his proselytizing in prison ; these are his early radical ideas. the government claims they are identical with my ideas and therefore constitute irrefutable proof that i am a communist! ) chang escapes from prison, is hunted by the police, and finally hides in a filthy back alley where some prostitutes are plying their trade. he calls to the prostitutes : " oh, you are all my mother! " he kisses their feet, and declares : " the soles of your feet are heaven! " " god is in your putrid wombs! " and " god ' s place is with the lowest of the low. " chang later goes to live on mt. kyeryong and preaches about a paradise in the land of the eastern sea. 8 he teaches a systematic religious discipline in three stages : sich ' onju, acceptance of god and service to him ; yangch ' onju, cultivation of god in your heart and subordination. of everything to god ' s will ; and saengch ' onju. 9 chang preaches " community ownership of property, " teaches about revolution, stresses the unity of prayer and action, and advocates " resistance against the tide. " his major ideas include, " the transformation of the lowest into heaven, " that the traveller ' s path from this world to heaven is revolution, the need to purge wild beasts that lurk within human heartssymbolic of the paekchong ' s occupation - and that this world is corrupt but in the next world they will visit the paradise in the eastern sea. chang il tam preaches to the workers and farmers. he builds an altar in the wilderness, starts a huge bonfire, and casts everything old into the flames. he teaches the people that although violence is unavoidable, tan is desirable. he leads the multitude toward the evil palace in the capital, seoul. the throng all carry beggar ' s cans. at this point chang proclaims that paradise is " to share food with others " and that " food is heaven. " they reach the capital where food is abundant and continue through the city on the eternal journey toward paradise where food is shared by all. ( this journey implies an endless transmigratory discipline : to the destination and then a return to a place where there is no food. ) during the march to seoul, chang is defeated in a battle. the government offers a reward, and the traitor judas turns chang in. chang remains silent, saying nothing in his own defense. he is


to a place where there is no food. ) during the march to seoul, chang is defeated in a battle. the government offers a reward, and the traitor judas turns chang in. chang remains silent, saying nothing in his own defense. he is convicted of violating the anti - communist law, the national security law and inciting rebellion. chang is taken out to be executed and just before he is beheaded, breaks his silence to sing a song, " food is heaven. " food is heaven you can ' t make it on your own food should be shared food is heaven we all see the same stars in heaven how natural that we all share the same food. food is heaven as we eat god enters us food is heaven should be shared by all. chang is resurrected three days later. his severed head seeks out the traitor judas, decapitates him and places itself on his trunk. the traitor ' s body is joined with the saint ' s destiny. this weird union of holiness, goodness and truth, accomplished through judas ' wicked intelligence, is both chang ' s revenge and salvation for the sinner. it expresses the manifold paradoxes of chang ' s thought. my tentative denouement for the ballad is " the song, ' food should be shared ' has become a raging storm sweeping into every comer of south korea. " that is the general outline of the ballad. i repeat that chang il tam ' s world is in flux. religious asceticism and revolutionary action, the works of jesus, the struggle of ch ' oe che u ( founder of the tonghak ) and chon pong jun ( commander of the tonghak peasant army ), a yearning for the communal life of early christianity, and a deep affection for the long, valiant resistance of the korean people are all part of chang ' s kaleidoscopic world. so are paulo freire ' s the pedagogy of the oppressed, franz fanon ' s ideas on violence, the direct action of blanquism, the christian view of the human being flawed by original sin, the catholic doctrine of the omnipresence of god and the buddhist concept of the transmigration of the soul, the populist redistributive egalitarianism of im kok chong and hong kil tong, 10 and the tonghak teachings of sich ' onju and yangch ' onju. some of these movements and doctrines combine and coalesce ; others clash in mighty confrontations. i have no intention


a real " communist connection. " they said i was a maoist who joined the catholic church because i followed mao ' s teaching on the transformation and unity of antagonisms. my notes included the words, " god and revolution, bread and freedom, the unity of earth and heaven " - all phrases that correspond to the resolution of contradictions. to my astonishment, the kcia even attributed my use of the word " resurrection " to mao! they said the " resolution " of death into resurrection was the resolution of a contradiction! even perverse sophistry has its limits, one would think! perhaps under the circumstances i can be excused for not admiring the vivid imagination and creativity of the prosecutor. the police of the republic of korea are not much for subtle distinctions. they regard materialism as identical with metaphysics. at the faintest whiff of dialectics, they stick the communist label on you. in south korea, lao tzu, confucius, jesus, the buddha - anybody and everybody concerned with fundamental truth or essential reality would be a communist. i said above that it would be premature to categorize chang il tam but i can say that it is not socialist realism, a vehicle for marxist ideas. the work is apocalyptical, prophetic, full of allegory, mystery, and symbolism. i use supernatural occurences and the fanciful events conjured up by the sensitivity and imagination of peasants and workers. i dab in a touch of the abstract with bizarre illusions. i use death, chaos, insecurity, terror, revolution, despair, melancholy, atrocities, executions and decadence to create the overall tone. i attempt to describe a ghastly, blood - soaked, transitional period by the use of furious language and violent incidents. my work bears no resemblance to the pallid tone, naturalistic descriptions and realistic plots of conventional socialist writings. there are no romances between steel workers and their blast furnaces in chang il tam. this is what i am working on. it is far from finished. nevertheless, the government says it was written " to aid the northern puppet regime. " what can i say? there has been much publicity recently about the government ' s " five - year plan to encourage literature. " but what they are doing to me is really how they go about " encouraging " literature. let ' s look at the second charge. i had made notes for a play called " maltuk, " in which a day - laborer by the same name fights against


doing to me is really how they go about " encouraging " literature. let ' s look at the second charge. i had made notes for a play called " maltuk, " in which a day - laborer by the same name fights against the bourgeoisie. the police and the kcia insist that this is marxist writing which calls for the overthrow of the bourgeoisie by workers and peasants. they are so eager to find communists that they react like pavlovian dogs to the word " bourgeoisie " and neurotically grab the anti - communist law. just because marx called a flower a flower, am i supposed to call it something else? the word " bourgeoisie " is an internationally accepted historical term. if the mere use of the word, or the expression of contempt for something " bourgeois " proves a person is a communist, where does that leave france ' s george bernanos, who said, " i hate the bourgeoisie? " one hardly need cite foreign examples. don ' t we hear the word everyday as a half - humorous term for the rich? that is how i used it. to be more exact, my use of the word " bour. : geoisie " has the limited meaning of the " corrupt ruling elite " which dominates south korea. it is synonymous with the " five bandits. " " maltuk ' is based on the rebellious servant character in traditional mask dramas. the plot evolves from a popular protest against corruption and privilege. the protagonist is a laborer but he is not trying to start a revolution to impose a dictatorship of the proletariat. i am trying to portray a rebel from the lowest stratum of society - far lower than organized industrial workers, in fact. my idea was to make my hero a " debased ch ' onmin, " a stratum shunned by society as subhuman. he is a typical dehumanized south korean, spiritually and physically robbed of his manhood. i want to describe his despair and the divine inspiration that rescues him. i will show the " reciprocal effect of action and prayer " which leads win to resist and regain his human dignity. i place this interaction in maltuk, a " rebellious, sweaty, dirty south korean peasant, " and stressed hope. i tried to describe a certain world of " community " which appears in the resultant eschatological illusion. this is also an illusory manifestation of an oppression - free society, the eternal theme of true art. the


" and stressed hope. i tried to describe a certain world of " community " which appears in the resultant eschatological illusion. this is also an illusory manifestation of an oppression - free society, the eternal theme of true art. the drama is sustained by an imagination rooted in christian eschatology ; it is not derived from any political ideology. the allegation that it " was written to aid the northern puppets " could not be more preposterous. i want to explain why i wrote " five bandits, " " groundless rumors, " " chang il tam, " " maltuk " and other works. so they could be used by someone? no! because i wanted to write them. i had no choice. they were deep inside me, stirring and swirling. i had to, let them burst out. i wrote them because i had to. that was the only reason. next, the " people ' s revolutionary party " case, i wrote about the torture of ha chae wan and i held a press conference to ask for the release of the prp prisoners. the government terms these actions " support for the propaganda activities of the northern puppets " that " benefitted the people ' s revolutionary party, a subversive organization. " for the sake of argument, let ' s say that my statement about the torture of the prp prisoners was identical with the north korean " propaganda " on the case. the question really is, did i " support " their version or did they, " support ' ' mine? they did not meet ha chae wan. i met him and i heard his, story directly from him. i just told the world what i heard. i did not say ha chae wan was tortured on the basis of a north korean broadcast. does similarity of. content mean " support? " if it does, thousands of ordinary citizens, intellectuals,, religious leaders, students and politicians who demanded the " release of the democratic leaders ' arrested in 1974 must be fellow - travellers since the north certainly must have advocated the same thing. don ' t they all have to be charged under the ' anti - communist law? hasn ' t this nonsense gone too far? did i speak out to help the " people ' s revolutionary party, a subversive organ ' zation? " how could that possibly have been my reason? i knew certain fact which every person in this country needed to know. i made those horrible fact public in the interests of civil rights and democracy in south korea. consider


all over the world concerned with freedom will generously support our struggle. our age demands truth and the passion to endure the suffering necessary to learn the truth. we want to be free. to taste, feel and transmit to our children the freedom so long promised in south korea. to this noble cause we must commit everything we are and hope to be. my - prayers are with all of you in this courageous struggle. kim chi ha just before i was arrested in march the authorities searched my country house and the home where my child is staying. they seized four or five of my private notebooks. at first i wasn ' t sure what they were after, but the interrogators ' questions provided a clue. they asked : " weren ' t you asked to write a poem about the kim dae jung kidnapping? " and " where is that manuscript? " 12 i am not allowed to receive visitors or mail, to write anything, or even to read the bible. i cannot move around very much. this gloomy, cramped cell is a bit less than seven feet by seven. i sit here in the dark angrily thinking about the uncertain future. but prison has not dimmed my spirits. these miserable conditions and the endless waiting have made me more determined than ever. i feel a quiet composure, almost serenity. but i am terribly worried about what may happen to the individuals involved in making this statement public. my friends, please help these good people. do not grieve for me. we will surely see each other again soon. kim chi ha, may 1975 the yellow dust road along the vivid blood, blood on the yellow road i am going, papa, where you died. now it ' s pitch dark only the sun scorches. two hands are barbed - wired the hot sun burns sweat and tears and rice - paddies under the bayonets through the summer heat. i am going, papa, where you died where you died wrapped in a rice - sack when the trouts were jumping along the bujoo brookside. when the blaze rose from opo hill every night on that day when the sun brightly shone on the yellow land the muddy land resilient as the gorses that grow intrepidly green shall i we cry out the hurrah of that day? shall we sing the song of that day? in the small whadang village embraced among sparse bamboo bushes blood wells up in every well, every ten years ah, born in this barren colony slain under the bayonets, my


of that day? shall we sing the song of that day? in the small whadang village embraced among sparse bamboo bushes blood wells up in every well, every ten years ah, born in this barren colony slain under the bayonets, my papa. how could the dews that spring in the bamboo buds forget, ever forget the crystal brightness of may? it was a long and cruel summer even kids were starving to death the sultry summer of blatant tyranny that even didn ' t know of the heavens at last, all the time of the motherland, the yellow road, and our hope. along the muddy beach where the sun burns old wooden boats to dust again through the rice paddies and over the bleached, whitish furrows it ' s been ten years since the hurrah of that day that thundered the ever blue and high firmament in the flesh, in the breath, the barbed wires keep tightening hearing, and sobbing, in your voice i am going now, papa, where you died. when the trouts were jumping along the bujoo brookside wrapped in the rice - sack where you died. this poem commemorates a village rising in cholla province against the govt of syngman rhee before the korean war. ( all notes are by the translator and editors. ) - 1. the kcia, shortly after kim chi ha ' s arrest, put out a pamphlet entitled " the case against kim chi ha : the true identity of the poet. " containing kim ' s " confession, " excerpts from his prison notes, and a list of books ostensibly seized from his home, it attempts to " prove " that he is a communist. - 2. the korean central intelligence agency, modeled after its american namesake, is so ubiquitous in daily korean affairs, that, rather than saying someone was picked up by the kcia, people always specify the bureau. for torturing students, imprisoning priests and pastors and manufacturing domestic cases of " subversion " and " communist rebellion, " the fifth bureau is responsible. for keeping up with the sinister schemes of the north koreans abroad and other international affairs, the sixth bureau is in charge ( most of the appointments to foreign embassies and legations are now filled by sixth bureau men, whose job it is to keep an eye on dissident south korean activities ). within korea itself, the two bureaus compete, to the point where they now operate as nearly separate agencies ( indeed, two years ago it was rumored that the fifth


whose job it is to keep an eye on dissident south korean activities ). within korea itself, the two bureaus compete, to the point where they now operate as nearly separate agencies ( indeed, two years ago it was rumored that the fifth bureau was hauling in sixth bureau people for a working over. ) - 3. kim ' s forced " confession " states : " after advancing to college, i suffered from frustration and an inferiority complex. i could not enjoy normal campus life because of sickness and family hardship, compared with other students, and these feelings developed into a sense of resistance against our social system.... through my readings on communism, i have come to the conclusion that all irregularities and contradictions in our society derive from the capitalist system, and that the means to rooting out such irregularities is to overthrow the existing system via a proletarian revolution in accordance with the teachings of marx. ( " the case against kim chi ha, " p. 11 ) - 4. the three rebellions that changed modern korean history. the tonghak rebellion was the name for a wide - spread peasant rebellion that swept the lower korean peninsula in 1893 - 94. though it had tonghak ( " eastern learning " - see following note ) religious origins, by the 1890s it had developed strong anti - government and anti - foreign overtones. like the boxer reballion in china, it marked the end of dynastic rule and the collapse of the old order. and also like the boxer rebellion, it provided the pretext for foreign intervention - this time not by the western powers, but by the " would - be western power, " japan. the rebellion was put down with the japanese occupation of seoul in june 1894, which led to 35 years of outright annexation and brutal suppression which did not end until liberation day, august 15, 1945. march first refers to the date on which, in 1919, religious and cultural leaders throughout korea simultaneously read in public a secretly - prepared " proclamation of independence : " " we herewith proclaim the independence of korea... in witness of the equality of all nations, and we pass it on to our prosperity as their inherent right.... victims of an older age, when brute force and the spirit of plunder ruled, we have come after these long thousands of years to experience the agony of ten years of foreign oppression, with... every restriction of the freedom of thought, every damage done to the dignity of life.... the result of annexation, brought about against


come after these long thousands of years to experience the agony of ten years of foreign oppression, with... every restriction of the freedom of thought, every damage done to the dignity of life.... the result of annexation, brought about against the will of the korean people, is that the japanese are concerned only for their own gain... digging a trench of everlasting resentment deeper and deeper.... " japanese revenge was merciless as they set to applying their trench - digging talents to burying corpses. thousands were killed outright ; sometimes whole villages ( in one village the people were locked in a church and it was set afire ). in 1919 - 20 alone, some 7000 koreans were killed. the april 1960 revolution refers to one of modern korea ' s few successful rebellions. in protest against government corruption and widespread voting fraud, students took to the streets in april 1960. it led to the fall only days later of the american - supported strongman, syngman rhee ( only to have a two - bit general that hardly anyone had heard of, park chung hee, come to power a year later ). - 5. partly in opposition to and partly as an imitation of jesuit teachings ( sohak, or " western learning " ) into korea, in the 1860s a religious cult, called tonghak ( " eastern learning " ), was established by a young man of lowly kyongsang province origins. ch ' oe che - u ( 1824 - 1864 ) claimed to have received a direct divine mandate, on may 25, 1860, in which he was personally directed to lead a movement that would make the east as strong as the west. a syncretic thought " system " combining elements of taoism, buddhism, confucianism, native shamanism and even jesuit cosmology, it spread the word of a " world of re - creation, " a new turn of the historical wheel that would see the poor and lowly come into their own. the beatitudes bit. the movement spread like a prairiefire, especially among the impoverished peasantry in the southernmost provinces remote from seoul. it was put down after a long and brutal campaign in 1863 - 64, and fell largely dormant after the capture and beheading of ch ' oe in 1864. the movement revived again in the ' 80s and early ' 90s, finally breaking out in full force with the tonghak rebellion of 1893 - 94 ( see preceding note. ) - 6. paekchong : a member of


oe in 1864. the movement revived again in the ' 80s and early ' 90s, finally breaking out in full force with the tonghak rebellion of 1893 - 94 ( see preceding note. ) - 6. paekchong : a member of the lowliest caste, considered to be defiled and dirty. paekchong could not marry outside of their caste or carry on other normal social discourse, nor were they permitted residence outside slum - like ghettos, where their labors were confined to trades considered beneath the dignity of " humans " - animal slaughter and butchery, tanning, garbage and manure disposal, cremation or burial of the dead, etc. such discrimination still exists today. - 7. im kok chong : hero of an early 17th century popular novel, the leader of a bandit band that set out to redistribute unjustly gained wealth to the poor. sort of korea ' s robin hood, he and his band came to inspire a number of peasant uprisings later. - 8. the eastern sea is china ' s ( the " central kingdom ' s " ) name for korea ; in ancient times travel to korea was usually by boat from the shantung peninsula. - 9. author s term, meaning obscure. - 10. hong kil tong : a leader of im kok chong ' s band ( see note 7 ). - 11. article four of the anti - communist law reads in part : " ( 1 ) any person who has benefitted the anti - state organization by praising, encouraging or siding with or through other means the activities of an anti - state organization or their components or the communist organizations outside the republic of korea shall be imprisoned at hard labor for not more than seven years ; ( 2 ) the same penalty shall apply to any person who has, for the purpose of committing the acts as provided for in the foregoing paragraph, produced, imported, duplicated, kept in custody, transported, disseminated, sold, or acquired documents, drawings and / or any other similar means of expression. " ( " the case against kim chi ha, " pp. 44 - 45. ) - 12. kidnapped from a tokyo hotel in august ' 73 by kcia goons and spirited back to seoul to stand trial for " election law violations " in the presidential " race " of ' 71, kim dae jung is the most prominent " opposition politician " in seoul, america ' s hope for a korean kerensky to replace the tsar in the south and the


the relevance of this book is highlighted first by the fact that language - based approaches are still lacking in arabic dialectology. the classification of arabic dialects is not yet entirely satisfactory. geographical and sociological layers were traditionally based on the assumption that the saliency of some features in the modern arabic dialects is the product of two different processes : diffusion and innovation. however, this traditional approach is not consistent with the history of arabic. for instance, the saliency of some features that support the classification of the modern dialects varies according to features that can be traced back to classical arabic, islamic dialects, old arabic dialects, another explicative process has been, to some extent, neglected in the study of arabic dialects, namely inheritance. some phonological features currently present in modern arabic dialects cannot be explained by any of the two terms of this paradigm. as long as the mapping of western approaches on arabic dialects seems to be relatively unsatisfactory, diffusion and innovation are found to be incomplete to explain the extreme variability of the linguistic features of the arabic dialects. since some features appear in very distant isolated isoglosses, they are consistent neither with diffusion nor with concomitant innovation ; only their underlyingly inherited nature could provide a logical scheme. introducing the process of inheritance, besides diffusion and innovation, aims to enlarge our knowledge of the history of the modern arabic dialects. the threefold paradigm is more accurate to perform satisfying explanations of the features of similarity and dissimilarity between old arabic and modern arabic dialects, at the synchronic and diachronic levels. this division necessitates evaluating actual geographical and sociological classifications of modern arabic dialects, as well as our interpretations of the similarity and dissimilarity of linguistic features in the arabic area. even if language - specific approaches to arabic dialects are lacking, and the mapping of western constructs unappealing, this fact should not justify per se constructing new completely compartmentalized trends in arabic dialectology. cross - cultural outlooks as widely experienced in the first stages of the arabic empire in the orient as well as during the islamic kingdoms of spain, remain an essential motor that must lead to build up specific approaches for the study of arabic dialects. this book aims to shed light on recent trends in arabic dialectology. cross - cultural analyses are provided by scholars from different origins ( arabic native speakers and excellent arabists ) and from different linguistic backgrounds ( arabic, berber, english, french, hebrew, spanish ). the chapters are all devoted to produce systematic descriptions and analyses


in my last addition to my weekend fun series i presented a orange, slightly translucent little " rock ". it was correctly recognised and described by effjot as amber! due to weathering effects the surface of the amber is covered with cracks and fractures and developed a surface incrustraction that has likely been abraded by transport and subsequent re - sedimentation. the specimen you see here is of eocene age and was found by a friend of mine in a small gravel pit in northern germany close to the baltic sea. i am sorry silver fox but what you interpret as breccia texture is likely nothing more than the weathering cracks and surface features of the hardening resin. there are no visible inclusions in this specimen except some tiny air bubbles ( i wonder if it ' s worth examining those ). the origin of amber is, to make it short, fossilised tree resin that hardened under exposure to air and was then deposited in sediment and re - sedimented. the german name for amber " bernstein " is likely derived from the lower german word " bornen " which means something like " to burn ". this is closely linked to the fact that amber can easily be burned. there is only one major and active amber mine to my knowledge. it is located in the area of the former konigsberg, now part of the russian exclave of kaliningrad. the open pit is called primorskoye in jantarni and the amber is part of the so called " blue earth " that holds a considerable content of glauconite that is respondsible for its color and name. they are also of eocene age. of course amber can be found in many parts of the world. a lot of you likely remember if from jurassic park! a good source that gives a great overview to baltic amber is : baltischer bernstein by ulf erichson and dr. wolfgang weitschat published by the deutsches bernsteinmuseum ribnitz - damgarten. that little book is also my source here.


the “ sculptured rock from forsyth county, georgia ” is a petroglyph that currently sits in front of baldwin hall at the university of georgia in athens, georgia. it was moved there in the late 1990s from its location next to the president ’ s building. [ i ] it was originally located in north georgia and was “ found near mt. tabor baptist church in the northwestern part of forsyth county. ” [ ii ] it was first described in white ’ s statistics of georgia in 1849 : “ on the road from canton to dahlonega, 10 miles northwest from cumming, is a very remarkable rock. it is an unhewn mass of granite, eight and a half feet long, and two and a half feet wide. it is three - sided, with irregular converging points, upon which are characters, seventeen of them varying in shape. the largest circles are eight inches in diameter. from its appearance, it must have been wrought at a very remote period. the designs are very irregular, and it is probable that they were executed by the same race of people who constructed the mounds in this and other sections of the state. what the characters on this rock mean, the oldest inhabitants cannot tell. the oldest indians could give no account of it. ” [ iii ] it was next mentioned twenty - four years later in the book antiquities of the southern indians, particularly of the georgia tribes by charles c. jones, jr. originally published in 1873. jones referred to the petroglyph as the “ sculptured rock from forsyth county, georgia. ” i will refer to this petroglyph as the forsyth petroglyph throughout this paper for brevity ’ s sake. in his book jones states : “ in forsyth county, georgia, is a carved or incised bowlder of fine - grained granite, about nine feet long, four feet six inches high, and three feet broad at its widest point. the figures are cut in the bowlder from one - half to three - quarters of an inch deep …. as yet no interpretation of these figures has been offered, nor is it known by whom or for what purpose they were made. it is generally believed, however, that they are the work of the cherokees. on the eastern end of the bowlder, running vertically, is a line of dots, like drill - holes, eighteen in number, connected by an incised line. ” [ iv ] it was next mentioned in an 1888 smithsonian bureau of ethnology report entitled “ picture


the bowlder, running vertically, is a line of dots, like drill - holes, eighteen in number, connected by an incised line. ” [ iv ] it was next mentioned in an 1888 smithsonian bureau of ethnology report entitled “ picture - writing of the american indians. ” this report noted that “ the characters in it are chiefly circles, including plain, nucleated, and concentric, sometimes two or more being joined by straight lines, forming what is now known as the ‘ spectacle shaped ’ figure. ” [ v ] the report goes on to compare the petroglyph to so - called cup - and - ring sculptures around the world, especially in the middle east, british isles and india, which have supposed astronomical interpretations. sir james simpson who developed a classification system for these types of petroglyphs notes that “ occasionally four or five or more of [ these symbols ] are placed in more or less regular groups, exhibiting a constellation - like arrangement. ” [ vi ] in palestine and jordan similar designs are said to be “ reasonably suggestive of the sun, moon, and stars. ” [ vii ] in india these designs are “ correlated with the worship of mahadeo, one of the many names given to siva, the third god of the hindu triad, whose emblem is the serpent. ” [ viii ] the forsyth petroglyph was next mentioned in 1950 in an article by margarett perryman entitled “ hunting petroglyphs in north georgia ” in the second issue of early georgia, the journal of the society for georgia archaeology. [ ix ] in this article she notes : “ my general reading on north american indians naturally included, antiquites of the southern indians, by charles c. jones, jr., and it was there i found the first reference to rock writings in georgia. one of the stones he described and pictured was said to be in forsyth county. so at long last it became possible for me to actually examine a genuine georgia petroglyph. but finding even that well documented stone was not so easy. it took a good bit of detective work and much pussy - footing around the public library to find out in what section of forsyth county the stone was located. the first hunt was ready to start but we had to make some rather careful plans, for these were the days of gasoline rationing. we had to do a lot of round about town walking and weaning of the car to save up enough gas coupons to make the first expedition up into forsyth county. the


rather careful plans, for these were the days of gasoline rationing. we had to do a lot of round about town walking and weaning of the car to save up enough gas coupons to make the first expedition up into forsyth county. the favorable day finally arrived and after losing our way innumerable times on the backwoods roads, some miles west of silver city, we were able to locate the stone. there on the wayside of a little dusty country road was my first georgia petroglyph. totally neglected and forgotten and practically obscured from sight by brambles and looking somewhat like a fat grey granite whale, was the most beautiful carved stone i ever saw. the elements had been kind to the stone, for most of the symbols were still discernible, although grey - green lichens had grown into most of the markings. on that sunday afternoon this petroglyph was given a most thorough examination. our fingers traced every concentric circle until they were roughened and grimy. we admired the perfect symmetry which the ancient stonecarver had achieved in his well proportioned designs. we marveled how every symbol had been carved with such precision and how deeply cut. we counted the little nut size holes that were spaced so neatly and carefully down the entire backbone of the rock. luck was with us that day for the owner of the land on which the stone lay was our guide and companion. he valued his ‘ old indian rock ’ very much and he was quite elated to have us admire his prize possession. his name was mr. corn and i shall never forget his genuine friendliness and his twinkling eyes as he told us exciting tales about the old stone. he told us how folks had come in the dead of night and dug under and about the stone in quest of the forty pony loads of pure indian gold ; how many a brawny copper colored lad had skulked about the stone at dusk to study the inscriptions ; how old and bearded tramps with tattered treasure maps had appeared in the evening mists and disappeared after much pacing around the stone ; of the quaint old men that appeared often with weird treasure finding gadgets to prod and poke the ground about the stone ; of the vandals that attempted to dynamite the stone, believing it to be hollow and hoping to find the treasure inside ; of the law suits and land fights that had taken place in years gone by. mr. corn gave us the information that there were other rock writings on his farm and was interested in showing them to us that


hollow and hoping to find the treasure inside ; of the law suits and land fights that had taken place in years gone by. mr. corn gave us the information that there were other rock writings on his farm and was interested in showing them to us that day. but night was falling fast, so we promised that we would be back soon and bring our camera and take photographs of all his stones. alas and alack! well laid plans often go astray and it was many months before we could get back to forsyth county with our camera equipment and then mr. corn was gone. the new owner of the land was considerate enough to let us take photographs of the petroglyph and he grudgingly consented to let us search for the stonecarvers ancient cutting tool. the only thing he was interested in was seeing that we did not get the treasure for our own. he knew absolutely nothing about there being other carved stones in the vicinity. but he did show us a large purposely shaped, obviously imported piece of rock with a rather recent and crudely carved letter n on its top side. he claimed that this rock was the key that would unlock the whereabouts of the, ‘ hundred pony loads of indian gold, ’ and he knew exactly where it was buried almost … after getting home and developing our pictures we compared them with the drawing of the stone as shown in jones book. the shape of the stone was identical, measurements agreed, but the symbols as shown in our photographs would not match those of jones. some of the symbols were alike but placement of them was entirely different and we found many symbols that jones had not shown. then the question arose had jones actually seen this stone? or had he seen it and waited until a much later date before he drew the picture from memory? or had he acquired the drawing from some other person who had been careless? or had symbols been cut at a later dater after jones had examined the stone? apparently here was just another one of the baffling mysteries that always seem to pester and torment a petroglyph hunter. ” later in this article perryman compared the forsyth petroglyph to the track rock petroglyphs and noted : “ the forsyth county stone and the stones in union county have symbols totally dissimilar, the rocks are of a different geological nature, the topographical placement of the petroglyphs varies, and it appears to me that the two stones were carved for somewhat different purposes. but there is one important feature that is almost identical ; the


, the rocks are of a different geological nature, the topographical placement of the petroglyphs varies, and it appears to me that the two stones were carved for somewhat different purposes. but there is one important feature that is almost identical ; the fact that both have nut size holes carved upon them of a similar diameter and depth. ” when i first discovered the illustration of this petroglyph in jones ’ antiquities, i immediately assigned it an astronomical interpretion based purely on its appearance, not yet having read the smithsonian report. i stated in 2004 on my website lostworlds. org that at first glance it appeared to be a star map. [ x ] this is the first known attempt at interpreting the forsyth petroglyph. to the above potential interpretation, i add the proposal that designs on the forsyth petroglyph include astronomical representations of stars, the constellation draco, the pleiades asterism or constellation scorpius, a comet, and meteors or comet fragments. two georgia pottery traditions, weeden island and swift creek, have designs similar to those that appear on the forsyth petroglyph and have been interpreted as astronomical symbols. david allison has argued that astronomical phenomena are portrayed on “ sacred ” weeden island pottery including “ constellations, the milky way, the annual movements of the sun and moon, solar equinoxes and solstices, and the paths of the planets venus and mercury as ‘ morning stars. ’ ” [ xi ] frankie snow has argued that some of the motifs found on swift creek pottery are astronomical in nature. he suggests that concentric circles and circles with a central dot ( nucleated circles ) are motifs that represent the sun. [ xii ] both the weeden island and swift creek pottery traditions coexisted in georgia between 20 bc and 805 ad. [ xiii ] since similar motifs are found on the forsyth petroglyph, it likely dates from the same time period although no tests have been done to prove this. other researchers have suggested it is “ roughly contemporary to … dated ceramics [ from ] ad 700 to 1400 ( i. e., late woodland swift creek and middle mississippian savannah. ) ” [ xiv ] analysis and interpretation of the forsyth petroglyph the most numerous features on the forsyth petroglyph are a series of concentric circles and nucleated circles ( circles with central circles / dots ) known in petroglyph studies as cup - and - ring [ xv ] designs and elsewhere as circumpuncts


forsyth petroglyph are a series of concentric circles and nucleated circles ( circles with central circles / dots ) known in petroglyph studies as cup - and - ring [ xv ] designs and elsewhere as circumpuncts or circled dots [ xvi ]. most of the circles on the forsyth petroglyph are nucleated although a few of the smaller circles are not. | figure 2 : side by side comparison of a detail from the line drawing with photo of same section on the actual rock | | note : the circles on the actual petroglyph are closer together than the drawing conveys. also, line drawing doesn ’ t accurately reflect thickness of circles. | david allison found two sets of concentric circles on c. b. moore ’ s vessel no. 17 from the “ mound near the warrior river, taylor county. mound b. ” and proposed they were solar symbols. on the same vessel allison also found circles with central dots and proposed a solar interpretation for them as well. frankie snow found concentric circles with central dots on several swift creek pots. he interpreted these as solar symbols based on known historic accounts of native americans using similar symbols to represent the sun. so far we have established that concentric circles and nucleated circles ( circumpuncts ) may have astronomical associations as symbols for our day star, the sun. is it possible that native americans also used concentric circles to represent night stars? due to the multiple instances of concentric circles and their scattered arrangement on the forsyth petroglyph it is doubtful that each and every one of them represents the sun. i propose that in this particular case, based on their quantity, arrangement and context ( i. e., the other design elements that surround them ), they represent stars in the night sky. evidence below will further support this contention. ( for further proof that ancients used concentric circles with central dot as a symbol for stars, see the ancient sumerian image “ kudurru of king melishipak. ” ) [ xvii ] [ continues... ]


has taken a comprehensive look, ” white says. systematically exploring tejon ranch to inventory its natural resources is one of the conservancy ’ s top priorities. as the dirt double - track climbs through rolling hills, incense cedars begin to show among the oaks, then sycamores and cottonwoods. we are following tejon creek, a perennial stream that forms a luxuriant riparian corridor before disappearing into the valley floor. the higher we go, the lusher things get. near a small pool in the stream, two tiger swallowtail butterflies are locked in the synchronized flight of a mating ritual. i sample the watercress near willows where a purple finch flits among the branches. in a matter of minutes we have left san joaquin valley species for birds and plants found in the southern sierra nevada. pushing on up the ridge, we hear woodpeckers as we pass jeffrey pines near the tehachapi crest. once we enter the cottonwood creek watershed everything changes again. clumps of sagebrush, even an occasional yucca, now dot the roadside. the creek flows southeast into antelope valley, the westernmost arm of the mojave desert. this rare biological crossroads at the confluence of ecosystems harbors at least 25 rare, endangered, or threatened species, documented in a record scientists eked out for the past 150 years. among them are the tehachapi buckwheat, the tehachapi pocket mouse, and several others found nowhere else on earth. “ what i find so absolutely fascinating, ” white says, “ is all the stuff sloshing around this place — rabbitbrush growing under an oak savannah and yuccas around the corner from a gray pine stand. it ’ s just so unique. ” and it ’ s all but unexplored. take the slender salamander, a lungless amphibian with four - toed feet that rarely strays beyond the six feet of its mostly underground niche. a series of slightly different species of slender salamanders evolved throughout the sierra and pacific coast ranges. at least two of these live on tejon ranch, including the tehachapi slender salamander, a candidate for listing under the federal endangered species act. brick - red and stealthy, this salamander can coil its body like a snake when threatened. once scientists look, they may find new species of slender salamanders that have not yet been described, white says. the occurrence of several species on the ranch may also help


, this salamander can coil its body like a snake when threatened. once scientists look, they may find new species of slender salamanders that have not yet been described, white says. the occurrence of several species on the ranch may also help scientists better understand evolution and how it shapes new species. as we wend our way through the pine and douglas fir forests near the tehachapi crest, white is intent on finding a sooty grouse, a two - pound turkey cousin with a long neck, dark plumage, and breathy bass hoot. sooty grouse have never been sighted on tejon ranch, but the old - growth trees at its canyons ’ edges could support them. ever the optimist, white stops to play a recording of a male in breeding season, when they hoot from branches over open areas, hoping to entice their paramours. sooty grouse males are known for their deep, booming calls — whoop, whoop, whoop, whoop, whoop, whoop — audible more than a quarter - mile away. they are also known for their vigorous territorial defense. “ so if we were to attract one, it would fly in the window and attack us, ” white says half - jokingly.


see also the dr. math faq : browse high school triangles and other polygons stars indicate particularly interesting answers or good places to begin browsing. selected answers to common questions : area of an irregular shape. pythagorean theorem proofs. - euler line and nagel point [ 07 / 20 / 1998 ] can you provide more information on the euler line and the nagel point, - euler line proof [ 11 / 13 / 2001 ] prove that if the euler line of a triangle passes through a vertex, then the triangle is either right or isosceles. - euler ' s line theorem [ 04 / 08 / 2001 ] prove that the circumcenter, orthocenter, and centroid of any triangle lie on the same line using analytical geometry. - euler ' s nine - point circle [ 02 / 21 / 1999 ] what is the " nine - point circle " problem? - evaluating a trigonometric expression [ 07 / 31 / 1999 ] can you help me evaluate tan ( arcsin ( 3 / 5 ) )? - existence of the brocard point [ 06 / 06 / 2002 ] demonstrate that the brocard point exists in any triangle. - explanation and informal proof of pick ' s theorem [ 04 / 27 / 2004 ] we just learned pick ' s theorem, a = b / 2 + i - 1, where b is the boundary pegs, i is the interior pegs, and a is the area. i don ' t get why it works. why do you divide the boundary by 2 and subtract 1? - explanation and test case for pick ' s theorem [ 06 / 13 / 2006 ] i don ' t really understand pick ' s theorem and its formula. can you explain the formula and show how it works for a polygon? - exploring the distance from ( 0, 0 ) to ( 1, 1 ) with limits [ 10 / 15 / 2006 ] any route traveling from ( 0, 0 ) to ( 1, 1 ) going only north and east will cover a total distance of 2 units. but the straight line distance from ( 0, 0 ) to ( 1, 1 ) is sqrt ( 2 ) units. it seems that if i think of a staircase connecting the two points and let the stairs become infinitely small, the limit of the north / east route distance should converge to sqrt ( 2 ). but it doesn ' t! what ' s going on here? - exterior angles in triangles [ 09 / 11


two points and let the stairs become infinitely small, the limit of the north / east route distance should converge to sqrt ( 2 ). but it doesn ' t! what ' s going on here? - exterior angles in triangles [ 09 / 11 / 1999 ] how can you prove that in any triangle, each exterior angle is equal to the sum of the two nonadjacent interior angles? - familiar triangles [ 01 / 19 / 1999 ] how do you get the lengths of the sides of a 45 - 45 - 90 triangle and a 30 - - a fibonacci jigsaw puzzle [ 04 / 29 / 1999 ] why is the area of our rectangle, formed from a square, 65 when the square ' s area was 64? - fibonacci riddle [ 11 / 21 / 2001 ] we can cut an 8x8 square with an area of 64 into four pieces and reassemble to get a 5x13 rectangle with an area of 65. where does the extra 1x1 square come from? - the figure of maximum area and given perimeter [ 06 / 02 / 1998 ] can you help me show, with and without calculus, that the geometric figure of a maximum area and given perimeter is a circle? what are the dimensions of a triangle with perimeter p that encloses the maximum area? - filling a garden with topsoil [ 2 / 5 / 1996 ] i have a garden that is 10 ' x 10 ' ( 100 square feet ). i want to add 6 " of topsoil to my garden. topsoil is sold by the cubic yard. how many cubic yards of topsoil will i need for my project? - find angle acb [ 04 / 20 / 2002 ] let a ', b ' and c ' be points on triangle abc such that aa ' bb ' cc ' are angle bisectors. suppose angle a ' c ' b ' = 90 degrees. find angle acb. - find angle deb [ 5 / 27 / 1996 ] given an isosceles triangle abc... - find angles, area, perimeter of a parallelogram [ 03 / 23 / 2001 ] i can ' t understand how to find indicated measures when i am given little information to begin with. - find a point 3 / 8 along the line [ 12 / 04 / 2002 ] find a point 3 / 8 from a to b. given : two endpoints x, y coordinates. point a ( - 2, 7 ) point b ( 6, - 5


point 3 / 8 along the line [ 12 / 04 / 2002 ] find a point 3 / 8 from a to b. given : two endpoints x, y coordinates. point a ( - 2, 7 ) point b ( 6, - 5 ). - finding a missing angle [ 01 / 23 / 2002 ] using trigonometry, calculate the measure of angles abc and acb. - finding angles without using trigonometry [ 08 / 27 / 2001 ] given the lengths of three sides of a triangle, determine the measures of the three angles using only geometry and algebra. - finding area and volume [ 04 / 12 / 2001 ] when working with area and volume of triangular shapes, how do i know when to divide the base by 2 and when to divide it by 3? - finding areas of different polygons [ 09 / 02 / 1997 ] could you please tell me how to work out the area for an equilateral heptagon, octagon, nonagon, decagon, unedecagon, and dodecagon? - finding polygon areas [ 03 / 20 / 1997 ] how do i find the area of polygons? - finding rhombi in a rhombus [ 9 / 25 / 1995 ] how can i work out a formula for finding how many rhombi there are in a rhombus? ( say 2cm * 2cm or 3cm * 3cm and so on, etc. ) - finding side lengths of a scalene triangle [ 6 / 2 / 1996 ] two observers on points a and b of a national park see a beginning fire on point c. knowing that the angles cab = 45 degrees, abc = 105 degrees and that the distance between points a and b is of 15 kilometers, determine the distances between b and c, and between a and c. - finding the area of an irregular polygon [ 02 / 23 / 2008 ] what is the formula for finding the area of an irregular polygon? - finding the area of an irregular shape [ 01 / 03 / 2007 ] i need the area of a parcel of land with 5 sides. i know the lengths of the sides and the angles at the corners, but am not sure how to calculate the area. - finding the area of a regular pentagon [ 04 / 15 / 1998 ] how can you find the area of a regular pentagon given only the length of - finding the base of parts of a triangle [ 05 / 22 / 2000 ] can you derive an expression for l1


of a regular pentagon [ 04 / 15 / 1998 ] how can you find the area of a regular pentagon given only the length of - finding the base of parts of a triangle [ 05 / 22 / 2000 ] can you derive an expression for l1 in terms of l2 and l3 such that the area of a triangle with base a1 and the area of a triangle with base a2 are each 10 % of the total area? - finding the center of the research triangle [ 9 / 5 / 1995 ] we live in an area known as the research triangle, with the triangle ' s points at the university of north carolina, north carolina state university and duke university. we are interested in finding the center point of our triangle home and whether there is a unique term ( or several terms ) for the center point of a triangle. - finding the coordinates of a triangle vertex [ 10 / 26 / 1999 ] how can i find the coordinates of the point a of triangle abc if b lies on the line 3y = 4x, c lies on the line y = 0, the line bc passes through ( 2 / 3, 2 / 3 ) and aobc forms a rhombus ( where o is the origin )? - finding the dimensions of a box [ 10 / 21 / 2001 ] you want to construct a cardboard box from a cardboard strip that is 8 inches wide. the dimensions of the box are 8 " x8 " x4 ". how long does the strip need to be? - finding the incenter of a triangle [ 10 / 08 / 2006 ] what is the equation or method to find the incenter of a triangle? i ' m having trouble with the cartesian coordinates. - finding total area of several rectangles [ 07 / 08 / 2005 ] i need to find the total square footage of a lot of rectangular lawns. do i have to find the area of each lawn and add up all the areas, or can i just add all the lengths and all the widths and make one area calculation based on those two totals? - finding triangle vertices from midpoints [ 09 / 18 / 1999 ] if you know the coordinates of the midpoints of the sides of a triangle, how can you find the coordinates of its vertices? - find lengths of sides of triangle [ 04 / 20 / 2002 ] let abc be a right - angled triangle with angle c = 90 degrees. let the bisectors of angle a and angle b intersect bc and ca at d and e respectively. given that cd = 9 and ce = 8


date : 01 / 30 / 97 at 20 : 21 : 52 from : m. quinn subject : proof problems for the following statement, give a proof if the statement is true, or a counterexample ( with explanation ) if the statement is false : if r is any nonzero rational number, and s is any irrational number, then r / s is irrational. i think this is true, but i can ' t prove it. i know s must be an integer and an integer isn ' t irrational am i going the right way? date : 01 / 31 / 97 at 11 : 15 : 50 from : doctor wilkinson subject : re : proof problems well, so far so good. you ' re correct that the statement is true. let ' s try to figure out a proof. " irrational " is a negative concept. that is, a number is irrational if it ' s not the quotient of two integers, so you typically have to use an " indirect " proof. that means, assume the number is rational and show that that assumption leads you to something you know is false. so suppose r / s is rational. that means r / s = m / n, where m and n are integers. let ' s multiply by ns to get rid of the fractions. that gives us rn = ms. but now what we ' re really interested in is s. so let ' s divide both sides by m. ( we know we can do this because if m were zero, r would be zero : that ' s what that extra hypothesis was for! ). this gives us : s = rn / m r is rational, n and m are integers, so that makes s rational. but we know it isn ' t. contradiction! so our original assumption was wrong, and r / s is irrational. do you see how this works? this is a typical indirect proof. i hope this helps a little. you seem to be on the right track. - doctor wilkinson, the math forum check out our web site! http : / / mathforum. org / dr. math / search the dr. math library : ask dr. mathtm © 1994 - 2013 the math forum


the midwestern region of the united states experienced its second coldest december in the 106 year record of observations. the december 2000 average temperature was 14. 3°f, just missing the 1983 record of 13. 9°f. a number of first - order stations broke their all - time cold records for december, including south bend, in ; chicago - midway, rockford, and moline, il ; and louisville and paducah, ky. the center of unusually cold conditions was in iowa, missouri, and illinois, where temperatures averaged 12 - 15°f below normal over most of the three states ( figure 1 ). even in relatively warmer locations such as northern michigan, temperatures were still more than 5°f below normal. the temperature departure pattern in december 2000 was similar to that in december 1983, in the sense that the largest negative anomalies were in the western half of the region ( figure 2 ). the causes were similar, too. both cold months occurred during a somewhat neutral to slightly la nina oriented season, with central equatorial sea surface temperatures slightly cooler than normal. the resulting upper air patterns indicate the preference for a strong trough to develop over the central and eastern united states in both seasons. during december 2000, a strong ridge dominated the western coast of north america, helping to accentuate the north - south delivery of very cold air in the midwest trough ( figure 3 ). december 1983 was similar ; while the amplitude of the western upper air ridge was less than in 2000, the eastern trough was deeper ( figure 4 ). while the amount of liquid water in the precipitation that fell during december 2000 is only slightly above normal overall in the midwest, some more active regions can be seen in iowa and the northern tier states ( figure 5 ). it is unusual for a cold month during winter to also be a month with normal or above normal precipitation. the remarkable aspect of the precipitation in december, though, was that almost all of it was delivered in the form of snow, leading to a widespread deep snow pack that helped to maintain cold temperatures. the snow totals reported in real time in december 2000 vary widely depending on the reliability of reporting, but can be seen to include many very large values, especially in the north - central latitudes of the midwest ( figure 6 ). a subset of stations with good climate records and available real - time data show that the snow fall totals were typically more than 10 inches above normal in most of the midwest ( figure 7 ). snow fall exceeded 300 % of normal in the central and southern midwest (


of stations with good climate records and available real - time data show that the snow fall totals were typically more than 10 inches above normal in most of the midwest ( figure 7 ). snow fall exceeded 300 % of normal in the central and southern midwest ( figure 8 ). while there were several major snowstorms that traversed the region during december, the sheer number of smaller " clipper " systems originating in the northern rocky mountains contributed greatly to the overall snow fall totals. at least 15 first - order stations broke all - time records for december snowfall, and five of these set their all - time record snowfall for any month of the year ( table 1 ). most of these stations are located in a belt from central iowa and southern minnesota eastward through the great lakes region ( figure 9 ). as might be expected, december 1983 was similarly snowy, with the axis of heaviest snow perhaps shifted somewhat to the northern part of the midwest ( figure 10 ). overall, conditions during december 2000 were quite extraordinary in the midwest. illinois experienced its single coldest december in 106 years, while iowa experienced its largest december snow fall state - wide ( harry hillaker, iowa state climatologist ). the december 2000 temperature rankings for each of the nine states in the midwestern region are available in table 2, and the temperature and snow fall rankings for a list of major midwestern cities is given in table 3. the climate prediction center in washington, d. c., has indicated an appreciable likelihood for cold weather to continue through the upcoming winter months, especially in the northern great lakes region. however, it should be noted that following the record cold december 1983, january - february 1984 was the 25th warmest on record for the midwest.


collagen - seeking synthetic protein could lead doctors to tumor locations pictured are mice injected with a fluorescently tagged peptide that binds to degraded collagen ( seen as red ) and a commercially available imaging agent that binds to the calcium in bones ( seen as green ). the mouse on the left was injected with both compounds, and the one in the right was injected only with the collagen mimetic peptide. ( areas where both compounds are present appear as yellow. ) the purpose of these tests was to show that the peptides can target bone and cartilage of living animals by binding to degraded collagen. the peptide could someday deliver imaging agents and medications to combat various human disorders such as cancers, arthritis and fibrosis, which are associated with excess collagen degradation. credit : catherine foss and yang li / jhu johns hopkins researchers have created a synthetic protein that, when activated by ultraviolet light, can guide doctors to places within the body where cancer, arthritis and other serious medical disorders can be detected. the technique could lead to a new type of diagnostic imaging technology and may someday serve as a way to move medications to parts of the body where signs of disease have been found. in a study published in the aug. 27 - 31 online early edition of proceedings of the national academy of sciences, the researchers reported success in using the synthetic protein in mouse models to locate prostate and pancreatic cancers, as well as to detect abnormal bone growth activity associated with marfan syndrome. the synthetic protein developed by the johns hopkins team does not zero in directly on the diseased cells. instead, it binds to nearby collagen that has been degraded by various health disorders. collagen, the body ' s most abundant protein, provides structure and creates a sturdy framework upon which cells build nerves, bone and skin. some buildup and degradation of collagen is normal, but disease cells such as cancer can send out enzymes that break down collagen at an accelerated pace. it is this excessive damage, caused by disease, that the new synthetic protein can detect, the researchers said. " these disease cells are like burglars who break into a house and do lots of damage but who are not there when the police arrive, " said s. michael yu, a faculty member in the whiting school of engineering ' s department of materials science and engineering. " instead of looking for the burglars, our synthetic protein is reacting to evidence left at the scene of the crime, " said yu, who was principal


member in the whiting school of engineering ' s department of materials science and engineering. " instead of looking for the burglars, our synthetic protein is reacting to evidence left at the scene of the crime, " said yu, who was principal investigator in the study. this video is not supported by your browser at this time. a key collaborator was martin pomper, a school of medicine professor of radiology and co - principal investigator of the johns hopkins center of cancer nanotechnology excellence. pomper and yu met as fellow affiliates of the johns hopkins institute for nanobiotechnology. " a major unmet medical need is for a better non - invasive characterization of disrupted collagen, which occurs in a wide variety of disorders, " pomper said. " michael has found what could be a very elegant and practical solution, which we are converting into a suite of imaging and potential agents for diagnosis and treatment. " the synthetic proteins used in the study are called collagen mimetic peptides or cmps. these tiny bits of protein are attracted to and physically bind to degraded strands of collagen, particularly those damaged by disease. fluorescent tags are placed on each cmp so that it will show up when doctors scan tissue with fluorescent imaging equipment. the glowing areas indicate the location of damaged collagen that is likely to be associated with disease. in developing the technique, the researchers faced a challenge because cmps tend to bind with one another and form their own structures, similar to dna, in a way that would cause them to ignore the disease - linked collagen targeted by the researchers. to remedy this, the study ' s lead author, yang li, synthesized cmps that possess a chemical " cage " to keep the proteins from binding with one another. just prior to entering the bloodstream to search for damaged collagen, a powerful ultraviolet light is used to " unlock " the cage and allow the cmps to initiate their disease - tracking mission. li is a doctoral student from the department of chemistry in the krieger school of arts and sciences at johns hopkins. yu, who holds a joint appointment in that department, is his doctoral adviser. yu ' s team tested li ' s fluorescently tagged and caged peptides by injecting them into lab mice that possessed both prostate and pancreatic human cancer cells. through a series of fluorescent images taken over four days, researchers tracked single strands of the synthetic protein spreading throughout the tumor sites via blood vessels and binding to collagen that


them into lab mice that possessed both prostate and pancreatic human cancer cells. through a series of fluorescent images taken over four days, researchers tracked single strands of the synthetic protein spreading throughout the tumor sites via blood vessels and binding to collagen that had been damaged by cancer. similar in vivo tests showed that the cmp can target bones and cartilage that contain large amounts of degraded collagen. therefore, the new protein could be used for diagnosis and treatment related to bone and cartilage damage. although the process is not well understood, the breakdown and rebuilding of collagen is thought to play a role in the excessive bone growth found in patients with marfan syndrome. yu ' s team tested their cmps on a mouse model for this disease and saw increased cmp binding in the ribs and spines of the marfan mice, as compared to the control mice. journal reference : proceedings of the national academy of sciences provided by johns hopkins university - new method to grow synthetic collagen unveiled sep 08, 2011 | not rated yet | 0 - synthetic collagen from maize has human properties jun 24, 2011 | not rated yet | 0 - scientists create super - strong collagen jan 12, 2010 | not rated yet | 0 - nanoscale scaffolds and stem cells show promise in cartilage repair jul 17, 2012 | not rated yet | 0 - causes found for stiff skin conditions mar 19, 2010 | not rated yet | 0 - motion perception revisited : high phi effect challenges established motion perception assumptions apr 23, 2013 | 3 / 5 ( 2 ) | 2 - anything you can do i can do better : neuromolecular foundations of the superiority illusion ( update ) apr 02, 2013 | 4. 5 / 5 ( 11 ) | 5 - the visual system as economist : neural resource allocation in visual adaptation mar 30, 2013 | 5 / 5 ( 2 ) | 9 - separate lives : neuronal and organismal lifespans decoupled mar 27, 2013 | 4. 9 / 5 ( 8 ) | 0 - sizing things up : the evolutionary neurobiology of scale invariance feb 28, 2013 | 4. 8 / 5 ( 10 ) | 14 pressure - volume curve : elastic recoil pressure don ' t make sense may 18, 2013 from pressure - volume curve of the lung and chest wall ( attached photo ), i don ' t understand why would the elastic recoil pressure of the lung is... if you became brain - dead, would you want them to pull the


, 2013 from pressure - volume curve of the lung and chest wall ( attached photo ), i don ' t understand why would the elastic recoil pressure of the lung is... if you became brain - dead, would you want them to pull the plug? may 17, 2013 i ' d want the rest of me to stay alive. sure it ' s a lousy way to live but it beats being all - the - way dead. maybe if i make it 20 years they ' ll... mri bill question may 15, 2013 dear pfers, the hospital gave us a $ 12k bill for one mri ( head with contrast ). the people i talked to at the hospital tell me that they do not... ratio of hydrogen of oxygen in dessicated animal protein may 13, 2013 as an experiment, for the past few months i ' ve been consuming at least one portion of jell - o or unflavored knox gelatin per day. i ' m 64, in very... alcohol and acetaminophen may 13, 2013 edit : sorry for the typo in the title, can ' t edit i looked around on google quite a bit and it ' s very hard to find precise information on the... marie curie ' s leukemia may 13, 2013 does anyone know what might be the cause of marie curie ' s cancer - more from physics forums - medical sciences more news stories in their quest to learn more about the variability of cells between and within tissues, biomedical scientists have devised tools capable of simultaneously measuring dozens of characteristics of individual... medical research 1 hour ago | 5 / 5 ( 1 ) | 0 | in 2008 researchers from the university of southern denmark showed that the drug thioridazine, which has previously been used to treat schizophrenia, is also a powerful weapon against antibiotic - resistant bacteria such as... medical research may 17, 2013 | 3. 7 / 5 ( 3 ) | 0 | scientists investigating the interaction of a group of proteins in the brain responsible for protecting nerve cells from damage have identified a new target that could increase cell survival. medical research may 17, 2013 | 5 / 5 ( 1 ) | 0 new findings by researchers carrying out experiments at the u. s. department of energy office of science ' s advanced photon source ( aps ) help explain why some drugs that interact with two kinds of human serotonin... medical research may 17, 2013 | 4 / 5 ( 1 ) | 0 | researchers at the university


office of science ' s advanced photon source ( aps ) help explain why some drugs that interact with two kinds of human serotonin... medical research may 17, 2013 | 4 / 5 ( 1 ) | 0 | researchers at the university of wisconsin have identified a potential new risk factor for obstructive sleep apnea : asthma. using data from the national institutes of health ( heart, lung, and blood institute ) - funded wisconsin... 41 minutes ago | not rated yet | 0 | a new study looking at sleep - disordered breathing ( sdb ) and markers for alzheimer ' s disease ( ad ) risk in cerebrospinal fluid ( csf ) and neuroimaging adds to the growing body of research linking the two. 51 minutes ago | not rated yet | 0 | gourmands and foodies everywhere have long recognized ginger as a great way to add a little peppery zing to both sweet and savory dishes ; now, a study from researchers at columbia university shows purified components of the... 41 minutes ago | not rated yet | 0 scientists at johns hopkins have turned their view of osteoarthritis ( oa ) inside out. literally. instead of seeing the painful degenerative disease as a problem primarily of the cartilage that cushions joints,... 1 hour ago | 5 / 5 ( 1 ) | 0 | the hunt for an hiv vaccine has gobbled up $ 8 billion in the past decade, and the failure of the most recent efficacy trial has delivered yet another setback to 26 years of efforts. 5 hours ago | not rated yet | 0 the devastating effect of alzheimer ' s disease on bilingual people has been thrown into focus in canada, where the sudden loss of a second language can leave sufferers feeling like strangers in their own country. 3 hours ago | not rated yet | 0


your doctor will ask about your symptoms. if symptoms suggest pneumonia, your doctor will ask about your medical history, travel history, and other related exposures. this information may suggest what caused your pneumonia. a physical exam usually includes tapping on your chest and back. this may identify the presence of fluid or air trapped in your lungs. the doctor will also listen carefully to your chest and back with a stethoscope. your doctor may choose to order a variety of tests, such as : blood tests — complete blood count including the number and types of white blood cells may help determine whether you have a viral, bacterial, or fungal infection. blood culture — this involves sending a blood sample to a laboratory where it can be processed to see if any organisms are growing. if there are organisms, they can often be identified, and tests can be run to determine what types of antibiotics can best eliminate them. urine antigen tests — this involves giving a urine sample to look for certain bacteria that could be causing the infection. pulse oximetry — this test measures the amount of oxygen in your blood to get a sense of how ill you are. arterial blood gas — this blood test measures the concentration of certain substances in your blood, including oxygen, carbon dioxide, and ph. this test may be performed to determine whether you will be able to continue breathing on your own, or whether you may need treatment with additional oxygen or mechanical ventilation. sputum culture — if you ’ re able to cough up a sample of sputum, it can be sent to a laboratory to examine it for the presence of specific organisms. if there are organisms in the sputum, they can often be identified, and a specific antibiotic can be ordered for you. chest x - ray — chest x - ray may reveal signs of pneumonia. however, sometimes a patient will have clear - cut symptoms and signs of pneumonia on physical exam with a clear x - ray for the first couple of days. this may be the case if a patient is dehydrated. ct scan — this imaging procedure may be required in some cases. bronchoscopy — in this procedure, a narrow, lighted scope is passed through your mouth or nose, down your bronchial tubes, and into your lungs. your healthcare provider can examine your respiratory tract for signs of pneumonia. samples of fluid and biopsies of tissue can be taken through the bronchoscope. these samples can be processed and examined in a laboratory to try and identify organisms that might be causing your pneumonia. this


this is about leveson, viewed through ' semiotics ' and ' grammar '. if i write ' the cat sat on the mat ', i can change that in several different ways. if i write ' the dog sat on the mat ', that ' s different from writing ' the cats sat on the mat ' and different again from writing ' did the cat sit on the mat? ' in the past some linguists have said that the way a sentence joins together in a ' chain ' is a ' horizontal ' way of sticking together. this is the ' syntax ' of the sentence, the words are in a ' syntagmatic ' relationship with each other. swapping ' cat ' and ' dog ' has altered things in a ' vertical ' way, they are in what is called a ' paradigmatic ' relationship. then again, turning ' the cat ' to ' the cats ' has made a change but within the ' paradigm ' of ' cat ' ( ie changing cat to one of the ways in which the word ' cat ' can change. finally, by turning the whole sentence into a question, i made a ' syntagmatic ' change, i changed the grammar of the whole sentence from a statement into a question. if this is hard to visualise, imagine that each word is written on a piece of lego and the lego bricks. swapping ' cat ' for ' dog ', we might say, meant swapping a green brick for a blue one, leaving everything in the same place and in the same positions. we might imagine that if ' cat ' was blue then so are ' the cats ', ' cats ', ' a cat ', ' some cats ' *. maybe they are different size blue lego bricks. and to turn the sentence into a question, we would of course have had to change the positions of the bricks. after the linguists played with this idea, various critics and theoreticians said that much of what we perceive and make can be described in this way. jonathan culler asked us to think of how, say, in western food, we think of a meal : starters, main and dessert. that would be the ' horizontal ' line, or ' syntagmatic ' line. now, for starters you might have olives or melon or hummus. swap one for the other and you ' ve swapped the ' paradigm '. alter the order you eat the starters, main and dessert or indeed leave one of them out and you have changed the ' syntax ' ( or '


melon or hummus. swap one for the other and you ' ve swapped the ' paradigm '. alter the order you eat the starters, main and dessert or indeed leave one of them out and you have changed the ' syntax ' ( or ' syntagm ' - but i can ' t pronounce that ). again, think of conventional western male clothing : footwear, trousers, top ( as opposed to, say, one long robe or, say, a toga ). we might imagine that ' shoes ' can be changed from ' within the paradigm of the shoes, but we switch the paradigm when we swap shoes for sandals... and so on. the syntax of this kind of clothing arrangement ( mine ) remains unchanged until i choose to change from this three - part structure ( shoes, trousers, top ) to wearing a robe, say. this can be applied to thinking about movies, poems, novels and politics. when i work with children writing poems, it is possible ( and many teachers and poets do this without dressing it up in paradigm - syntax theory! ) is take a poem and invite children to do their own versions. an obvious case is the limerick, where, let ' s say, we stick to the basic shape but change the paradigms but in fact you can look at a lot of poems, figure the ' structure ' or ' syntax ' and swap some paradigms and then see what happens. again, if you watch a hollywood movies - let ' s say a ' rom - com ', you can see a pattern ( or syntax ) and the producers / writers / director has simply swapped some elements either in a ' shift ' or ' within the paradigm '. when there are clear hybrids ( harry potter marrying ' fantasy ' with ' school story ' ) you can see two ' syntaxes ' (? ) being combined. what about politics? consider what ' s gone on with the hacking scandal and leveson. as it unfolded, i, along with millions of others ( i thought ) started to see a ' syntax ' - a chain of relations between the police, the press and senior politicians. they were having social relationships which were part of their political relationships ( appointments ), which affected whether complaints were or were not being taken up. money was passing between, say, members of the press and the police and so on. this was, we might say, the ' syntax ' of what was going on. i thought that there was a consensus forming which said that this was wrong. then leveson


between, say, members of the press and the police and so on. this was, we might say, the ' syntax ' of what was going on. i thought that there was a consensus forming which said that this was wrong. then leveson was appointed and the hearings took place. this exposed the syntax. we could see the shape and process of how it all joined up : who scratched whose back. who ensured that this or that happened or didn ' t happen. meetings took place, appointments were made, notebooks filled, phones were tapped, newspapers sold, police took money or indeed proceeded towards other jobs... and so on. the leveson pronounced. and here ' s the mystery. apart from an aside where he seems to have admonished the press and the politicians for being too close and some kind of ticking off about improper behaviour by the police, all his attention has been on the ' freedom of the press '. he has recommended one syntactic change ie with his recommendation that government ' underpins ' the new ' independent body '. the new independent body would, then we might say, like swapping ' cat ' for ' cats ' ( ie within the paradigm ). yes, suggesting that government ' underpin ' this body is syntactic but one which leaves the overall power structure intact, so perhaps this would be analogous to writing ' do you think that the cats sat on the mat? ' (! ) or some such, a tentative shift where the original stays intact but nothing fundamental changes overall. why, for example, will journos stop trying to slip coppers money for information? why, when this happens, will it be the journos who lose their jobs and not the proprietors? ( of course not! ). there will of course be no ending of the revolving doors between press, politics and police, jobs will continue to flow between all three, which means much more than a matter of personnel. people take with them ' spheres of influence ', knowledge of where and how to apply pressure and to get things done so that nothing shakes the system, even when there are clear miscarriages of justice eg hillsborough. to be blunt, i think that what is going on is a massive distraction from the real and full ' syntax '. a combination of nick davies ' articles, articles in ' private eye ', and what we heard in leveson ( or didn ' t hear ) exposed the syntax of how political, press and ' security ' power interrelates. ( the


'. a combination of nick davies ' articles, articles in ' private eye ', and what we heard in leveson ( or didn ' t hear ) exposed the syntax of how political, press and ' security ' power interrelates. ( the horizontal chain. ) and then, ( using whatever metaphor you want ), the curtains are closing, the waves wash back, the box is closed - and we can ' t see it anymore. the heavyweight apologists try to focus everyone ' s attention on one part of what ' s happened so that we don ' t see the whole picture. perhaps, when the law cases open - we will get some more glimpses but more often than not, law cases end up being about the crimes, mistakes etc of one person with an underlying assumption that if he or she had been someone else, such crimes and mistakes wouldn ' t have happened ( ie paradigms not syntax ). apologies if this all seems rather laboured, as a way of explaining something comparatively simple. i find that this way of thinking can sometimes illuminate what ' s going on. i mean, it does for me! * eagle - eyed linguists would say that the paradigm for ' cat ' is : cat, cats. ' a cat ', ' cats ', ' the cat ' and ' some cats ' is a piece of mini - syntax ie how ' cat ' and a ' determiner ' are linked syntactically. the determiner is a paradigm of itself ie ' a ' ( or ' an ' ), ' the ', ' some ' and no determiner is a paradigm of itself. think how hard it is to learn this piece of mini - syntax when you learn another language : eg french un / une, le, la, les, du, de la, des, and no determiner. when do you use which? aaaaaaagh.


this video, already viewed by about 800, 000 people since it came out last november is, for some reason, racing around the internet with new abandon today. it ' s not that it ' s not interesting. it certainly is. it ' s just that it ' s not that new. it ' s based on a study that actually was released in 2010 by michael norton, of harvard business school. he co - authored the paper. he talked to steve inskeep about it back in 2010. and almost two years ago, pbs newshour tried to recreate norton ' s ( and his colleague ' s ) work. it presented several pie charts of countries ' distribution of wealth and asked people which country they ' d like to live in. pie chart c, based on norton ' s work, was actually the united states, although the country wasn ' t named. only 9 percent of people who took the survey said they wanted to live there. the exercise was done as part of a series on inequality in the united states. watch americans facing more inequality, more debt and now more trouble? on pbs. see more from pbs newshour. " it ' s probably a good thing that the public underestimates how much wealth inequality there is, " bryan d. caplan of george mason university told business week back in 2010, since " they tend not to understand the ways that wealth inequality is good. " in harvard business review a little over a year ago, norton ' s colleague had his own theories - - that the survey reflects how we view ourselves : norton and his coauthor, dan ariely ( author of the popular title predictably irrational and a professor of behavioral economics at duke ), believe that one reason perceptions are so skewed is because the easy availability of credit masks people ' s real financial situation. if your neighbors own the same make and model of car that you own, norton points out, there ' s no way to know whether they paid cash for theirs or took out a loan for the full amount. it ' s easy, he says, to think, " i have a car and you have a car, so i guess wealth is equally distributed. " this perception is reinforced by the fact that people tend to interact primarily within their own social stratum. what is surprising given these circumstances, says norton, is that americans at all income levels - - the very rich as well as the very poor - - said they would like wealth to be more evenly distributed. given that there ' s been


mostly on booze, cigarettes and doritos while i imagine there ' s the occasional anecdote to be supplied, i doubt very much this is a statistically valid statement. / / the wealthy are wealthy because they didn ' t piss away what came their way. it would be interesting to see how the breakdown of attained wealth works. in other words, what percentage of wealth is " old money " vs " new money. " / bryan d. caplan of george mason " they tend not to understand the ways that wealth inequality is good. " / other than philanthropy, i can ' t come up with much. maybe prof. caplan can enlighten? i deleted all of " jimmy " ' s comments. he supplied a fake email and was obviously trolling. here ' s a reminder that all commenters must provide a valid email address when submitting comments. jimmy - i am a member of what can be considered the " working poor ". i have had a job ever since i was legally allowed to work. the same with my husband. at one point he held 3 jobs at once. we have two children and we work our butts off trying to provide for them and keep a roof over our head and food ( not doritos ) on the damn table. we are far from lazy and in most cases, i think we work even harder than the superwealthy. i ' m even trying to find a way to go back to school while working and being a mother to better our situation. so, your statement is not only generalizing a whole socio - economic group, it ' s dead wrong in most cases. practically all the families i know who are considered the working poor all work just as hard as we do ( and none of us are chain smoking alcoholics, thank you very much!! ) and it makes me so angry that there are so many individuasl like yourself that feel this way, with your " let them eat cake " attitude while my husband and i work our fingers to the bone for very little pay which goes directly to our children and home. please educate yourself before you make ignorant, blanket statements like that. the video went viral today because george takei posted it on his facebook page. with 3. 5 million likes on fb, it ' s easy for things he posts to go viral. $ 50 trillion in wealth globally. 6. 9 billion people. divided equally and we get an amazing $ 7260 per person. congrats!


the beachcombers are gathering data that can be averaged over several years, and will serve to provide " normal, " or background, rates of mortality. then, in the case of an oil spill or other catastrophic event, differences in mortality will help elucidate the amount of damage caused. volunteers have been trained in animal identification and record - keeping skills, to ensure the most accurate data possible. for each animal found, volunteers note the location, species, age, sex, presence of oil on or near the carcass, probable cause of death, and degree of decomposition. " it ' s an excellent way for volunteers to participate with the sanctuary, " says scott benson, volunteer coordinator and data manager of beachcombers. " the sanctuary can only be as good as local people make it ; this gives them a chance to be involved directly with the science of surveying their marine environment. " the beachcombers program has already provided useful information for several recent incidents. " it ' s been amazing to me that in our first few months we ' ve been able to help so much, " says benson. in the summer of 1997 beachcomber volunteers began to detect a much larger than normal number of dead common murres on local beaches. without the program ' s regular monitoring, the incident would never have been noticed, according to andrew devogelaere, sanctuary research coordinator and senior scientist ( and beachcomber volunteer ). sanctuary and department of fish and game officials began investigating possible causes, and have concluded by reviewing biotoxin data and national marine fisheries service ( nmfs ) data that the die - off was caused either by a red tide event or by an increase in gill - net fishing in monterey bay. " without this monitoring program, no one would have actually pulled the nmfs data out and studied it, and we wouldn ' t have been aware of the increase in gill - net fishing, " explains devogelaere. the beachcombers program also proved extremely useful in the recent " monterey bay bird incident, " in which a mysterious oil was spilled in the monterey bay and coated hundreds of seabirds. ( see related story on page 7. ) the program was able to provide a background team to do all the field surveys for the spill event because it had the volunteers, data sheets, and beach survey segments already in place to step right into action. " in addition to helping out with that spill event, we now know the other players involved, and they know us, " explains benson. " it builds the


volunteers, data sheets, and beach survey segments already in place to step right into action. " in addition to helping out with that spill event, we now know the other players involved, and they know us, " explains benson. " it builds the basis for cooperative work in the future. " the program is largely based on an ongoing effort the gulf of the farallones nms is using very effectively on beaches north of ano nuevo. " both offices are looking forward to sharing our data so they can be made available on a geographic information system ( gis ) and easily interpreted, " explains devogelaere. beachcombers is an excellent example of local and state institutions working cooperatively. it was started with a cuerec ( california urban environmental research and education center ) grant to dr. jim harvey, and then received matching resources from moss landing marine laboratories. the sanctuary also donated funds, and california ' s office of oil spill prevention and response ( ospr ) donated cameras and sampling equipment. the pacific grove natural history museum has helped with training and identification of birds. the program also has standing cooperative arrangements with county marine mammal stranding networks, spcas, native animal rescue, the california dept. of parks and recreation, and others. having volunteers out walking beaches has proven to be more valuable than just surveying the natural environment. beachcomber scott benson and a fellow volunteer, while surveying zmudowski state beach, heard screams and saw a woman flailing in the water, being pulled away from shore by a rip tide. benson, a certified california lifeguard, swam out to the woman, calmed her down, and brought her back in to shore. paramedics who arrived later are reported to have said that benson saved the women ' s life. william j. douros has been named mbnms superintendent. sanctuary staff are excited to begin working with douros, who previously served as deputy director of the santa barbara county energy division, and has extensive background in marine regulatory issues, setting policy, and ocean research. he assumed his new position in january 1998. look for a detailed article in the next issue.


passive components, like many other building blocks in the high - frequency industry, have improved in terms of electrical performance per unit size over the last five decades. when looking back over the years at earlier passive components and assemblies, it is not so much the pure electrical performance that is striking as much as the advances in packaging that have taken place over that time. in 1980, for example, one of the leading suppliers of microwave mixers, watkins - johnson of palo alto, ca, made news with their m4 series of flatpack mixers. the products included the model wj - m4a with local - oscillator ( lo ) and rf range of 10 to 1500 mhz and intermediate - frequency ( if ) range of dc to 1000 mhz. during the same time period, a company still going strong, mini - circuits, was selling coaxial power dividers for only $ 39. 95 each. the firm ' s zapd line of power dividers included models from 0. 5 to 1. 0 ghz, 1. 0 to 2. 0 ghz, and 2. 0 to 4. 2 ghz ( fig. 1 ). the insertion loss was 0. 2 db for all models, still considered good today. another company still going strong, arra, inc., of westbury ( now bay shore ), ny, offered a line of miniature continuously variable attenuators in 1968. available for applications from 2. 0 to 12. 4 ghz, the attenuators handled 5 w average power and 3 kw peak power with maximum insertion loss of 0. 5 db. an article in march 1968 by members of the technical staff of the microwave department of sylvania electric products, inc. of woburn, ma detailed how a new type of diode, the beamlead schottky barrier diode ( fig. 2 ), appeared to be a more electrically efficient device than point - contact diodes for frequency - conversion applications. the article compared the performance characteristics of both semiconductor devices, and showed how a microwave mixer could be formed using a beam - lead schottky diode pair ( fig. 3 ). around the same time, bill marshall, switch marketing manager for transco, demonstrated his firm ' s modular approach to waveguide switch assemblies ( fig. 4 ). using a variable waveguide switch design, the assemblies performed transmitter switching to 18 ghz under full - power operation. they provided switching speed of better than 50 ns. the micro state electronics operation of raytheon in murray


assemblies ( fig. 4 ). using a variable waveguide switch design, the assemblies performed transmitter switching to 18 ghz under full - power operation. they provided switching speed of better than 50 ns. the micro state electronics operation of raytheon in murray hill, nj was working with advanced stripline, leading to the group ' s development of a switch / driver assembly for applications from 1020 to 1100 mhz ( fig. 5 ). it achieved hot switching of 10 kw peak power in only 150 ns. for those who doubted digital technology existed five decades ago, daico industries offered a pair of digital variable attenuators with integral ttl ( model da0295 ) and cmos ( model da0285 ) drivers. switching under 7 - b control, the digital attenuators ( fig. 6 ) provided 63. 5 - db attenuation control ranges from 30 to 500 mhz with least significant bit ( lsb ) of 0. 5 db. they could handle input power levels to + 13 dbm with nominal switching speed of 5 s. last but not least, systron donner was among a group of companies promoting their capabilities in " supercomponents. " these were essentially compact assemblies that combined the functions of multiple components. one of the company ' s supercomponents was an assembly designed for x - band radar ( fig. 7 ), with a low - noise mixer and gunn diode lo. the lo provided a 40 - mhz tuning range around 9. 375 ghz.


porosity is the ability of the hair to absorb water and other matter ( like chemicals ). in the post ‘ balancing moisture & protein ’, i gave a brief summery of what hair is. the outer layer of the hair, the cuticle, is made up of several layers of interlocking scales and is responsible for how porous the hair is. different degrees of porosity low or poor porosity is characterised by very tightly closed cuticles and is generally considered healthy as all or most of the cuticle layer is intact. it doesn ’ t easily absorb water and resists the penetration of chemical treatments. normal porosity is hair that is able to absorb water well but resists permitting too much water to penetrate. this is considered the best porosity to have. again, all or most of the cuticle layer is in tact and lies down flatly. hair with normal porosity can hold styles well and receives chemical processing well. although chemical processes can change the porosity of the hair from average to high. highly porous hair is hair that has sustained cuticle damage with lifted, missing, cracked or chipped cuticles. it absorbs significantly higher amounts of water then normal or low porosity hair ( up to 55 %, in contrast with 31. 1 % for healthy hair ) and is not capable of holding onto that water as the damaged cuticles allow water out just as fast. this type of hair never feels properly moisturised even with constant moisturising. when hair is fully soaked in water, the weight of the excessively absorbed water can lead to significant breakage due to loss of elasticity. highly porous hair easily accepts chemical treatments such as dyes, but wont hold onto the colour for very long and is easily over processed as it takes significantly less time than low or average porosity types to receive the chemicals. highly porous hair doesn ’ t hold onto styles as well as normal or low porosity types. uneven porosity is a combination of low or average porosity and high porosity and is common in long hair. the longer your hair is, the older it is and the more it has been exposed to mechanical, chemical, environmental and heat damage. uneven porosity has spotty issues where some parts of your hair hold onto moisture well and some parts ( such as the ends ) do not. what causes highly porous hair? genetics does have a part to play with how porous the hair is. naturally curly hair is more porous than straight hair by nature. every kink


and some parts ( such as the ends ) do not. what causes highly porous hair? genetics does have a part to play with how porous the hair is. naturally curly hair is more porous than straight hair by nature. every kink and bend along the shaft where the hair naturally curls or kinks stops the cuticles from lying down flatly and so the cuticles remain slightly raised along these points. the curlier or kinkier your hair is the more porous it is. other determining factors are mechanical damage caused by rough handling, dry combing / brushing, friction caused by towel drying, scarfs, hair bands and hats, chemicals such as permanent dyes, relaxers, texturisers and perms, heat damage from tools such as blow - dryers, flat irons and curling tongs as well as over exposure to environmental factors such as uv rays and harsh winds. strong sulfate shampoos, such as sodium lauryl sulfate, are capable of dissolving the fatty acid layer beneath the cuticle ( called the cell membrane complex or cmc, the ‘ cement ’ that keeps the cuticles in place ), which can lead to irreparable gaps in the cuticle layer. natural soaps, being very alkaline in nature, causes the hair to swell and the cuticle to lift up away from the surface of the hair shaft, penetrating through the cuticle and into the cmc where it can bind with the fatty acid layer and rinse it away, again causing gaps within the cuticles. all these different factors can permanently alter, raise and / or damage the cuticle layer causing highly porous hair. it is best test for porosity on freshly cleaned and dried hair. test one – the finger touch test gently hold a few strands of hair with one hand. with the other, run your fingers up the length of your hair, from tip to root. if your hair feels rough with lots of little ridges or bumps ( excluding the bumps that are naturally created by the bends in the shaft where the hair curls ) then your cuticles are not lying flatly and your hair is porous. there are some who argue that the first test is not at all effective at determining porosity as the cuticle layers are so microscopically tiny that you can ’ t possibly feel whether they are raised or not unless the hair has sustained significant damage. test two – the water test take some shed hair ( or pull out a strand of freshly washed and dried hair ), a stop watch and a