. education week also found that statewide tests are equally uneven in how much they require students to know about evolution, with some asking no questions about the theory and others asking more than a dozen about it. ohio officials told education week last year that their state ' s 38 - question state high school science test, administered in spring 2005, included no questions that specifically mentioned evolution or referred to the topic generally. state officials explained that such an omission was not unusual, because items on the test are randomly drawn from a bank of questions based on the standards. j. c. benton, a spokesman for the ohio education department, said it is unclear whether any items on the spring 2006 version of the science test refer to the critical analysis of evolution that was deleted from the standards. if there are any such questions, he said, the state would inform the company that scores the tests not to count those items. science is one of five subjects that ohio students are required to pass to receive a high school diploma. - amargosa valley elementary school, amargosa valley, nv - chattahoochee hills charter school, multiple locations - round rock isd, round rock, tx - christ the king preparatory school, nj - chief of human resources - san francisco unified school district, san francisco, ca


definition of preeclampsia preeclampsia : a condition in pregnancy characterized by abrupt hypertension ( a sharp rise in blood pressure ), albuminuria ( leakage of large amounts of the protein albumin into the urine ) and edema ( swelling ) of the hands, feet, and face. preeclampsia is the most common complication of pregnancy. it affects about 5 % of pregnancies. it occurs in the third trimester ( the last third ) of pregnancy. preeclampsia occurs most frequently in first pregnancies. it is more common in women who have diabetes or who are carrying twins. some women seem to have a strong tendency to develop the disease and suffer from preeclampsia with every pregnancy. preeclampsia is more common in daughters of women who have been affected ; in many cases the disease tends to run in families. preeclampsia can be a sign of serious problems. it may, for example, indicate that the placenta is detaching from the uterus. in some cases, untreated preeclampsia can progress to eclampsia, a life - threatening situation for both mother and fetus characterized by coma and seizures. treatment is by bed rest and sometimes medication. if that treatment is ineffective, the induction of labor and delivery or a c - section may have to be considered. preeclampsia always resolves a short time after the baby is born. preeclampsia is sometimes written pre - eclampsia. preeclampsia was referred to as toxemia or toxic pregnancy. source : medterms™ medical dictionary last editorial review : 4 / 27 / 2011 5 : 27 : 15 pm medical dictionary definitions a - z search medical dictionary emedicinehealth top news parenting and pregnancy get tips for baby and you. pregnancy and parenting resources health solutions from our sponsors most popular topics pill identifier on rxlist - quick, easy, find a local pharmacy - including 24 hour, pharmacies


china is the world ' s foremost coal producer and consumer, surpassing the united states by a factor of two on both scores and accounting for 40 percent of total world production. moreover, its coal consumption has been rising rapidly, at a rate of up to ten percent per year ( which translates to a doubling of demand every 7 years ). while china is a significant producer of oil and natural gas, coal dominates the nation ' s fossil - fuel reserve base. about 70 percent of china ' s total energy is derived from coal, and about 80 percent of its electricity. the country has recently become the world ' s foremost greenhouse gas emitter due to its growing, coal - fed energy appetite. this nation ' s coal - mining history is probably the world ' s longest, dating back up to two millennia — though modern mining methods were not introduced until the late 19th century by european, and later by japanese companies.... china ' s coal consumption in 2000 was 30 times its volume a half - century earlier, at the time of the establishment of the people ' s republic. and just since 2000, consumption has more than doubled.... in short, china has encouraged rapid export - led economic growth as a way of putting off dealing with its internal political and social problems. economic growth requires energy, and china ' s energy comes overwhelmingly from coal. the nation ' s short - term survival strategy thus centers on producing enormous quantities of coal today, and far more in the future. however, there are signs that china ' s domestic coal production growth may not be able to keep up with rising demand for much longer.... demand for coal in china is growing so quickly that even if the high reserves estimate from the chinese government of 186. 6 billion tons proves to be accurate ( as opposed to ewg ' s much lower estimate of 96 billion tons ), this may shift the date of peak production by only about 5 to 17 years — from the years 2015 - 2020 ( ewg ) to 2025 - 2032 ( tao and li ). this further calls into question the brg conclusion that " there will be no bottleneck in [ china ' s ] coal supplies until 2100, " as a delay of the peak to that extent — by more than 65 years beyond the tao and li forecast range — would require a conversion of resources to reserves on a truly monumental scale. such a conversion is impossible to justify by precedent, and so brg ' s conclusion can only be considered realistic if china ' s coal demand is assumed to level


li forecast range — would require a conversion of resources to reserves on a truly monumental scale. such a conversion is impossible to justify by precedent, and so brg ' s conclusion can only be considered realistic if china ' s coal demand is assumed to level off soon and perhaps fall in coming decades — in which case a production peak will have occurred in effect. but such demand reduction is currently difficult to envision. china ' s economy has been, is, and will continue to be coal - powered — as long as sufficient supplies are available — since few options exist to substantially reduce its coal dependency.... china ' s furious pace of economic growth, which is often touted as a sign of success, may turn out to be a fatal liability. simply put, the nation appears to have no plan b. no fossil fuel other than coal will be able to provide sufficient energy to sustain current economic growth rates in the years ahead, and non - fossil sources will require unprecedented and perhaps unachievable levels of investment just to make up for declines in coal production — never mind providing enough to fuel continued annual energy growth of seven to ten percent per year. if and when china ceases to have enough new energy to support continued economic growth, there are likely to be unpleasant consequences for the nation ' s stability. if such consequences are to be averted, the country ' s leadership must find ways to rein in economic growth while reducing internal social and political tensions, meanwhile investing enormous sums in non - fossil energy sources. a serious attempt to reduce greenhouse gas emissions would entail an identical prescription. it is a tall order by any standard, but serious contemplation of the alternative — which, in the worst instance, could amount to social, economic, and environmental collapse — should be bracing enough to motivate heroic efforts.


achieving a sustainable food system with organic farming despite a slight decline between 2009 and 2010, since 1999 the global land area farmed organically has expanded more than threefold to 37 million hectares, according to new research conducted by the worldwatch institute for its vital signs online service ( www. worldwatch. org ). regions with the largest certified organic agricultural land in 2010 were oceania, including australia, new zealand, and pacific island nations ( 12. 1 million hectares ) ; europe ( 10 million hectares ) ; and latin america ( 8. 4 million hectares ), write report authors catherine ward and laura reynolds. organic farming is now established in international standards, and 84 countries had implemented organic regulations by 2010, up from 74 countries in 2009. definitions vary, but according to the international federation of organic agriculture movements, organic agriculture is a production system that relies on ecological processes, such as waste recycling, rather than the use of synthetic inputs, such as chemical fertilizers and pesticides. " although organic agriculture often produces lower yields on land that has recently been farmed conventionally, it can outperform conventional practices - especially in times of drought - when the land has been farmed organically for a longer time, " said reynolds, a researcher with worldwatch ' s food and agriculture program. " conventional agricultural practices often degrade the environment over both the long and short term through soil erosion, excessive water extraction, and biodiversity loss. " organic farming has the potential to contribute to sustainable food security by improving nutrition intake and sustaining livelihoods in rural areas, while simultaneously reducing vulnerability to climate change and enhancing biodiversity. sustainable practices associated with organic farming are relatively labor intensive. organic agriculture uses up to 50 percent less fossil fuel energy than conventional farming, and common organic practices — including rotating crops, applying mulch to empty fields, and maintaining perennial shrubs and trees on farms — also stabilize soils and improve water retention, thus reducing vulnerability to harsh weather patterns. on average, organic farms have 30 percent higher biodiversity, including birds, insects, and plants, than conventional farms do. certifications for organic agriculture are increasingly concentrated in wealthier countries. from 2009 to 2010, europe increased its organic farmland by 9 percent to 10 million hectares, the largest growth in any region. the united states has lagged behind other countries in adopting sustainable farming methods. when national sales rather than production are considered, however, the u. s. organic industry is one of the fastest - growing industries in the nation, expanding by 9. 5 percent in 2011 to reach $ 31. 5 billion


stand up and be counted by now, every american should be aware that the u. s. government is conducting its decennial census, as mandated by the constitution. since this only happens every ten years, every approach to counting the number of people living in the u. s. is completely different, especially with the exponential growth in technology in the last few decades. the census bureau, housed in the department of commerce, is using a mix of both old and new methods to get the word out and to track responses. the effort began with an initial mailing to every household in america saying that your census would be arriving soon. then, the actual form arrived, which each american was supposed to fill out and send back. a third mailing was then sent a few weeks later, to make sure they didn ’ t miss anyone. printing these extra forms will cost taxpayers about $ 42 million, but officials say the additional mailings will ultimately save more than $ 500 million that would have been used to hire temporary census takers. according to the wall street journal, this undertaking constituted 542 million pieces of mail, all sent through the u. s. postal service. if all of the forms were stacked on top of each other, they would reach twenty - nine miles high — five times as tall as mount everest. census is also doing some cool things to track response rates across the country. the census site allows users to see how their individual states are doing in comparison to the rest of the country. at the time of this post, the upper midwest had a sizable lead on the rest of the country. though this massive effort is required to make sure the government gets an accurate count of everyone living in the united states, it is sobering to note that if everyone mailed back their forms as instructed, taxpayers could reduce the cost of taking the census by about $ 1. 5 billion. this is more than the entire small business innovation research ( sbir ) budget at the department of defense ( $ 1. 15 billion in fy2008 ).


eight confirmed cases of a new tick - borne disease in the world published : 31. 10. 11 updated : 31. 10. 2011 14 : 19 : 45 the bacterium candidatus neoehrlichia mikurensis was for the first time detected in the netherlands in 1999. the name was first given in 2004 since it is found in ticks and brown rats in japan and was verified as new bacteria by phylogenetic dna - analysis. the bacteria can only grow inside cells and seem to infect cells in the vessel walls. it belongs to anaplasmataceae family as well as two other tick bacteria : anaplasma and ehrlichia. the bacterium could not so far been сultured, so that its characterization is mainly based on molecular biological methods. totally in the world there are 8 cases of infection with neoehrlichia mikurensis known in humans, three of them were diagnosed in sweden. the very first case was reported in sweden in the sahlgrenska hospital in an elderly man who fell ill in summer 2009. since then cases were described in germany, switzerland and the czech republic. two more cases, swedish patients, were later diagnosed in gothenburg ( unpublished data ). only one of the reported patients has been described previously healthy without underlying diseases. other seven cases had an impaired immune system due to underlying serious diseases or immunosuppressive treatment, most of the cases had not spleen. the symptoms are often described as influenza like symptoms. patients had fever and some had muscle pain. four of the patients described had deep vein thrombosis. the diagnosis of candidates neoehrlichia mikurensis infection was based on pcr analysis of blood and subsequent sequencing of the amplified dna fragments. the risk of the bacteria to cause the disease in healthy individuals is probably very low. the natural reservoir of candidatus neoehrlichia mikurensis is different rodent species and it is transmitted via tick bites. a study conducted in five locations in sweden in 2008 has shown that a bacterium was present in bank vole, field vole and small and large field mouse with an average prevalence of 9 %. although these results suggest that the bacteria are relatively common in swedish nature, there are no clinical reports which would suggest that this transmission is normal after a tick bite. the patients were symptoms free after the treatment with tetracyklin and candidatus neohrlichia mikurensis dna was not detected in patients after treatment was finished. it is worth noting that the diagnosis at the


“ science is life ”. this is the shortest definition that explains best that in some way or the other science plays a vital role in everyone ’ s life as it is everywhere. it widens and enhances our lives, deleting our misconceptions about the world in a systematic way. the actual purpose of science is to create helpful models of realism and understanding the universe in a better way. studying science is quite different from other subjects because it requires real understanding about the different concepts, theories and laws. science is just not all about collecting information and learning it my heart. the facts and figures that you gather can have many variations in future. therefore they should not be considered as fixed. now let ’ s have a look at some of the steps that will make science much simpler for you to study. a systematic way should be followed to study the science subjects. set a particular time every day to focus on the subject. the focus can be on many things like plants, animals, stars etc. choose one area and give your full concentration until you get aware of it completely. science also requires a lot of practice. when you observe different things, try to imagine more and keep your senses sharp. several questions are going to whirl round your mind so conduct as many experiments as you can. these experiments will help you in making your perceptions clear. good books are always a man ’ s best friend. if you a grab a nice book of science that is easy to understand, you ’ ll never need other guidelines. some books are written for general public that contain many exciting things. you should make the best use of these books and make an effort to communicate everything to your daily actions. while studying science … … you come across several definitions that you find difficult to remember. if you learn these definitions in melodies or tunes, you ’ ll enjoy a lot as the sentences will be in the form of rhythm. trust me, you ’ ll never forget this tempo throughout your life. apart from observing things and doing the practical work, when your greater attention is on the theory part where you need to raise questions and think, an area or surrounding free from any commotion will be most suitable. you can never study science in a place where there is noise and even if you make an attempt to study in such an environment, everything is going to fly above your head for sure. the facts and figures that you encounter during the study of science are important but not everything. you need to understand relations to understand science. the link and association between special factors


in such an environment, everything is going to fly above your head for sure. the facts and figures that you encounter during the study of science are important but not everything. you need to understand relations to understand science. the link and association between special factors should be properly recognized and valued. therefore when you attend lectures, stay attentive. whatever you study or acquire things, your knowledge gets enhanced more when you have a word with others. group discussions with your friends or family may prove to be beneficial because it is a sort of revision that you are doing. through discussions you also come to know about new things that boosts your knowledge further. when many ideas are presented and many suggestions are given, you can form a better opinion. tips for studying science preparing notes is always helpful for every subject and its better to plan notes yourself rather than grabbing from someone else. when you make notes, they are based on your observation and understanding and you can remember them well. also include diagrams and important points that have been taught to you by your teacher. after preparation, you can have a dialogue with your friends but do not rely on someone else ’ s notes. when you learn something and write it down, it gets saved in you mind. so your writing pace should me more so that you can memorize things well especially when it comes to studying science. lastly, do not give your self so many burdens. take out some to relax or meditate. healthy mind and healthy body can make your daily chores easy and fun.


portsmouth, treaty of portsmouth, treaty of, 1905, treaty ending the russo - japanese war. it was signed at the portsmouth naval base, new hampshire, on sept. 5, 1905. negotiations leading up to the treaty began in the spring of 1905 when russia had suffered severe defeats and japan was in financial difficulties. therefore, both nations indicated a desire for peace. germany, the united states, and great britain were instrumental in forcing conciliation between the belligerents. however, the united states and britain exacted certain concessions from japan before smoothing the way for the treaty. president theodore roosevelt demanded that japan follow the open door policy in manchuria and return the region to chinese administration. in the taft - katsura agreement of july, 1905, roosevelt agreed to japanese dominance in korea in return for american freedom of action in the philippines. great britain had the anglo - japanese treaty extended to cover all of e asia and in return also gave japan a free hand in korea. under the terms of the portsmouth agreement, russia was compelled to recognize korea ' s independence and the " paramount political, military, and economic interests " of japan in korea. russia also agreed to place manchuria again under the sovereignty of china, and all foreign troops were to be removed. the railway lines in s manchuria, constructed by russia, were ceded to japan without payment. the disputed liaodong peninsula ( see liaoning ), containing the ports of dalian and port arthur ( see lushun, was turned over to japan, as was the southern part of the island of sakhalin. japan also obtained fishing rights in the waters adjacent to the russian far east. the treaty of portsmouth marked the temporary decline of russian power in east asia and the emergence of japan as the strongest power in the area. the columbia electronic encyclopedia, 6th ed. copyright © 2012, columbia university press. all rights reserved. more on treaty of portsmouth from fact monster : see more encyclopedia articles on : russian, soviet, and cis history


april 9, 2009 creating more effective course handouts for most of us, handouts are a staple of instructional life, but as teresa sakraida and peter draus ( reference below ) point out, their “ development is often a trial - and - error process. ” ( p. 326 ) like so many other aspects of instruction, we take the construction of handouts for granted, their creation guided largely by intuition. the article referenced identifies a range of purposes and functions for handouts, including the ability to : - serve as advance organizers, previewing and preparing students for what ’ s to come. - introduce activities, describe the task, offer advice on process and identify outcomes. - expedite progress through material by providing students with drawings, graphs or other data that take excessive time to replicate by hand. - provide a break during a lecture, allowing students to read instead of listen. - serve as study guides, containing summaries and highlights of key points covered in class or in the text. - convey other messages, such as an instructor ’ s interest in the material, a humorous anecdote or good advice on successful study strategies. the design features of successful handouts are more than just a matter of advice — they have been studied and are recommended based on empirical analyses of features known to expedite the learning process. among the most important design features is the need to keep the handout simple, especially when it ’ s being used as a presentation aid. don ’ t include a lot of unnecessary detail ; keep the focus on a single topic. it is also important to consider the visual impact of the handout. in part this relates to its functionality. if students are to take notes on the actual handout, make sure that there ’ s enough space to do so. it ’ s easy to check this by looking at notes that students have previously written on the handout. visual impact also involves how information on the handout is configured. is white space being used to organize and highlight the information? lists are frequently easier to follow than points buried in a paragraph. technology makes it easy to manipulate many more design elements. font size and style can be changed. color can be incorporated. in fact, technology makes so much easily possible that the visual details can become distracting. rather than supporting the content, they can become more memorable than the content, or worse yet, they can detract from what ’ s most important. finally, do not underestimate the importance of using handouts that look professional. if the


rather than supporting the content, they can become more memorable than the content, or worse yet, they can detract from what ’ s most important. finally, do not underestimate the importance of using handouts that look professional. if the message conveyed to students is that spelling counts, then the teacher ’ s spelling ought to be exemplary. handouts should be carefully proofread. if material from other sources is used, it should be properly referenced. if material is secured by copyright, that too should be acknowledged. as information changes, content on the handout should be kept current through regular updates. none of this advice is new or unknown, but it behooves us all to sit down every once in a while and carefully consider the collection of handouts used in a course. better yet, have students pull out the ones they have tucked into their notebooks or list the ones they remember using online ; then give them the opportunity to provide some constructive feedback. it ’ s not that most handouts are bad ; it ’ s that most handouts could be made better. reference : sakraida, t. j., & draus, p. j. ( 2005 ). quality handout development and use. journal of nursing education, 44 ( 7 ), 326 – 329. creating effective handouts, the teaching professor, oct. 2005. tags : course handouts


the paper distinguishes the radical shifts of forestry in its objectives and concepts as generations. four generations are recognized. they are forestry for conservation, forestry for economic development, forestry with people and forestry for people, respectively. the current generation is the fourth one. the results and experiences of the past three generations are briefly narrated. the first generation ' forestry for conservation ' led to the consolidation and appropriation of forests to state ownership. the alienation of rural people from forest access began. the second generation ' forestry for economic development ' emerged at states ' interest to generate income from forests. it had experimented with different silvicultural systems. this generation had ended with the loss of forest capital and biodiversity. ' forestry with people ' is the third generation. it had recognized the indispensability of the support of rural people for the restoration of degraded forests. social forestry project was implemented with the objectives of meeting the forest requirements of rural people. it advocated participation and joint venture in forestry. the people whose participation is sought for a joint venture are poverty prone. now, the concern of foresters extended beyond forests to poverty alleviation of people at the forest interface. ' forestry for people ' is the fourth generation. the characteristics of indian poverty in general and rural poverty in particular are spelt in order to show the dimension of the problem. the paper calls for radical transformation of socio - economics and integration of forestry in the rural life in order to establish a composite system in theory and practice. the systems approach as suggested therein is recommended as the way to alleviate the problem of rural poverty. forestry in india is more than 150 years old. during this long span of practice, forestry experienced radical changes and transformations with the changing socio - economic scenarios. at every changing scenario, forestry had to regenerate itself to suit the new paradigms that emerged along with the change. the planks on which forestry is placed and the focus, with which forestry is concerned mark the distinctions between generations. forests and villages are the two principal planks, and forests and people are the two principal focuses. together they recognize four generations ( table 1 ). table 1. four generations in indian forestry looking back at the changing situations from the inception of scientific forestry under the british, three generations have been born. to day forestry is at the doorstep of the fourth generation. there are three players who constitute the paradigm of forestry ; they are the state, forest department and people. the state functions as the stipulator of policies, forest department as provider of technology and the people as


at the doorstep of the fourth generation. there are three players who constitute the paradigm of forestry ; they are the state, forest department and people. the state functions as the stipulator of policies, forest department as provider of technology and the people as recipients of the benefits. in all the generations forests are at stake. therefore the survival of the forests depends on how well the players are prepared or qualified to play effectively. the impacts on forests from the past three generations are recalled in order to prepare us for safeguarding the interests of forests in the fourth generation. ' consolidation of forests ' was the first generation forestry. borrowed from british it began in the later half of the nineteenth century. it was pursued chiefly to consolidate the existing forests and then to appropriate them into the ownership of state. in the process, forests were protected from the access by rural people. in order to sustain the state ownership of the forests a system was set in motion. accordingly the forest department was established, and forest policies were enunciated with the enactment of forest statutes. the process was justified stating that the forests were to be conserved for safeguarding the environment. forestry of the first generation built up its expertise in consolidation and protection of forests from people. forests referred to in village revenue records were notified and brought under the state ownership through forest acts. reserved forests were delineated into sections and beats as protection units and placed under the responsibility of exclusive uniformed personnel of the state. forest laws enacted with punitive provisions dealt with those indulging in anti - forestry activities. the intention of the first generation, namely consolidation of forests and appropriation to the ownership of state, was virtually achieved. the extent consolidated as reserved forests in this manner at national level was about 22 percent. people at the forest interface were alienated from forest use for the first time in history. ' forests for economic development ' was the second generation forestry. it emerged at the instance of the states ' interest to generate new income for the government and to increase aggregate income of the country through supply of timber, fuelwood and other forms of wood and non - wood forest produce for the development of industry - based and allied business activities. forest department was geared up for this new generation. forests which were deemed in the first generation forestry as the protector of environment and hence a resource to be conserved were now treated as resources of material harvest. forest colleges and research institutions provided the technology for the harvest. the term scientific forestry was introduced. the knowledge on forestry was chiefly on harvest systems in different forest formations. this generation had


a resource to be conserved were now treated as resources of material harvest. forest colleges and research institutions provided the technology for the harvest. the term scientific forestry was introduced. the knowledge on forestry was chiefly on harvest systems in different forest formations. this generation had experimented with different silvicultural systems for the sustenance of material production and development of forest produces. eventually two sets of activities emerged, harvest systems and plantation systems. both systems were of european origin but tested in indian forests. ' selection ' and ' clear - felling followed by plantation ' systems were adopted for harvest of timber and allied wood forms. ' clear - felling with coppice regeneration ' or ' clear - felling followed by plantation ' systems were adopted for harvest of fuelwood and small timber. while wet evergreen forests and in certain cases moist deciduous forests were subjected to selection system, dry deciduous, dry thorn and dry evergreen forests were subjected to ' clear - felling with coppice regeneration ' system. enormous quantities of timber, fuelwood, bamboo and many kinds of non - wood usufructs were harvested from forests. economic benefits accrued and it helped to increase the state ' s income and the aggregate income of the economy. concurrently new markets for these produces came into existence and new kinds of utilization of forest produces were invented. a new genre of forest contractors was born who mattered much in the making of forest policies, forestry technology and produce markets. the ' clear - felling systems with coppice regeneration ' was not suited to the forests where it was tested. cox ( 1920 ) had forewarned the danger of adopting the clear felling system of harvest stating that the system designed for the oak forests of europe was not suited to indian conditions. nevertheless the system was continued for a long period. as a result the forests underwent serious degradation, terms of forest structure, green cover, biodiversity, density and productivity. the system of ' economic plantations ' did not yield the expected economic benefits. it had met with success only partially. plantations raised with teak and eucalyptus species alone were available for harvest at their rotations and others were not. the primary cause of failure was the lack of organization to manage the newly created plantations. wherever new organizations in the form of corporations were constituted plantations yielded benefits to the economy. the earlier organization ( forest department ) that was meant for first generation forestry had least applied to the production forestry of the second generation. while economic benefits from forest plantations were not forthcoming for want of organization, wood harvest from natural forests had ended in forest degradation


the earlier organization ( forest department ) that was meant for first generation forestry had least applied to the production forestry of the second generation. while economic benefits from forest plantations were not forthcoming for want of organization, wood harvest from natural forests had ended in forest degradation due to inappropriate technology. the economic benefits that accrued from this generation did not flow to the interface people. benefits least trickled down to reach them. once again the interface people were alienated from forests and forest uses. the sum total of the end - results of the past two generations was that vast stretches of forests had become degraded. the estimated figure of degraded forests in tamil nadu state was about 7000 km2. it accounted for 41. 86 percent over the area of the allocated forest types and 30. 84 percent over the area of the forests of the state. forestry was now concerned with repairing the damage done to forests. the authority had initiated measures to restore the degraded forests. firstly, ban on felling of natural forests for harvest of materials was imposed as a state policy in 1975. the ban was contemplated under the assumption that forests were resilient, hence would revert back to their original composition and structure if given rest from disturbance. secondly, restoration was attempted on degraded forest areas through artificial regeneration under ' afforestation ' schemes. this too did not achieve its objectives. the alienated interface people had continued to remove from forest growth whatever that emerged, graze their white cattle and goats, set fires thereby giving no chance to the renewing ability of the forests. the newly created forest market during the second generation provided an enlarged demand for forest produces. when the second generation was called off, the institutions emerged under the generation should have become defunct but it did not happen. it not only continued to survive but became functionally more active. the impact was on forests. eventually the expected resurrection did not take place and forests deteriorated further. under the circumstances the realization came that restoration of forests was feasible only in association with the people. therefore restoration of forests was planned with the cooperation of people. forestry with the people was the third generation forestry. for the first time the process to reverse alienation of interface people was seriously contemplated, but the focus still remained on the forests. in accordance with this new concept many new but radically different strategies were devised to enlist people ' s cooperation and participation. the strategies were contemplated under the assumptions that people resorted to theft for want of wood and non - wood requirements. hence by providing forest resources close to villages the needs of the people could be met,


devised to enlist people ' s cooperation and participation. the strategies were contemplated under the assumptions that people resorted to theft for want of wood and non - wood requirements. hence by providing forest resources close to villages the needs of the people could be met, which in turn would desist people from going to forests. people who had resorted to smuggling of forest goods were unemployed poor, hence by providing employment and thereby a source of income, it would end forest theft. in accordance to these premises social forestry project was conceived and implemented. new organization within the parent forest department was brought in to implement this new generation of forestry. village wastelands in the category of village commons were utilized for raising wood lots. in tamil nadu state tank foreshores had accounted for an extent as large as 270 000 ha for raising karuvel ( acacia nilotica ) plantations. these plantations were subjected to ' clear - felling with coppice regeneration ' system with 10 - year felling cycles. the project was in operation for over 15 years commencing from 1981. the contribution of the project to the state was very significant in respect of wood production, revenue generation and employment opportunities. wood production in the form of fuelwood and small timber was in the order of 24. 75 million tonnes the revenue generated from corresponding harvest of plantations was about rs 1165 million. the revenue was shared equally between government and the panchayat, the democratically elected village body. free technology was provided to encourage tree cultivation in private holdings with commercial timber species. many new policies were stipulated in support of the project. the results were at great variance to the objectives. the materials particularly fuelwood and small timber were moved away from villages to cater to the demands elsewhere. the paradigm created in the second generation subverted the benefits of the social forestry to its advantage. in other words the recipients of materials produced and the revenue generated thereon were not the rural poor for whose sake the social forestry project was conceived but the urban non - poor. the portion of revenue placed at the hands of village body was not duly channelled to benefit the poor. the opportunities of employment that were provided by the project were temporary. in the implementation of social forestry project the government insisted on the policy of handing over the woodlots for the ultimate management by the panchayat. the policy did not spell out details of the management system. rules and regulations in the management of woodlots were not laid. eventually when the control of social forestry plantations was handed over to panchayats it was done without any proper definition of authority either to exclude


did not spell out details of the management system. rules and regulations in the management of woodlots were not laid. eventually when the control of social forestry plantations was handed over to panchayats it was done without any proper definition of authority either to exclude out - group members or to regulate the behaviour of in - group members who had participated in the project. hence such handing over of authority invariably ended in failure. in pursuance of the policy, the newly created social forestry wing of the forest department gradually dissipated. under these circumstances the third generation forestry with people did not take off. close on the heels of the social forestry project, new schemes such as interface forestry and currently the tamil nadu afforestation project were launched. these new schemes addressed the interface people directly seeking cooperation and participation for the restoration of degraded forests of the state. the scope of ascertaining the cooperation and participation of interface people was widened with an offer of forests cooperation and participation for the welfare of rural people. in other words mutual cooperation and participation were contemplated for addressing the problems of the others. forest department is advocating joint ventures. the people whose participation is sought for a joint venture are poverty prone. now concern for forestry cannot go to forests alone and it has to extend to the people of the forest interface. the first priority concern of the rural people is poverty. this is a new arena, and foresters have neither the understanding nor the skills to manage problems of rural poverty. forestry for poverty alleviation there are two types of poverty, one that is inherited due to social distinctions and the other acquired from the development policies followed over the years. the former is concentrated in the rural areas and the latter in urban areas. forestry of the fourth generation places the forest resources at stake for alleviating rural poverty. it lays its hope on the assumptions that constitute the two elemental strategy of poverty alleviation. the first element of the strategy is generation employment. forestry by the nature of technology is labour intensive ( nearly 70 percent of investment goes towards labour ). it is equally intensive in both harvest systems and plantation systems. labour is employed in very large numbers and at many stages of operation of the system. establishment of 1 ha of plantation generates 200 - 250 man - days of labour per year. the second element of the stated strategy is to provide basic economic and social services. forestry of the fourth generation looks further ahead and adds a third element to the strategy. it is to augment the productive capacity of forests and lands at the forest interface. primarily the life style of rural


strategy is to provide basic economic and social services. forestry of the fourth generation looks further ahead and adds a third element to the strategy. it is to augment the productive capacity of forests and lands at the forest interface. primarily the life style of rural population is agricultural occupation. forests are the biological resources situated in the neighbourhood of rural settings. the material wealth of forests is accounted in the form of fodder, manure, timber, fuelwood, medicines and in times of scarcity food as well. these materials satisfied the household and occupational requirements of rural people. thereby, historically a cultural linkage has evolved between rural people and forests of the neighbourhood. rights for the forest produce from the neighbourhood forests have turned out to be a tradition. the tradition was extinguished during the first generation forestry. the rural people lost their viable source of materials required for their livelihood. the fourth generation forestry would reassert the mutual and holistic dependence between forests and people. in short it is the revival of the age - old healthy tradition. next, this fourth generation would generate employment by undertaking series of labour - intensive activities both in the forests and the interface villages. the activities include afforestation, water harvest and soil conservation works. the employment would facilitate money flow to the poor. the water harvest and soil conservation measures would augment the ground water resources at the interface villages. a syndrome effect is foreseen ; restoration of forests back to nature would ameliorate the climate for better life, the augmentation of water resources would lead to change in land - use pattern of the village for better utilization ; increased source of income to the otherwise marginal land holders ; agricultural sector would provide new employment opportunities etc, etc. ultimately an economic process would set in towards its logical end namely the removal of poverty from the rural scene. optimism in deed! rural social life is ridden with class conflicts. there is an ethics that prevails in rural society, which stipulates ' what class of people to what kind of employment '. it makes an ethnic divide among rural population, which is far more superior to any kind of structural change mooted towards poverty removal. no institution exists to redress the class conflicts and ethnic divide. panchayat is the only institution legally established but it is a political institution hence irrelevant for effecting socio - economic process in favor of development. rural economic life is in a land trap. people who once got into agriculture as an occupation could neither live in it nor could leave out of it. any kind of improvement in land use is of


effecting socio - economic process in favor of development. rural economic life is in a land trap. people who once got into agriculture as an occupation could neither live in it nor could leave out of it. any kind of improvement in land use is of little significance. benefits of increased production or productivity from improved land use or technology are appropriated by the prevailing market mechanism, which works to the benefit of urban rich. the same entrapment would hold good for the forest produces generated from forests, community lands or private holdings as well. the target people are not a motivated lot for freeing themselves from poverty. their enrollment to employment is not an occupation but a lifestyle. there is a cultural link to this attitude. the motivated lot if any, looks at urban life and migrates. the migrating section of the population is educated or professionally qualified and skilled. it seeks employment from manufacturing and service sector in the urban market. this is a drain on human resources from rural to urban areas, very akin to the drain from the country. the people who stay back in villages are those in land trap, less resourced folks and the unmotivated fatalists. the assumption that labour employment would alleviate people from poverty is not tenable because the kind of employment would only provide at best a day - to - day escape from poverty but not permanently. further it is a temporary phenomenon, not sustainable. under the prevailing rural characteristics placing forests at stakes for alleviating rural poverty could be a misplaced objective. it is like betting on the proven lame horse. the feasibility of freeing rural people from poverty trap probably lies in consolidating all resources of villages, which includes forests as well, into a composite. village with its composite resources has to be made into an estate and treated as multi - product enterprise. the economy of the village estate has to be deemed as the country but in microform. rural compatible and friendly technology, transfer of not only the technology but also human resource to village has to be institutionalized. migration of human resources from villages has to be monitored and such migrated human resources should be subjected to certain specified commitments to parent villages. the norms of production and pricing between manufacturing and primary sectors have to be universalized. budgetary exercises should address material production and distribution as well and the exercises should start from village estate to national level. the organization of forest department needs to be reconstituted with establishment of watershed - based village units at the base level, in place of sections and beats and the hierarchy built there upon. studies have shown that resurrection of forests is


estate to national level. the organization of forest department needs to be reconstituted with establishment of watershed - based village units at the base level, in place of sections and beats and the hierarchy built there upon. studies have shown that resurrection of forests is highly correlated to the intensity of monitoring composed to the technological input. therefore, in order to intensify the field monitoring, the system that prevailed during the first and second generation forestry should be made a mandatory function for all the cadres of the forest department. all cadres of forest department need to be transformed from police to sociological mindset. forest education and research institutes have to impart this transformation to the foresters ' genre. socio - economic and anthropological subjects may have to dominate the forestry curricula. forest policy shall explicitly stipulate the mutual rights and duties between forests and the people. similarly forest policy on utilization of forest - based produces has to be stipulated. the policies have to be incorporated under appropriate laws made specifically for the purpose. forestry of this paradigm is socially and economically interlinked with people. therefore it is politically relevant that forest portfolio is always placed under stewardship of the chief minister of the state or prime minister of the country as the case may be. poverty is now an integral part of rural economy. rural economy is in shambles because of the poverty entrapment. until the rural economy is freed from the trap, staking forest resources to poverty alleviation is a serious risk. we need a kind of forestry that is capital - safe and at the same time people - supportive. academy for management excellence. 1996. study on community wasteland plantations - tamil nadu. chennai, india. balasubramanian, k. 1996. tamil nadu social forestry project ( 1980 - 96 ) : experiences and learning. chennai, india, m. s. swaminathan research foundation. goi. 1997. state of forest report 1997. forest survey of india. dehradun, india. jha, r. 2000. growth, inequality and poverty in india - spatial and temporal characteristics. economic & political weekly, 11march 2000, pp. 921 - 928. krishnaswamy, v. s. 1957. hundred years of forestry. government of tamil nadu state, india. mundle, s. 1993. policies, paradigms and development debate at close of twentieth century. economic & political weekly, 4 sept 1993, pp. 1879 - 1882. rao, v. v. b. 1999. east asian economies : trends in poverty


this appendix provides examples and guidelines concerning safety issues prior to or during combat operations. it also provides some basic rules of safety. commanders or their representatives must ensure that safety is an ongoing process during wartime, as well as during peacetime training. each unit must refer to basic regulations and directives for additional information. commanders and leaders must be involved in the function of safety in their unit. the following are some administrative safety considerations. the commander must ensure that the safety annex of the unit tactical sop is current and covers all field training operations. the commander and or safety officer must be familiar with the safety portions of the sops. the commander ensures that adequate provisions for safe practices, procedures, and physical standards are incorporated into unit functions, activities, exercises, and combat operations. the unit safety officer must keep the commander informed of the unit safety status by reporting all accidents, injuries, and incidents, and recommending corrective actions. every training exercise or combat operation carries with it inherent risk. identifying, evaluating, and reducing risk are leader tasks. the following are methods for evaluating risk : how great the risk is. vehicle movements and convoys require leaders to think about safety. the following list is not comprehensive, but is meant to be a start for building a complete safety list for movements : patriot equipment represents a significant threat to safety if procedures are not properly adhered to. the following list, also not comprehensive, is a look at some things leaders must consider when operating patriot equipment :


housed in the palazzo della crocetta the archaeological museum is a landmark in any understanding of etruscan civilization and art. there is also a section devoted to ancient egypt, the second most important in italy following the museo egizio in turin. the museo archeologico developed out of the etruscan collections of the houses of medici and lorraine, originally held in the uffizi ; while the ancient egyptian section was established in the first half of thee 19th c. by leopoldo ii trough the acquisition of existing collections and through “ field expeditions ”. all of the collections were moved to the present location in 1880. a visit to the museum starts with the section dedicated to egyptian arts. the finds of the palaeolithic age : the prehistoric egypt that had to have started two million years ago. to this period belong the numerous utensils and instruments on display. objects of diverse dating and origins narrate the long history of the egyptian people and culture : domestic utensils, beauty instruments ( rooms i - v ). room xi holds various instruments relative to the ritual of mummification, the so - called canopic vessels : containers for the vital organs of the deceased and essential for the funeral trousseau. following are the artefacts relative to the protodynastic age : ancient, middle, and new reigns, until the age of copta ( 310 a. d. ). among the cult objects of this polytheist civilization, the museum exhibits some fragments of papyrus, the chapters of the book of the dead : a story of the formula and ritual for the survival of the deceased in the afterlife ( room vi ), an exceptional facet of this great people. the second section of the museum is dedicated to etruscan art : funerary sculpture and urns in terracotta ( iii - iv b. c. ). the mater matuta is the most important find in room ix : a funerary urn in the figure of a woman with a baby in her arms, symbolic of fertility and motherhood. the artefacts were found in chiusi, chianciano, and volterra and date between the fourth and seventh century b. c. the etruscan section holds a bronze collection rich with devotional objects, domestic utensils, and small bronzes of animals and human figures in the act of making offerings ( room xiv ). finally, there is a series of ancient bronze arms for attack ( daggers, helmets, knifes and lances ) and


, domestic utensils, and small bronzes of animals and human figures in the act of making offerings ( room xiv ). finally, there is a series of ancient bronze arms for attack ( daggers, helmets, knifes and lances ) and shields for defence, providing protection for the heart ( vii b. c. ). the third section is dedicated to the attica ceramics : funerary amphorae, geometric cups and vases from the viii century b. c. one can see the particular vases, painted with the black - figure technique asserted to be from the vi century b. c. ( room i ) : life scenes and those of abduction, mythological images, athletic competitions and races between carts and horses decorate the production of the famous attic painter lydos ( 560 b. c. ). between 550 and 530 b. c. the attention of the attic ceramicists dwelt on few personages and dramatic scenes : the refinement culminates with the narration of the deeds of courageous heroes. the famous hidria, a vase for drawing water covered with scenes of women at the fountains, makes the exposition cases of room ii even more invaluable. a fourth section holds numerous roman bronzes : portraits, helmets, statues, and masks of noble and valorous heroes. very important are the two elogia arretina, dedicated to quinto fabio massimo and appio claudio cieco : two marble tablets that illustrate the name, career, and the military and political enterprise of the two. a visit to the archaeological museum is a trip, a leap through the times of peoples now gone and cultures extinct, but deeply imprinted in the memory of man. particular information is available to the visitor in each room. for any information : via della colonna 38 ( 055 235750 ). open mon 2 - 7pm, tue / thu 8. 30am - 7pm, wed / fri / sat / sun 8. 30am - 2pm. admission : 4 euro


in the midst of an early flu season, public health officials are urging unvaccinated people to get a flu shot, as the best step they can take to protect both themselves and their families. yet the centers for disease control and prevention also acknowledged friday that influenza vaccines, on average, are only about 62 % effective. in the past, the cdc had estimated that flu shots were 70 % to 90 % effective. " there is a growing consensus among the public health communities that we need better influenza vaccines, " says michael osterholm, director of the center for infectious disease research and policy. " we ' re operating largely in the 1950s for our flu technology. osterholm last year published an influential analysis in the lancet showing that, according to very rigorous standards, evidence indicated that flu shots were less effective than commonly reported. for children and seniors over age 65, there was no rigorous data showing their efficacy at all. one subset of patients does get high protection from flu vaccines, osterholm found. the intranasal flu vaccine, sold as flumist, protects 83 % of children under 8. there ' s mixed evidence about how well flumist protects adults over 60, and a lack of evidence on its effect in people ages 8 to 59. in general, " the flu vaccine is a good vaccine, but not a great vaccine, " says william schaffner, a professor at vanderbilt university school of medicine. osterholm says he strongly believes people should get yearly flu vaccines, given their good safety record. and he says " moderate " protection is better than no protection at all. but drug companies have felt little pressure to make truly " game - changing " vaccines, osterholm says, because experts and the public have believed that current shots are adequate. " the no. 1 deterrent to getting new flu vaccines is the perception that the current ones are good enough, " says osterholm, also a professor at the university of minnesota school of public health. with relatively low efficacy, the flu shot today doesn ' t have much power to produce true " herd immunity, " osterholm says. herd immunity is achieved when enough people are immunized with an effective vaccine that the community ' s viral load drops, protecting even the unvaccinated. joseph bresee, chief of the cdc ' s epidemiology and prevention branch in its influenza division, said friday that " there ' s lot of research going on toward improving vaccines, " noting that " the goal is to create a vaccine that


bresee, chief of the cdc ' s epidemiology and prevention branch in its influenza division, said friday that " there ' s lot of research going on toward improving vaccines, " noting that " the goal is to create a vaccine that you don ' t have to give every year that works better. " today, people need to be revaccinated every year against the flu. that ' s because the influenza virus is constantly changing. virologists try to predict which viruses will be in circulation in the coming season, hoping to get a good " match " between the viruses in the community and the viral strains used in the vaccine. a " game - changing " vaccine would be very different. such a vaccine would produce immunity by including parts of the influenza virus that don ' t change from year to year, and which are common among many strains of virus, osterholm says. these vaccines should also protect people for a decade or more, stimulating the immune system to recognize flu viruses that it hasn ' t encountered for a long time. in a 2011 interview with usa today, national institutes of health director francis collins said he was " guardedly optimistic " that a " universal " flu shot could be developed within about five years. one such game - changing vaccine is being tested in the usa in an early phase one trial - the smallest and most preliminary type of human study - schaffner says. " it ' s clearly the holy grail, " schaffner says. but the usa should be doing more to lead the way, osterholm says. most vaccines in development today make only minor improvements, osterholm says, relying on the same techniques used for decades. these vaccines produce immunity by using proteins found on a virus ' outer coating. of the more than 170 influenza vaccines in clinical trials around the world, all but 13 are made in the traditional way, osterholm says. none are supported by the u. s. government, he says. developing a next - generation flu vaccine could take 15 years and cost over $ 1 billion, osterholm estimates. schaffner notes that significant improvements are already being made. next year ' s flu shots should provide slightly broader protection. the flumist nasal spray will protect against four viral strains, instead of the current three. manufacturers of flu shots are also working to include four viral strains. also, the food and drug administration in november approved the first flu vaccine made in cell cultures, rather than chicken eggs. the vaccine, flucelvax


instead of the current three. manufacturers of flu shots are also working to include four viral strains. also, the food and drug administration in november approved the first flu vaccine made in cell cultures, rather than chicken eggs. the vaccine, flucelvax, made by novartis, is approved only for adults. many european countries already use cell culture techniques, which allow companies to produce vaccine far more quickly, osterholm says. cell - culture technology allows vaccine makers to respond rapidly to " urgent public health needs, such as a pandemic, within weeks, " according to novartis. the usa ' s current system - a six - to nine - month process that relies on fertilized chicken eggs to grow viruses - is " archaic, " says robert glatter, an emergency medicine physician at lenox hill hospital in new york. yet while cell cultures will allow companies to manufacture vaccines much more quickly, it doesn ' t make the vaccine any more effective, osterholm says. and glatter says companies face significant obstacles in developing innovative flu vaccines. it ' s " quite difficult for private companies to embark on such an endeavor, in light of the u. s. government ' s strict policies toward approving vaccines, " which must undergo rigorous tests for safety, glatter says. drug companies may see little point in developing a universal vaccine, glatter says. " if you get a mega - vaccine once every 10 years to prevent the flu, the flu vaccine market would essentially be down - regulated, with less financial market incentive. " yet glatter says 2009 ' s h1n1 pandemic flu suggests that the human body is capable of producing extremely long - term immunity from influenza. senior citizens had relatively low rates of infection during that outbreak, likely because they were exposed to a similar virus during the 1930s and 1940s, he says. " the goal is to make a vaccine that can confer such long - term immunity, " glatter says. " such a feat would be a real breakthrough. " a broadly protective flu vaccine might save lives during a pandemic, because many people would already have been vaccinated, osterholm says. during the 2009 h1n1 pandemic, manufacturers required months to develop a matching flu shot. but a universal vaccine would have its greatest impact in the developing world, schaffner says. many poor countries can ' t afford yearly flu shots. far more people could be vaccinated if they only had to pay for


bergen op zoom ' s location on the scheldt river was an important factor in this city ' s development into a wealthy trading city during the middle ages. traders from all over europe flocked to bergen op zoom twice a year for the easter and the cold markets. the brisk trade led to the building of het markiezenhof and the expansion of the sint gertrudiskerk church. in 1567, the city changed radically as a result of major military activities and siege. the defences that were built during this period survived the eighty years war with spain. the bergen city anthem ' merck toch hoe sterck ', loosely translated as ' see how strong we are ', harks back to these tumultuous times. the harbour was an important artery which brought troops and supplies into the city. in 1698, a radical modernisation of the defences, designed by the renowned dutch fortress builder menno van coehoorn, was started. as his building work was seen as impregnable, bergen op zoom was given the nickname ' la pucelle ', the virgin. at the end of the 19th century, most of the fortifications were destroyed during the expansion of the city. large industries arose around the harbour, but the inner city has retained its historical character. the historical buildings in the centre create a unique backdrop for the attractive shops, cafes and pleasant restaurants.


italian opera during much of the first half of the nineteenth century, opera was dominated by one man whose work continues to delight opera audiences today, gioacchino rossini. rossini, the creator of nearly forty operas in less than two decades, had an immense impact upon the development of opera. scholars often note that a vital component of his success was the tunefulness of his music and the effortlessness with which he composed. rossini was born to a family of musicians in pesaro, italy, on february 29, 1792. his father was a horn player and his mother was a singer. rossini learned to do both as a child, and studied music in bologna, italy, where the family lived when he was growing up. rossini ’ s first opera, la cambiale di matrimonio was produced in venice when he was 18. at this time, he had already received awards for shorter compositions. between 1810 and 1813, he wrote operas for bologna, rome, venice and milan, all of which were fairly well received. it was also during this period that he wrote the wildly popular tancredi, an arrangement of voltaire ’ s tragedy. for the next four years, he produced a string of brilliant comic operas, including il turco in italia, il barbiere di siviglia, la cenerentola and la gazza ladra, which were performed all across europe to great acclaim. in 1817, he moved to naples, where he shifted his focus to devote his time to serious opera, writing otello and semiramide during this time. at the age of 32, he moved again, this time to paris, where he took the post of director of the theatre - italien. there he composed four works for the paris opera, the last being guillaume tell. he retired at the age of 37, due to a variety of factors, including the death of his mother and his weakening health. he remained in paris until 1836, when he returned to italy as the director of the bologna conservatory, but was drawn back to paris in 1855. there he held court to just about every celebrated european composer and musician, including wagner. rossini died in paris in 1868, almost 39 years after composing his last opera. he was buried in paris in the famous pere lachaise cemetery, near chopin, cherubini and bellini, but in 1887 his body was disinterred and sent to florence, where he was re - buried for a crowd of over 6, 000. in the


frogs are a diverse and largely carnivorous group of short - bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order anura ( ancient greek an -, without + oura, tail ). the oldest fossil " proto - frog " appeared in the early triassic of madagascar, but molecular clock dating suggests their origins may extend further back to the permian, 265 million years ago. frogs are widely distributed, ranging from the tropics to subarctic regions, but the greatest concentration of species diversity is found in tropical rainforests. there are approximately 4, 800 recorded species, accounting for over 85 % of extant amphibian species. they are also one of the five most diverse vertebrate orders. the body plan of an adult frog is generally characterized by a stout body, protruding eyes, cleft tongue, limbs folded underneath and the absence of a tail. besides living in fresh water and on dry land, the adults of some species are adapted for living underground or in trees. the skin of the frog is glandular, with secretions ranging from distasteful to toxic. warty species of frog tend to be called toads. frog warts are elevations in the skin where glandular toxins tend to concentrate. the distinction between frogs and toads is based on informal naming conventions concentrating on the warts rather than taxonomy or evolutionary history ; some toads are more closely related to frogs than other toads. frogs ' skins vary in colour from well - camouflaged dappled brown, grey and green to vivid patterns of bright red or yellow and black to advertise toxicity and warn off predators.


this article was originally distributed via prweb. prweb, worldnow and this site make no warranties or representations in connection therewith. source : shmoop university, inc. by revisiting many of their teacher resources, shmoop has worked to improve their impact in the classroom. mountain view, ca ( prweb ) january 14, 2013 think that there isn ’ t much new in the world of gatsby? wrong. check out shmoop ’ s edgy new suite of teacher - helper ( second cousin of hamburger helper ). shmoop produces a broad series of teaching guides designed to help teachers... teach … better. priced at $ 10. 66 ( as shmoop notes, the year england more or less ipoed ), shmoop ’ s materials open views on literature, which even well - seasoned teachers may have not considered. the affordable guides include — among other helpful hints — detailed activity ideas, essays on how to tackle the toughest aspects of each book, and potential essay and discussion questions. and here ’ s what ’ s new in the world of shmoop teacher guides : shmoop is a digital curriculum and test prep company that makes fun, rigorous learning and teaching materials. shmoop content is written by master teachers and ph. d. students from stanford, harvard, uc berkeley, and other top universities. shmoop learning guides, test prep, and teacher ’ s editions balance a teen - friendly, approachable style with academically rigorous materials to help students understand how subjects relate to their daily lives. shmoop offers more than 7, 000 titles across the web, iphone, android devices, ipad, kindle, nook, and sony reader. the company has been honored twice by the webby awards and was named “ best in tech ” for 2010 and 2011 by scholastic administrator. launched in 2008, shmoop is headquartered in a labradoodle - patrolled office in mountain view, california. # # # these teacher materials have become a hit on shmoop, and the company is rapidly producing more across a variety of topics like african american literature, drama, and female authors. bundle up and save. for the original version on prweb visit : http : / / www. prweb. com / releases / prweb2013 / 1 / prweb10317629. htm


that brings us to exodus 27. so if you have your bibles look with me there. dour lord and our god teach us from your word this night of christ and of your worship. we ask it in jesusi name. amen. e i want to point you to three things. exodus 27 divides into three parts. verses 1 - 8 describe the altar of sacrifice. that altar of sacrifice was called different things. for instance, in the very first verse of the next chapter, itis called the altar of bronze, itis called the altar of burnt offering, itis also, in other places, called the outer altar. itis distinguished from, you remember, the altar of incense thatis inside the tent of meeting. this is the altar that you would have seen first when you came into the courtyard of the tent of meeting. so, the first 8 verses deal with that outer altar. then verses 9 - 19 deal with the courtyard itself. around the tabernacle, that was only the size of one quarter of our own sanctuary, was a much larger tent structure that ringed off the courtyard to provide a sacred space in which the animals would be brought for sacrifice, and which the worshipers would enter. they would not be allowed into the tent of meeting but they would be allowed into the courtyard, and itis described in verses 9 - 19. and then thereis that matter of the lighting of that lamp in front of the curtain which led into the holy of holies, and thatis described in verses 20 and 21. so those are the three parts of the chapter. i. the altar taught the old testament believer that communion required atonement / sacrifice. letis look at some lessons that we learned from each of them. first of all, in verses 1 - 8, the outer altar. the outer altar taught the old testament believer that communion required atonement. the outer altar taught the old testament believer that the only way into communion with god was through sacrifice. this outer altar was the very first thing that a worshipper would see when entering into the tabernacle courtyard. you noticed, by the way, that whereas in exodus 25 and 26 when making of the ark of the covenant is described, and the making of the various framework for the tent of meeting is described, - and what metals are used? gold. - by the time you get to outer courtyard, - what metals are used? bronze and silver. the closer you are to the symbolic presence of god, the finer the materials,


of meeting is described, - and what metals are used? gold. - by the time you get to outer courtyard, - what metals are used? bronze and silver. the closer you are to the symbolic presence of god, the finer the materials, and in fact, even when we saw the coverings, you remember the fine linen is on the lower level. finally, you get up to porpoise skin leather at the top. and so the principle over and over is, the closer you are to the symbolic presence of god, the more precious the material, the more precious the metal. just a little word in passing. now the altar, weire told, had horns. these horns may have represented the sacrificial beasts that were offered on the altar, but we know from psalm 1 : 18 verse 27, they also served to bind the sacrificial beast to the altar. you remember when the psalmist speaks of binding the sacrifice with cords around the horns of the altar. they were also things which a supplicant could take hold of with his hands. when you fled to the tabernacle for mercy from your enemies and took hold of the horns of the altar, you were, as it were, dedicated to god, and therefore could not be touched by those who were pursuing you. we see these kinds of places of refuge even in medieval europe for instance. if you were being pursed by an enemy and you could flee into sacred ground and just get across into the courtyard of holyrood abby, you were considered safe. the same thing operated with regard to the sanctuary in the temple courtyard. now you noticed in verses 6 and 7 that this altar, just like everything else, every other piece of furniture in the tabernacle was moveable, it was portable, it had rings and poles to be carried, because, the whole of the sanctuary was moveable. it was a mobile church. god, in the wilderness, shows his marvelous condescension in that he is willing to wander with his people. and so the altar is portable and the poles remain in the altar even when itis stationary to remind the people of godis identification with them. the altar was made just as the lord commanded moses at sinai. if you look at verse 8 itis stressed again to do it just like god showed on the mountain. so whatis the message of the altar for us today? simply this ; the altar visibly drove home the point to every worshiper in israel for 1500 years that you could not


itis stressed again to do it just like god showed on the mountain. so whatis the message of the altar for us today? simply this ; the altar visibly drove home the point to every worshiper in israel for 1500 years that you could not come into godis presence without sacrifice. what does the author of hebrews say? in hebrews 9 : 22, daccording to the law one might almost say that all things are cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. e it is that point that the altar makes. when you come into the temple courtyard and you see the altar youire reminded, di canit fellowship with god without the shedding of blood, without the offering of sacrifice, because iim a sinner and he is holy. e and that principle, that there is no communion apart from atonement, is universal since the fall. but the beautiful thing that the altar points to is jesus himself, because the next thing that the author of hebrews says in hebrews 13 verse 10 is that jesus is our altar. we often think of jesus being our priest, and thatis true, but hebrews 13 : 10 says this, dwe have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. e the altar is jesus christ himself. by the way, thatis one reason that protestant churches donit have physical altars in the sanctuary. we have a communion table from which we take the lordis supper, but not an altar. why? not because we donit have an altar, but because we do have an altar, and that altar is jesus christ. thereis a very interesting story that occurred in london, england, a number of years ago. there was an irish republican army bombing in the fleet street area of london. and the wonderful church of dick locus, saint helens bishopgate, was badly damaged in that bombing. when they rebuilt the sanctuary after the bombing, they left out the old altar that had been built into that church of england sanctuary. and one of the local council members was incensed. he said, dhow could you have a church without an altar? e and they wrote back to him the words of hebrews 13 : 10, dwe have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. e jesus christ is our altar. and so the principle is, jesus is our altar. he is the one who provides the atonement that brings us in to


an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. e jesus christ is our altar. and so the principle is, jesus is our altar. he is the one who provides the atonement that brings us in to the presence of god. ii. the courtyard demarcated sacred space to the worshipers but also separated classes of people. a second thing, look at verses 9 through 19. all temples and sanctuaries in the ancient world would have had a space demarcating the sacred from the profane, setting off the sacred space from profane space. and this itself reveals one of the key ideas of holiness in the old testament. the idea of separation, to be holy, was to be separate, to separate from the world. and the later temples in israelis history also had courtyards. solomonis temple had courtyards. herodis temple had courtyards. in fact, we know that herodis temple had four courtyards. there was a courtyard for the priests. there was a courtyard for jewish males. there was a courtyard for jewish females. and then there was a courtyard called the courtyard of the gentiles. and these courts were separated by dividing walls. and josephus tells that there was even a signed warning that if gentiles entered into any of the other courts they would face death. that metaphor is picked up by the apostle paul in ephesians chapter 2, verse 14. do you remember it? in ephesians 2 : 14 paul says, dhe himself, e jesus christ himself, dis our peace who made both groups in to one speaking of jews and gentiles, and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall. e now you see the imagery. in israel, in the courtyard, there was a dividing wall that kept the gentiles in one area and the jews in another. paul is saying that in jesus christ that barrier has been broken down. paul is saying that there is no longer any barrier between the jew and gentile who is in christ. the dividing wall metaphor points to jesus bringing an end to the ceremonial law and system. it was removed in christ. and so the barrier which it existed as a part of the old testament holiness code was abolished in christ so that all those who believe in him, both jew and gentile, are one. itis a beautiful picture of the way that jesus has brought reconciliation. and so the courtyard demarcated sacred space to the worshipers. but it also separated classes of people, and


believe in him, both jew and gentile, are one. itis a beautiful picture of the way that jesus has brought reconciliation. and so the courtyard demarcated sacred space to the worshipers. but it also separated classes of people, and jesus christ, in his redemptive work, brought together those who had been separated as they believed in him. iii. the ner tamid ( the perpetually burning lamp ) reminds of the divine presence. one last thing ; look at verses 20 and 21, the perpetually burning lamp, called the ner tamid. this perpetually burning lamp reminds us of the divine presence. think of it, friends, the people never, ever, would have seen within the veil into the holy of holies. once the tabernacle is constructed, once the tent is set up, nobody but one priest, once a year, sees inside the holy of holies. but outside that holy of holies, in front of the closed veil, in front of the closed curtains, sits a lamp. that lamp visibly reminds the people of the presence of god. the symbolism of this continually refueled lamp seems to point to the presence of the unseen god. and john picks up on this theme in revelation chapter 22, verse 5. do you remember what he says? heis commenting on the superiority of the new heavens, and the new earth, and the new jerusalem, which has been brought down by god, and this is what he says, dthere will no longer be any night and they will not have need of the light of a lamp, nor the light of the sun, because the lord god will illumine them and they will reign forever and forever. e in other words, john is saying they will experience the very presence of the glorious god. they will not need a lamp to represent him. they will not need a lamp to remind them of the divine presence. they will not need a lamp to lighten their eyes. they will experience the presence, the very presence of the glorious god. and so even the lamp, this light before the ark and the tabernacle, points to the glory to come. these are three things which we ourselves can benefit from as we study the tabernacle together. letis look to the lord in prayer. dheavenly father we thank you for your word. we ask that you would teach us by it, encourage us through it, build us up in it. in jesusi name. amen. e


irish try to wriggle free of mother merkel ' s hair shirt of debt someone has pinched the heart of st. lawrence o ’ toole, and thereby hangs a typical irish tale filled with metaphors, parallels, and some pretty serious weirdness. who done it? the suspects are many and varied. could the heist from dublin ’ s christ church cathedral have been engineered by the infamous “ troika ” of the european commission, the european bank, and the international monetary fund? seems like a stretch, but consider the following : o ’ toole — patron saint of dublin — was, according to the catholic church, famous for practicing “ the greatest austerity. ” lawrence liked to wear a hair shirt underneath his episcopal gowns and spent 40 days in a cave each year. that is a point of view the troika can respect. they have overseen a massive austerity program in ireland that has strangled the economy, cut wages 22 percent, slashed education, health care, and public transport, raised taxes and fees, and driven the jobless rate up to 15percent — 30 % if you are young. at this rate many irish will soon be living in caves, and while hair shirts may be uncomfortable, they are warm. there are other suspects as well. for instance, st. o ’ toole was friendly with the norman / english king henry ii, who conquered the island in 1171. the irish are not enamored of henry ii, indeed most of them did their level best to drive the bastard into the sea. not lawrence. he welcomed henry to dublin and, according to the church, “ paid him due deference. ” so “ deference ” establishes yet another suspect : the current fine gael / labor ruling coalition. fine gael leader and irish taoiseach ( prime minister ) edna kenny has already signed the new european treaty, but was forced to put it up for a public referendum at home ( no other eu county is being allowed to vote “ yea ” or “ nay ” ). kenny is pressing for a “ yes ” vote, and labor ’ s tanaiste eamon gilmore argues that a “ yes ” vote would be a “ vote for economic stability and a vote for economic recovery. ” the treaty will not only continue the austerity program, it will move decision - making to eu headquarters in brussels. this will mean that governments will be powerless when it comes to the economy. think “ model united nations ” and lots of earnest high school students. who will make


the austerity program, it will move decision - making to eu headquarters in brussels. this will mean that governments will be powerless when it comes to the economy. think “ model united nations ” and lots of earnest high school students. who will make these decisions? good question. well, it turns out that a committee of the german bundestag debated the irish austerity proposals before the dublin government even got a chance to look at them. how did that happen? again, good question, but no answer yet. maybe german chancellor andrea merkel lifted o ’ toole ’ s heart. she certainly has a motive : merkel is leading the “ austerity is good for you ” charge, a stance that has battered economies from spain to greece. in any case, the irish are already suspicious of the german chancellor. an anti - austerity demonstration outside the dail, ireland ’ s parliament, featured a poster calling government ministers “ angela ’ s asses. ” much of the economic crisis in europe — and virtually all of it in ireland — is due to the out - of - control speculation by german banks, along with the dutch, austrian, and french financial institutions. “ yet it is the working people of ireland and europe who are being asked to pay the price, ” argues des dalton of sinn fein. it appears that the germans have discovered that one does not need panzer divisions to conquer europe, just bankers and compliant governments. “ compliant ” however, has run into some difficulties in ireland, a place where “ difficulty ” is a very common noun. on mar. 2, sinn fein president jerry adams trekked out to castlebar in the west of ireland to resurrect the ghost of michael davitt, founder of the land league and leader of the 1878 land war ( there was an earlier one from 1761 to 1784, but more on that later ). adams told the mayo county crowd “ the irish people cannot afford this treaty. ” the castlebar symbolism was about as heavy as you can get. davitt, along with the great irish parliamentarian charles stewart parnell, launched the land war from that city, calling up the words of the great revolutionary, james fintan lalor : “ i hold and maintain that the entire soil of a country belongs by right to the entire people of that country. ” these days that is not a popular sentiment in most european capitals, where governments are shedding public ownership in everything from airlines to energy production. the irish government is trying to sell off several lucrative holdings, including ae


the entire people of that country. ” these days that is not a popular sentiment in most european capitals, where governments are shedding public ownership in everything from airlines to energy production. the irish government is trying to sell off several lucrative holdings, including aer lingus, ireland ’ s natural gas company, and parts of its electricity supply board. the state ’ s forestry will be sold as well. “ it is the depth of treachery to sell billions of euros worth of state assets to pay bad gambling debts, ” socialist party member joe higgins said in the dail. the land wars were a reaction to efforts by the english to apply to ireland the enclosure acts, a policy that sold “ common land ” to private landowners and forced the rural population of england, scotland and wales into the hellishness of industrial manchester, birmingham, glasgow and liverpool. as laura nader and ugo mattei maintain in their book “ plunder : when the rule of law is illegal, ” what is currently happening in ireland ( and all over europe ) is a 21st century version of the enclosure acts. the last vestiges of public ownership are being systematically auctioned to the highest bidder, and the concept of “ the common good ” is fading like the ghost of providence. but not without a fight. while adams was resurrecting the spirit of michael davitt, demonstrators were besieging parliaments in greece, spain and romania. ireland rejected two previous european treaties, only to pass them in a second round of voting. however, under the new rules, it no longer has veto power. if 12 out of the 17 euro zone countries endorse — pretty much considered a slam - dunk — then the new treaty goes into effect. a number of commentators are saying that the 12 - country threshold makes the irish referendum irrelevant, but a “ no ” vote will be a blow to the euro currency, and it might eventually encourage similar “ no ” votes in other countries. in that sense, the irish tail could end up wagging the european dog. since irish stories always include parallels, there is certainly one to be made between the first land war and the current debt crisis. the 1761 effort by english landlords to apply the enclosure acts to ireland ignited resistance, first in limerick, then spreading to munster, connacht and leinster. crowds of irish tenants dressed in linen masks and coats — hence their generic name, the ” whiteboys ” — burned hayricks, knocked down enclosure walls, and hamstrung cattle. on occasion they pitched


to munster, connacht and leinster. crowds of irish tenants dressed in linen masks and coats — hence their generic name, the ” whiteboys ” — burned hayricks, knocked down enclosure walls, and hamstrung cattle. on occasion they pitched land agents into the local bog. the irish resistance to the enclosure acts was not unique, but a very odd thing happened in ireland : they won. a combination of population growth and war had driven up the price of food, so even the small - scale agriculture practiced by the irish was profitable. plus the rent capital skimmed off the irish peasantry was playing an important role in helping to capitalize the english industrial revolution. add to this the resistance, and the english decided that it was in their best interests to back off. the average irish tenant knew nothing about international finance or capital accumulation, but they got the idea that if you dug in your heels and went toe - to - toe with the buggers, you could beat them. it was a momentous experience, and a collective memory that would help fuel more than 150 years of rebellion. can the current irish resistance movement turn the tide against the austerity madness that has gripped the european continent? well, the left is on the rise ( in some places, so is the right ). sinn fein ’ s support in the most recent opinion polls shows a 25 percent approval rating, up 4 percent. in comparison, fianna fail — the party that ushered in the current crisis — has dropped from 20 percent to 16 percent. labor has fallen to 10 percent, and fine gael is at 32 percent. other left parties are also doing well. indeed, the left seems to be resurging in other countries as well. a center - left party in slovakia ousted a right - wing government, and france seems posted to vote socialist. the greek left is fractious, but its various stripes now make up a majority. weirdness. remember weirdness? for starters, an 832 - year - old heart is pretty strange. and it wasn ’ t just the heart that was snatched. someone also stole a splinter of the “ true cross ” ( if one added up all the splinters in all the cathedrals of europe you end up with a fair size forest ). and then there is the matter of the cheekbone of st. brigid that just missed getting lifted from a church in north dublin. in the end, saints will not preserve ireland from an invasion of the austerity snakes. the irish people will have to do that.


gainesville, fla., dec. 5, 2012 / prnewswire / - - the university of florida ( uf ) has started enrolling subjects in a new study testing the oral drug developed by sound pharmaceuticals, inc. ( spi - 1005 ) to prevent hearing loss caused by loud music. loud music or noise can induce temporary and permanent auditory threshold shifts ( tts or pts ). as people age, the level of pts grows and results in a moderate loss of speech perception and discrimination, especially in noisy environments. in this phase - ii interventional clinical trial, volunteers will listen to pre - selected music delivered using an ipod® and insert earphones providing an exposure that results in small but reliable temporary threshold shifts. volunteers will take a placebo or spi - 1005 before and after this exposure, to assess the extent to which tts is reduced, and / or the rate of recovery is accelerated. spi - 1005 is an oral capsule that contains ebselen, a synthetic molecule that mimics the activity of glutathione peroxidase ( gpx ), a critical enzyme in the inner ear that protects it from damage caused by loud sounds or noise. in animal studies, gpx decreases in several important auditory structures including hair cells, supporting cells, nerve and lateral wall structures such as the stria vascularis. in several preclinical studies, ebselen treatment was shown to improve the gpx levels within these structures and to reduce the tts and pts induced by loud noise. " the goal of this clinical trial is to determine if spi - 1005 can prevent or reduce the tts induced by listening to loud music, " said dr. colleen le prell, phd, associate professor and lead investigator at the uf college of public health and health professions ' department of speech, language, and hearing sciences. currently there are no fda approved drugs for the prevention and treatment of sensorineural hearing loss. " the enrollment of this ph - ii study represents a significant milestone for spi and we are excited to advance of our clinical programs to achieve proof of concept in man " said eric lynch, phd, president, spi. details of the study can be viewed online at www. clinicaltrials. gov by searching spi - 1005. spi is a privately held biopharmaceutical company in seattle with a focus on developing the first drugs for the prevention and treatment of hearing loss. please visit http : / / www. sound


what is a lead? before getting into drug design or drug discovery, we must know what a lead is on which drugs are designed. lead is basically a compound or a tiny organic molecule which shows desired biological action on any validated molecular target. it can be any organic / inorganic compound. where leads can be found? leads can be found easily in libraries like peptide libraries, carbohydrate libraries or natural product libraries. we can also create virtual libraries by using combinatorial chemistry. lead identification and technologies involved the process of lead identification is carried out with following technologies : - actual screening actual screening is actually a part of chemi - informatics and is used to identify lead. in this, compound screening or docking based on protein structure is involved and molecule based chemical similarity search is carried out. there are some important considerations before carrying a virtual or actual screening. e. g. which type of compound you are going to put against receptor, structure of the receptor, general receptor ligand interactions and basic knowledge of drugs along with their characteristics. it combines biology and chemistry with statistics, computer science and mathematics. analysis done in chemoinformatics has focus on very big type of databases like as macromolecular structure, compound libraries and 3 - dimensional chemical databases. 3. pharmacophore mapping in this type of screening, the approach is to identify lead compounds against target. pharmacophore can be described as a 3 - dimensional arrangement of the functional groups in the molecular framework which is important for the binding of an active site or macromolecule. 4. quantitative structure activity relationship ( qsar ) it refers to a method which relates structural features of a molecule to any biological activity in the quantitative term. this qsar analysis is used to make the linear bond between selected structural features in series of any related molecule and their known activity level. qualities of a lead a compound to be considered as a lead should possess following qualities : - potency : it should have the potency or the ability to modulate any target with high degree of effectiveness. - solubility : it should have high solubility in water. - metabolic stability : the compound should be metabolically stable - lipophilicity : it should possess a mild lipophilicity which would help it to penetrate through plasma membrane. - toxicity : it must be less toxic. lead optimization and clinical trials after assessing initial candidate drug ( s ) for the quality, they are optimized and then after registration of that compound as investigational new drug