Today the children are writing the middle part of their story. Today the children are starting to learn the names of the 7 continents in the world. Read through the information PowerPoint together. The children then need to use the map to label the continents. The information from the PowerPoint will help your child to work out which continent is which. E.g. knowing the largest continent is called Asia. Use the short information PowerPoint to learn a little bit about Leonardo Da Vinci, the inventor and artist. Then have a go at sketching your own self-portrait.
Thursday 7th January Please keep reading to find out about today's home learning. Reading- While learning from home, you should be aiming to read for at least 20 minutes per day. This can be any type of text – fiction book, non-fiction, comic, newspaper, etc. A reading comprehension on Jack’s Beetle has been included with this blog for you to complete if you wish. Phonics- Today we are learning about the ‘ie’ sound. Below are some videos to watch going through some ’ie’ sound words. Mr Thorne does ‘ie’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bysxOlWkT08 Geraldine the Giraffe ‘ie’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoPUHeA0CHA Can you find any things in your house with an ‘ie’ sound in? Talk about the ‘ie’ sound. Can you say the sound? Can you write the sound? Can you write some words with these sounds in? Hide the word around the house. Can your child read these real and nonsense words with the sound ‘ie’ sound in. Real words: tie, pie, lie, tried, pie, spied Nonsense words: chie, mied, wieb. Can you find the ‘ie’ sound words in the word search attached to this blog? English- Today we are going to think about inviting people to a picnic and what we would need to include in our invitation. Look at Brian’s invitation. What could you be improved? What would you include in your picnic invitation? Look at the example invitation and have a go at writing your own picnic invitation. Maths- Today we are learning about how to add ones using number bonds. Watch the third learning video: https://whiterosemaths.com/homelearning/year-1/week-2-number-addition-and-subtraction-within-20/ Now try completing the worksheet attached to this blog. An answer sheet is also attached for you to check your answers. P.E.- Get active with this 5-minute workout from Jo Wicks: Can you make up your own fitness routine to teach your family?
Self-Advocacy: Empowering Individuals with Disabilities Thursday, August 27th, 2015 Parents of children with special needs often find themselves filling many roles; caregiver, therapist, chef, chauffeur, tutor – the list can go on and on. One of the most powerful and important roles a parent of a child with special needs can play, however, is that of an advocate. An advocate, in case you are unfamiliar with the term, is a person that publicly (and in the case of parents, tirelessly) fights for a cause or an individual. Advocacy for children and individuals with special needs can be vitally important for a number of reasons. It can draw attention to an injustice or unfairness of a government/health policy, it can help those who are slipping through the system to be recognized and receive access to special needs resources, and it can even unite people to fight for a common cause. Most importantly – it can help your child receive the services, care, and/or benefits that he or she needs to realize his or her full potential. As a parent, you know your child best and are therefore the best possible advocate that he or she has. As your child begins to transition into adulthood, it is important to pass these advocacy skills on. Teaching your child how to be his or her own self-advocate will empower him/her; by learning how to self-advocate your child will have the knowledge needed for success and will be able to participate in decisions that are made about his or her life. What is Self-Advocacy? According to the Center for Parent Information and Resources, self advocacy is “learning how to speak up for yourself, making your own decisions about your own life, learning how to get information so that you can understand things that are of interest to you, finding out who will support you in your journey, knowing your rights and responsibilities, problem solving, listening and learning, reaching out to others when you need help and friendship, and learning about self determination.” Self-advocacy can be useful in many different ways, and in many different situations. It is important to draw on self-advocacy skills whenever it is important for the individual’s voice to be heard – this includes situations in which medical/care plans are being reviewed or put in place, during assessments, or whenever an individual feels that he or she is being treated unfairly. Self-advocacy is an essential skill for all individuals, and can help individuals with disability build successful, happy lives. If you would like to learn more about self-advocacy, please visit Self-Advocacy Skill Building, a manual released by Australian-based organization, EDAC. How To Teach Your Family Member Self-Advocacy Skills It is never too early to begin teaching your children the importance of self-advocacy, and the skills necessary to effectively self-advocate. Once of the first steps to teaching children self-advocacy skills is to teach your children about self-determination – the knowledge about one’s strengths and limitations. By teaching your child self-determination, your child learns that he or she is strong, capable, successful, and, ultimately, responsible for her or her own goals, accomplishments and setbacks. In addition to teaching your child self-determination, parents looking to build self-advocacy skills should provide and promote decision-making activities for their children throughout the day; i.e. timing of events, personal choices, etc. Autism Speaks recommends teaching these five decision-making steps to your children when focusing on building self-advocacy skills: - What is the decision you need to make? - What decisions could you make? - Evaluate each choice. What are the pluses and minuses of each choice? - Pick the best choice. Describe which choice is best for you. - Did you make the best choice for you? Another important strategy for teaching your child to self-advocate is to help your child understand his or her rights and responsibilities as an individual with disability. It is important that he or she is aware of what is acceptable and not acceptable in terms of treatment, access, services, etc. It is also important to teach your child how to verbalize and communicate his or her concerns and ask for help in the event of unfair treatment, or violations of their human rights. If you would like to learn more about how to teach your child self-advocacy skills, please click here to watch the video, Parents Teaching Self-Advocacy Skills: Helping Your Child Toward Self Determination, or here to read the Pacer Center’s Action Sheet: How You Can Help Your Child Learn to Be a Good Self-Advocate. Would You Like More Information? Thank you so much for taking the time to visit our website today. We hope that we have passed on some interesting and useful information in regards to self-advocacy, and self-advocacy skill building. if you would like more information on this topic, or any topic related to financial or life planning for individuals with disability, please contact us! We would love to discuss with you any of your questions or concerns about the future of your family with special needs. Additionally, please click here or here for a list of resources that will help you and your family members with special needs gain a full understanding of self-advocacy. Thanks again for dropping by – we hope to see you again next week! Leave a Comment