and in securing critically needed funding for the land and water conservation fund, the bill reinvests in our nation ’ s public lands and waters. “ when we authorize drilling off of america ’ s coasts, we allow the oil industry to hold the ecosystems and economies of entire regions in the palm of its hand. the clear act will help put the american people back in control. we now look to the senate to pass their spill response bill next week to make these crucial reforms a reality. ” the legislation rides on the tail of a rocky week for the oil and gas drilling industry – with additional oil spills in michigan, new mexico and beleaguered louisiana. click here to read the full statement and learn more about the “ summer of oil spills. ” posted in commentary, offshore drilling, southeast posted on 23 june 2010. a federal judge blocked a six - month moratorium on deepwater drilling, but the obama administration has decided to appeal the judge ’ s decision, reports voice of america news. read the full story posted in in the news, newsroom, offshore drilling, southeast posted on 11 june 2010. the minerals management service ( mms ) continues to approve new leases after the deepwater horizon explosion that give british petroleum and other companies the right to drill even more deepwater wells in the gulf of mexico under the same inadequate oversight that led to the current oil spill, according to a new legal challenge filed by the southern environmental law center and defenders of wildlife. the groups say current policies create an incentive to allow drilling even in the face of evident risks because once a lease is issued by mms, the u. s. government is obligated to pay the lessee either the fair market value of the lease or the amount spent to obtain the bid plus costs and interest if the government cancels the lease or refuses to allow drilling. mike senatore, vice president for conservation law at defenders of wildlife, said, “ clueless and inept is really the only way to describe the ongoing situation at mms. this agency is at the epicenter of the worst environmental disaster in our nation ’ s history and yet it ’ s still going about business as usual. how else do you explain mms ’ s approval of the right to drill hundreds of new wells in the gulf, including 13 for bp, based on the same fundamentally flawed and patently illegal environmental documents used to green - light the deepwater horizon operation? ” mms approved new leases for deepwater tracts as recently as june 10 under the same lax oversight compl


including 13 for bp, based on the same fundamentally flawed and patently illegal environmental documents used to green - light the deepwater horizon operation? ” mms approved new leases for deepwater tracts as recently as june 10 under the same lax oversight complicit in the current gulf spill. read the full release. posted in offshore drilling, press releases, southeast posted on 03 june 2010. earlier today, the washington post reported that an email written by the head of the mms ’ supervisor of field operations for the gulf of mexico stated that “ until further notice we have been informed not to approve or allow any drilling no matter the water depth. ” however, the interior department now denies that it has extended a drilling freeze to shallow waters of the gulf of mexico, telling the washington post that “ shallow water drilling may continue as long as oil and gas operations satisfy the environmental and safety requirements secretary salazar outlined in his report to the president and have exploration plans that meet those requirements. there is no moratorium on shallow water drilling. ” but richard charter, senior policy advisor at defenders, said the risks involved with offshore oil and gas drilling have very little to do with the depth of the water. in a interview with wbai evening news, he recalls the recent drilling disaster in australia ’ s timor sea, in which a rig blowout led to an oil spill that gushed unchecked for 10 weeks last fall. that drilling rig was operating “ in very shallow water, only a few hundred feet. ” listen to the full show from june 2, 2010 ( segment begins at 6 : 00 ; hear richard at 7 : 20 ). posted in in the news, offshore drilling, southeast posted on 27 may 2010. the council on environmental quality ( ceq ) is seeking public input regarding its review of minerals management service ( mms ) environmental review procedures and practices under the national environmental policy act ( nepa ). ceq is reviewing and seeking public input regarding the adequacy of mms compliance with nepa at all phases of its offshore oil and gas program, specifically focusing on the use of nepa categorical exclusions. jamie rappaport clark, executive vice president of defenders of wildlife said, “ mms has clearly been unable to perform its duty of environmental review. this welcome analysis by ceq is the crucial first step towards fixing their broken process. ” read full statement. posted in commentary, offshore drilling, southeast


today, nearly 40 years since president nixon declared the “ war on cancer ” with the national cancer act of 1971, we are still fighting to cure the second deadliest disease for men and women in the u. s. every year, numerous government agencies sink billions of dollars into cancer research and prevention efforts ; non - profits contribute additional millions of dollars. more than $ 200 billion has been spent fighting cancer since 1971. yet we still lose 1, 500 people every single day to cancer. it ’ s clear : something has to change. the way we fight cancer is not working. little progress has been made over the past many decades, and death rates have declined only slightly. the gateway for cancer research has been fighting the war on cancer for nearly 20 years. in that time, we ’ ve funded 71 studies — and raised $ 20 million for research focused on helping patients now. and while other organizations spend significant portions of their donations on administrative costs, the gateway is one of a few organizations in the u. s. that gives 99¢ of every dollar received to research. we need answers now — our lives depend on it, and we can ’ t afford to wait. the work our treatment innovatorssm are doing could help someone you love with cancer. are you ready to join our movement and demand cures todaysm? " treatment innovatorsm " is the term we use for researchers funded by the gateway for cancer research : the men and women we support in their search for better treatments and cures that can help cancer patients today.


.... that indigo is one of the oldest dye stuffs in the world? for millennia this dye provided the only color fast and light fast clear blue that there was for fabrics. it was very valuable for trade and recipes were often closely guarded secrets. it has been used all over the world to make everything from intricate japanese kimonos to levi jeans for the original 49ers. the thing that is special about indigo is that in its normal state the dye molecules are insoluble in water, they will just sink to the bottom of the vat unless a chemical reducing agent is added. reducing agents steal a hydrogen atom from the dye molecule, this allows it to try and form lose bonds with the hydrogen in the water so it dissolves and creates the vat. there are all kinds of reducing agents that can be used, from yeast or live bacteria in a fermentation vat to dangerous chemicals like lye ( sodium hydroxide ). we have a somewhat safer and effective recipe using our dye house color remover ( thiorea dioxide ) and soda ash. in europe, one of the oldest reducing agents, and the cheapest, was stale urine. oral dye history is full of stories about european dye houses that would put out pots for people to donate their urine and dye houses that would be built next to taverns, which provided a steady supply. it is purported that due to the smell of the dye houses they where often restricted to the outskirts of town. this amazing dyestuff naturally occurs in indigo containing plants of the tropical genus indigofera, which grows in many countries, as well as a less concentrated form in a plant called woad, which is native to temperate europe. the most well known, indigofera tinctoria, was native to india, which may have been the earliest major player in the lucrative indigo trade. the name of the compound that makes up the dye is called indican. it is extracted from the plants buy crushing the leaves and soaking them until they ferment and release the indican, which was precipitated and dried in cakes. the cakes were than ground to a powder by the user. designs on indigo cloth are achieved with various tying techniques, such as traditional shibori and tie - dye techniques. other types of resist such as rice paste and wax are also used to protect areas of the fabric to create intricate patterns. indigo was also be used for printing and painting with use of different chemicals like arsenic trisulfide, or iron sulfate and thickeners


types of resist such as rice paste and wax are also used to protect areas of the fabric to create intricate patterns. indigo was also be used for printing and painting with use of different chemicals like arsenic trisulfide, or iron sulfate and thickeners. when indigo is in solution it is a yellow green color but often the top layer of the vat is blue because it is exposed to the air. indigo is sometimes called a magic dye because of the way the fabric changes color from a yellow green to the deep blues as the air oxidizes the dye. as the dye molecules oxidize they become insoluble in water again so they don ' t wash out of the fabric. the fabric is dipped in the indigo vat to soak up some dye, and then hung in the air to oxidize where it turns blue. another feature of indigo is the ability to build up the depth of color by repeated dippings into the bath. successive dippings and airings give you darker and darker blues. shades can thus range from pale sky blue to deepest dark navy indigo. we are all familiar with the characteristic way in which indigo fades as the fabric is used and worn, such as the fade lines on your favorite jeans. this is because indigo does not actually chemically bond to the fabric. instead it becomes insoluble in water again when it reacts with the air and becomes lodged in the small spaces with the fiber. over time as the fibers are rubbed with wear it rubs out some of the dye creating faded lines. indigo dyed fabric can also do something called crocking where it rubs off on things, and you, if not properly laundered before use. if you dont want to try out for the blue man group, be sure and wash newly dyed or store bought indigo dyed fabric and clothing with hot water and synthrapol. our dharma dye fixative or retayne in a hot soak can cause the fabric to retain more of the indigo before washing, so you will get less fade on the first washing, and still no crocking after. since indigo was one of the only natural blue dyes, and the best, it was often used to over dye yellow fabrics to make greens. in museum tapestries you will often see that many plants are very bluish, this is because natural yellow dyes are more sensitive to fading from uv light than indigo and over time the indigo has become the predominate color in the fibers. these days most indigo dye in commercial use is made synthetic


a waxy substance found in all of the body ’ s cells. the body uses cholesterol for a number of important functions, such as manufacturing certain hormones. as most people know, however, too much cholesterol in the blood can be damaging to the heart and blood vessels. the liver manufactures most of the body ’ s cholesterol, but we also get it directly from the foods we eat. cholesterol travels through the bloodstream in the form of complex molecules called lipoproteins. there are several varieties of lipoproteins, including low - density lipoproteins ( ldl ’ s ) and high - density lipoproteins ( hdl ’ s ). ldl cholesterol, nicknamed the “ bad ” cholesterol, tends to mix with other substances in the blood and form buildups called plaques on the inner walls of blood vessels. these blood vessels can become hard and narrowed, decreasing blood flow, a condition known as atherosclerosis. plaques can also break off, form clots, and block key blood vessels, causing heart attacks and strokes. hdl ’ s carry cholesterol away from the arteries to the liver, where it can be removed from the body. this keeps cholesterol from building up inside blood vessels, earning hdl cholesterol the nickname “ good ” cholesterol. doctors use the levels of hdl and ldl cholesterol to help determine a person ’ s risk of heart disease. the more ldl cholesterol and less hdl cholesterol a person has, the greater his risk of developing heart disease. according to the cholesterol guidelines of the american diabetes association ( ada ), adults with diabetes who have ldl cholesterol levels of 130 mg / dl or greater are at high risk of heart disease, those with levels of 100 - 129 mg / dl are at borderline risk, and those with levels below 100 mg / dl are at low risk. men with hdl cholesterol levels under 35 mg / dl are at high risk, those with levels of 35 - 45 mg / dl are at borderline risk, and those with levels over 45 mg / dl are at low risk. women with hdl levels under 45 mg / dl are at high risk, those with levels of 45 - 55 mg / dl are at borderline risk, and those with levels greater than 55 mg / dl are at low risk. even small improvements in blood cholesterol levels have been shown to


dl are at high risk, those with levels of 45 - 55 mg / dl are at borderline risk, and those with levels greater than 55 mg / dl are at low risk. even small improvements in blood cholesterol levels have been shown to significantly lower a person ’ s risk of heart attack. one way to lower your ldl cholesterol and raise your hdl cholesterol is through diet. for example, the ada recommends consuming no more than 300 milligrams of cholesterol per day, and under 200 milligrams if you have high ldl cholesterol levels. ( foods high in dietary cholesterol include eggs, shellfish, and organ meats such as liver. ) the amount of fat you eat, especially saturated fat, also affects your cholesterol level, so the ada and other health organizations recommend getting no more than 30 % of your daily calories from fat and limiting saturated fat intake to 10 % or less of your daily calories. in fact, most of a person ’ s fat intake should come from monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. to achieve these goals, the best diet is one that emphasizes fruits, vegetables ( including beans and other legumes ), and whole grains. regular aerobic exercise, at least three to four times a week, can also improve blood cholesterol levels, especially when performed in conjunction with a low - fat diet. walking briskly and jogging are good aerobic exercises. losing weight if you ’ re overweight and stopping smoking may also help by raising your hdl cholesterol levels. there are also a number of highly effective drugs for improving cholesterol levels. everyone with diabetes should have their blood cholesterol levels checked regularly. speak with your doctor and dietitian about ways to improve your blood cholesterol levels and reduce your risk of heart disease.


the common loon ( gavia immer ) is a highly aquatic, migratory bird distributed across north america, greenland, and iceland. the common loon is 66 cm to 91 cm in length and weighs between 2. 5 kg and 6. 1 kg. they have an average wingspan of 130 cm to 140 cm ( mcintyre and barr, 1997 ). the geographic location of the common loon during the breeding season is in forested areas surrounding freshwater, oligotrophic lakes in the northern region of north america, greenland, and iceland. during the winter months, the common loon migrates to coastal marine habitats in the southern portion of north america. migration for the winter occurs between september and december and migration for the summer occurs between march and june. migration groups can be composed of thousands of irregularly spaced individuals, a small group of individuals, or a single individual ( mcintyre and barr, 1997 ). the common loon is high specialized for swimming and diving ( perrins and middleton, 1985 ; mcintyre and barr, 1997 ). individuals spend most of their lives in the air or in water and only come to land to copulate, nest, or when ill ( mcintyre and barr, 1997 ). although most dives underwater last under a minute, the common loon is capable of remaining underwater for several minutes ( perrins and middleton, 1985 ). the species diet primarily consists of live fish, although other aquatic vertebrates and vegetation are also consumed. predators of the common loon most commonly attack young and include crows, ravens, gulls, skunks, weasels, bald eagles, and snapping turtles ( mcintyre and barr, 1997 ). the common loon is monogamous and mates typically remain together throughout the breeding season. mate replacement occurs after the death of one individual. the age at first breeding varies between four and seven years of age and breeding is annual. adults are highly aggressive in territorial defense. both sexes are capable of severely injuring or even killing conspecifics that invade their territory ( mcintyre and barr, 1997 ). clutch size is two eggs and the incubation period is about 28 days ( mcintyre and barr, 1997 ). both parents participate in incubation of the eggs. young are precocial, or well - developed, after hatching. young eat fresh food caught by the parents as opposed to food that has been regurgitated. additionally, young are capable of leaving the nest and even diving the day after hatching ( perrins and middleton, 1985 )! additional information on


##ing. young eat fresh food caught by the parents as opposed to food that has been regurgitated. additionally, young are capable of leaving the nest and even diving the day after hatching ( perrins and middleton, 1985 )! additional information on the skull click on the thumbnails below for labeled images of the skull in standard anatomical views. baumel, j. j., a. s. king, j. e. breazile, h. e. evans, and j. c. vanden berge ( eds. ). 1993. handbook of avian anatomy : nomina anatomica avium, second edition. publication of the nuttall ornithological club, number 23. nuttall ornithological club, cambridge, massachusetts, 779 pp. mcintyre, j. w. and j. f. barr. 1997. gavia immer. the birds of north america : life histories for the 21st century 313 : 1 - 32 perrins, c. m. and a. middleton. 1985. the encyclopedia of birds. facts on file, inc., new york, ny. pp 447. gavia immer page on the animal diversity web ( university of michigan museum of zoology ) gavia immer on the usgs patuxent bird indentification infocenter.


r. david lankes, ph. d. this paper examines the domain of digital reference services for and by the primary and secondary education community. data is provided to demonstrate the current understanding of education question types and education users in digital reference. it is believed this data will be of wide utility for digital library builders geared toward primary and secondary users ( k - 12 ) such as the international children ' s digital library and the national science digital library. digital reference and digital libraries for education digital reference refers to internet - based expert answering services [ lankes, 1999b ]. in such a service, a user typically poses a question to a digital reference service through a web form, e - mail or a chat interface. an expert ( such as a scientist or librarian ) uses this input to construct an answer that is both passed back to the user as well as used in some knowledge base or enhancement to a digital library collection. there is a growing body of research and development in digital reference [ janes, 2000 ; mardikian and kesselman, 1995 ; tyckoson, 2002 ; lagace and mcclennen, 1998 ; mon, 2000 ; ferguson and bunge, 1997 ], and digital reference services are being implemented within the context of digital libraries such as the national science foundation ( nsf ) national science digital library [ national research council, 1998 ]. much is known about use of digital reference in primary and secondary education ( in this article, the term " education " will refer simply to primary and secondary education ), and this knowledge has utility not only to digital reference services aimed at this population, but to the larger digital library community as well. specifically, the author argues that services aimed at primary and secondary users represent a revelatory case for digital reference for three reasons ; digital reference services for education are : current state of the art in order to present a picture of digital reference for education, the author first presents two major types of services in the education domain. each type is then illustrated with an exemplar service. types of digital reference services in education there are two obvious, though often overlapping, categories of digital reference services in education : library - based services, and aska services. aska services can be further divided into general services that may be of use to the education community as part of a more general mission ( such as ask joan of art®, an aska service that answers questions concerning american art for anyone who asks, but is particularly useful in art education ) and services targeted squarely at the education community


education community as part of a more general mission ( such as ask joan of art®, an aska service that answers questions concerning american art for anyone who asks, but is particularly useful in art education ) and services targeted squarely at the education community ( such as askeric ( sm ), though it covers all levels of education including higher and continuing education ). the author will concentrate on education aska services for this paper. for the purposes of this discussion, " library reference " refers to digital reference services either centered in a public, academic, school or special library, or with primary reliance on library programs. with the advent of digital reference, a great number of libraries are now offering reference service to remote patrons [ janes, 2000 ]. these services take a variety of forms, from e - mail systems, to real - time chat systems. in the library context, digital reference is referred to as virtual reference, e - reference, networked reference, live reference, online reference and even chat reference. while some in the community make a distinction in the mode of delivery and the synchronous nature of the service offered, most agree that these are all part of a single larger concept of digital reference. the library reference community also provides the most in - depth discussion of policy, evaluation [ mcclure and lankes, 2001 ] and the largest set of documented digital reference services ( as opposed to the body of systems and development work out of the aska community discussed later ). much of this work is encapsulated in the proceedings of the annual virtual reference desk ( vrd ) conferences [ virtual reference desk, 2002 ], which have a strong library emphasis. in fact, this article and the digital reference research symposium were outgrowths of the vrd conferences and other work. as a result of this intense interest in digital reference by the library community, several large - scale digital reference projects are available for use by the research and scholarly community. the collaborative digital reference service ( cdrs ) spearheaded by the library of congress and that has evolved into the questionpoint service run by oclc in cooperation with the library of congress, certainly demonstrates the breadth of library - based digital reference services spanning public, academic and international libraries. the national library of canada ' s recent introduction of virtual reference canada to work with canadian digital reference services also promises to be a major source of digital reference activity and development. other prominent digital reference efforts in the library world include knowitnow from the cleveland public library, the 24 / 7 reference service that acts as a


to work with canadian digital reference services also promises to be a major source of digital reference activity and development. other prominent digital reference efforts in the library world include knowitnow from the cleveland public library, the 24 / 7 reference service that acts as a statewide digital reference network for the state of california, and the recent efforts of the state library of washington. also of interest to researchers in digital reference are digital reference vendors in the library domain including lssi ' s virtual reference service. one special case that should not be overlooked is the internet public library, for while it is not based in a library setting ( it is part of the school of information at the university of michigan ), it has its roots and traditions firmly planted in the library community. library reference exemplar : kidsconnect while many library services support the education community ( of course, academic libraries serve a higher education population and public libraries answer questions of students ), few target primary and secondary education exclusively. one exception is the kidsconnect service. kidsconnect is a question - answering, help and referral service to k - 12 students on the internet [ kidsconnect, 2002 ; bennett, 1998 ]. it is a project of the american library association ' s american association of school librarians ( aasl ). kidsconnect has three missions : the first is to educate school library media specialists in the use of the internet and digital reference as part of the larger iconnect project. the second is to promote information literacy in students through digital reference [ mancall et al., 1999 ]. the third is to promote local school libraries ( and school library media specialists ) as valuable sources of information and instruction. the kidsconnect model uses a large number of volunteer school library media specialists ( primarily in the united states ). each volunteer is trained using an in - depth mentoring process, then answers questions ( ranging from one question a day to one a week ). the digital reference transaction is conducted through e - mail and web forms. data from the kidsconnect service provides valuable insight into the types of students using digital reference services as well as the types of questions they ask. the service has been widely advertised to schools, particularly to teachers and school library media specialists. this advertising has been done through the professional association for school library media specialists ( aasl ), as well as through the internet. the data presented in figures 1 - 5 are from 1996 - 1998 ; however, more recent data presented in figures 6 - 9 are


has been done through the professional association for school library media specialists ( aasl ), as well as through the internet. the data presented in figures 1 - 5 are from 1996 - 1998 ; however, more recent data presented in figures 6 - 9 are used to estimate the current validity of the earlier numbers. figure 1 shows the number of questions answered by kidsconnect for the years 1996 - 1998 : these numbers are very much in line, though on the high end, with current numbers of library - based digital reference services as reported at recent library meetings, including the 2002 american library association conference. figure 2 shows how these questions were distributed across differing student and adult populations : these figures demonstrate a rough equivalence between primary ( elementary and middle school ) and secondary education ( high school ). the low number of users identified as " adult " is explained by both the focus of the kidsconnect service ( k - 12 students ), but also that any questions kidsconnect received from teachers were routed ( sent to ) the askeric service. a more interesting finding, however, was the gender distribution of the questioners as seen in figure 3 : one interesting finding of the kidsconnect staff was the prominence of girls asking questions. while many hypotheses were put forward to explain this situation ( e - mail providing a " safer " environment to ask questions than the well documented male dominated classroom, for example ), no formal research was conducted to follow up on this finding. the other interesting finding from the kidsconnect data related to the topics or subjects of the questions asked of kidsconnect. the kidsconnect team utilized a " subject line analysis " technique whereby the subject lines of a random sample of questions were examined and classified inductively into a subject scheme. if the subject lines were felt to be uninformative ( they did not indicate topicality but instead were words or phrases like " hello " or " please help " ) the underlying question was examined. the results of this analysis are shown in figure 4 : it is clear from this figure that questions on the topic of science constituted the bulk of questions received. in order to provide a clearer picture of this category, the analysis was further refined by " type of science questions ", as shown in figure 5 : data such as this should prove of great use to new digital reference services geared towards education, most notably the nsf ' s national smete digital library [ nsdl, 2002 ]. as mentioned before, these statistics represent somewhat dated analysis (


5 : data such as this should prove of great use to new digital reference services geared towards education, most notably the nsf ' s national smete digital library [ nsdl, 2002 ]. as mentioned before, these statistics represent somewhat dated analysis ( 4 years old ). in 1999, operation of the kidsconnect service moved from syracuse university to drexel university ( the previous statistics are based on syracuse data ). syracuse then transferred much of the staff and processes of kidsconnect into the virtual reference desk learning center. this project had a slightly different aim ; it had a broader focus and also worked in a network of aska services with general foci. however, the main concentration of the service was still on school library media specialists answering questions from the education community. statistics from the vrd service show a strong correlation between older kidsconnect statistics and more recent vrd usage. for example, figure 6 shows the user populations of the vrd service : note the higher " adult " population ( as compared with figure 2 ) reflecting the broader focus of the vrd network members. however, with this result removed, the distribution in primary and secondary education remains roughly equivalent to the earlier data, with a greater number of " middle school " questions. also note in figure 7 that science questions still dominate the service : once again, figure 8 provides a more fine - grained analysis of science questions : this distributions seems to hold over the three most recent years of the vrd service ( as seen in figure 9 ) : from these more recent statistics, it seems difficult to argue that there has been a massive shift in the types of education users asking questions or in the types of questions they ask. what is also clear from analyzing these two services is that the library community has many contributions to make to the digital reference research agenda specifically with respect to education as well as to digital reference research in general. it is also clear the library community contains large - scale digital reference efforts that make excellent research environments capable of being utilized in the search for generalizable knowledge. education aska services the second progenitor of current digital reference systems is aska services. aska services take their name from expert question and answer services tending to adopt names such as " ask a scientist " and " ask a volcanologist " [ lankes, 1999b ]. these services tended to originate without interaction with formal library systems and emphasized topical expertise ( as opposed to process expertise such as a librarian ' s ability to search for information ). a fuller picture of


a volcanologist " [ lankes, 1999b ]. these services tended to originate without interaction with formal library systems and emphasized topical expertise ( as opposed to process expertise such as a librarian ' s ability to search for information ). a fuller picture of aska services can be drawn from two studies conducted by lankes and white [ lankes, 1999b ; lankes, 1999c ; and white, 1999 ]. lankes presents an in - depth analysis of the structure and commonalities of " exemplary k - 12 digital reference services. " specifically this study sought to : the outcome of this study included detailed " blueprints " and a tuned framework of aska services grounded in complexity theory, as seen in figure 10 : white developed an analytical framework based on systems for evaluating aska services. this framework was then applied to a variety of 11 services ( including library - based services ). unlike library digital reference services that to this point have seen modest usage, aska services, in general, have begun with large usage and have experienced continuing dramatic increases. the most recent virtual reference desk survey of aska services done in 1999 demonstrates this. survey results in table 1 show an average 44 % increase in use of these asynchronous services from 1997 to 1998, with an average answer rate of 77 % in 1998 [ lankes and shostack, forthcoming ]. table 1 : virtual reference desk survey of aska service usage compare these statistics to those of the libraries studied as part of mcclure and lankes quality study [ mcclure and lankes, 2001 ], " in all cases the volume of digital reference questions is low, ranging from 3 to 33 per day " [ gross et al., 2002 ]. this study covered a range of libraries in terms of size and scope ( academic, public, federal, state ). one result of the large volume encountered by aska services has been an emphasis on process, software development and automation. whereas many library services have quickly adopted real - time technologies in which one - to - one interactions require full human intervention, aska services have looked to asynchronous technologies. ( at least this has been so at their onset. see figure 11 for the distribution of questions received by askeric by mode of digital reference as an example of the predominance of asynchronous means. note that " web " and " e - mail " are both asynchronous modes. ) aska services have also looked for means of shunting users to


an example of the predominance of asynchronous means. note that " web " and " e - mail " are both asynchronous modes. ) aska services have also looked for means of shunting users to resources. ( see lankes for a more detailed discussion of aska services and their architectures [ lankes, 1999b ]. ) these run the gambit from sophisticated techniques such as automated searching of previously asked questions ( as in the madsci service ), to forcing users through a list of frequently asked questions before they are able to submit a question ( as in the ask a volcanologist service ). aska services have also tended to develop more in terms of software and systems. early examples include ask dr. math®, the madsci network, and how things work. though there are excellent examples of software development in the library arena [ meola and starmont, 2002 ], library services have by and large adopted software from the help desk and e - commerce community, such as lssi and 24 / 7 reference ' s use of egain® and the common use of liveperson® and netagent. while this may be changing, aska services still remain a hot bed of systems development. another common attribute with aska services is their attention to the primary and secondary education community. in the case of some services, this attention is part of a larger view of the general internet population, but in many cases, it is a special attention where education is foremost and the general population is welcome as well. this can be seen in dr. math and madsci networks. it can also be seen in services, such as askeric, which focus on education professionals. education aska service exemplar : askeric while the kidsconnect discussion sheds light on digital reference use by primary and secondary education students, askeric can shed light on use of digital reference by education professionals. askeric is a project of the u. s. department of education ' s eric program. it was initiated and is still operated by the eric clearinghouse on information & technology ( though nearly all eric components ( clearinghouses, access eric, the eric processing facility and even the parent institution of eric, the national library of education ) are involved in answering questions ). askeric has two primary components : a question / answering service staffed by eric library and education professionals ( see figure 12 for the volume of questions ), and a virtual library of lesson plans, which contains pointers


) are involved in answering questions ). askeric has two primary components : a question / answering service staffed by eric library and education professionals ( see figure 12 for the volume of questions ), and a virtual library of lesson plans, which contains pointers to reviewed sites on the internet and an archive of previously asked questions. a more in - depth description, though slightly dated, can be found in the author ' s dissertation [ lankes 1999b ]. the purpose of askeric is to answer questions related to all areas of the education process. the emphasis on education professionals can be seen in askeric ' s mission as well, see figure 13, by askeric ' s users. this distribution of users, with the majority being k - 12 teachers followed by graduate students ( pre - service educators are traditionally heavy users of any eric service ), is in line with askeric ' s stated mission : askeric is a personalized internet - based service providing education information to teachers, librarians, counselors, administrators, parents, and anyone interested in education throughout the united states and the world. [ askeric, 2002 ] in fact, askeric explicitly does not answer " homework help " questions : thank you for visiting the askeric web site! if you are a k - 12 student with a homework question, askeric may not have the resources to respond to your question. askeric is designed to provide education information to teachers, librarians, counselors, administrators, parents, students, and others throughout the united states and the world. our focus is not on the specific things you are learning in school ; instead, we specialize in research and ideas about how students of all ages learn best. as an example, we can respond to a question such as " what is the best time of day to teach math? ", but not " what is the formula to determine the radius of a circle? ". if you are looking for information in other specific subject areas or need homework help, you probably won ' t find askeric very helpful. instead, you may want to investigate the following sites which are designed specifically for students. [ askeric, 2002a ] all student questions received by askeric are forwarded to other services such as the virtual reference desk. what can one determine about askeric users besides their educational roles? first, one can determine the education level about which users were asking ( a k - 12 teacher was asking a question about high school, for example ) as seen in figure 14 : one can also analyze the nature of the


users besides their educational roles? first, one can determine the education level about which users were asking ( a k - 12 teacher was asking a question about high school, for example ) as seen in figure 14 : one can also analyze the nature of the questions being asked by the professional community. askeric user surveys provide the anticipated use of the information gained as seen in figure 15 : using subject line analysis once again, figure 16 shows question types identified in askeric questions : figure 17 shows the relative stability of this question distribution over time : in figure 16 and figure 17, " subjects " refers to particular topics or academic disciplines taught in the classroom. ( note : information from askeric responses may be used in higher and continuing education contexts as seen in figure 18 where 18 % of answers were intended for higher or adult education. ) figure 19 shows the relative stability of these subjects over time : of particular interest in figure 19 is the predominance of " language arts " as a topic for educators versus " science " for students, as seen in figure 4 of the kidsconnect sample. one possible reason for this difference may be the abundance of science material on the internet ( particularly education - related science material ) versus instructional resources in language and english instruction. aside from the information askeric provides on digital reference use by education professionals, it also provides an exemplar of reference authoring [ lankes, 2001 ]. reference authoring refers to the capture of information in the reference process and the transformation of this information into resources that can be used outside the reference process as part of a larger digital library context. this authoring process can be from the simple, say the creation of frequently asked questions on a web site, to the complex, say the creation on the madsci knowledge base. the heart of the askeric website consists of a resource collection : in response to questions we ' ve received at askeric, our network information specialists have compiled over 3000 resources on a variety of educational issues. this collection includes internet sites, educational organizations, and electronic discussion groups. [ askeric, 2002b ] this resource collection acts not only as a set of internet links for end - users, but for askeric digital reference specialists as well. as digital reference specialists constantly comb over this collection of internet resources, eric citations, discussion groups and more, they are also finding new resources to add and old resources to delete. this means that it is the digital reference process itself that is used as collection development, annotation and expert review. askeric


, eric citations, discussion groups and more, they are also finding new resources to add and old resources to delete. this means that it is the digital reference process itself that is used as collection development, annotation and expert review. askeric is only one example of aska services geared specifically to the education community. it does, however, serve as a revelatory case. in the askeric exemplar we see the predominance of asynchronous technologies, high - volume usage, and the interconnection of the reference process with systems and digital libraries. digital reference for primary and secondary education has a rich and well - documented tradition. it serves as a revelatory case for other digital reference research and provides valuable insight into digital libraries that serve the education community as well as other communities. what is apparent from this small examination of digital reference in the education context is that all levels of education use digital reference services and education questions, while covering a broad range of topics, concentrate most heavily on science ( in the case of students ) and language arts ( in the case of education professionals ). also apparent is the usefulness of education digital reference services as research environments. aska services and library reference services alike hold large data sets of question and answer transactions. these data sets can be used to evaluate how questions are asked, what topics are of interest to the education community, and what language is used by the education community, as well as used to examine myriad other facts. some of these data sets are publicly available on the internet, while others are proprietary due to privacy concerns. from this examination of digital reference services, some methodological techniques can be added to the digital reference research discussion. first among these is the concept of subject line analysis. this technique seems to provide excellent exploratory power and may provide a rapid way to compare question types across services. lastly, analysis of digital reference services targeted towards the primary and secondary education community ( or at least the study of these services ) provides a wealth of models, theories and frameworks that can be brought to bear in future research. from the lankes / sutton framework, the general digital reference model ( resulting from lankes ' complexity framework ) to white ' s evaluative framework, there are rich analytic tools that can be used in the broader digital reference and digital library domain. ask joan of art®, < http : / / americanart. si. edu / study / reference - main. html >. [ ala ] american library association


analytic tools that can be used in the broader digital reference and digital library domain. ask joan of art®, < http : / / americanart. si. edu / study / reference - main. html >. [ ala ] american library association presidential committee on information literacy. ( 1989 ). final report. chicago : author. ( ed 315 028 ). [ bennett ] bennett, b. ( 1998 ). pilot testing the kidsconnect service. in lankes, r. and kasowitz, a. ( ed ), askeric starter kit : how to build and maintain digital reference services, ( pp. 147 - 150 ). syracuse, ny : eric clearinghouse on information & technology, syracuse university. [ bristow ] bristow, a. " academic reference service over electronic mail. " college & research libraries news, 53 ( 1992 ) : 631 - 632. [ collier ] collier, m. ( 1997 ). international symposium on research, development, and practice in digital libraries. [ ferguson and bunge ] ferguson, c. d. and c. a. bunge. " the shape of services to come : values - based reference service for the largely digital library. " college & research libraries, 58 ( 1997 ) : 252 - 65. [ gross, et al. ] gross, m., mcclure, c., hodges, r., graham, a., and lankes, r. ( 2002 ). phase ii : site visit summary report. [ janes ] janes, j. ( 2000 ). current research in digital reference. vrd proceedings. ( online ) < http : / / www. vrd. org / conferences / vrd2000 / proceedings / janes - intro. shtml >. [ kresh ] kresh, d. ( 2000 ). offering high quality reference service on the web. d - lib magazine, 6 ( 6 ). ( online ) < http : / / www. dlib. org / dlib / june00 / kresh / 06kresh. html >. [ lankes and sutton ] lankes, r. david and sutton, stuart a. ( 1999 ). " developing a mission for the national education network : the challenge of seamless access. " government information quarterly. 16 ( 2 ). [ lankes, 1999a ] lankes, r. d. ( 1999a ). " the virtual reference desk : question interchange profile. " white paper


: the challenge of seamless access. " government information quarterly. 16 ( 2 ). [ lankes, 1999a ] lankes, r. d. ( 1999a ). " the virtual reference desk : question interchange profile. " white paper for the virtual reference desk. eric clearinghouse on information & technology ; syracuse, ny. [ lankes, 1999b ] lankes, r. ( 1999b ). dissertation : building & maintaining internet information services, syracuse university. [ lankes, 1999c ] lankes, r. d. ( 1999 ). " aska ' s lesson learned from k - 12 digital reference services. " reference & user services quarterly. 38 ( 1 ). [ lankes and shostack ] lankes, r. and shostack, p. ( forthcoming ) " the necessity of real - time : fact and fiction in digital reference systems. " reference and user services quarterly. [ lankes et al. ] lankes, r. david, collins, j. and kasowitz, a. s. ( eds. ). ( 2000 ). digital reference : models for the new millennium. new york : neal - schuman. [ lankes, 2001 ] lankes, r. d. ( 2001 ). " creating a new reference librarianship. " vrd proceedings. ( online ) < http : / / www. vrd. org / conferences / vrd2001 / proceedings / reinventing. shtml >. [ lewis ] lewis, m. ( 2001 ). " faking it. " the new york times magazine, new york ; july 15, 2001. [ lita ] lita ( 1999 ). top tech trends. ( online ) < http : / / www. lita. org / committe / toptech / trendsmw99. htm >. [ mancall et al. ] mancall, j. and stafford, b. and zanger, c. ( 1999 ). iconnect : a snapshot of the first three years. knowledge quest. 28 ( 1 ), p24 - 37. [ marchionini ] marchionini, g. ( 1999 ). augmenting library services : toward the sharium. proceedings of the international symposium on digital libraries 1999 ( tsukuba, japan, september 28 - 29, 1999 ). 40 - 47. < http : / / ils. unc. edu / ~ march / sharium / isdl.


of the international symposium on digital libraries 1999 ( tsukuba, japan, september 28 - 29, 1999 ). 40 - 47. < http : / / ils. unc. edu / ~ march / sharium / isdl. pdf >. [ mardikian and kesselman ] mardikian, j., and kesselman, m. ( 1995 ). beyond the desk : enhanced reference staffing for the electronic library. reference services review, 23 ( 1 ), p21 - 28. [ meola and starmont ] meola, m. and starmont, s. ( 2002 ). starting and operating live virtual reference services : a how - to - do - it manual for librarians. new york : neal - schuman. [ mon ] mon, l. ( 2000 ). " digital reference service. " government information quarterly, 17 ( 3 ) 309 - 318. [ nsdl ] nsdl ( 2002 ). national science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education digital library ( nsdl ) ( online ) < http : / / www. ehr. nsf. gov / ehr / due / programs / nsdl > < http : / / www. nsf. gov / search97cgi / vtopic >. [ national research council ] national research council ( 1998 ). developing a digital national library for undergraduate science, mathematics, engineering, and technology education. nrc workshop, august 7 - 8, 1997. ( online ). washington, d. c. : national academy press. < http : / / books. nap. edu / books / 0309059771 / html / r1. html > ( ed425928 ). [ still and campbell ] still, j., and campbell, f. ( 1993 ). librarian in a box : the use of electronic mail for reference. reference services review, 21 ( 1 ), pp 15 - 18. [ tyckoson ] tyckoson, d. ( 2002 ). on the desirableness of personal relations between librarians and readers : the past and future of reference service. the future of reference papers, ( online ) < http : / / www. ala. org / rusa / forums / tyckoson _ forum. html >. [ white ] white, m. d., ed. ( 1999 ). analyzing electronic question / answer services : framework and evaluations of selected services. eric document ed433019. [ virtual


meds for autism not well understood : study thursday feb. 23, 2012 - - children with autism may benefit from medications to treat children with attention - deficit hyperactivity disorder ( adhd ) and other related disorders, but clearer guidelines are needed, a new study shows. researchers analyzed data from more than 1, 000 u. s. teens enrolled in special education programs, to assess the use of psychiatric medications in those with autism, adhd and both conditions. patients with both autism and adhd had the highest rates of medicine use ( about 58 percent ), followed by those with adhd only ( around 49 percent ) and those with autism only ( about 34 percent ), according to study author paul shattuck, an assistant professor at washington university in st. louis, and colleagues. black teenagers with autism only or with autism and adhd were less likely to receive medications than whites. " observations from the present study reinforce the complexity of pharmacologic treatment of challenging behavior in kids with [ autism spectrum disorders ] and adhd, " shattuck said in a university news release. " there needs to be a clearer guide for treating kids with both an [ autism spectrum disorder ] and adhd. " he noted that drug treatment for autism reflects a trial - and - error approach based on associated symptoms, and there is a poor understanding of overall medication use for children with autism. " also striking are the high rates of antipsychotic, antidepressant / anti - anxiety and stimulant medication use in these youths, " shattuck said. " additional studies examining the treatment of core and associated [ autism spectrum disorder ] symptoms are needed to guide the treatment of these kids. " it is estimated that one in 110 people have autism, with the majority being boys. signs of autism include problems with communication and social interactions. the study appears in the journal of child and adolescent psychopharmacology. the u. s. national institute of neurological disorders and stroke has more about autism. posted : february 2012


tuesday may 11, 2004 hamerschlag hall d - 210 with each technology generation, we are experiencing an increased rate of cosmically - induced soft errors in our chips. in the past, the impact of such errors could be minimized through protection of large memory structures. unfortunately, such techniques alone are becoming insufficient to maintain adequately low error rates. although, to a very rough approximation, the fault rate per transistor is not changing much, the increasing number of transistors is resulting in an ever increasing raw rate of bit upsets. thus, we are starting to see a dark side to moore ' s law in which the increased functionality we get with our exponentially increasing number of transistors is being countered with a exponentially increasing soft error rate. this will take increasing effort and cost to cope with. in this talk i will describe the severity of the soft error problem as well as techniques to estimate a processor ' s soft error rate. these estimates should help designers choose appropriate error protection schemes for various structures within a microprocessor. a key aspect of our soft error analysis is that some single - bit faults ( such as those occurring in the branch predictor ) will not produce an error in a program ' s output. we define a structure ' s architectural vulnerability factor ( avf ) as the probability that a fault in that particular structure will result in an error in the final output of a program. a structure ' s error rate is the product of its raw error rate, as determined by process and circuit technology, and the avf. unfortunately, computing avfs of complex structures, such as the instruction queue, can be quite involved. to guide such complex avf calculation, we identify numerous cases, such as prefetches, dynamically dead code, and wrong - path instructions, in which a fault will not affect correct execution. our simulations using these techniques show that the avfs of a mckinley - like microprocessor ' s instruction queue and execution units are 29 % and 9 %, respectively. shubu mukherjee is the director of intel ' s fact group in hudson, massachusetts. the fault aware computing technology ( fact ) group is involved with various aspects of soft error measurement, detection, and recovery techniques in current and future machines. in the past, he worked for digital equipment corporation for ten days and compaq computer corporation for three years. in compaq, he worked on fault tolerance techniques for alpha processors and was one of the architects of the alpha 21364 interconnection network. he


reconnecting children and naturethink back to your favorite childhood experience. for many, it ’ s being outside on a quest to build a fort in the woods, ride your bike, or freely explore the neighborhood. by : amy reineke, public health educator, alexandria echo press think back to your favorite childhood experience. for many, it ’ s being outside on a quest to build a fort in the woods, ride your bike, or freely explore the neighborhood. today, instead of hiking, biking and climbing trees, children are more likely to have limited direct experience with the outdoors and nature. if they are outside, it is more likely to be in organized sports, on playground equipment or being shuttled from activity to activity. research indicates that one of the best medicines to a stressful lifestyle is to spend time in a natural setting outdoors. children who spend time outdoors are likely to be happier, healthier, smarter, more cooperative and more creative. children need leisurely, unscripted and exploratory hours to find the wonders in their own backyards and neighborhoods. children should be discovering the beauty of the stars in the night sky to watching bugs on a warm summer ’ s day. according to recent research, there is evidence to suggest that the disconnect from nature creates diminished health ; obesity ; reduced cognitive, creative and problem - solving capacities ; lower school achievement ; lower self esteem, less self discipline ; and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. i recently got ahold of a book called last child in the woods : saving our children from nature deficit disorder by richard louv. he writes about a phrase he coined, nature deficit disorder, which isn ’ t a medical term but a social phenomenon. in his book, he brings together a new and growing body of research indicating that direct exposure to nature is essential for healthy childhood development and for the physical and emotional health of children and adults. “ there is very little that children do in their lives that compares with their first experience in nature, ” louv says. children are the stewards of the future. it ’ s a simple solution. get kids outside more often so they can discover the adventure of the natural world. actions to reconnect children to nature • take a child outside and create the opportunity for children to have unstructured time to play outdoors every day. • create a nature club for families and plan monthly outings with other families in your community. • start a new kind of neighborhood watch so children can play within sight of adults while still experiencing the wonder


according to the u. s. environmental protection agency ’ s ( epa ) energy star program, lighting consumes 25 to 40 percent of the energy used in commercial buildings and is a primary source of waste heat. in addition, lighting within buildings accounts for 23 percent of national electrical consumption and, of the total national lighting energy used, commercial lighting accounts for 60 percent, residential 20 percent, industrial 16 percent, and outdoor ( street ) and other uses make up the last four percent. concerns over rising energy costs and conservation needs have owners of commercial buildings, industrial plants and residential homes demanding more energy - efficient lighting selections. according to david weigand, product manager for energy management controls at leviton manufacturing co. inc., little neck, n. y., the most major advancement in energy - efficient lighting is in the area of communication between lighting controls and other building systems. “ improved software is being written to provide increased integration between lighting and hvac and security systems, allowing occupants to better control their personal environments, ” he said. communication protocols, such as digital addressable lighting interface ( dali ), allow occupants to control every light fixture separately, either through computer or manual controls, thereby easily identifying patterns of use and increasing energy savings. “ in applications such as multitenant buildings, dali provides building owners and tenants with the ultimate flexibility for their lighting requirements without rewiring the space, ” weigand said. lamp sources, such as compact fluorescent lamps ( cfls ) have gotten small enough to fit into the same footprint as regular incandescent bulbs. they have also become bright enough to provide bright light, warm colors and near - perfect color rendition, said tim wyatt, marketing manager for maxlite, pine brook, n. j. “ a 15 - watt cfl will generally produce as much light as a 60 - watt incandescent bulb, which provides up to 75 percent in energy costs, ” wyatt said. cfls last up to 10, 000 hours, thus reducing replacement costs and further increasing overall savings. cold cathode light sources are increasingly being used for decorative, marquee and outdoor lighting applications. instead of having a filament that needs to warm up, cold cathode lights have a single rod of metal with instant starting capabilities. according to jeff mcdonald, national sales for linear fluorescent at technical consumer products inc. ( tcp ), aurora, ohio, cold cathode lights currently do have lower efficacy than either cfl or fluorescent sources. “ they are, however, extremely efficient compared to incande


, national sales for linear fluorescent at technical consumer products inc. ( tcp ), aurora, ohio, cold cathode lights currently do have lower efficacy than either cfl or fluorescent sources. “ they are, however, extremely efficient compared to incandescent lights, with an only 3 - watt cold cathode light required to replace a 15 - to 20 - watt incandescent bulb, ” he said. the latest iteration of t8 lamps, including the t8ho, are now providing the same light output as their predecessors for less energy, or even more light output for the same energy consumption levels as before. “ the lighting industry is focusing on creating more efficient lamps, rather than on lamp size, ” said ken walma, marketing manager for lutron electronics inc., coopersburg, pa. the new t4 and t6 metal halide lamps are low - wattage alternatives to incandescent or halogen lights in a small package. “ these lights have smaller apertures and can be used in smaller fixtures, while saving up to three times as much energy as incandescent lights, ” said melissa hertel, specification marketing manager for lightolier inc., a genlyte group company in fall river, mass. light emitting diodes ( leds ) have come a long way since first used as indicator lights in cars or in consumer electronics. newly developed white leds are increasingly being used in some general lighting applications. “ white leds are now producing warm light in a consistent manner, ” wyatt said. one problem with leds, however, is that they don ’ t throw much light. manufacturers are currently working with the reflectors and the glass lenses to overcome this particular characteristic. “ by shaping the light with the reflector and the lens, manufacturers are trying to provide diffusion to create general, rather than high - beam, intense - focus light, ” wyatt said. in general illumination, white leds have important significance for the future because they last up to 50, 000 hours, use very little power to operate and have reduced maintenance and replacement costs. ballasts and controls according to mcdonald, the continued expansion of electronic ballasts has allowed electrical contractors to maximize energy savings or light output, depending on the ballast factor chosen for the application. “ electronic ballasts give the contractor more flexibility to provide the lighting environment required by the end - user while meeting both energy and illumination goals, ” he said. digital controllable ballasts are the next step and are being seriously discussed, said walma. “


eden wild rice is hand harvested in canoes as required by law from northern minnesota lakes by the leech lake band of ojibwe. state and tribal law distinguish authentic wild rice as native harvested using the non - mechanized methods that have been handed down through generations for over a thousand years. eden wild rice supports the traditional culture and helps to preserve this age - old harvest. it offers the experience of true wild rice, light, fluffy, and sweet. ' best go to grain ' eden wild rice is wood fire parched, delicious 100 % whole grain. quick cooking and fluffy, not hard like paddy grown black hybrid varieties. eden wild rice was vegetarian times2009 ' best go to grain '. the only indigenous north american grain, wild rice is an annual aquatic reed grass of 12 feet with a 2 foot flowering panicle. it is of the poaceae ( gramineae ) or grain family, not a true rice of the oryza genus. it is gluten free. eden wild rice zizania palutris is authentic wild rice, strikingly different from paddy grown wild rice. domesticated, paddy grown ' wild rice ' is almost all black, very hard, takes much longer to cook, and after cooking has a tough texture. the vast majority of items labeled as wild rice are paddy grown in california and not subject to labeling laws that distinguish authentic wild rice. the real thing, as is eden wild rice, it truly amazing. most notably it is soft and delicious. there are hundreds of different wild rice varieties that have developed growing in different environs. water quality, temperature, depth and composition of mud in various lake beds impart subtle differentiations. authentic wild rice is threatened by contamination from paddy grown, domesticated strains that are grown in close to real wild rice stands, or that are shipped into these areas to be processed for better imitation. a law passed by congress may 2007 requires disclosure and environmental impact statements from anyone that may attempt to create genetically engineered wild rice. while this is well intended, the law falls short of a ban and genetically engineered contamination of wild rice remains a very real concern. in old ojibwe history their ancestors were directed by the creator to move west from their home in the east or perish. they were told to go to the land where food grows upon the water. when reaching this place their western migration should stop. finding wild rice growing upon the water they named it manoomin or ' good berry ' and resettled. only much later did european settlers call


go to the land where food grows upon the water. when reaching this place their western migration should stop. finding wild rice growing upon the water they named it manoomin or ' good berry ' and resettled. only much later did european settlers call it wild rice. in addition to being a sacred component of native american culture and tradition, wild rice is vital to the lakes ' ecology and their flora and fauna. wild rice stands provide habitat for waterfowl, fish, and many species that rely on it for food and the rice beds as haven and nursery. eden wild rice is harvested from the end of august through early september. the ojibwe call this ' rice harvest moon ' or ' manoominike giizis. ' law requires modern wild rice harvesting be done by native american ricers in canoes. there are two in each canoe, a poler who propels and guides the canoe and a knocker in the middle. the poler uses a forked pole about 20 feet long to protect the plants. the knocker uses two cedar sticks resembling large drumsticks to harvest the rice as the canoe passes through the reeds. alternating between left and right hands, he uses one stick to pull rice stalk over the canoe and the other to tap the rice loose from the stalk into the canoe. unripe grains stay on the stalk. some will re - seed the lake after ripening. when full the canoe is poled to shore where the rice is winnowed to remove its chaff, and parched on a wood fire roaster. this drying by wood fire roasting impart stability and flavor. according to fda, " diets rich in whole grain and other plant foods, and low in total fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol may reduce the risk of heart disease and some cancers. " also, " low fat diets rich in fiber - containing grain products, fruits, and vegetables may reduce the risk of some types of cancer, a disease associated with many factors. " eden wild rice is low fat, contains no saturated fat or cholesterol, and is a good source of healthy fiber. it is very low sodium, 15mg per 1 / 4 cup serving or 3 % dv ( daily value ), an excellent source of manganese, and a good source of protein, niacin b3, magnesium, and zinc. gluten free. eden wild rice is delicious, light and fluffy whole grain that is perfect for holidays meals and year round as an en


response to intervention ( rti ) in iowa is an every - education decision - making framework of evidence - based practices in instruction and assessment that addresses the needs of all students starting in general education. as an every - education process, rti allows educators to judge the overall health of their educational system by examining data on all students ( general and special education ) as well as identifying students who need additional supports. those supports are provided in both small group and individual settings, and measured to determine if these supports are making a difference to ensure all learners demonstrate proficiency in the iowa core standards and leave school ready for life. many iowa schools are successfully implementing components of rti. together, we will move rti to consistent statewide implementation in every iowa classroom. video : readiness survey for scale up of response to intervention ( rti ) in iowa - a brief video describing the survey being used to gather information for the introduction and scale - up of iowa ' s response to intervention system. rti key components the iowa rti framework is made up of five components : - evidence - based curriculum and instruction shall be provided at the universal level - universal screening shall be used three times per year - evidence - based, instructional interventions at the targeted and intensive levels shall be provided to each student who needs them - progress monitoring data shall be collected and used to guide instruction - data - based decision making to be fully implementing the iowa rti framework, schools must be implementing the full range of practices associated with each of these components with fidelity. response to intervention : key components - more information about each component. rti & continuous improvement implementation of the iowa rti framework should use the continuous school improvement process of ( a ) defining the problem, ( b ) diagnosing the problem, ( c ) developing a plan, ( d ) implementing the plan, and ( e ) evaluating the results of plan implementation. we use a ten - question framework to help schools engage in this process. those ten questions are : - is our universal program sufficient? - if the universal program is not sufficient, why isn ’ t it sufficient? - how will needs identified in the universal program be addressed? - how will the sufficiency and effectiveness of the universal program be monitored over time? - have improvements to the universal program been effective? targeted and intensive levels - for which students is universal instruction sufficient and not sufficient, and why? - what specific targeted and intensive instruction is needed? - how will specific targeted and intensive instruction be delivered? - how will the effectiveness of targeted and intensive instruction be monitored?


levels - for which students is universal instruction sufficient and not sufficient, and why? - what specific targeted and intensive instruction is needed? - how will specific targeted and intensive instruction be delivered? - how will the effectiveness of targeted and intensive instruction be monitored? - which students need to move to a different level of instruction? this process helps educators think about their local needs within a data - based decision - making framework. response to intervention ( rti ) guidance ( 2011 - 12 - 16 ) - this document contains foundational information about and guidance on iowa ’ s rti framework. it will be updated as needed. it is recommended that you bookmark this document so you always have access to the most recent guidance. data systems and assessments overview webinar - this is a 30 minute webinar that was recorded on march 6th, 2013. it was recorded by consultants at the department of education. topics addressed include an overview of iowa rti framework, as well as iowa ’ s recently - purchased rti database, universal screeners, and progress monitoring assessments. data systems and assessments overview presentation slides - this presentation was used during the overview webinar conducted by the iowa department of education on march 6th, 2013. faq for data system and assessments - this faq addresses a wide range of issues related to rti. if you have a question not already addressed in the faq, you can submit a question using the post questions form. questions will be reviewed weekly and responses posted shortly thereafter. - literacy assessment reviews overview : this video provides a brief description of how the review process for universal screening and progress monitoring assessments in early literacy was conducted. literacy assessment review overview presentation slides - iowas timeline of assessment review - summary tables overview : this video provides a brief description of how to read and interpret the reviews of the universal screening and progress monitoring assessments. a summary report of iowa ’ s review of prek - 6 reading assessments for universal screening and progress


when ford motor co. announced in 2012 that its new hybrids would use lithium - ion batteries instead of nickel - metal hydride, many experts raised an eyebrow. lithium - ion, after all, had a reputation for high cost and unknown durability, largely because the technology was still comparatively new. in contrast, approximately 95 percent of full and mild hybrids up to that time had used nickel - metal hydride. but ford engineers now say their decision to use lithium - ion was based on accelerated lab tests showing lithium - ion would actually be more durable than nickel - metal hydride over a long lifetime. the tests, combined with mountains of field performance data on nickel - metal hydride, convinced them that they could predict the eight - or 10 - year future of a chemistry that didn ' t even have five years worth of reliable field data. " we are really confident that our key life tests are mimicking the duty cycle of some of our most stringent and abusive customers, " kevin layden, ford ' s director of electrification programs and engineering, told design news. " given that, we feel lithium - ion will be better than nickel - metal hydride. we expect it to be absolutely stellar. " the complete story at design news. confidence in lithium - ion is based on so - called key life tests. the tests predict that the working capacity ( y - axis ) of lithium - ion batteries ( green line ) will be greater over a high - mileage lifetime ( x - axis ) than that of nickel - metal hydride ( yellow line ). past field data for nickel - metal hydride ( blue dots ) has shown that the testing results are conservative - - that is, batteries generally do better in the field than they do on tests. ( source : ford motor co. )


building a solar power generator this project describes how you can build a solar power generator to generate 240v mains voltage where - ever you want it. whether you want to run small power tools in a remote shed or provide emergency power in the event of a power cut, a generator can be extremely useful. the problem with most traditional generators is that they are noisy, have to be run outside and, if you are to rely on them, need to be tested regularly and topped up with fresh fuel : all too often, a petrol or diesel powered generator hasn ' t been properly maintained or has stale fuel, and fails when it is required. petrol and diesel generators also provide very poor quality of power, with ' spikes ' and power drops. this makes them unsuitable for powering a lot of electronic equipment and can damage sensitive equipment such as pcs and flat screen tvs. the answer? a solar power generator to provide you with environmentally friendly, portable, easy to use and instant power. what is a solar powered emergency generator? a solar power generator is a battery based power supply that is charged up using solar panels. 12v lighting and mains power is taken from the batteries using an easily available inverter and this is then used to provide emergency power when needed. unlike petrol or diesel powered generators, a solar power generator can be used indoors - carried directly to where it is needed. it emits no fumes and is silent in operation. depending on the size of the battery and the amount of power required, it can provide as much or as little power as you need. there can be two types of solar power generators - an ' all in one ' solar power generator where the solar panel is part of the generator, or a split solar power generator where the solar panels are fitted to an outside wall or roof, and the rest of the generator simply plugs into the panel to recharge. all solar energy systems use the same basic materials, so no matter if you are planning a very simple system like this one, or a big off - grid house installation, the basic ' building blocks ' are the same. this means that if you are interested in understanding solar energy without spending a fortune, the skills and knowledge you gain from a small system has a direct benefit for working on much larger systems. in either case, the product is the same - only the packaging is different. a split solar power generator would work better if you are trying to provide electrical power to an outbuilding such as a shed or lock - up garage whereas an all -


. in either case, the product is the same - only the packaging is different. a split solar power generator would work better if you are trying to provide electrical power to an outbuilding such as a shed or lock - up garage whereas an all - in - one solar power generator is a better solution for power on - the - move. what you will need : to build a simple solar power generator, you will need the following parts : a useful kit of solar parts has been included at the end of this document. this allows you to buy everything on - line to build your own solar power generator. calculating the required size for your solar power generator there are various ways to calculate the required size for your solar power system. for this project, i ' m using a quick and simple method for working out what we need. this is fine for a simple project such as this. for bigger projects, however, you ' ll want to do this in a lot more detail. i cover solar sizing in a lot more detail in my book, solar electricity handbook, but for now, for this project, we ' ll keep things simple. the size of the various components depends on the amount of power you need to generate and the length of time you want to be able to run your generator for. a typical power cut lasts for less than one hour, and is very unlikely to last more than four hours. during that time, most households would like to be able to power their fridge / freezer and lighting. this is well within the capabilities of even a basic solar powered emergency generator. depending on the amount of power you want to generate will depend on the size of the components you are going to require. based over a 24 hour day, the typical household uses an average of between 800w - 1kw per hour. for emergency only use, most households require between 75 - 200w per hour in order to provide lighting and essential power for items like a fridge / freezer. as a general rule of thumb, for every 100watt - hours of power you require, you require 10 amp / hour of battery power. so if you require 200 watts of electricity for four hours, you will require an 80 amp / hour battery. when looking for a battery, you are looking for a lead acid leisure battery ( sometimes called caravan batteries ). these look very similar to car batteries, but have a different chemical and mechanical make - up. unfortunately, you cannot use a car battery for this job - car batteries are designed never to be fully discharged and


leisure battery ( sometimes called caravan batteries ). these look very similar to car batteries, but have a different chemical and mechanical make - up. unfortunately, you cannot use a car battery for this job - car batteries are designed never to be fully discharged and will fail if discharged in this way. these batteries are available from battery specialists, caravanning shops and most motoring shops, including halfords. once you have worked out the size of your battery, you need to calculate the size of solar panel you need to charge it up. the size of the panel will depend on how often you plan to use your generator, how large the battery is and how much sunlight the panel will receive. if a solar panel is left outside in a south facing position at an approximate 45° angle to the sky, it is likely to produce around 2 times it ' s quoted hourly rating per day during the winter, and between 4 - 8 times it ' s quoted hourly rating per day during the summer. if you want to be more accurate, you can use the solar irradiance calculator and the solar angle calculator on this site in order to get a better idea of how much power you can expect to generate and the best angle to place your solar panels at. you will want your solar power generator to recharge fairly quickly so that it can be fully charged when it is next required. however, if you get too large a solar panel, you ' ll be paying far more than you otherwise need and wasting most of the power that you generate. a fair compromise is normally to allow 10 - 15 days for the solar power generator to recover from a complete battery discharge. as you are probably only ever going to be using partial charges from the battery, this is a worst case scenario. you can always supplement the solar panel with an external power source to top up the batteries quicker if necessary. to calculate the size of the solar panel you require, take the amp / hour rating of the battery and multiply this by the number of volts ( normally 12 ). divide this number by 2 ( hours per solar charge per day in winter ) and divide this number by the number of days you expect the solar panel to have fully recharged a battery. then multiply the final figure by 1. 1 to take into account losses in the system. the number you have left is the size of the solar panel - in watts - which you need to buy. a 12v 80 amp / hour battery stores 960 watt - hours of electricity ( 12 x


1 to take into account losses in the system. the number you have left is the size of the solar panel - in watts - which you need to buy. a 12v 80 amp / hour battery stores 960 watt - hours of electricity ( 12 x 80 = 960 ). 960 / 2 hours winter charge = 480 watt - hours 480 / 15 days = 32 watt - hours 32 x 1. 1 = 35 watt solar panel power inverters take the 12v voltage from your batteries and convert it to a 240v ac power supply. they are available in various different power outputs from 75 watts to 3kw and it is important to make sure you do not overload them. power inverters can get extremely hot in operation, so if you are planning to build them into a case, it is important to make sure they have adequate space around them so they do not over heat. when buying a power inverter, it is worth buying one that includes a low - voltage cut out. this means that when the batteries run low, the inverter switches off rather than totally draining the batteries. draining lead acid batteries completely can damage or destroy your batteries, so this is best avoided. power inverters are available from camping and caravan shops, car accessory outlets and most electrical wholesalers. they are commonly sold to motorists who want a 240v mains outlet in their car for running laptop computers. how do i measure how much power my appliances use? you can measure your power requirements using a plug - in energy monitor. these are plugged into a mains socket and the appliance you wish to measure is then plugged into the energy monitor. power drain is then monitored and shown as an average on the built - in display. if you don ' t have a plug - in energy monitor, you can find out how many watts many of your appliances use by reading the power information often printed on the back of them, or by checking the output on power adaptors. often these figures are shown in volts and amps. a transformer for a laptop pc, for instance, may have a power output of 19. 5v and a current of 4. 5 amps. multiplying these two figures together ( volts x amps ) will tell you how many watts are used per hour - in this case, my laptop consumes a maximum of 88 watts / hour of power. it is difficult to produce a table listing all the likely electrical items you will have in a home and provide an exact list


how many watts are used per hour - in this case, my laptop consumes a maximum of 88 watts / hour of power. it is difficult to produce a table listing all the likely electrical items you will have in a home and provide an exact list of their power requirements : power requirements vary dramatically depending on make and model. highly efficient products can consume as little as one tenth of the power of a less energy efficient model. however, as a rough rule of thumb, here is a basic list : as can be seen, there are a lot of electrical appliances that we all have around the home that use large amounts of electricity. where possible, these need to be avoided when planning for emergency power. heating and cooking, for instance, are best done with gas rather than building a bigger and more expensive solar power generator to cope with peak demands. one of the main benefits of a generator is providing lighting. rather than running 240v lights from a solar power generator, however, it is more efficient to run 12v low - energy lights as the power does not have to run through a 240v power inverter. 8w low energy light bulbs running from a 12v power source are as bright as their 240v counterparts. choosing a solar pv panel there are two different types of solar photovoltaic ( pv ) panels - amorphous and crystalline. amorphous panels are the larger of the two panels, as they are the least efficient in direct sunlight. they do generate the most power in poor lighting conditions, however, and can even generate power from bright moonlight or streetlamps. crystalline panels are about 1 / 3rd of the size of amorphous panels, making them more portable and easier to integrate. prices tend to be higher than amorphous panels, although it does pay to shop around as it is often possible to get them for a similar price. working to a budget - where to find cheap parts with careful buying, a small solar power generator capable of providing 1 / 2kw of power can be built for under £100. shopping around, sourcing components from amazon or ebay and using second hand ( but good quality ) batteries can all help to keep costs to a minimum. a good source for second hand batteries are used ex - ups batteries that are sold on ebay regularly and tend to only go for a few pounds. beware though - they can be very heavy, so watch for postage costs! alternatively, you can buy very high capacity used lead acid batteries from fork lift truck maintenance companies. these batteries will


along with a few old lead - acid gel batteries that were being thrown out. depending on the materials you use, you ' re generator may look very different to mine, but ultimately will do the same thing. here is what i started out with : total cost - £47. 98 step 1 - wiring up the power generator first of all, i opened up the ups and took all the parts out of the ups casing. you could choose to keep the ups casing intact - it is certainly safer than having exposed 230v power cables lying around, but i wanted to fit everything into a compact plastic tool case for ease of use. first step was to disable the ups alarm that beeps incessantly when mains power has been switched off. this was accomplished by disabling the speaker using a small screwdriver. i then connected up all the small 12v lead acid gel batteries i had in parallel, giving me a longer - lasting 12v power supply. i then wired this into the ups. a quick word about wiring up batteries in parallel when wiring up batteries in parallel, it is important to wire the batteries correctly. if you don ' t, you will find that you will not drain all the batteries at the same rate. as a result, you can end up with some batteries becoming exhausted sooner than others and this is a sure fire way to damage your batteries. the answer is to make sure you wire up the batteries like this : testing step 1 before getting to play with my solar panels, i decided it would be a good idea to make sure the power generation side worked as planned. i had two 12v batteries, one with a 14 amp / hour rating and one with a 4 amp / hour rating, giving me a total of 18 amp / hours to play with. taking into account battery performance and losses through the power inverter, i estimated that i would have approximately 200 watts of power from my emergency generator - sufficient to run emergency power in my house for two hours if necessary. typically, you don ' t want to mix and match battery sizes. ideally you want both batteries to be the same capacity, and ideally the same make and model as well. in my case, i wasn ' t too worried : the batteries were free, so if they didn ' t last quite as long as a matched pair of batteries, i wasn ' t going to lose any sleep over it. i plugged the ups into the mains and charged up the batteries. once they were charged up, i unplug


' t last quite as long as a matched pair of batteries, i wasn ' t going to lose any sleep over it. i plugged the ups into the mains and charged up the batteries. once they were charged up, i unplugged the mains supply, plugged a tv, a laptop computer and a table lamp into the ups and left it powered on until the batteries were flat. total power drain from all this equipment was 189 watts. the ups managed to run the tv, laptop computer and table lamp together for 1 hour and 4 minutes on a single charge - a total of 201 watts of usable power. step 2 - connecting up the solar panel so far, so simple. the next step was to connect up the solar panel. for this, you will need a solar panel ( obviously ) and a solar charge controller. the solar charge controller is an important piece of kit - it stops the batteries from getting overcharged by the solar panel. if you don ' t have a solar charge controller, the batteries can get overcharged, which will destroy the batteries. in a worst case scenario, overcharging the batteries could lead to explosion or fire. i used a low cost solar charger which i purchased from maplin for £12. 99 ( part number l26br ). my wiring now looked something like this : testing step 2 i carried my solar power generator outside - thankfully it was a sunny day - and started prodding about with my multimeter, taking care to ensure i kept my fingers away from the 230v ac output from the ups. my solar panel was sending between 720 - 780ma of power to the batteries, which equates to around 9 watts of power at 17. 2 volts - a suitable voltage for charging up 12v batteries. based on these figures, i calculated that from a fully discharged battery, it would take between three and seven days to fully recharge my solar power generator, so long as my solar power generator was placed somewhere outside where it could receive at least some direct sunlight each day. step 3 - tidying up the next step was to tidy up the installation and fit it into my box. i wanted a system that was going to be portable, so it was important to make sure the batteries were fitted down properly. i used thick velcro strips ( available from b & q for around £3 a pack ) to ensure everything was held firmly in place. i mounted my solar panel onto the outside of the box and sealed it to the box using mastic


properly. i used thick velcro strips ( available from b & q for around £3 a pack ) to ensure everything was held firmly in place. i mounted my solar panel onto the outside of the box and sealed it to the box using mastic. my plan was to be able to use this system outside, and to make the internal workings of the system waterproof. unfortunately, i managed to break the box, so that is going to have to be put on hold for a while. i then fitted everything properly into the case to ensure there were no exposed hazardous wires. testing step 3 i double checked the power with my multimeter to ensure everything was working as it should. it was, so then i tested it properly by powering up the ups and running my power drill from it. everything worked as it should. the final product for something that cost me less than £50, i have to say i ' m pretty pleased with the result. i have a portable solar power generator that i can take with me anywhere and use both inside and out. my solar power generator can be charged up quickly from the mains if necessary, or trickle charged using solar power. it can be used to provide a burst of power - up to 10 amps if necessary, or provide a smaller amount of power to keep me going in the event of a power cut for a couple of hours. it ' s totally portable, so i can take it with me if i need power on the go - like using a power drill at the bottom of the garden, for instance. and because it provides a clean power supply without chucking out noxious exhausts, it can be used inside exactly where it is needed, rather than with trailing power leads running across the floor. solar parts kit solar charge controllers combined solar panels and charge controllers return from solar power generator to diy energy saving projects page. | did you know? | solar photovoltaic prices are dropping by between a quarter and a third each year. by 2020, it is widely predicted that solar will be the cheapest way of generating electricity, almost anywhere in the world.


during these twelve days of christmas, you ’ ll see a number of e - mails about the alleged “ meaning ” behind the traditional carol “ the twelve days of christmas. ” while this is my least favorite christmas song ( shades of 99 bottles of beer on the wall ), there is compelling evidence that this was composed as an underground catechetical ditty. so the four calling birds refer to the four gospels, the six geese a - laying symbolize the six days of creation, and so on. of course there ’ s equally compelling evidence that this is complete baloney. see the supposed meanings and the debunking on snopes. com. whatever you believe, i have actually done some exhaustive research ( and by “ exhaustive ” i mean that i ’ m still completely exhausted from all the christmas services ), and have uncovered the “ real ” true meaning behind this carol. the twelve days of christmas ( the “ real ” true meaning ) a partridge in a pear tree — the rector hiding in a tree from coffee hour complaints two turtle doves — the two parishioners comprising the parish peace and justice committee three french hens — the three french ladies who sit in the front row every year at midnight mass four calling birds — four members of the commission on ministry five gold rings — five bishops caucusing at the house of bishops meeting six geese a - laying — six seminarians laying homiletical eggs in the pulpit seven swans a - swimming — seven baptisms at the easter vigil, stretching the liturgy to three hours eight maids a - milking — eight members of the hospitality committee bringing non - dairy creamer to coffee hour nine ladies dancing — the one and only time liturgical dance appeared at st. swithin ’ s ten lords a - leaping — inserted into the new christmas pageant from the avant garde director eleven pipers piping — the eleven funeral last year that included a bag piper playing amazing grace at the end twelve drummers drumming — the “ drumming circle ” used at the ill - fated “ contemporary worship service ”


preventing finger, hand, and wrist problems the following tips may prevent finger, hand, and wrist injuries : - do exercises that strengthen your hand and arm muscles. - stop, change, or take a break from activities that cause your symptoms. - reduce the speed and force of repetitive movements in activities such as hammering, typing, knitting, quilting, sweeping, raking, racquet sports, or rowing. - change positions when holding objects, such as a book or playing cards, for any length of time. - use your whole hand to grasp an object. gripping with only your thumb and index finger can stress your wrist. - when you work with tools that vibrate, consider using special gloves that support the wrist and have vibration - absorbing padding. - wear protective gear, such as wrist guards, in sports activities. - review your work posture and body mechanics. - organize your work so that you can change your position occasionally while maintaining a comfortable posture. - position your work so you do not have to turn excessively to either side. - keep your shoulders relaxed when your arms are hanging by your sides. - when using a keyboard, keep your forearms parallel to the floor or slightly lowered and keep your fingers lower than your wrists. allow your arms and hands to move freely. take frequent breaks to stretch your fingers, hands, wrist, shoulders, and neck. if you use a wrist pad during breaks from typing, it ' s best to rest your palm or the heel of your hand on the support, rather than your wrist. | primary medical reviewer | | william h. blahd, jr., md, facep - emergency medicine | | specialist medical reviewer | | david messenger, md | | last revised | | november 4, 2010 | emedicinehealth medical reference from healthwise to learn more visit healthwise. org © 1995 - 2012 healthwise, incorporated. healthwise, healthwise for every health decision, and the healthwise logo are trademarks of healthwise, incorporated.