science fair project encyclopedia in differential geometry, a pseudo - riemannian manifold is a smooth manifold equipped with a smooth, symmetric, ( 0, 2 ) tensor which is nondegenerate at each point on the manifold. this tensor is called a pseudo - riemannian metric or, simply, a ( pseudo - ) metric tensor. the key difference between a riemannian metric and a pseudo - riemannian metric is that a pseudo - riemannian metric need not be positive - definite, merely nondegenerate. since every positive - definite form is also nondegenerate a riemannian metric is a special case of a pseudo - riemannian one. thus pseudo - riemannian manifolds can be considered generalizations of riemannian manifolds. every nondegenerate, symmetric, bilinear form has a fixed signature ( p, q ). here p and q denote the number of positive and negative eigenvalues of the form. the signature of a pseudo - riemannian manifold is just the signature of the metric ( one should insist that the signature is the same on every connected component ). note that p + q = n is the dimension of the manifold. riemannian manifolds are simply those with signature ( n, 0 ). pseudo - riemannian metrics of signature ( p, 1 ) ( or sometimes ( 1, q ), see sign convention ) are called lorentzian metrics. a manifold equipped with a lorentzian metric is naturally called a lorentzian manifold. after riemannian manifolds, lorentzian manifolds form the most important subclass of pseudo - riemannian manifolds. they are important because of their physical applications to the theory of general relativity. a principal assumption of general relativity is that spacetime can be modeled as a lorentzian manifold of signature ( 3, 1 ). just as euclidean space can be thought of as the model riemannian manifold, minkowski space with the flat minkowski metric is the model lorentzian manifold. likewise, the model space for a pseudo - riemannian manifold of signature ( p, q ) is with the metric some basic theorems of riemannian geometry can be generalized to the pseudo - riemannian case. in particular, the fundamental theorem of riemannian geometry is true of pseudo - riemannian manifolds as well. this allows one to speak of the levi - civita connection on a pseudo - riemannian manifold along with the associated curvature tensor.


, treatment or prevention of the disease or its nature in general. paragraph 7 deals with consent from disabled subjects. this includes people who are unable to give their consent due to a mental health disorder, mental handicap or other equivalent reason. research can only be carried out on such people if the same scientific results could not be attained using other subjects and provided that the risk of causing damage or stress is limited. furthermore, research can only be carried out if it could be expected to be directly beneficial to the participant or to other people either of the same age or with the same medical condition. even if these conditions have been fulfilled, the participant ' s legal representative, close relative, or other person closely connected with the patient must give written consent after having received the necessary relevant information. the consent has to be given in accordance to the presumed will of a participant. the provisions of article 6 also apply in that consent can be withdrawn at any time before completion of the research. finally, if the participant objects to any procedure used as part of the research, he or she must not be forced to undergo the procedure. advance directives and health care proxies the legal status of advance directives advance directives have legal status in finland according to section 8 of the act on the status and rights of patients ( no. 785 / 92 of 17 august 1992 ). section 8 of the act on the status and rights of patients deals with emergency treatment. a situation could arise whereby a patient, who is in need of emergency treatment, is unconscious or unable to express his / her will. according to section 8, doctors cannot give a treatment that is against his / her will, as expressed steadfastly and competently at some point in the past. in the sense that this section refers to the necessity to respect the previously expressed wishes of a person who is no longer able to state his / her preference regarding treatment, this can be considered as legitimising a kind of advance directive. paragraph 6. 3 of the act on the status and rights of patients can also be interpreted as involving the possible use of advance directives in substitute decision making with regard to care. there are three categories of people who can decide on behalf of a person with incapacity : - the legal representative who could be either a guardian who is entitled to represent his / her client in issues linked to the client ’ s person or a person appointed by the patient such as a power of attorney or continuing power of attorney in health care issues. - a family member or - another person who


it in the law ; - information necessary for the arranging of examination and treatment of the patient may be given to another health care unit or health care professional, and a summary of the treatment provided may be given to the health care unit or the health care professional that referred the patient for treatment and to a physician possibly appointed to be responsible for the care of the patient in accordance with the patient ' s or his / her legal representative ’ s oral consent or consent that is otherwise obvious from the context ; and - information necessary for arranging and providing the examination and care of a patient may be given to another finnish or foreign health care unit or health care professional, if the patient, owing to a mental health disturbance, mental handicap or for a comparable reason is not capable of assessing the significance of the consent and he / she has no legal representative, or if the patient cannot give the consent because of unconsciousness or for comparable reason ; - information about the identity and state of health of a patient may be given to a family member of the patient or to other person close to the patient, if the patient is receiving treatment because of unconsciousness or for another comparable reason, unless there is reason to believe that the patient would forbid this ; and - information on the health and medical care of a deceased person provided when the person was still living may be given, upon a justified written application, to anyone who needs the information in order to find out his / her vital interests or rights, to the extent that the information is necessary for that purpose ; the acquiring party may not use or forward the information for some other purpose. section 13 of the act on the status and rights of patients ( 30. 6. 2000 / 653 ) specifically addressed the issue of confidentiality of information contained in patients ’ records. paragraph 13. 1 states that information contained in patients ’ records shall be confidential. paragraph 13. 2 states that health care professionals and other people working in or for health care units shall not disclose to outsiders information contained in a patient ’ s medical records without the written consent of the patient. if the patient is not capable of giving such consent, it can be given by his / her legal representative. in this act, the term “ outsiders ” refers to people other than those who are involved in the care of the patient or in carrying out tasks related to the person ’ s care within or on behalf of a health care unit. the obligation to respect confidentiality remains in force even when the person is no longer employed or carrying out tasks on behalf of the health care unit. end


keynes at the border? wednesday, april 15, 2009 a common fallacy holds that imposing taxes on imports and rebating taxes on exports would stimulate the economy. a common fallacy holds that border tax adjustments — imposing taxes on imports and rebating taxes on exports — would enhance american exports and reduce imports. the reasoning behind this mistake is simple enough. a border adjustment seems to provide a subsidy to exporters and to levy a tariff on importers. border adjustment proponents, noting that international trade rules allow nations to border adjust consumption taxes such as european - style value added taxes, urge the adoption of a consumption tax in the united states so that we can border adjust and enhance our trade competitiveness. yet, such an argument ignores an essential truth about imports and exports : over the long term, exports and imports must be equal. we can think of a country like a household. purchases are paid for from the proceeds of sales, and sales are made for the purpose of additional purchases. in the long run, purchases and sales must be equal. a nation ’ s trade policy works the same way. over a nation ’ s history, the value of exports in current dollars must equal the value of imports in present value. any attempt to permanently increase exports and decrease imports is futile. what would actually happen if we border adjusted imports and exports is that exchange rate movements would offset the trade effects and the dollar would appreciate. the key variable is the real exchange rate, which determines the terms at which a country buys and sells. ( for the united states, the real exchange rate is the value of the dollar in terms of foreign currency — the nominal exchange rate — multiplied by the u. s. price level and divided by the foreign price level. ) the real exchange rate adjusts to keep the present discounted value of exports and imports equal. the adoption of a border adjustment by the united states would trigger an increase in the real exchange rate that would offset the perceived boost to exports and the perceived restraint on imports. the argument for border tax adjustments ignores an essential truth about imports and exports. imagine, for the moment, that one euro and one dollar have the same value under the current trade regime. if a firm in the united states wanted to import one euro ’ s worth of german chocolate, the cost of the chocolate to the importer would be one dollar. now, let ’ s imagine that we institute a 25 percent border adjustment. the cost of the chocolate to the importer would increase to €1. 33 ( 25 percent of 1. 33 is


photographer cannot effect many of the same processes with skillful camera technique … “ the intrinsic difference for me … is one of cognition. ” patricia vickers - rich and thomas h. rich : “ the association and friendship between the three of us spans more than three decades. it began when we two scientists were on the hunt for an artist who had the skills that would allow precise scientific information to be conveyed in imagery alongside the detailed scientific descriptions of the ancient marsupial, diprotodon. the condition of the specimens to be ‘ presented, ’ to both the general public and to other researchers, was incomplete. what we needed was an artist able to synthesize images that combined these fragments and information from various disciplines. the images required a three - dimensional quality that drew observers in, communicating to them intimate details of anatomical form. but, more than just revealing the essence of the scientific descriptions, these images needed to challenge the viewer to ask more questions …. “ we have, through our work together, continued to find each other ’ s different perspectives and approaches informative. we have been able to disagree, challenge each other and spend long hours discussing the direction of each of the projects highlighted within these chapters. we have enjoyed exploring new territory — new techniques, novel materials and subjects …. [ t ] hroughout our work together, we have respected each other ’ s independence... ” in sightings, american scientist publishes examples of innovative scientific imaging from diverse research fields. » post comment


the moravian church was founded in the 15th century, and is considered the first protestant denomination, based on the philosophies of jan hus. by the 18th century, members of the church had been forced out of their homelands in moravia and bohemia ( now part of the czech republic ), and some had ended up in herrnhut, germany. there, they set up schools where sons would be raised and educated while their parents were away doing missionary work. as the story goes, early one december some time in the mid - 19th century, a teacher at the herrnhut schools developed an art project for the students where they would use paper and glue to make a star - shaped polyhedron by attaching tall pyramids to a multifaceted geometrical solid ( image 2 ). this challenging math lesson yielded beautiful star shapes, which the students used as lanterns for christmas decorations ( tip : it worked out for them, but i wouldn ' t recommend combining fire and paper in your own home decor ). subsequently, the shape came to be known as the moravian star, and was primarily associated with advent and christmas decorations. around 1900, an industrial manufacture sprang up in herrnhut, mass - producing the star lanterns out of tin and glass. they also produced diy - type kits for people to assemble at home, out of paper punched with holes. the advent of mail - order and the increase in international travel meant that moravian stars became familiar in other parts of the world, as well, especially in the areas of pennsylvania and upstate new york where the moravian church had been going strong since the 18th century. not only is it surprising to think of a school craft project turning into an international piece of design, but it is even more surprising to realize that the complexity of the star form had only recently been understood by the most brilliant mathematicians. if we ' re going to get geometrical here, the moravian star is technically a great stellated dodecahedron, a form first identified by johannes kepler in 1619 and then again by louis poinsot ( who was unfamiliar with kepler ' s work ) in 1809 — just a few short decades before the herrnhut art project. the teacher responsible must therefore have been familiar with the most recent and complicated mathematical writings. of course, kepler and poinsot did not invent the great stellated dodecahedron, they just named and rationalized it. there is a mosaic representation of a small stellated dodecahedron ( small because its points are short, as opposed to the tall iso


poinsot did not invent the great stellated dodecahedron, they just named and rationalized it. there is a mosaic representation of a small stellated dodecahedron ( small because its points are short, as opposed to the tall isosceles points of the ' great ' version ) on the floor of san marco basilica in venice, attributed to paolo uccello in the 1450s ( image 3 ). and art and architecture from western islamic lands like morocco have been primarily based on geometrical patterns for centuries, yielding flat, two - dimensional variations on star shapes ( primarily 6 - and 8 - pointed stars ) in endless tessellations ( image 4 ), or concave three - dimensional star fragments in muqarnas ( image 5 ). perhaps this is the reason for the association of the star - shaped lanterns with moroccan design? i could find no historical moroccan, islamic or arabic lanterns shaped like a star. ( any readers know otherwise? ) while the moravian star might originally have been used as christmas decoration, it is above all a pleasing geometric form, and is now all but stripped of its religious or seasonal associations. at once complex and austere, it manages to be whimsical while also providing a pretty literal interpretation of starlight. images : 1 a ginger barber interior photographed by victoria pearson for house beautiful ; 2 herrnhuter - sterne. de ; 3 wikimedia commons ; 4 a zillij tile dado in marrakesh, via stars in symmetry, a great blog about islamic art and architecture ; 5 nasr al - molk mosque in shiraz, iran, via wikipedia ; 6 - 8 high street market ; 9 rum interior design via atsf ; 10 elements of style.


significance and use 4. 1 the three test methods provide simulated abrasion conditions, which can be used to evaluate the effects on abrasion resistance of concrete, concrete materials, and curing or finishing procedures. they may also be used for quality acceptance of products and surface exposed to wear. they are not intended to provide a quantitative measurement of length of service. 4. 2 the equipment used by each of these procedures is portable and thus suitable for either laboratory or field testing. the three procedures determine the relative wear of concrete surfaces as follows : 4. 2. 1 procedure a — the revolving - disk machine operates by sliding and scuffing of steel disks in conjunction with abrasive grit. 4. 2. 2 procedure b — the dressing - wheel machine operates by impact and sliding friction of steel dressing wheels. 4. 2. 3 procedure c — the ball - bearing machine operates by high - contact stresses, impact, and sliding friction from steel balls. — diagrams of three machines meeting these specifications are shown in fig. 1, fig. 2, and fig. 3. fig. 1 revolving disks abrasion test machine fig. 2 dressing wheel abrasion test machine fig. 3 ball bearing abrasion test machine 1. 1 this test method covers three procedures for determining the relative abrasion resistance of horizontal concrete surfaces. the procedures differ in the type and degree of abrasive force they impart, and are intended for use in determining variations in surface properties of concrete affected by mixture proportions, finishing, and surface treatment. they are not intended to provide a quantitative measurement of the length of service that may be expected from a specific surface. 1. 2 the values stated in either si units or inch - pound units are to be regarded separately as standard. within the text, the inch - pound units are shown in brackets. the values stated in each system may not be exact equivalents ; therefore, each system shall be used independently of each other. 1. 3 this standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. it is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use. ( warning — fresh hydraulic cementitious mixtures are caustic and may cause chemical burns to skin and tissue upon prolonged exposure. ) — other procedures are available for measuring the abrasion resistance of concrete surfaces in addition to the three procedures contained in this test method. consideration should be given to


formation of large ( μm ) ice crystals near the tropical tropopause 1nasa ames research center, moffett field, ca, usa 2spec inc., boulder, co, usa 3centro de ciencias de la atmosfera, universidad nacional autonoma de mexico, circuito exterior, mexico 4harvard university, cambridge, ma, usa 5colorado research associates, boulder, co, usa 6university of colorado, boulder, co, usa abstract. recent high - altitude aircraft measurements with in situ imaging instruments indicated the presence of relatively large ( μm length ), thin ( aspect ratios of : 1 or larger ) hexagonal plate ice crystals near the tropical tropopause in very low concentrations ( < 0. 01 l−1 ). these crystals were not produced by deep convection or aggregation. we use simple growth - sedimentation calculations as well as detailed cloud simulations to evaluate the conditions required to grow the large crystals. uncertainties in crystal aspect ratio leave a range of possibilities, which could be constrained by knowledge of the water vapor concentration in the air where the crystal growth occurred. unfortunately, water vapor measurements made in the cloud formation region near the tropopause with different instruments ranged from < 2 ppmv to. 5 ppmv. the higher water vapor concentrations correspond to very large ice supersaturations ( relative humidities with respect to ice of about 200 % ). if the aspect ratios of the hexagonal plate crystals are as small as the image analysis suggests ( 6 : 1, see companion paper ( lawson et al., 2008 ) ) then growth of the large crystals before they sediment out of the supersaturated layer would only be possible if the water vapor concentration were on the high end of the range indicated by the different measurements ( > 3 ppmv ). on the other hand, if the crystal aspect ratios are quite a bit larger ( : 1 ), then h2o concentrations toward the low end of the measurement range ( – 2. 5 ppmv ) would suffice to grow the large crystals. gravity - wave driven temperature and vertical wind perturbations only slightly modify the h2o concentrations needed to grow the crystals. we find that it would not be possible to grow the large crystals with water concentrations less than 2 ppmv, even with assumptions of a very high aspect ratio of 15 and steady upward motion of 2 cm s−1 to loft the crystals in the tropopause


grow better in huge deep fermentation tank. development of submerged culture technique for cultivation of mold in large volume of liquid medium through which sterile air is forced. primary and secondary metabolites : primary and secondary metabolites primary metabolites are produced during active cell growth, and secondary metabolites are produced near the onset of stationary phase. commercial production of penicillin : commercial production of penicillin like all antibiotics, penicillin is a secondary metabolite, so is only produced in the stationary phase. industrial production of antibiotic - penicillin : industrial production of antibiotic - penicillin the industrial production of penicillin was broadly classified in to two processes namely, upstream processing downstream processingupstream processing : upstream processing upstream processing encompasses any technology that leads to the synthesis of a product. upstream includes the exploration, development and production. downstream processing : downstream processing the extraction and purification of a biotechnological product from fermentation is referred to as downstream processing. upstream processing inoculum preparation : upstream processing inoculum preparation the medium is designed to provide the organism with all the nutrients that it requires. inoculation method - submerged technique spores - major source of inoculumraw materials : raw materials carbon sources : lactose acts as a very satisfactory carbon compound, provided that is used in a concentration of 6 %. others such as glucose & sucrose may be used. nitrogen sources : corn steep liquor ( csl ) ammonium sulphate and ammonium acetate can be used as nitrogenous sources. mineral sources : elements namely potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, sulphur, zinc and copper are essential for penicillin production. some of these are applied by corn steep liquor. calcium can be added in the form of chalk to counter the natural acidity of csl paa - precursorfermentation process : fermentation process the medium is inoculated with a suspension of conidia of penicillium chrysogenum. the medium is constantly aerated and agitated, and the mould grows throughout as pellets. after about seven days, growth is complete, the ph rises to 8. 0 or above, and penicillin production ceasesstages in downstream processing : stages in downstream processing downstream processing is relatively easy since penicillin is secreted into the medium ( to kill other cells ), so there is no need to break open the fungal cells. however, the product needs to be very pure, since it being used as a therapeutic medical drug


the quality of the air we breathe, slows climate change, and revitalizes rural communities. ” the report finds that achieving a 20 percent wind contribution to u. s. electricity supply would : reduce carbon dioxide emissions from electricity generation by 25 percent in 2030. reduce natural gas use by 11 % ; reduce water consumption associated with electricity generation by 4 trillion gallons by 2030 ; increase annual revenues to local communities to more than $ 1. 5 billion by 2030 ; and support roughly 500, 000 jobs in the u. s., with an average of more than 150, 000 workers directly employed by the wind industry. at 20 % of electric power generation, significant growth in the manufacturing supply chain would create jobs and remedy the current shortage in parts for wind turbines. reducing the use of natural gas could save money for consumers due to the resulting downward pressure on the price of natural gas, according to awea. “ we must look at meeting future electric demands in a cost - effective way, ” said suedeen kelly, ferc commissioner. “ the 20 % wind scenario would only cost 2 percent more than the cost of the baseline scenario without wind. at 50 cents per month for the average ratepayer, that is a small price to pay for the climate, water, natural gas, and energy security benefits it would buy - - and it does not even count the stability provided to consumers by eliminating fuel price risk. ” “ though economic and other factors will ultimately determine our energy future, we believe the 20 percent wind scenario is feasible, but only with a major national transmission highway system. delivering power from the best windy regions to the growing urban supply requires a bigger, stronger transmission system. strong regional and interregional planning as well as broad allocation of costs will allow the united states to rely on a broader diversity of generation resources, " said mike heyeck, senior vp of aep transmission. the report comes at an important time in wind development. in 2007, wind was one of the fastest growing sources of electricity in the nation, second only to natural gas for the third consecutive year. according to an awea report released last week, the u. s. wind energy industry continued new installations at a breakneck pace in the first quarter of 2008, putting 1, 400 megawatts ( mw ) or approximately $ 3 billion worth of new generating capacity in place - - enough to serve the equivalent of 400, 000 homes - - coupled with investment in 17 new manufacturing facilities over the past year. “ wind is an important part of bp alternative


your phone might know better than you do : just by analyzing the calling patterns, the researchers could accurately label two people as friends or nonfriends more than 95 % of the time. but the results, published online today in the proceedings of the national academy of sciences, show that the mobile phone data were better at predicting friendship than the subjects themselves. thirty - two pairs of subjects switched from calling each other acquaintances to friends in the traditionally gathered survey data. these are most likely new relationships that formed during the course of the study, say the researchers, and they left a clear signal in the mobile phone data. friends call each other far more often than acquaintances do when they are off - campus and during weekends. the pattern is so distinct that the researchers spotted budding friendships in the phone data months before the people themselves called themselves friends. finally, the team compared people ’ s self - reported job satisfaction with their networks of friendship at their workplaces. because the mobile phones kept track of people ’ s proximity to each other, the researchers had a clear measure of people ’ s daily contact with friends at work, not only through calls but through physical proximity. as predicted, the more contact people had with friends at their workplace, the more highly they rated their job satisfaction. and conversely, the less face - to - face contact people had with friends at work, the less they said they enjoyed it. … at mit, scientists who tracked student cellphones during the latest presidential election were able to deduce that two people were talking about politics, even though the researchers didn ’ t know the content of the conversation. by analyzing changes in movement and communication patterns, researchers could also detect flu symptoms before the students themselves realized they were getting sick. “ phones can know, ” said dr. pentland, director of mit ’ s human dynamics laboratory, who helped pioneer the research. “ people can get this god ’ s - eye view of human behavior. ” so far, these studies only scratch the surface of human complexity. researchers are already exploring ways that the information gleaned from mobile phones can improve public health, urban planning and marketing. at the same time, researchers believe their findings hint at basic rules of human interaction, and that poses new challenges to notions of privacy. “ we have always thought of individuals as being unpredictable, ” said johan bollen, an expert in complex networks at indiana university. “ these regularities [ in behavior ] allow systems to learn much more about us as individuals than we would care for. ” of course, companies are


individuals as being unpredictable, ” said johan bollen, an expert in complex networks at indiana university. “ these regularities [ in behavior ] allow systems to learn much more about us as individuals than we would care for. ” of course, companies are very interested in this data : cellphone providers are openly exploring other possibilities. by mining their calling records for social relationships among customers, several european telephone companies discovered that people were five times more likely to switch carriers if a friend had already switched, said mr. eagle, who works with the firms. the companies now selectively target people for special advertising based on friendships with people who dropped the service. and some of the results are downright unnerving : after analyzing more than 16 million records of call date, time and position, the researchers determined that, taken together, people ’ s movements appeared to follow a mathematical pattern. the scientists said that, with enough information about past movements, they could forecast someone ’ s future whereabouts with 93. 6 % accuracy. the pattern held true whether people stayed close to home or traveled widely, and wasn ’ t affected by the phone user ’ s age or gender. a few other interesting tidbits : - they may be making us more selfish, however. our phones can fulfill our need for human contact, making us less inclined to go out of our way to help others. - these devices can distract us so much we don ’ t notice the world around us — even if it contains unicycling clowns. ( to be fair, people may actually like us better when we are distracted during a conversation. ) - we ’ ve become so addicted to our phones that two - thirds of users report hearing “ phantom ringing “. - we rely so much on these devices that a third of people under 30 can ’ t remember their home phone numbers — if they have one at all. - by stripping away the emotional information in faces and intonation, text messaging might be simulating autism. - soon there will be more “ booty texts ” than “ booty calls ”. ( iphone users are more promiscuous, by the way. ) join 25k + readers. get a free weekly update via email here.


- efficient stoves. run by an afghan ngo called the conservation organisation for the afghan mountains ( coam ), the workshop sells them on preferential terms to local villages and it already has more orders than it can fulfil. mr scanlon wants to expand the scheme elsewhere. coam is promoting another energy - saving device, the solar kettle. it is basically a large satellite dish which reflects sun - rays onto a kettle suspended in the middle. the bigger the dish the quicker the boil - but the one they are selling for about $ 100 can make a cup of tea in 20 minutes. yet with nato forces retreating over the next two years, taking large chunks of aid money with them, there are concerns whether this tentative momentum can be maintained. the new zealand run civilian - military provincial reconstruction team ( prt ) in bamiyan is due to close early next year. catching up there are questions, too, over the future of bamiyan ' s best - known landmark - the remains of the larger of its two rock buddhas, blown up by the taliban months before the us - led invasion in 2001. the vast cave, or niche, carved into the mountainside 1, 500 years ago looms over bamiyan like a ghostly sentinel - and a permanent reminder of what happened. but the niche is in " imminent danger of collapse ", says brendan cassar of unesco - the un ' s cultural agency - and they need funding to shore it up. security concerns are pressing in too - from districts around bamiyan where the taliban and other armed groups have become more active. buddhas in bamiyan - about 140 miles ( 230km ) northwest of kabul - built in the 6th century, when bamiyan was a holy buddhist site - in 629ad, chinese traveller xuanzang described bamiyan as a bustling centre with tens of thousands of monks - the two most prominent statues were 55m and 37m high - bodies carved out of sandstone cliffs - demolished in march 2001 after being declared idols that has had a knock - on effect on the small indigenous tourist trade here. if foreign tourists are still a fledgling species here, band - e amir national park usually attracts a steady flow of afghan visitors. but there ' s been a sharp fall in numbers this year, as the threat along the road towards bamiyan has risen. the park itself is still a long way from being managed like protected reserves elsewhere in the world. a guard with a piece of rope across the road is the gate - post.


west lafayette, ind. - even large amounts of manufactured nanoparticles, also known as buckyballs, don ' t faze microscopic organisms that are charged with cleaning up the environment, according to purdue university researchers. in the first published study to examine buckyball toxicity on microbes that break down organic substances in wastewater, the scientists used an amount of the nanoparticles on the microbes that was equivalent to pouring 10 pounds of talcum powder on a person. because high amounts of even normally safe compounds, such as talcum powder, can be toxic, the microbes ' resiliency to high buckyball levels was an important finding, the purdue investigators said. the experiment on buckyballs, which are carbon molecules c60, also led the scientists to develop a better method to determine the impact of nanoparticles on the microbial community. " it ' s important to look at the entire microbial community when nanomaterials are introduced because the microbes are all interdependent for survival and growth, " said leila nyberg, a doctoral student in the school of civil engineering and the study ' s lead author. " if we see a minor change in these microorganisms it could negatively impact ecosystems. " the microbes used in the study live without oxygen and also exist in subsurface soil and the stomachs of ruminant animals, such as cows and goats, where they aid digestion. " we found no effect by any amount of c60 on the structure or the function of the microbial community over a short time, " nyberg said. " based on what we know about the properties of c60, this is a realistic model of what would happen if high concentrations of nanoparticles were released into the environment. " the third naturally occurring pure carbon molecule known, buckyballs are nano - sized, multiple - sided structures that look like soccer balls. nyberg and her colleagues ron turco and larry nies, professors of agronomy and ci | contact : susan a. steeves |


questions : g to a and c to t substitutions, is this a rule? zxiong at arizvm1. ccit. arizona. edu mon apr 11 11 : 59 : 05 est 1994 being not familiar with molecular evolution. i have been troubled with some of my data in rna virus sequence. we are working on a small rna virus and nearly complete the sequence of the viral rna genome from cdna clones. rna viruses are known to be heterogenous ( quasi - species ), so it was not surprising to see nucleotide sequence variations when sequences are obtained from different clones. what was surprising was a consistent rule of sequence variaions. g is always subsituted with a a, or vice versa. c is always substituted with a t, or vice versa. but there is never a g to ( c, t ) change or vice versa. let me try to explain it a little better. we have found 16 nucleotide substitutions in about 1500 nucleotide of overlapping sequences. there are 11 c to t or t to c substitutions and 5 g to a or a to g substitutions. we have not found any other possible substituions. is there a theory describing the rule of nucleotide substitution during evolution? i feel very ignorant and hope someone can give me a pointer to how to explain my observation. any comments or suggestions are welcome. zxiong at arizvm1. ccit. arizona. edu more information about the methods


paul painter¹ and lucas mcconnell² ¹materials science and engineering and the energy institute ²renewergy corporation, erie pa. presently, biofuels in this country usually means one of two things, ethanol ( in the u. s. principally produced from corn ) or biodiesel ( largely from oilseeds or yellow grease ). however, large - scale production of these fuels will inevitably lead to the displacement of croplands used to produce food and there will clearly be a limit on the quantity of ethanol and biodiesel that can be obtained from these sources. furthermore, although both biodiesel and ethanol have a number of attractive properties ( in addition to being derived from a renewable source ), they are not without problems ( lower energy content, clogging of fuel lines and filters because of their ability to dissolve gums and other deposits, etc. ). it would clearly be advantageous if a cheap, relatively simple method were available to produce a predominantly hydrocarbon fuel ( i. e., largely decarboxylated oils ) from feedstocks that contain high contents of free fatty acids. one source that we wish to particularly focus on is algae, for the purposes of this project being produced on by renewergy corporation. renewergy has developed a proprietary, “ aeroponic algalculture ” technique that uses a fraction of the water needed by conventional processes and a simple way of increasing surface area for light and co2 absorption. in preliminary work, we have applied kolbe electrolysis to the processing of algal oil. kolbe electrolysis of fatty ( alkanoic ) acids was the first known electrochemical synthesis. faraday had originally observed ( in 1834 ) that hydrocarbons are formed upon electrolysis of acetate solutions, but it was h. kolbe who performed the first detailed investigations of the reactions of carboxylic acids at an anode some fifteen years later. essentially, the reaction involves the electrochemical oxidative decarboxylation of carboxylic acid salts that leads to radicals, which can then combine to form simple hydrocarbons. we have found that a number of side reactions occur, but these can be advantageous in producing biofuels.


anglican communionarticle free pass anglican communion, religious body of national, independent, and autonomous churches throughout the world that adheres to the teachings of anglicanism and that evolved from the church of england. the anglican communion is united by a common loyalty to the archbishop of canterbury in england as its senior bishop and titular leader and by a general agreement with the doctrines and practices defined since the 16th century in the book of common prayer. the roots of the anglican communion can be traced to the reformation in the 16th century, when king henry viii rejected the authority of the roman catholic pope in rome and established an independent church in england. the essential teachings of the church were first set down in the book of common prayer, compiled by thomas cranmer, and the organization of the church of england was worked out during the 16th and 17th centuries. from the time of the reformation, the church of england followed explorers, traders, colonists, and missionaries into all parts of the world. the colonial churches generally exercised administrative autonomy within the historical and creedal context of the mother church. it was probably not until the first meeting of the lambeth conference ( so called because it was held at lambeth palace, the archbishop of canterbury ’ s residence in london ) in 1867 that there emerged among the various churches and councils a mutual consciousness of an anglican communion. since its inception the lambeth conference, which meets every 10 years, has constituted the principal cohesive factor in anglicanism, even though its decisions are not binding and must be approved by the individual churches. beliefs and practices the beliefs and practices of the anglican communion are often said to be the middle ground between those of the roman catholic and those of the protestant churches. the communion teaches a trinitarian understanding of god and believes in jesus as the coequal and coeternal son of god who came for the salvation of humankind. the holy book of the communion is the bible, which is made up of the old testament, or hebrew bible, and the new testament. anglicans also accept the nicene creed and the apostles ’ creed as essential statements of their beliefs. there are only two sacraments, baptism and the eucharist, but the communion honours confirmation, ordination, marriage, reconciliation of the penitent, and unction of the sick as important religious rites. easter and christmas are two of the most important holy days in the communion, and members of the church attend weekly services. the communion ’ s worship service varies but often includes the eucharistic rites, prayer, the singing of psalms and hymns


shoumita dasgupta, ph. d. associate professor of medicine, biomedical genetics director of graduate studies, program in genetics and genomics medical genetics course manager, boston university school of medicine ph. d. university of california, san francisco m. s. university of california, san francisco b. s. massachusetts institute of technology stanley l. robbins award for excellence in teaching the popular press has called the twentieth century “ the century of the gene. ” during this time, genetics came forward as a central discipline in biology, first with the rediscovery of the work of gregor mendel at the turn of the century, later with the elucidation of the structure of dna by jim watson and francis crick, and more recently with the development of recombinant dna technologies by paul berg and herb boyer. these scientific events revolutionized the way we thought about biological problems. mendel ’ s contributions led scientists to probe the genetic basis of inheritance while watson and crick helped to define the molecular nature of this inheritance. berg and boyer developed the tools that allowed scientists to manipulate these molecules of inheritance to more deeply understand their functions. each of these events has had far - reaching consequences because of the explosion of scientific inquiry it both allowed and inspired. currently, scientists of the twenty - first century are poised at the brink of another genetic revolution, this time triggered by the genome projects of organisms from microbes to humans. with the availability of this data, it has become obvious that current computational tools alone are inadequate to fully mine this immense data set. although the power of current genomic strategies is tremendous, they are not sufficient to determine gene function. consequently, scientists are seeking to ascertain gene function using two main approaches. first, there is a great effort underway to create new technologies and computational tools to allow for large scale molecular analyses of complex systems. secondly, these strategies are utilized alongside methods that take advantage of the powerful role of model organisms in helping to determine gene function, an important focus of the genetics and genomics department. this global perspective on the intricate networks that govern the machinery of life is causing a shift in the traditional paradigm of identifying the impact of individual genes on any given process. instead, the revised concept that no gene acts in isolation is more easily explored with these new genomic and bioinformatics tools. the aim of our program in establishing graduate coursework in genetics and genomics is to teach our students to apply the approaches of classical genetics and modern genomics to investigations of the heritable basis of


new genomic and bioinformatics tools. the aim of our program in establishing graduate coursework in genetics and genomics is to teach our students to apply the approaches of classical genetics and modern genomics to investigations of the heritable basis of numerous biological traits, the relationships among genes, the regulation of their expression, and the elaborate mechanisms involved in supporting complex biological processes. we want our students to be adept at utilizing hypothesis - driven methods as well as discovery - oriented experimental design styles to explore these problems. the combination of these two tactics will allow our students to systematically and broadly make important contributions to many disciplines of biology. moreover, it is our goal that our students will also be trained to function as active members of the scientific community who can clearly communicate ideas, critically evaluate biomedical research, and mentor others in scientific scholarship. towards this end, we offer an array of courses and training opportunities that comprise the graduate program in genetics and genomics. “ principles of genetics and genomics ” is a core course that focuses on the use of genetic methods in model organisms for understanding complex biological processes. this course focuses on the ability to use genetic systems to probe these problems, and therefore heavily explores the experimental aspects of these investigations. in addition, we discuss the impact of the genome sequences on the practice of modern science. in this regard, the course will be aimed towards first year phd students in the biological sciences, but the course is open to anyone wishing to study genetic approaches to biological research. in addition, we use a case study approach to investigate the rich variety of scientific insights gained through genetic studies. as such, it is a core course that serves a diverse, interdisciplinary group of students in many fields from genetics and genomics to bioinformatics to immunology, and many others. further details on this course and our other exciting courses for graduate and medical students can be found on the course website. this course is one of the foundations for our graduate program in genetics and genomics, which is designed to bring these same approaches to an entire coordinated curriculum. our graduate program aims to bridge the disciplines of experimental biosciences with computational and genomic approaches. the program consists of laboratory rotations, advanced coursework, and journal clubs in the first year. subsequently, graduate students will focus on their thesis research, qualifying exams, and a teaching requirement. additional information on our graduate program can be found on the graduate program website. the pace of genetic advances during the last century has been unparalleled scientifically, and these discoveries have already made


for my 7th grade science fair project my dad helped me test the germs on people ’ s hands after washing them with different brands of soap. the goal was to see which hand soap was the most effective. i got to use petri dishes and watch bacteria grow. i thought it was super impressive. well, turns out teenagers today are really raising the bar. take brittany wenger from sarasota, florida who recently won this year ’ s google science fair for developing a computer program that helps doctors detect breast cancer using less invasive methods. puts my science fair project to shame! the 17 - year - old ran 7. 6 million trials and spent more than 600 hours coding the computer program which she has been working on since 7th grade. she hopes to continue to scale up the program so that it can be used in hospitals across the country. brittany ’ s project is impressive on many levels, especially when you consider how much women and girls are underrepresented in the computer science industry. she is happy to break stereotypes that say girls aren ’ t interested in computer programming or science. so, what does a remarkable young woman like this see for her future? “ i want to be on the frontier of cancer research, finding the cures that are going to save lives and doing things with computer science that can be the technologies of the future, ” says brittany. “ i also want to be a pediatric oncologist, so i hope to intertwine my passions for research, computer science and patient care in the future. ” i have no doubts that brittany won ’ t do just that. why do you think girls continue to be underrepresented in science and computer programming fields? related from care2 : photo by richard bowen used under a creative commons license. disclaimer : the views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of care2, inc., its employees or advertisers.


for years now, we have been deluged with the news that the earth ’ s oceans are warming as a result of atmospheric changes due to the combustion of fossil fuels. typical of these was a 2005 story titled “ where ’ s the heat? think deep blue, ” from united press international, describing a recent paper in science by nasa climate modeler james hansen. upi ’ s “ space daily ” wrote that “ over the past ten years, the heat content of the ocean has grown dramatically. ” hansen ’ s study covered more than just the ocean surface temperature, which can fluctuate considerably from year to year. rather, by considering a much deeper layer of water ( the top 2, 500 feet ), hansen actually calculated the increasing amount of heat being stored. according to the upi story, this provided “ a match ” with computer model projections of global warming. the ocean is a huge tub that integrates and stores long - term climate changes. consequently, when computer models are based on ever - increasing atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide, the deep oceans warm, warm, and warm. like a big pot on a small burner, it takes time to start up, but once the process starts, nothing should be able to stop it. that ’ s the conventional wisdom of our climate models, but like the conventional wisdom on so many other aspects of life, it ’ s not true to nature. in the next few weeks, john lyman of the national oceanic and atmospheric administration will publish a paper in the refereed journal geophysical research letters showing that, globally, the top 2, 500 feet of the ocean lost a tremendous amount of heat between 2003 and 2005 — in fact, about 20 % of all the heat gained in the last half - century. needless to say, lyman ’ s figures have climate scientists scratching their heads. no computer model predicts such behavior. and further, the changes in surface temperatures haven ’ t corresponded ( yet? ) to the average changes at depth, although deep - water temperatures have also dropped some. nor has the sea level dropped by an amount commensurate with the cooling ( water volume varies slightly with temperature ). this last observation has led scientists to speculate that much more ice must be melting into the ocean than they normally assume — but no one has been able to find it, and it ’ s not for a lack of looking. there ’ s another hypothesis out there that has received very little attention. it has to do with the amount of carbon dioxide accumulating in the atmosphere


no one has been able to find it, and it ’ s not for a lack of looking. there ’ s another hypothesis out there that has received very little attention. it has to do with the amount of carbon dioxide accumulating in the atmosphere. if carbon dioxide increases at a constant rate, basic physics — as understood since the 1860s — says that surface temperature will rise, but that the rate of heating will become lower and lower. in other words, in order for temperatures to increase at a constant rate, as has been observed since 1975, carbon dioxide would have to go up at an ever - increasing rate. but the ocean is so vast and slow to change that it takes several decades to realize the heating caused by carbon dioxide. consequently, a change in the rate of carbon dioxide accumulation in the atmosphere wouldn ’ t be noticed for 30 to 60 years, depending upon whose calculations one believes. between the time atmospheric carbon dioxide was first directly measured, at mauna loa, hawaii, in 1957, and 1975, it clearly increased exponentially. and once the ocean temperature began to rise, it did so at a constant rate. then, about 30 years ago, something very peculiar began to occur. since 1975, it has been impossible to tell whether the amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide is increasing at an exponential or simply a constant rate. because of the lag time required for the oceans to register the change in carbon dioxide, it may not be a surprise that an interval of cooling has been detected. the timing is about right : around 30 years. but that ’ s just another climate change hypothesis that time will test. be forewarned, though. as we ’ ve learned from the completely unexpected cooling of the deep ocean that began in 2003, we know a lot less about climate change than we think.


roy j. plunkett roy j. plunkett with a cable insulated with teflon and a teflon - coated muffin tin. gift of roy plunkett. courtesy hagley museum and library. from the 1930s to the present, beginning with neoprene and nylon, the american chemical industry has introduced a cornucopia of polymers to the consumer. teflon, discovered by roy j. plunkett ( 1910 – 1994 ) at the dupont company ’ s jackson laboratory in 1938, was an accidental invention — unlike most of the other polymer products. but as plunkett often told student audiences, his mind was prepared by education and training to recognize novelty. as a poor ohio farm boy during the depression, plunkett attended manchester college in indiana. his roommate for a time at this small college was paul flory, who would win the 1974 nobel prize in chemistry for his contributions to the theory of polymers. like flory, plunkett went on to the ohio state university for a doctorate, and also like flory he was hired by dupont. unlike flory, plunkett made his entire career at dupont. reenactment of the 1938 discovery of teflon. left to right : jack rebok, robert mcharness, and roy plunkett. courtesy hagley museum and library. plunkett ’ s first assignment at dupont was researching new chlorofluorocarbon refrigerants — then seen as great advances over earlier refrigerants like sulfur dioxide and ammonia, which regularly poisoned food - industry workers and people in their homes. plunkett had produced 100 pounds of tetrafluoroethylene gas ( tfe ) and stored it in small cylinders at dry - ice temperatures preparatory to chlorinating it. when he and his helper prepared a cylinder for use, none of the gas came out — yet the cylinder weighed the same as before. they opened it and found a white powder, which plunkett had the presence of mind to characterize for properties other than refrigeration potential. he found the substance to be heat resistant and chemically inert, and to have very low surface friction so that most other substances would not adhere to it. plunkett realized that, against the predictions of polymer science of the day, tfe had polymerized to produce this substance — later named teflon — with such potentially useful characteristics. chemists and engineers in the central research department with special experience in polymer research and


increasing money supply ultimately creates inflation. this theory has never succeeded ( other than possibly one questionable instance in chile ) and has demonstrably failed. the main monetarist theory apologist, milton friedman, ( whose list of dangerous devotees is headed by federal reserve chairman ben bernanke ) has excused the failures of monetarist policy by saying that all previous adherents failed because they didn ’ t do it enough. in other words, if something isn ’ t working then you need to do it more. in all previous crises, the markets imposed a limit to how far monetarist solutions could be pursued. america is getting close to this point now – every injection of stimulus having a smaller and shorter - lived effect than its predecessor with some estimates now indicating that each $ 1 of stimulatory input results in only 12 cents of additional output. that doesn ’ t mean that the current monetarist ideologues are ready to abandon their strategy ( it ’ s the only one they have ) but the realization that the naked emperors of monetarism are naked is as imminent now as it was in 1932 when hoover was forced to abandon the strategy. as, of course, was his successor, roosevelt, who added the firepower of what seemed to be unlimited leverage in a currency system that abandoned gold. the term " double - dip " was coined to describe the situation where recession / depression recurs because of the inability of central banks to maintain the effects of stimulatory output because of the law of diminishing returns. in the inter - war period, the weimar ’ s famous experiments with pursuing currency expansion to the ultimate extreme ( to try to repay its war debts and the versailles reparations ) led to the famous hyperinflation where marks became worth less than the actual cost of printing them. mr. bernanke ’ s complacent claims to be able to easily create inflation by harnessing the twin technologies of printing presses could well become his epitaph. this is the current german / ecb / euro zone core prescription for greece and its fellow " gipsis " ( greece, ireland, portugal, spain and italy ) as well as being the uk coalition ’ s self - prescribed foul - tasting medicine. it ’ s understandable that there are huge scars on the german psyche following the weimar period. however, like the monetarist inflationary theories, the tail - chasing dog on an ever - downward spiral of trying to reduce debt while gdp is being destroyed has rarely, if ever, proven successful


choices have been exhausted. whatever form it takes, if the conditions which led to the situation that caused it are changed, then it can be a base from which to achieve sustainable growth, cure dysfunctional banking and liquidate malinvestment, restoring social order at the same time. this is what happened in south east asia following the crises of 1997 and in iceland after 2007. what can we learn from our parents and grandparents? answer given below in an economic formula : ( santayana ’ s comments [ those not learning the lessons of history are destined to repeat them ] + mark twain ’ s " history doesn ’ t repeat, it rhymes " + einstein ’ s definition of madness [ doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results ] + hyman minsky ’ s observations that trying to cure debt bubbles with more debt only ends in eventual catastrophe ) = [ i ’ ve said many times before that liaquat ali ’ s “ lords of finance ” should be compulsory in schools everywhere ]. if we don ’ t learn lessons from 1930s parallels, there ’ s a very good chance that the outcomes of this decade might be > ( grim than that one was ). the author is paul gambles, managing partner and group chief investment officer, mbmg international.


the way we define things and how we name them determine how we view the world and, as a result, how we act and treat one another. modern neuroscience shows that human perceive not the thing itself but a copy, an illusion created by the human brain, a copy that is as created by mental beliefs and attitudes as much as it is generated by energies in the physical world. things are not as they appear, and how things appear can change over time. a story i heard today on the radio show “ this american life ” illustrates how powerful definitions are and what it can take to change them. “ 204 : 81 words, ” covers the history of how the american psychiatric association ( apa ) decided in 1973 that homosexuality was no longer a mental illness. it ’ s about both the power of a family story and a social label, artfully and informatively told by national public radio reporter alix spiegel. the story ’ s professional theme shows how the 81 words in american psychiatric association ’ s diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders ( dsm ) that defined homosexuality as a disease were replace by 204 that say it is not. for years, psychiatrists treated it as a disease to be cured, and psychoanalysts probed patients to see where the causes lay in family history. i assume that “ this american life ” host ira glass and his crew decided to rebroadcast the show, originally aired in 2002, because the forthcoming fifth edition of the apa ’ s manual, dsm - 5, to be published in 2013, is now available for public comment. comments are due april 20, 2010. the story ’ s family theme focuses on the power of family stories. the reporter, spiegel, is the granddaughter of a man who played an important role in revising the dsm description of homosexuality. her family ’ s family story was more or less single - handedly responsible for the change. the granddaughter, in telling the history, found that the true story was much more complex and her grandfather ’ s role much less central, though still important. i am not sure how spiegel and her family changed through her telling of the story and the consequent shattering of the myth of her grandfather. i ’ d like to, for family stories provide a powerful organizing device for a family and the perception of its members. a change in the narrative generally changes the characters in the future, but his is not in spiegel ’ s scope. my personal interest centers on how things become named – more


a powerful organizing device for a family and the perception of its members. a change in the narrative generally changes the characters in the future, but his is not in spiegel ’ s scope. my personal interest centers on how things become named – more properly how people use language to designate aspects of human experience with words that have meanings upon which people act. “ 80 words ” recalled how appalled i am at the number of psychological experiences have been labeled diseases that should be treated by drugs. about two years ago, i got into a cab on the way home from midway airport and had a conversation with an extremely articulate and bright cab driver about philosophy, politics, and, of all things, drugs. when i mentioned that the drug seller ’ s on the streets of the city were not necessarily the biggest causes of the country ’ s drug problems, and my driver took that bait. “ oh yeah, the real pusherboys work for the big drug companies, ” he said. “ makes the guys on the street seem like rank amateurs, ” i replied in agreement. turned out we had both read an article in the chicago reader that week ( 2 / 14 / 08 ) called, “ how shy became sick. ” that article and the book it profiles, christopher lane ’ s shyness : how normal behavior became a sickness, provides a critical bit of history on the development of the psychological profession in recent years. it convinced me that if i had been in high school in the mid 90s rather than the mid 70s, i would have been on meds. i would have been a very different person, and not for the better, though it occurs to me that i was on meds not sanctioned by the psychological profession. but that ’ s a different story. “ 204 : 81 words ” is well worth the hour it takes to play.


that may be affected by the undertaking and gather sufficient information to evaluate the eligibility of these properties for the national register. " the regulations also specify that " efforts to identify historic properties should follow the secretary ' s standards ( which are advisory ) and guidelines for archeology and historic preservation " ( 36 cfr part 800. 4a ( 2 ) ). particularly, the identification efforts should be consistent with the secretary of the interior ' s standards and guidelines for identification. in accordance with 36 cfr part 800. 4a ( 1 ), the agency official shall : the federal agency has ultimate authority in making determinations on proposed undertakings under the national historic preservation act ; shpo acts as a consulting party within the process and has no regulatory authority. as part of the identification process, an agency may need to have an identification survey ( phase ia reconnaissance survey or phase i intensive survey ) conducted in the area of potential effect particularly if no information on historic properties is available for the area of potential effect and there appears to be a potential for historic properties to be located within the area of potential effect. this survey is conducted to identify cultural resources that exist within the proposed project area. the majority of cultural resources found are often determined to not be significant, and thus, no further work is needed on them. however, phase i surveys sometimes identify sites that are potentially eligible for listing on the national register. such a finding would necessitate additional archaeological investigations in the form of phase ii testing, which involves detailed research to determine the significance and integrity of the sites. if the phase ii testing results in finding national register - eligible properties, then the project moves to step 2 in the section 106 process. step 2 involves carefully examining the project to determine whether it will have an effect on the identified historic properties. an effect occurs when " the undertaking may alter characteristics of the property that may qualify the property for inclusion in the national register. " if an effect is found, then the federal agency and the shpo consult to determine whether the effect is adverse. an undertaking is considered to have an adverse effect when the effect on the historic property may diminish the integrity of the property ' s location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, or association. if there is an adverse effect, then the agency and the shpo consider ways to minimize the impact of the project on the resource. this is step 3. a decision should be made about what to do with the historic property. there are various ways to minimize the impact to the identified historic property that are discussed in


do not know what causes non - hodgkin lymphoma and only a few risk factors for non - hodgkin lymphoma are known for sure. genderboys are two to three times more likely to develop non - hodgkin lymphoma before age 20 compared to girls. for every two girls diagnosed, about five boys are diagnosed. race and ethnicitycaucasian children are about 40 % more likely to develop non - hodgkin lymphoma compared to african american children. children with impaired immune system are more likely to develop non - hodgkin lymphoma than other children. for example, children with hiv ( the cause of aids ) or being treated to suppress the immune system after an organ transplant are more susceptible to nhl. children with these conditions are more at risk for non - hodgkin lymphoma, but they account for only a small fraction of cases. also, children with defects in their body ’ s ability to repair gene mutations, such as ataxia telangiectasia or fanconi anemia, are at increased risk to develop nhl. participate in research studiesresearchers are studying the causes of non - hodgkin lymphoma. if there is a research study " open " in cog, and your child is " eligible " you may be asked to participate. it is also possible that you may be asked to participate in more than one study. whether an individual is eligible for a particular study may depend on age, year of diagnosis and other information. researchers usually must limit their study to some of these characteristics to have a scientifically valid study. for example, a study might be restricted to patients diagnosed within certain years so the researchers can locate nearly all eligible families and avoid asking parents to recall events too far in the past. researchers investigating the causes of non - hodgkin lymphoma usually will interview one or both parents by telephone. during the interview, parents are asked questions about their experiences and those of their child. the purpose is to gather information that may or may not influence the risk of cancer. the researchers don ’ t know whether these things influence risk. they are asking the questions to find out more. sometimes, the researcher will ask for a small biological sample from you and your child, usually cheek cells, blood or hair. researchers may also ask for samples of dust or water from your home. the researchers use the information from the interviews and the samples to study whether genes or


ask for a small biological sample from you and your child, usually cheek cells, blood or hair. researchers may also ask for samples of dust or water from your home. the researchers use the information from the interviews and the samples to study whether genes or exposures such as medications, radon and chemicals alone or together make some people more likely to develop cancer. researchers design various studies to improve treatment and advance the understanding of cancer and its causes. clinical trials are carefully reviewed and must be approved through a formal scientific process before anyone can be enrolled. if there is a research study “ open ” that your child is “ eligible for, ” you may be asked to allow your child to participate. it is also possible that your child will be asked to participate in more than one study. whether an individual is eligible for a particular study may depend on age, location of the cancer, the extent of the disease and other information. researchers usually must limit their study to some of these characteristics to have a scientifically valid study. further, researchers must follow exactly the same restrictions throughout the study. if your child is eligible to participate in one or more study, your doctor will discuss these with you during an initial treatment conference ( also called informed consent conference ). the doctor will describe the study, potential risks of participation, and other information you need to decide whether or not you would like your child to participate in the study. you always have the choice to participate or not in research studies. if you do choose to have your child participate in a study, you doctor will explain what type of information you will receive about the results of the study. the overall results of the research study will be published to inform the public and other researchers. no study will publish any information that identifies an individual. visit the clinical trials section of this website to learn more about the various kinds of research studies.


the u. s. military originally had a virtual monopoly of certain communications channels. it was one of the few entities to be using internet, and it used many areas of the spectrum untouched by civilian communications. however, with the digital revolution and the expansion of civilians onto the internet and increasing using of the digital spectrum, the military is finding adapting to the deprivation of these bands difficult. last year during the bandwidth auction, the portion of the spectrum used by the b - 2 bomber ' s raytheon apq - 181 radar was accidentally sold to an obscure multinational organization according to military. com. as a result, u. s. taxpayers will be footing the over $ 1b usd bill to replace the radar in the 20 remaining jets. with users demanding video - ready smartphones, high - speed mobile internet, and other emerging applications, the military is finding that the spectrum is quickly disappearing, and it ’ s having trouble finding areas for its own sensitive technologies. other expensive losses abound. the joint tactical information distribution system, a costly system used to get awacs targeting data to f - 22 fighter jets has " limited supportability outside the continental u. s. " another key issue is the steady creep of civilian communications into the spectrum used for flight - test telemetry. while there are workarounds to gather some additional information, telemetry data remains essential to testing both manned and unmanned aircraft and protecting pilots from failures. ultimately, more data takes more bandwidth - - an unalterable fact - - and to achieve higher frequencies more power is required. this places inherent limitations to the amount of data capable of being communicated over the spectrum. military designers are in a sticky situation as they can ' t compress their data, in many cases, like civilian applications. " this is not a cell phone, ” said darrell ernst. " you can ' t ask the pilot to wait while you redial. " ernst works for the mitre corp., a member of a u. s. - european delegation trying to raise international awareness of bandwidth issues, and estimates that by 2020 the air force will need 600 mhz of spectrum for telemetry data. currently the only vacant spot suggested to them is the 5091 and 5150 mhz band. the air force is eager to occupy even this meager 59 mhz offer. states mr. ernst, " if [ the flight - test community ] can get in there and start using it, we can be established as the primary user and it will be hard for them to throw us out. "


people with high - level spinal cord injuries typically lose control of their arms and legs meaning they can no longer get around without some sort of adaptive assistance device. quadriplegics have long relied on a type of control system for electric wheelchairs called the sip - and - puff system. this type of control system allowed the user to move forward and backwards in an electric wheelchair by sipping a straw or blowing into it. a group of researchers at the georgia institute of technology ( git ) has devised a new method of controlling a power chair for those who no longer had functionality in their arms and legs. the new system uses the patient ’ s tongue to control the chair or to control the mouse cursor on a computer screen. maysam ghovanloo, an assistant professor in the school of electrical and computer engineering at git said, " this clinical trial has validated that the tongue drive system is intuitive and quite simple for individuals with high - level spinal cord injuries to use. trial participants were able to easily remember and correctly issue tongue commands to play computer games and drive a powered wheelchair around an obstacle course with very little prior training. " the clinical trial was conducted at the shepherd center in atlanta and involved the attachment of a small magnet, roughly the size of a grain of rice, to the tongue of the patient with a tissue adhesive. the magnet was used as a tracer to allow the magnetic field sensors to register its movements. the users of the system wore sensors that look like headphones on the head to track the magnet. the researchers say that the nerve that controls the tongue in patients with high - level spinal injury is typically not affected in the injury. software translates the movement of the magnet into motion for the chair via wireless connectivity with a computer attached to the chair. the chair motion can be controlled in a constant setting that allows the chair user to move along an arc or in a control method for new users that only allows one motion at a time. according to the researchers, the tongue drive system can be used to create as many movement commands as the user can comfortably remember.


faeces, electric eels and fruit would power conceptual communities designed by bartlett school of architecture graduate catrina stewart. the city farmhouse project proposes housing communities on stilts above clusters of public toilets, where visitors would be required to donate faeces and urine on arrival. electricity would be generated from methane gas released when the harvested excrement is broken down. faeces and urine could also be used to produce compost and water for community gardens. streetlights would be powered by fruit acid and elevators would be powered by electric eels, kept as pets by residents. other recent architecture graduate projects include an upside - down skyscraper and a tower that shoots artificial bees into the air - see all our stories about this years graduate shows here. here are some more details from catrina stewart : london city farmhouse the city farmhouse project is a prototype that looks at forming new self - sufficient communities, which integrate agriculture and housing within the city of london. the farmhouses and vertical colour gardens will be open to the public, and will rely on its colours and visitors to achieve self - sufficiency. visitors and residents will be expected to make a donation of faeces and urine when they visit the building. these will be used to produce water, compost and electricity for the farmhouses. methane gas released by the waste produced in biogas digesters can then be used directly or to produce electricity. without its public toilets the community would not be able to survive. the more visitors the building can attract the more power, food and water will be produced. new public toilets will be erected across the borough in order to collect human waste to power the farmhouses. new communities will begin to grow around the more popular public toilets, creating new farmhouses. the farmhouse project explores the use of colour to attract people to the building and entice them into using the public toilets by using the same principles used for colour in marketing and advertising. colours are therefore used less for their aesthetics and more for their functional properties. nothing in the farmhouse is disposed of, everything is recycled and reused to fuel something else. old and new technologies are used to harness energy and food from almost anything, animals are no longer used for their meat but rather as a source of energy. cows are farmed for their methane gas, electric eels are kept as pets to power the elevators in the building and fruits are used to to power the street lights.


in 1811, joseph fourier, the 43 - year - old prefect of the french district of isere, entered a competition in heat research sponsored by the french academy of sciences. the paper he submitted described a novel analytical technique that we today call the fourier transform, and it won the competition ; but the prize jury declined to publish it, criticizing the sloppiness of fourier ' s reasoning. according to jean - pierre kahane, a french mathematician and current member of the academy, as late as the early 1970s, fourier ' s name still didn ' t turn up in the major french encyclopedia the encyclopdia universalis. now, however, his name is everywhere. the fourier transform is a way to decompose a signal into its constituent frequencies, and versions of it are used to generate and filter cell - phone and wi - fi transmissions, to compress audio, image, and video files so that they take up less bandwidth, and to solve differential equations, among other things. it ' s so ubiquitous that " you don ' t really study the fourier transform for what it is, " says laurent demanet, an assistant professor of applied mathematics at mit. " you take a class in signal processing, and there it is. you don ' t have any choice. " the fourier transform comes in three varieties : the plain old fourier transform, the fourier series, and the discrete fourier transform. but it ' s the discrete fourier transform ( dft ) that accounts for the fourier revival. in 1965, the computer scientists james cooley and john tukey described an algorithm called the fast fourier transform, which made it much easier to calculate dfts on a computer. all of a sudden, the dft became a practical way to process digital signals. to get a sense of what the dft does, consider an mp3 player plugged into a loudspeaker. the mp3 player sends the speaker audio information as fluctuations in the voltage of an electrical signal. those fluctuations cause the speaker drum to vibrate, which in turn causes air particles to move, producing sound. an audio signal ' s fluctuations over time can be depicted as a graph : the x - axis is time, and the y - axis is the voltage of the electrical signal, or perhaps the movement of the speaker drum or air particles. either way, the signal ends up looking like an erratic wavelike squiggle. but when you listen to the sound produced from that squiggle, you can clearly distinguish all the instruments in a symphony orchestra, playing


speaker drum or air particles. either way, the signal ends up looking like an erratic wavelike squiggle. but when you listen to the sound produced from that squiggle, you can clearly distinguish all the instruments in a symphony orchestra, playing discrete notes at the same time. that ' s because the erratic squiggle is, effectively, the sum of a number of much more regular squiggles, which represent different frequencies of sound. " frequency " just means the rate at which air molecules go back and forth, or a voltage fluctuates, and it can be represented as the rate at which a regular squiggle goes up and down. when you add two frequencies together, the resulting squiggle goes up where both the component frequencies go up, goes down where they both go down, and does something in between where they ' re going in different directions. the dft does mathematically what the human ear does physically : decompose a signal into its component frequencies. unlike the analog signal from, say, a record player, the digital signal from an mp3 player is just a series of numbers, representing very short samples of a real - world sound : cd - quality digital audio recording, for instance, collects 44, 100 samples a second. if you extract some number of consecutive values from a digital signal - - 8, or 128, or 1, 000 - - the dft represents them as the weighted sum of an equivalent number of frequencies. ( " weighted " just means that some of the frequencies count more than others toward the total. ) the application of the dft to wireless technologies is fairly straightforward : the ability to break a signal into its constituent frequencies lets cell - phone towers, for instance, disentangle transmissions from different users, allowing more of them to share the air. the application to data compression is less intuitive. but if you extract an 8x8 block of pixels from an image, each row or column is simply a sequence of eight numbers - - like a digital signal with eight samples. the whole block can thus be represented as the weighted sum of 64 frequencies. if there ' s little variation in color across the block, the weights of most of those frequencies will be zero or near zero. throwing out the frequencies with low weights allows the block to be represented with fewer bits but little loss of fidelity. demanet points out that the dft has plenty of other applications, in areas like spectroscopy, magnetic resonance imaging, and quantum computing. but ultimately, he says, " it ' s


pastels paper – a variety of sizes, shapes, textures, colours ( sugar, crepe, tissue, card, paper plates ) used cards and magazines sellotape, glue, insulating tape different fabrics, buttons, sequins, collage materials a water tray that allows 3 or 4 children play together a sand tray that allows a number of children play together jugs, funnels, water wheels, water pump, sieve, moulds, spades, bucket / container items that float and sink assortment of items that are the same but different ( stones of different shapes, weights and sizes ) swings, slides ( learn about movement, speed, force, push - pull ), bikes and trikes ( direction and speed ), sand and water area ( volume, displacement kites ( wind, velocity ), skittles ( number, force ) taking and making opportunities to help children think logically and solve problems equipping the setting both indoors and outdoors with interesting open ended materials that offer possibilities for the children introducing mathematical language in very real contexts so that children have plenty of experience in understanding concepts of up and down ; in and out ; over and under ; more and less and so on allowing time and space for children to think, process and ask questions encouraging thinking skills by asking real and relevant questions, in constructing, the question can be asked ‘ how many wheels do you need to build the truck? ’ for maths week 2012 we have been sharing ideas on promoting the following maths concepts in your service – number, pattern, shape and space, and measuring and comparisons. we hope you find these find these useful in supporting positive attitudes and confidence in maths for the children in your care. a very big thank you to the children and staff at the abc club in meath, and all the learning story participants, for the use of their photo ’ s, video ’ s and wonderful stories. when early years educators have a sound knowledge of mathematics and the benefits of play, and the connections between them, there is great potential for early childhood experiences that extend young children ’ s mathematical understandings and attitudes. last but not least, an important part of mathematical play is that it should be fun! “ we can influence young children ’ s keenness to learn mathematics by making the tasks we do of interest to them … by showing that we really think maths is important and fun ” 1 1montague - smith, ann. mathematics in nursery education. london : david fulton publishers, 2nd ed. 2003


the original intent of this month ’ s column was to discuss fiber use in the smart grid, but i have found it is hard to define the smart grid. some organizations involved in it are even dropping that name for “ intelligent grid ” or something similar. one of the fiber optics association directors has been working with a major utility on a training program, and one - third of the program will be about fiber optics. the rest encompasses all the electrical issues involved in generating and delivering reliable electrical power to users and how they actually consume electrical power. fiber optics are not new to utilities. when i was in the fiber optic test equipment business in the 1980s, my first utility customer was nashville electric service. the utility was using multimode fiber to connect sensors and control equipment in substations over fiber to avoid the electrical interference and potential shock risk encountered with copper cables. i don ’ t spend much time talking about sensors, but fiber optics have been used in sensors for high - voltage and large current circuits since the mid - 1980s. the sensors are perfect for utilities as they operate by simply clamping them around the transmission wires and running fibers to monitoring equipment in the substation. the sensors also are capable of measuring large voltages and currents and have fast response time, all important for monitoring and controlling the utility grid. a few years later, utilities and long - distance telephone companies ( telcos ) began cooperating on long - distance fiber optic links. utilities had a valuable asset : rights - of - way, which telcos coveted. but the utilities needed communications between their facilities for voice communications and signals to control their power grid. on the other hand, telcos needed fiber optic links for their long - distance networks. by working together, the utility and the telcos both got their communications links and profited from the cooperation. a major part of the growth of utility usage of fiber optics was optical power ground wire ( opgw ), a high - voltage transmission cable with optical fiber in the center of it. it is, indeed, the perfect example of one of the advantages of optical fiber, its immunity to electrical interference. in one cable installation, power transmission and communications were both covered. today, practically every large power transmission system uses opgw. for example, the sunrise powerlink — san diego gas & electric ’ s ( sdg & e ) 117 - mile system under construction in southern california — is using opgw with 96 fibers inside the wire. the installation of opgw requires the skills of an electrical lineman capable of


san diego gas & electric ’ s ( sdg & e ) 117 - mile system under construction in southern california — is using opgw with 96 fibers inside the wire. the installation of opgw requires the skills of an electrical lineman capable of splicing high - voltage wires and the skills of an outside plant fiber optic installer to splice the fibers. most splices are done on the ground, and splice closures are suspended from towers unless they are terminated inside regeneration huts or vaults along the right - of - way. besides sensing, substation controls and long - distance communications, a utility needs to monitor and control the power directly to the customer. and today, at least here in southern california where i live, that involves not only delivering power to the customer but feeding the output of many customers ’ photovoltaic solar - power systems ( like my 2, 500 - watt systems on the roof ) back into the grid. that means conversions to smart meters are another important piece of the power grid puzzle. some utilities, such as sdg & e, are using wireless meters that can be read by a truck driving by. others have decided to connect customers with fiber, creating their own fiber to the home networks and either offering broadband services or using their network to deliver services for others. in some areas, this entails cooperation with telcos and catv system operators and, in others, outright warfare. chattanooga, tenn., is perhaps the best example of a utility broadband network. there you can get broadband at gigabit speeds, a first in the united states, beating out google ’ s kansas city network. the broadband network helped chattanooga convince volkswagen to locate a new plant there, creating thousands of new jobs. when it comes to the smart grid, it ’ s impossible to generalize about the applications — or sometimes even define it. however, we can say it is a big field in the united states alone, with more than 2, 000 electrical utilities combining their power into the national grid, and practically every communications technology is involved. virtually every aspect of fiber optic technology is involved also - — sensing, communications and control, using all types of fiber in almost every application you can imagine. for either the fiber tech or the electrical lineman interested in the smart grid, it is likely that there are areas where your expertise is required and many others where you need to learn more. hayes is a vdv writer and educator and the president of the fiber optic association. find him at www. jimhayes. com


capital chips ( part 2 ) this lesson printed from : posted july 30, 2002 author : council for economic education technology staff posted : july 30, 2002 updated : june 10, 2009 through the use of a historical timeline of the capital investments made by the company the resulting benefits will be examined. the benefits from the capital investments of herr foods, inc. will be related to their effect on the standard of living. then students will visit one of three websites, select an innovation / invention of their choice to analyze in terms of its impact on productivity and the standard of living. finally, the teacher will select one invention / innovation from a designated website and have students analyze it in the same economic terms as the focus of this lesson and write an essay summarizing the innovation / invention. productivity is a measurement of output resulting from the use of productive resources or inputs. it refers to the amount of output per unit of input over a period of time. an increase in productivity may mean producing the same amount with fewer inputs, producing more output with the same inputs, or a combination of the two. companies look for ways to maintain and increase the level of productivity in order to remain competitive while maintaining profits. one way of accomplishing this is through investing in capital goods such as machines, tools, and new ideas used in the production process. technological improvements in capital goods are a leading cause of increase in productivity. after completing the following activities, your students will develop a better understanding of the economics associated with productivity. in the first activity your students will explore the concepts that are connected to productivity. in the second activity your students will investigate the herr ' s potato chips, a company that is constantly working at incorporating new techniques to satisfy the customer. finally, in the third activity your students will use the internet to search for inventors and inventions. their task is to find an invention they would like to learn more about and learn how that invention improves its environment. after your students complete all three parts to this lesson they will find a series of questions that will explore what they have learned from capital chips about productivity. part 2 introduction : the students are going to take a tour of the herr ' s foods inc in this lesson. herr ' s potato chips have been on the market for the past 50 years. the company is constantly working at incorporating new techniques to satisfy the customer. the students ' job will be to see how these new techniques improve the company and benefits the customer. - point out to the students that they will learn about some actual investments in capital resources that have increased


working at incorporating new techniques to satisfy the customer. the students ' job will be to see how these new techniques improve the company and benefits the customer. - point out to the students that they will learn about some actual investments in capital resources that have increased productivity for one company in particular. they will learn how herr ' s foods, inc. increased its productivity over the years through a variety of investments in capital resources. - divide the students into 10 groups. assign each group a year ( or point on the herr ' s foods timeline ). - direct all groups to click on the first entry of the timeline and read it so that each group understands the beginnings of the herr ' s potato chip factory business. - direct the students to click on the point on the herr ' s timeline that corresponds to the date ( s ) that they were assigned. - tell the students to answer the following questions using the information they obtain from the timeline for the year assigned. - what was the capital investment, new idea, or innovation that occurred during this time frame on the herr ' s timeline? - how did this change increase the productivity of the herr ' s potato chip business? - what was the impact of this change on the consumer, producer, and worker? - direct all groups to click on the last entry of the herr ' s foods timeline and explore it so that each group has an understanding of the progress herr ' s foods, inc. has made. - at the end of this part of the lesson involving herr ' s foods lesson ( or at the end of the entire lesson ), plan to have a variety of herr ' s products for the students to enjoy. the students have now applied the concepts from the previous activity to a real - life business. next the students will get a closer look at an innovation or invention, to see how they can be used in a business.


" inexactness " or the " uncertainty " principle, as formulated by physicist werner heisenberg, is an end often seen as the beginning. it reflects t. s. eliot ' s observation : " what she gives, gives with such supple confusions that the giving famishes the craving ". in 1927, heisenberg showed that uncertainty is inherent in quantum mechanics. it is impossible to simultaneously measure certain properties — position and momentum. in the quantum world, matter can take the form of either particle or waves. fundamental elements are neither particles nor waves, but can behave as either and are merely different theoretical ways of picturing the quantum world. the profound beauty of inexactness transects science, mathematics, method, philosophy, linguistics and faith. inexactness marks an end to certainty. in seeking to measure one property more precisely and accurately, the ability to measure the other property is undermined. the act of measurement negates elements of our knowledge of the system. it undermines scientific determinism, implying that human knowledge about the world is always incomplete, uncertain and highly contingent. inexactness challenges causality. as heisenberg observed : " ' if we know the present, then we can predict the future ', it is not the consequences, but the premise that is false. as a matter of principle we cannot know all determining elements of the present ". inexactness questions methodology. experiments can only prove what they are designed to prove. inexactness is a theory based on the practical constraints of measurement. inexactness and quantum mechanics challenge faith as well as concepts of truth and order. they imply a probabilistic world of matter, where we cannot know anything with certainty but only as a possibility. it removes the newtonian elements of space and time from any underlying reality. in the quantum world, mechanics are understood as a probability without any causal explanation. albert einstein refused to accept that positions in space - time could never be completely known and quantum probabilities did not reflect any underlying causes. he did not reject the theory but the lack of reason for an event. writing to max born, he famously stated : " i, at any rate, am convinced that he [ god ] does not throw dice. " but as stephen hawking later remarked in terms that heisenberg would have recognised : " not only does god play dice, but … he sometimes throws them where they cannot be seen. " allusive and subtle, the power