##g. for these cow - calf operators, triticale, with its remarkable early season growth rate of up to 2 ” of leaf mass per day, is the annual forage of choice. while schmidt has used oats and triticale separately, it has only been recently that he has tried them together. “ i am sold on the concept, ” he says. “ it offers me the kind of flexibility i need to run a profitable cattle operation in today ' s production environment. ” variety selection is a key to making the crop combination work, points out mike wood, progene research agronomist. “ deciding which oats and triticales work together isn ' t as simple as it might look, ” he says. “ you can take two varieties that perform very well individually, but in a mix they clash. ” for example, wood says schmidt needed a very aggressive oat variety that can be grazed as early as possible in fall, and a slower - to - establish triticale that shows only moderate fall growth but shines in late winter after it breaks dormancy. for more on growing oats and triticale together, call progene at 509 - 488 - 3977 or email email @ example. com.


sep 1 - 7 is national nutrition week “ to eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art. ” there is no one right way to cook a particular food. however, certain techniques can help you achieve a desired result such as minimizing nutrient loss or enhancing flavour without adding a lot of fat 1. keep fats to a minimum. baking is a great low fat cooking method. baking on a rack or draining the fat after baking helps make meat, poultry, and fish even lower in fat. steam cooking is another non - fat method. it also minimizes nutrient loss. for example, steamed vegetables generally retain more vitamin c than boiled vegetables. if you need to use oil, try cooking sprays or apply oil with a pastry brush. cook in liquids ( such as stock, lemon juice, fruit juice, vinegar or water ) instead of oil. when a recipe calls for cream as a thickener, use low fat substitutes like yogurt, soymilk, or corn - starch instead. use non - stick cookware. 2. retain the nutrients blanch vegetables rather than peel them, as many nutrients are found close to the skin. microwave or steam vegetables instead of boiling them. if you like to boil vegetables, retain the vitamin - rich water to use as a stock and do not over boil. include more stir - fry recipes in your diet. stir - fried vegetables are cooked quickly to retain their crunch ( and associated nutrients ). 3. when cooking with grains browning uncooked rice before adding water can destroy a lot of the thiamine ( vitamin b1 ) content. use whole grains to increase the fibre content. 4. try cutting out salt add a splash of olive oil or lemon juice close to the end of cooking time or to cooked vegetables – it can enhance flavours in the same way as salt. choose fresh or frozen vegetables, since canned and pickled vegetables tend to be packaged with salt. limit your consumption of salty processed meats such as salami, ham, beef, bacon, and smoked salmon. avoid salty processed foods such as flavoured instant pasta, canned or dehydrated soup mixes, chips and salted nuts. margarine, butter and most cheeses are very high in salt so limit your intake or choose lower salt varieties. use herbs, spices and vinegar or lemon juice to add extra zing to your recipe and reduce the need for salt. 5. when preparing fruits and vegetables avoid long exposure to heat. fresh or frozen vegetables can be cooked by several


by alan mozes monday, aug. 13 ( healthday news ) - - researchers report they have developed in mice what they believe might one day become a breakthrough for humans : a retinal prosthesis that could restore near - normal sight to those who have lost their vision. that would be a welcome development for the roughly 25 million people worldwide who are blind because of retinal disease, most notably macular degeneration. the notion of using prosthetics to combat blindness is not new, with prior efforts involving retinal electrode implantation and / or gene therapy restoring a limited ability to pick out spots and rough edges of light. the current effort takes matters to a new level. the scientists fashioned a prosthetic system packed with computer chips that replicate the " neural impulse codes " the eye uses to transmit light signals to the brain. " this is a unique approach that hasn ' t really been explored before, and we ' re really very excited about it, " said study author sheila nirenberg, a professor and computational neuroscientist in the department of physiology and biophysics at weill medical college of cornell university in new york city. " i ' ve actually been working on this for 10 years. and suddenly, after a lot of work, i knew immediately that i could make a prosthetic that would work, by making one that could take in images and process them into a code that the brain can understand. " nirenberg and her co - author chethan pandarinath ( a former cornell graduate student now conducting postdoctoral research at stanford university school of medicine ) report their work in the aug. 14 issue of proceedings of the national academy of sciences. their efforts were funded by the u. s. national institutes of health and cornell university ' s institute for computational biomedicine. the study authors explained that retinal diseases destroy the light - catching photoreceptor cells on the retina ' s surface. without those, the eye cannot convert light into neural signals that can be sent to the brain. however, most of these patients retain the use of their retina ' s " output cells " - - called ganglion cells - - whose job it is to actually send these impulses to the brain. the goal, therefore, would be to jumpstart these ganglion cells by using a light - catching device that could produce critical neural signaling. but past efforts to implant electrodes directly into the eye have only achieved a small degree of ganglion stimulation, and alternate strategies


, would be to jumpstart these ganglion cells by using a light - catching device that could produce critical neural signaling. but past efforts to implant electrodes directly into the eye have only achieved a small degree of ganglion stimulation, and alternate strategies using gene therapy to insert light - sensitive proteins directly into the retina have also fallen short, the researchers said. nirenberg theorized that stimulation alone wasn ' t enough if the neural signals weren ' t exact replicas of those the brain receives from a healthy retina. " so, what we did is figure out this code, the right set of mathematical equations, " nirenberg explained. and by incorporating the code right into their prosthetic device ' s chip, she and pandarinath generated the kind of electrical and light impulses that the brain understood. the team also used gene therapy to hypersensitize the ganglion output cells and get them to deliver the visual message up the chain of command. behavioral tests were then conducted among blind mice given a code - outfitted retinal prosthetic and among those given a prosthetic that lacked the code in question. the result : the code group fared dramatically better on visual tracking than the non - code group, with the former able to distinguish images nearly as well as mice with healthy retinas. " now we hope to move on to human trials as soon as possible, " said nirenberg. " of course, we have to conduct standard safety studies before we get there. and i would say that we ' re looking at five to seven years before this is something that might be ready to go, in the best possible case. but we do hope to start clinical trials in the next one to two years. " results achieved in animal studies don ' t necessarily translate to humans. dr. alfred sommer, a professor of ophthalmology at johns hopkins university in baltimore and dean emeritus of hopkins ' bloomberg school of public health, urged caution about the findings. " this could be revolutionary, " he said. " but i doubt it. it ' s a very, very complicated business. and people have been working on it intensively and incrementally for the last 30 years. "


poisoning due to brown spider venom can be life threatening. the brown recluse is the brown spider associated with these poisonous bites. these bites are common, particularly in warmer climates. brown recluse spiders generally have a violin - shaped dark patch just behind their heads. their generic appearance means that it ’ s easy to believe that a spider is a brown recluse, even when that is not the case. as a result, brown recluse spider sightings are “ widely over - reported, ” according to the university of kentucky college of agriculture ( uk ). this does not mean that you should ignore a bite from a spider that looks like a brown recluse. these bites can be extremely serious. if you believe you have a brown recluse bite, seek medical attention right away. brown recluse spiders live in piles of rocks, leaves, logs, wood, and similar substances. if you handle one of these piles without wearing gloves, you might encounter a brown recluse spider. this spider may bite you if it feels threatened. brown recluse spiders sometimes live inside people ’ s homes. they typically hide during the day and come out at night to hunt for insects to eat. if they climb into your shoes or bed, they might bite you when they get stuck there. for example, if you put your foot into a shoe containing a brown recluse spider, or if you roll over on top of one who has climbed into your bed, you may get bitten. despite their danger to humans, brown recluse spiders are not aggressive. they will not seek you out to bite you. instead, they bite only when they feel threatened or trapped. you generally will not feel a brown recluse spider ’ s bite. if you do not actually see the spider biting you, you might not even realize that you have been bitten. several hours later, however, you will begin to develop symptoms. the area around the bite will start hurting, sometimes very badly. the bite or surrounding area may also become discolored. a blister will eventually form at the site of the bite. when this bursts, you will find a deep ulcer underneath. additional symptoms that you may develop include : as scary as a brown recluse bite may sound, these bites are not always terrible. according to the university of kentucky college of agriculture, most brown recluse bites can heal within several weeks even without major medical treatment ( uk ). however, because there is potential for adverse effects, you should


, these bites are not always terrible. according to the university of kentucky college of agriculture, most brown recluse bites can heal within several weeks even without major medical treatment ( uk ). however, because there is potential for adverse effects, you should always see your doctor if you have a brown recluse bite. in some cases, the ulcer caused by the bite can persist and grow for weeks. rarely, the bites can even lead to coma or death. this is more common in children, the elderly, and the severely ill than in healthy adults. there is no single course of treatment that all doctors use for a brown recluse bite. there is no effective antivenin ( antivenom ), as there is for black widows. if the wound that forms at the bite location becomes infected, you will receive antibiotics to combat that infection. depending on where the bite is located, your doctor might put the bitten limb into a sling or a brace. go to the emergency room or seek medical attention immediately if you have been bitten by a brown recluse spider. if possible, capture the spider and take it with you to help your doctor confirm the diagnosis. wash the bite as soon as you are bitten. on your way to the hospital, apply a cold pack for 10 minutes at a time. leave the pack off for 10 minutes between applications. this helps reduce inflammation and can slow the spread of the venom.


less is more with exercise, study says wednesday, aug. 29 ( healthday news ) - - thirty minutes of daily exercise achieves the same amount of weight loss as 60 minutes, according to a small new study. the research included 60 heavy but healthy danish men who exercised for either 30 or 60 minutes a day while wearing a heart - rate monitor and calorie counter. the training sessions were designed to generate a light sweat, but the participants were expected to boost the intensity and push themselves harder three times a week. the men who exercised 30 minutes a day lost an average of about 8 pounds over three months, compared with an average of 6 pounds for those who exercised 60 minutes a day. " participants exercising 30 minutes per day burned more calories than they should relative to the training program we set for them, " mads rosenkilde, a doctoral student in the biomedical sciences department at the university of copenhagen, said in a university news release. " we can see that exercising for a whole hour instead of a half does not provide any additional loss in either body weight or fat. " " the men who exercised the most lost too little relative to the energy they burned by running, biking or rowing, " rosenkilde added. " thirty minutes of concentrated exercise gives equally good results on the scale. " rosenkilde suggested that the surprising results may be due to the fact that doing just 30 minutes of exercise left participants with the desire and energy to do more physical activity after their required exercise sessions. in addition, it ' s likely that the men who did 60 minutes of exercise daily ate more and therefore lost slightly less weight than anticipated. the study was published online recently in the american journal of physiology. the u. s. national heart, lung, and blood institute offers a guide to physical activity. source : university of copenhagen, news release, aug. 23, 2012


( by jascap ) research - clinical trials for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia research trials are carried out to try to find new and better treatments for leukaemia. trials that are carried out on patients are known as clinical trials. clinical trials may be carried out to : - test new treatments, such as new chemotherapy drugs, gene therapy or - look at new combinations of existing treatments, or change the way they are given, to make them more effective or to reduce side effects - compare the effectiveness of drugs used to control symptoms - find out how cancer treatments work - see which treatments are the most cost - effective. trials are the only reliable way to find out if a different or new treatment is better than what is already available. taking part in a trial you may be asked to take part in a treatment research trial. there can be many benefits in doing this. trials help to improve knowledge about leukaemia and develop new treatments. you will also be carefully monitored during and after the study. usually, several hospitals around the country take part in these trials. bear in mind that some treatments that look promising at first are often later found not to be as good as existing treatments, or have side effects that outweigh the benefits. if you decide not to take part in a trial, your decision will be respected and you do not have to give a reason. there will be no change in the way you are treated by the hospital staff and you ' ll be offered the standard treatment for your situation. blood and tumour samples many blood and bone marrow samples may be taken to help make the right diagnosis. you may be asked for your permission to use some of your samples for research. if you ' re taking part in a trial you may also be asked to give other samples which may be frozen and stored for future use when new research techniques become available. these samples will have your name removed from them so you can ' t be identified. the research may be carried out at the hospital where you are treated, or at another one. this type of research takes a long time, and results may not be available for many years. the samples will, however, be used to increase knowledge about the causes of leukaemia and its treatment. this research will, hopefully, improve the outlook for future patients.


pronounced : sub - dur - al hee - ma - toe - ma a hematoma is a collection of blood. a subdural hematoma develops in the space between the brain and the skull. this pool of blood can put pressure on the brain and cause a range of symptoms. this can be serious and life - threatening injury. you will need to seek medical care. a subdural hematoma is most often caused by a head injury. the injury may be caused by traumas such as falls, car accidents, or physical abuse. factors that increase your risk of a subdural hematoma include : if you have any of these risk factors, tell your doctor. the blood may pool quickly or take some time to build up. this will affect how fast the symptoms develop. the subdural hematoma may be : after a head injury, a subdural hematoma may cause the following symptoms : seek medical care immediately if you have any of these symptoms after a head injury. your doctor will ask about your symptoms and medical history. a physical exam will be done. you may also be referred to a specialist for additional testing. your doctor may need pictures of the brain and skull. this may be done with : tests to assess brain function may include : blood tests may also be done to look for signs of bleeding. talk with your doctor about the best treatment plan for you. treatment will depend on the size and severity of the hematoma. it will also be based on your specific symptoms. treatment options include the following : a minor injury with little or no symptoms may not need treatment. your doctor may simply ask that you watch for any new symptoms. it can take days and weeks for some symptoms to develop. these tests assess how well your brain is working. the tests may be repeated while you recover to help your doctor determine : medication may be given to relieve symptoms. some medications may include : surgery may be needed to relieve pressure on the brain. surgical procedures that may be considered include : to help reduce your chance of head injury, take these steps : american academy of neurology american academy of otolaryngology, head and neck surgery brain injury association of america the brain injury association of canada ontario brain injury association chronic and subacute subdural hematoma. barnabas health website. available at : http : / / www. barnaba.... accessed november 12, 2012. servadei f, compagnone c, sahuquillo


heladena sect. hassleria nied., arbeiten bot. inst. konigl. lyceum hosianum braunsberg 5 : 15. 1914. — type : h. hassleriana nied. [ c. chlorocarpus ( adr. juss. ) w. r. anderson ]. woody vines. petiole eglandular or bearing 2 – 4 ( – 6 ) small glands ; lamina eglandular or bearing 2 – many tiny glands on or embedded in margin ; stipules very small, triangular, borne on stem between petioles or beside base of petiole, caducous or persistent. inflorescences axillary or terminal, pseudoracemes or umbels or panicles of pseudoracemes or umbels, the flowers mostly decussate ; bracts and bracteoles small, eglandular, persistent ; floriferous peduncle often well developed, reduced or lacking in some populations. sepals leaving petals exposed during enlargement of bud, appressed in anthesis, all 5 eglandular or the lateral 4 bearing large paired abaxial glands ; corolla bilaterally symmetrical, the posterior petal erect and ± different from the spreading lateral 4 ; petals yellow, abaxially densely sericeous on claw and limb except near margin, adaxially glabrous ; androecium radially or bilaterally symmetrical ; stamens 10, all fertile ; filaments connate in proximal 1 / 4 – 1 / 2, sometimes subequal but mostly of differing lengths, often longest opposite anterior sepal and shortest opposite posterior petal, the 2 opposite posterior - lateral petals often stouter than others ; anthers alike or subequal, glabrous or sparsely hairy ; pollen globally symmetrical, with colpi not perpendicular to the equatorial plane and pores variously distributed ; receptacle glabrous on both sides of stamens ; gynoecium radially symmetrical, comprising 3 carpels, all fertile, connate their whole length in ovary ; styles 3, erect and straight or somewhat bowed or spreading, alike, dorsally rounded to short - apiculate or short - hooked and laterally compressed or terete at apex, the stigma internal. fruit dry, breaking apart into samaras separating from a high pyramidal torus ; samara butterfly - shaped with lateral wings dominant, chartaceous with


##te or short - hooked and laterally compressed or terete at apex, the stigma internal. fruit dry, breaking apart into samaras separating from a high pyramidal torus ; samara butterfly - shaped with lateral wings dominant, chartaceous with many fine parallel veins, cleft to nut at base and apex, the margin sinuate to coarsely dentate ; dorsal wing ( s ) lacking or, if developed, small, distinct at base and apex ; ventral areole ovate to linear ; samara reduced or highly modified in some populations of c. sinemariensis ; carpophore absent. chromosome number unknown. six species of mexico, central america, the lesser antilles, and south america. the species of carolus grow in diverse habitats, including wet forests, dry forests, second - growth woods, thickets in dry, often rocky, places, and savannahs. [ map ] — regional key to genera : caribbean, central america. carolus is distinguished by its interpetiolar stipules, marginal leaf glands, densely sericeous yellow petals, and butterfly - shaped samaras, with the lateral wings chartaceous and containing many fine parallel veins. four of the six species ( c. anderssonii, c. chasei, c. chlorocarpus, and c. sinemariensis ) are included in the latest sampling of dna sequences ( davis & anderson, 2010 [ pdf ] ), and the bootstrap support for the genus is 100 %. because they both have interpetiolar stipules and hairy yellow petals, this genus can be confused with amorimia, but that genus differs in having its leaf glands usually in the abaxial surface between the midrib and the margin, and in its large spreading gland - bearing bracts. reference : w. r. anderson ( 2006b, pp. 186 – 189 ), partial revision : description of genus, key to species, nomenclature of species, but no descriptions of species ( carolus only : pdf ; entire paper : pdf ) ; unpublished notes on species of carolus.


i don ' t believe there is a separate name for either type of siege, they are both considered simply a siege. the whole point of a siege in general is to overtake the castle, and as you indicated, there are different means for going about doing this. the considerations for choosing one over the other ultimately comes down to a basic function of time and resources. if you have plenty of resources ( food, supplies, etc. ) and are willing to wait them out, then a siege of starvation might be a viable option. this would ultimately resort in the lowest loss of life. the strategy is to simply outlast the defenders, who will have no way of replenishing their supplies because the attackers would have cut them off. the disadvantage of this is that it meant that you had to tie up a considerable number of men to keep the castle under siege. in the middle ages, a good portion of your army would have been peasants, and they were very likely to get bored and frustrated and longing for home, so this would be a risky tactic. in addition to that, it would become quite costly to keep paying for the supplies to provide for these troops, and before long the cost would become unreasonable. the alternative, therefore, was to attack the castle by any means available to try to get it to fall. this would usually consist of a concentrated assault on one particular wall in an effort to either weaken the defenses there or overun them. the ultimate objective would be to breach the castle and either force the occupanst to surrender or simply kill them and be done with it. this option was much more common because it was more expedient. since each involves dramatically different conditions, its hard to say one would be easier to defend against than the other. the first option i listed would likely resort in a lower loss of life, so it might be preferred from a defensive position. as far as defending against an all out attack, it would really depend on what kind of castle you have and what resources you have within it. some castles would be easy to defend because they were built to last, while others were mostly built for show, and therefore not easily defended.


purpose and objectives this is an introductory course that will explore the foundation and design of american political system. the course will cover several broad issues, the institutional design of american government, the nature and location of power in the united states, the characteristics and limits of democracy, and the relationship between citizens and their government. the objective of this course is to assist students in developing a better understanding of some basic political issues ; what democratic government is, how it operates, why it operates as it does, and what effects it has on society. ultimately, the objective is for students to become more informed and active participants in the american political system. recommended : students are encouraged to keep up with current events by regularly monitoring the news in the daily newspapers like the new york times, the los angeles times and the washington post. many of these newspapers are available online or can be found on the internet, please check with the college library. course materials and readings janda, kenneth, jeffrey m. berry, jerry goldman, and kevin w. hula, 2008 the challenge of democracy, ( houghton mifflin ) berman larry, & bruce allen murphy, 6th edition approaching democracy, ( pearsonprentice hall ) this course is divided into three sections part 1 : foundations of american government and federalism part 2 : rights, liberties, and ideology, political participation, campaigns and elections part 3 : governmental institutions and american foreign policy, and californian politics. i will lecture for a portion of each class, however, a part of each class will be dedicated to discussion and debate. you are encouraged to participate actively in these discussions. grading and evaluation grades in the class will be based on 2 midterms and one final. the midterms will contain multiple choice questions and short identification questions about the major issues, concepts and examples covered in the relevant course sessions and readings. they are geared towards testing your factual knowledge about the relevant sections of the course. for the final you will be required to integrate and apply the knowledge you have acquired throughout the course. it will contain a choice of two essay questions, and a choice of short essay or identification questions. arrive on time for all exams or risk missing them. any student arriving more than 15 minutes after the start time for the exam will not be permitted to take it. you may not leave the classroom unless your exam has been turned in. please make sure that your have your own ‘ bluebook ’ scantron, pencils, pens etc before beginning the exam or quiz. finals week begins dec 9th - 15th 2008. please check


not leave the classroom unless your exam has been turned in. please make sure that your have your own ‘ bluebook ’ scantron, pencils, pens etc before beginning the exam or quiz. finals week begins dec 9th - 15th 2008. please check the website for the scheduled exam time for your particular class. students are expected to take examinations at the regularly scheduled times. prior permission ( before the exam ) from the instructor or certification of ill health by a physician, these are the only conditions under which a make - up examination will be given. failure to take an examination results in a zero for that item. makeups or early exams are not normally given. please inform the instructor as early as possible if there are any scheduling conflicts extra credit will not be awarded for this class. as with any class, regular attendance and reading the assigned materials before class is essential. exams will cover both the assigned reading material as well as the lectures. any student arriving for class more than 10 minutes after the posted start time will not be permitted in class that session. i will give a grace period for this requirement for the first two weeks of the beginning of the semester. you should come to class prepared and ready to ask questions or comment on the themes covered in a particular lecture. no cell phones, text messengers etc at any time while class is in session – no exceptions. repeat offenders will be asked to leave class. the deadline for students who wish to drop this course and avoid receiving a “ w ” is september 14th 2008. the deadline for students wishing to drop this course with faculty approval is october 19th 2008. you must be earning a “ c ” or better. students are responsible for understanding the smc withdrawal policy and applicable deadlines. web site - http : / / www. smc. edu / admissions honor code and code of academic conduct the smc honor code and code of academic integrity, printed in the general catalog, remind students of their responsibility to behave honestly and ethically. it is your responsibility to familiarize yourself with these codes. please be extremely careful not engage in any behavior that could even be construed as cheating. during an exam, talking to another student, looking at another student ' s paper, using cheat notes, cell phone, etc. is not permitted. student with disabilities i am happy to make academic adjustments for students with documented disabilities. please contact the center for students with disabilities if this applies to you. the center for students with disabilities is located in room 101 of the admission / student services complex, located on the north


the specifications for http, rfc 2616, state in 14. 36 the referer [ sic ] request - header field allows the client to specify, for the server ' s benefit, the address ( uri ) of the resource from which the request - uri was obtained ( the " referrer ", although the header field is misspelled. ) the referer request - header allows... what is the indexing service? microsoft indexing service is a service that provides a means of quickly searching for files on the machine. the most familiar usage of the service is on web servers, where it provides the functionality behind site searches. it is built into windows 2000 and 2003. it provides a straightforward way to index and search your web site. setting up the indexing service is explained at windowswebsolutions. com and will not be covered here. connecting to the indexing service the indexing service exposes itself to the developer as as ado. net provider msidxs with the data source equal to the... what is session state? a session is defined as the period of time that a unique user interacts with a web application. session state is a collection of objects, tied to a session are stored on a server. why use sql? once you start running multiple web servers for the same web site, the default asp. net session state, inproc, is no longer useful, as you cannot guarantee that each page request goes to the same server. it becomes necessary to have a central state store that every web server accesses. sql server offers you centralized storage of a session state in a web... hard coding passwords into your application or your web site is a bad thing. microsoft sql has the ability to use " trusted connections " to authenticate your database connection against your login name, so no passwords are ever sent to sql server, just your login name and an authentication token. but once you come...


before schwarzenegger became the governor of california, he was known to don a terminator costume every now and then and assume super robotic powers in a few movies of the same name. what if humans today could virtually see what arnold ' s fictional character saw? babak avir parviztoday, seeing the real world accompanied by augmented data superimposed on a visual field is no longer reserved for cyborg ' s only. according to babak avir parviz, innovation associate professor at the university of washington, he and his students are already producing such devices in small batches in their laboratory. called " a twinkle in the eye, " these lenses have been fabricated with an led, a small radio chip and an antenna. the unit is powered wirelessly by the rf electrical signal and represents the start of research that could eventually lead to screens mounted onto contact lenses inside your eyes. twinkle in the eye those screens will be transparent and will overlay information onto the real world, like we are now seeing in augmented reality iphone applications. the lenses are being tested in rabbits and are currently suitable for up to twenty minutes of wear. presently, they contain only one led display but will eventually include hundreds of leds, which will form images in front of the eye, such as words, charts, photographs and other components of augmented reality. with ar technology moving at lighting speed, it looks like once this lens technology is perfected, we will no longer need smartphones any longer, as augmented reality chips will eventually be able to be implanted into our eyes and ears, making humans the extension of their own reality.


nitrates in drinking water pose serious health problems, but a new low - tech solution from israel is coming to the rescue. rainstorms wash away what nature can ’ t clean up, but this often comes at a price. runoff from agricultural fertilizers, animal waste and human sewage are poisoning wells and aquifers with nitrates. these compounds cause harmful algae blooms and pose health risks for pregnant women and formula - fed newborns. water companies currently deal with the problem in a very rudimentary way because getting the nitrates out by reverse osmosis is too expensive. they simply dilute the nitrate - laden water, explain professors amos nussinovitch and jaap van rijn from the hebrew university of jerusalem. the two scientists have developed a novel low - tech solution to take nitrates out of water in a cost - effective, environmentally friendly and non - toxic way. nussinovitch, an expert in biological carriers, and van rijn, a specialist in bacteria, paired up to develop a bio - filter composed of tiny styrofoam - like white beads that carry nitrate - eating bacteria. when added to a water well, aquifer or aquarium, the bio - filter does its job effectively and cheaply. showcased at watec now in the prototype stage, the product is being tested to see how well it can work in larger bodies of water. it is being developed commercially by the technology transfer arm of hebrew university, yissum, and was launched at the watec water conference in tel aviv in november. water infrastructure companies everywhere are paying attention. nitrates are an increasing problem for both the developed and developing world. as our populations grow, so does the need for fertilizers, sewage reservoirs and animals for food. nitrate is odorless, tasteless and colorless, so only regular testing of wells and aquifers can detect its presence. when they drink nitrate - laden water in formula, newborns ’ digestive systems respond by producing high levels of bacteria, leading to the potentially fatal blue baby syndrome as blood oxygen decreases. van rijn, the same man behind an aquaculture technology called grow fish anywhere for fish farming in urban environments, says that this new technology is meant for drinking water and aquarium water, which need to be extremely clean. a wellspring of opportunities the beads work so that “ water goes through a matrix and comes out clean, ” he tells israel21c. “ for aquaria there are almost no solutions – or the ones that exist are very


teaching on topic : logarithms i arrived in a bad spot. i do not think i properly lined up my ducks before reaching logarithms. and now i ’ m sort of stuck. the book, my text, uses “ inverse functions ” as the segue. and i ’ ve walked right up to that line, and realized i would have preferred to approach from another side. blame the book. blame the over - packed curriculum. blame the teacher ’ s poor planning ( well, no, please don ’ t ). i ’ m not so wild about teaching at almost the same time as teaching what a log is. but maybe i ’ m wrong. could we introduce logs back when we work with exponents in algebra i? probably too abstract? so while i ’ m not so wild about where i ’ ve ended up, i ’ m not sure i have or had a real alternative. i will use part of the idea from kate ( t ) ’ s neat intro log lesson. and i will make them look like a puzzle. students like puzzles. and i will separately and carefully get them to graph and its inverse, without clearly making the links. and if all goes well, one kid, then another, will notice the links, the idea will be shared around, and all will be well with the world … we ’ ll see. and if i don ’ t report back …


— — — — previous chapter : what is a contract? — — — — disputes and contingencies so, contracts are legal documents that obligate the signers to particular courses of actions in the event of enumerated contingencies. what about disagreements? after all, as a legal document, it ’ s always possible contract could wind up in court – one of the reasons that disputes are hell, particularly if not tended to immediately. disputes in contractual matters usually arise for one of two reasons : either one party failed to live up to their obligations specified in the contract, or the two parties disagree about what the provisions in the contract mean. the former case isn ’ t something you can do anything about, other than making sure you live up to the contracts you sign your name to, and taking legal action against those who fail to live up to their end of the deal if they fail to respond to more civil communication ( when it ’ s worth the bother to you – lawsuits are a pain in the ass ). the latter case is a nightmare. the possibility of a nasty dispute caused by an honest misunderstanding is a major reason for the proverb “ never do business with friends. ” this kind of dispute causes drama, factionalism, and fractured relationships and communities. it happens because two people talk through a deal and agree on the terms, but they figure that they ’ re doing a trade with a friend, so there are some unspoken - but - well - understood conditions to the deal. for example, if george is having a bad week and blows a deadline with fred, he figures fred will understand. after all, fred is a friend, and george would be similarly understanding if the situation were reversed. contingencies often wind up ruling the deal. a publishing contract, for example, does not obligate a publisher to publish your book, it only grants them the right to do so under very specific circumstances. publishers can, and do, kill books after part or all of an advance has been paid, for contingent reasons. they may be dissatisfied with the final manuscript, their staff might turn over, or their offices in the world trade center could collapse during business hours ( this is the reason that scott sigler wound up podcasting his work. his publisher was in one of those towers, and the parent company decided not to continue the imprint. all the authors were left hanging, with no recourse but their reversion clauses ). it ’ s bad enough when contingencies ruin a deal legitimately, but things


towers, and the parent company decided not to continue the imprint. all the authors were left hanging, with no recourse but their reversion clauses ). it ’ s bad enough when contingencies ruin a deal legitimately, but things can get worse. boilerplate contracts often contain contingency clauses that are obfuscatory, or that appear to say one thing but, due to a later sentence, mean another thing entirely. worse still are contracts where the contingencies and specific details of the deal don ’ t make it into the contract at all. this last case is pretty common in the world of freelancing, particularly among friends. the contingencies and fine details are discussed verbally, but never made part of the inked contract. later on, when disputes arise, each party remembers a version of events that is most convenient to them. this can happen even when both parties are entirely honest, when they care about the relationship, and when they share similar goals for the project. it ’ s human nature to shade memories to conform to bias, and the memories themselves are paraphrases of the past, not quotations from it. it ’ s a limitation of our brains that we have to cope with. for example, let ’ s say that you and i discuss a delivery date for a graphic design project, and it ’ s a last minute job. it ’ s friday, and you need the project by tuesday, but i need certain materials to do the job. let ’ s say i need a two - day lead time, and i say so verbally. you might hear “ two days ” and forget the part where i say “ once i receive the materials, ” so you might start your mental stopwatch from the time you mail the supplies, not the time i receive them. you ’ re more likely to do this if you ’ re someone who only hires graphic designers occasionally and you ’ ve never done a deal like this before. now, let ’ s say that the contract we sign has a 48hr clause, but it escapes my notice that the contract doesn ’ t specify which 48hrs we ’ re talking about. what ’ s likely to happen when the mail gets delayed due to inclement weather? of if the usual mailman is sick and misdelivers the package? what if the job is important enough that an unexpected delay could cost you thousands of dollars, or more? you see how easily problems can snowball from minor mistakes into friendship - ruining arguments?


mailman is sick and misdelivers the package? what if the job is important enough that an unexpected delay could cost you thousands of dollars, or more? you see how easily problems can snowball from minor mistakes into friendship - ruining arguments? protecting yourself and your partner from drama we see that verbal understandings – or worse, nonverbal understandings ( i. e. assumptions ) – make for fiascos. however, if you ’ re pedantic and specific in a contract it can leave you and your partner ( s ) feeling straightjacketed, mistrusted, and threatened ( because most people are intimidated by contracts and legal language ). so how much specificity is really necessary? is the amount different with a stranger vs. a friend? the woman who taught me contracts hammered into my head something that solves this impasse. she calls it the third cousins rule. it goes like this : let ’ s say your family and mine are both having family reunions in the same public park. it ’ s a perfectly pleasant afternoon until a meteor hits, killing everyone except for our third cousins, who were both not invited because they ’ re fairly stupid, annoying, or malicious. these third cousins inherit everything, and they have to complete the deal drawn up in our contract. they can ’ t ask us about verbal or unspoken understandings. they have only the contract to go on. obviously, they can only proceed if the contract is drawn up in such a way that they will be able to understand every part of the deal, and if the contract protects each of them from the other ’ s less - than - honorable intentions. of course, nothing like that happens in the real world. contracts are executed by the people who sign them … aren ’ t they? don ’ t i wish! that meteor strikes all the time. every time a company merges, or goes out of business, or management changes ; every time a freelancer gets sick, or folds ; every time a client goes bankrupt and his debts are adjudicated by the court, this situation happens. somebody ’ s unqualified third cousin inherits the mess. sometimes, the contract ends up in court in front of another kind of third cousin : a judge. the judge, who has no context except for the contract itself and whatever conflicting stories he hears from the parties to the contract, must decide what will happen to the deal. the third cousins rule means simply this : your contract should be as specific and all - inclusive as possible. it


context except for the contract itself and whatever conflicting stories he hears from the parties to the contract, must decide what will happen to the deal. the third cousins rule means simply this : your contract should be as specific and all - inclusive as possible. it should outline the basic structure of the deal, outline contingencies, pedantically spell out the niggling details, and be structured so that the average person can understand the plain meaning of the deal without consulting a lawyer ( this last part isn ’ t always possible, but it is nonetheless something to strive for ). above all, it should have the minimum possible level of ambiguity. following the third cousins rule doesn ’ t just help you out in court, it can help keep your relationship with your business partner from deteriorating when a minor dispute arises. if you ’ ve negotiated and signed a contract that conforms to the third cousins rule, the chances are very good that you will be able to pull the contract out, read it through together, and find the resolution to your dispute in its pages in plain language. it also ensures that everyone is signing the same deal in their minds, as well as on paper. everyone is, so to speak, on the same page. minimizing confusion is a simple and vastly underutilized way of maximizing good will – and it also shows respect for the other party. best of all, the third cousins rule provides maximal protection without impugnment. by explaining that you have to protect yourself from your partner ’ s third cousin in the event of death, catastrophe, or hostile takeover, and that he should seek to protect himself in the same measure, you establish a base for negotiation that defuses a great deal of the adversarial nature of negotiations. if your partner thinks such things are silly to worry about, remind him that more people die in car accidents every year than were killed in the entire vietnam war. if you ’ re freelancing long enough, you will do business with someone who dies, or someone whose company is bought out or goes bankrupt, before the contract term finishes. you should be protected in that eventuality. so should your prospective partner. next time, we ’ ll explore the narrowness principle.


the main importance of anti - combined policy ( antimonopoly policy ) is ideas to prevent industrial concentration or monopolization, to achieve locative efficiency and to promote competition. even if many economists say that these are the main aims of this policy some of them may argue that anti - combined policies aren ’ t so effective and their goals aren ’ t always achieved. the main important anti - monopolistic idea is that they produce less output and charge higher prices than firms from competitive market system. in pure competition firms produce output quantity where p = mc. this equation is so important because p represents benefit that society gains from extra unit of output, while mc is the cost that society is ready to pay for that extra unit. when this equation occurs ( p = mc ) society doesn ’ t gain any higher total benefit by producing one more or one less unit of output. however, a monopolist doesn ’ t maximize profit by equating marginal benefit ( not price ) with marginal cost. in this case, there is an under allocation of resources to this monopolized products, so that economic well - being of society is less than it would be with greater competition. it is said that in nineteenth century the market forces in monopolized industries don ’ t provide sufficient control over prices to protect consumers, achieve locative efficiency and get a fair competition. so there were two methods by which a government could control these market forces : - regulatory agencies : in the markets where products or producing technology creates a natural monopoly, the government organizes public regulatory agencies that control economic behavior. - anti - combined laws : in some kinds of market systems this control took form of anti - combined or anti - monopoly legislation that prevents the growth and development of a monopoly. anti - combined legislation depends on corporate size and concentration. that ’ s why it ’ s important to examine all merger types. there are three basic merger types. let ’ s examine and describe them carefully bellow : - a horizontal merger represents a merger between competitors that sell similar products in the market. - a vertical merger is a merger between some firms at different stages of production process. an example can be a merger between a firm that produces glass and another that produces plastic so that they may create windows that are sound - proof. another example is that pepsi, which is a supplier of soft drinks, and pizza hut, so that they supply food and drinks for these fast - food firms. - a conglomerate merger may be defined as any merger that isn ’ t horizontal or vertical ; it is


booster seats are vehicle safety seats for kids who have outgrown forward - facing or convertible car seats but are still too small to be properly restrained by a vehicle ' s seatbelts. many states have laws requiring booster seats for kids up to 8 years old and 80 pounds ( 37 kilograms ), or 4 feet 9 inches ( about 150 centimeters ) tall. guidelines for choosing a booster seat choose a seat with a label that states that it meets or exceeds federal motor vehicle safety standard 213. accept a used seat with caution. never use a seat that ' s more than 6 years old or one that was in a crash ( even if it looks ok, it could be structurally unsound ). avoid seats that are missing parts or are not labeled with the manufacture date and model number ( you ' ll have no way to know about recalls ), or do not come with an instruction manual. if you have any doubts about a seat ' s history, or if it is cracked or shows signs of wear and tear, don ' t use it. if you accept a used seat, contact the manufacturer for recommendations on how long the seat can safely be used and to find out if it ' s ever been recalled. recalls are quite common, and the manufacturer might be able to provide you with a replacement part or new model. types of booster seats booster seats come in many styles. belt - positioning boosters raise kids to a height where they can safely use the car ' s lap and shoulder belts. they come in high - back or backless models : high - back boosters are recommended when the car has low seat backs, and backless boosters may be used if a child ' s head is supported up to the top of the ears by the vehicle ' s back seat or head support. combination seats can be used with harnesses as forward - facing safety seats or as belt - positioning booster seats when harnesses are removed. height and weight limits for different combination seats may vary, so it ’ s best to check the owner ’ s manual for guidance. shield boosters ( with no back and a shield tray in front of the child ) were originally designed for cars with lap - only belts, but they do not provide adequate upper - body protection and therefore are no longer recommended. if your car doesn ' t have shoulder belts in the back seat, consider having them installed by the dealer. if that ' s not possible, the american academy of pediatrics ( aap ) recommends keeping kids in a convertible or forward - facing seat with a full harness


' t have shoulder belts in the back seat, consider having them installed by the dealer. if that ' s not possible, the american academy of pediatrics ( aap ) recommends keeping kids in a convertible or forward - facing seat with a full harness until an appropriate booster seat can be obtained. prior to installing booster seat, read the product manual thoroughly. booster seats should be placed forward - facing in the back seat, ideally in the middle of the back seat where there is a lap and shoulder belt. read the owner ' s manual for your car to find out how to use your car ' s seatbelts with a safety seat. be sure to check the positioning of the safety seat before each use. how to secure your child ' s seatbelt : read the entire booster seat manual. make sure the lap belt is low and tight across your child ' s hips. the shoulder belt should lay flat and snug across a child ' s shoulder, staying clear of the neck and face. shoulder and lap belts should always lie flat, never twisted. kids this age can begin to understand the importance of buckling up and may want to buckle themselves in. be sure to check their seatbelts and offer praise when they voluntarily put them on. when kids outgrow booster seats kids can stop using a booster seat when they ' re big enough to use the vehicle ' s lap and shoulder belts while sitting with their back against the vehicle ' s seat back with their knees bent over the edge of the seat without slouching. the lap belt should rest low, on top of the thighs, and the shoulder belt should lie comfortably across the middle of the chest. kids should be able to remain in this position throughout the entire trip. this usually happens when a child reaches a height of 4 feet 9 inches ( about 150 centimeters ) and is between 8 and 12 years old. remember, the shoulder strap of the seatbelt should never be fastened behind a child ' s back or under his or her arm. and you should never buckle two kids ( or an adult and a child ) under one seatbelt — a crash could cause their heads to collide. if you frequently carpool or have other kids in your car, it ' s wise to have an extra booster seat handy, especially if you ' re unsure about whether a child meets the height requirements. it ' s always better to be safe than to let a child who isn ' t tall enough ride with just a seatbelt. when combined with safety belts, air bags protect adults and teens from


re unsure about whether a child meets the height requirements. it ' s always better to be safe than to let a child who isn ' t tall enough ride with just a seatbelt. when combined with safety belts, air bags protect adults and teens from injury during a collision. they have saved lives and prevented many serious injuries. but young children can be injured or even killed if they are riding in the front passenger seat when an air bag opens. air bags were designed with adults in mind : they must open with great force ( up to 200 miles per hour ) to protect an average - sized, 165 - pound ( 75 - kilogram ) male from injury. while this force is appropriate for adults and bigger kids, it can be dangerous for small kids, possibly resulting in head and neck injuries. protect kids from air - bag injury by following these rules : booster seats should be placed in the back seat. if you have no choice and must place it in the front ( that is, if your car is a two - seater ), push the passenger seat as far back as it will go. a law passed in 1995 allows car manufacturers to install a manual cut - off switch that temporarily disables a passenger - side air bag. as recommended by national highway traffic safety administration, if you must place a child in a booster seat in the front seat and your car has this cut - off switch, disable the air bag for the duration of the ride. be sure to switch the air bag back on when you remove the booster seat. all kids under 13 years of age should always ride in the back seat, and in the middle of the back seat whenever possible. all passengers must have their seatbelts buckled.


your baby ' s development from this week until week 20, your baby will be growing rapidly — increasing in size from about 2 inches ( 5 cm ) to about 8 inches ( 20 cm ) from crown to rump. to accommodate all this growth, the blood vessels in the placenta are increasing in both size and number to provide the baby with more nutrients. facial development continues as the ears move toward their final position on the sides of the head. if you saw a picture of your baby now, you ' d think you had a genius on your hands — the baby ' s head accounts for about half of the body length! although your baby ' s reproductive organs are developing rapidly, the external genitals of boys and girls appear somewhat similar until the end of week 11. they will be clearly differentiated by week 14. nourishing your baby usually requires that you gain weight — and in most cases, the recommended weight gain is 25 to 35 pounds ( 11. 33 to 15. 87 kg ) over the course of the pregnancy. if you were overweight or underweight before pregnancy, your health care provider may have different recommendations for weight gain. your health care provider may offer you a " first trimester screening test " which combines ultrasound with a blood test to determine whether your baby is at risk for ( not whether your baby has ) specific chromosomal abnormalities, such as down syndrome. an abnormal result does not necessarily mean that your baby has a condition — but it may mean more testing is required. talk to your health care provider about the risks and advantages of this test.


you probably know a hurricane is a large, powerful storm that can cause a lot of rain and wind. everyone pays attention to hurricanes because they can be dangerous. some hurricanes come and go and really don ' t cause much more trouble than a bad thunderstorm. others may damage homes and cause some flooding that goes away on its own. you might remember that hurricane katrina was unusually strong and caused many more problems than most hurricanes. could it happen to me? you might wonder if a big hurricane could happen where you live. hurricanes are always a concern, especially for people who live near a coast. when a hurricane is on the way, weather forecasters can predict which areas will be affected. based on that, cities and states can tell people to evacuate — to move out of the storm ' s way until it ' s over. knowing that a hurricane is coming can be helpful, even if you won ' t be evacuating. your family will want to have extra water, food, and batteries for flashlights. why? because storms can knock down trees and that can knock down power lines. fixing the power so everyone has electricity again can take a while after a hurricane. a hurricane is a " natural disaster " maybe you ' ve heard people call a hurricane a " natural disaster, " but what does that mean? a natural disaster is when weather or nature causes big problems, like a hurricane, a tornado, an earthquake, or a tsunami. depending on where a person lives, there ' s more risk of certain kinds of natural disasters. but wherever you live, it ' s important to remember that there are lots of people looking out for you. in a bad storm or other crisis, this would include not only moms and dads, but also police officers, firefighters, doctors, nurses, and other people who are trained to handle emergencies.


i love dairy products but i hate milk ( except when it ' s on cereal ). i just can ' t stand the taste. is that bad? should i give it another try? the reason experts ( and parents! ) tell us to drink milk is because of its bone - building calcium and other nutrients. the good news is you can get these same nutrients from other dairy products, like yogurt or cheese. most teens need about three servings of dairy a day. so if you pour a cup of milk on your cereal, eat a cup of low - fat yogurt at lunch, and use about 1½ ounces of low - fat cheese in other foods, you ' re getting the recommended amount of dairy. one thing everyone needs to watch out for is that some dairy products ( usually the best - tasting ones, like ice cream! ) can be high in fat and sugar. regular cheese, including cream cheese, is high in fat and saturated fats. ( saturated fats can raise blood cholesterol levels and increase your risk for heart disease. ) even low - fat yogurt can have a lot of sugar if it ' s flavored with fruit and other ingredients. don ' t let this put you off dairy — just don ' t eat too much of these products. instead, choose low - fat or " lite " versions of dairy products, and those that are lower in sugar.


maya never expected her friend ' s cat to bite her. the cat had purred so nicely at first, so maya was startled when it sank its teeth into her leg. maya washed the bite area right away, and it didn ' t hurt that much. in fact, she had all but forgotten about it by the time it started becoming red and swollen the next day. her mom took her to the doctor, who announced that maya had developed cellulitis. what is cellulitis? the word cellulitis ( pronounced : sel - yuh - lye - tus ) literally means inflammation of the cells. it is a skin infection that involves areas of tissue just below the surface of the skin. cellulitis can affect any area of the body, but it ' s most common on exposed body parts, such as the face, arms, or lower legs. cellulitis can be caused by many different types of bacteria. the most common ones are group a streptococcus and staphylococcus aureus. cellulitis usually begins in an area of broken skin — like a cut, bite, or scratch. people who have body piercings may be susceptible to cellulitis because the hole where the skin is pierced provides an opportunity for bacteria to get beneath the surface of the skin more easily. but cellulitis can also start in areas where the skin hasn ' t been broken, especially in people with chronic conditions such as diabetes or who are taking medicines that affect the immune system. what are the symptoms of cellulitis? cellulitis begins as a small area of tenderness, swelling, warmth, and redness on the skin. as this area begins to spread, a person who has cellulitis may begin to feel ill and develop a fever and sometimes chills and sweats. swollen lymph nodes ( commonly called swollen glands ) are sometimes found near the area of infected skin. the incubation period ( the time it takes for the infection to start causing symptoms ) varies, depending on the type of bacteria that causes the cellulitis. for example, cellulitis caused by pasteurella multocida, one of the bacteria commonly found in animal bites, has a short incubation period — less than 24 hours after the bite has occurred. but cellulitis caused by other types of bacteria may have an incubation period of several days. the only way to prevent cellulitis is by protecting the skin from cuts, bruises, and scrapes. this isn


the bite has occurred. but cellulitis caused by other types of bacteria may have an incubation period of several days. the only way to prevent cellulitis is by protecting the skin from cuts, bruises, and scrapes. this isn ' t easy, especially if someone is active or likes to play sports. but you can protect yourself. use elbow and knee pads while skating ; wear a bike helmet when you ' re riding ; put on shin guards during soccer ; wear long pants and long - sleeved shirts while hiking in the woods ( this can also protect you from bug bites and stings ) ; and wear sandals on the beach. if you do get a scrape, wash the wound well with soap and water. apply an antibiotic ointment and cover the wound with an adhesive bandage or gauze. check wounds regularly for the first few days to see if any of the signs of cellulitis are developing. pay attention to new piercings, too. if they become red, swollen, and painful to the touch, have them checked out by a doctor. cellulitis is not contagious — you can ' t spread it to another person or catch it from someone else. should i call my doctor? call your doctor whenever any area of your skin becomes red, warm, and painful — with or without fever and chills. this is especially important if the area of skin is on the hands, feet, or face ( particularly ear, nose, or eyebrow piercings ) or if you have an illness or condition that suppresses the immune system. check with your doctor if you get a large cut or a deep puncture wound. because cellulitis can happen quickly after an animal bite, call your doctor if you ' ve been bitten, especially if the puncture wound is deep. not too many people get bitten by other people, of course, but human bites can cause skin infections, too! a doctor can usually diagnose cellulitis by examining the area of affected skin. sometimes the doctor may check for bacteria by taking blood samples, too. positive blood cultures mean that bacteria from your skin infection have spread into the bloodstream, which may cause septicemia ( blood poisoning ), a serious infection. if you have a mild case of cellulitis, the doctor will probably prescribe antibiotics ; these can usually cure cellulitis in 7 to 10 days. ( even if you feel better faster than that, it ' s important to take all of the antibiotics prescribed for you ; otherwise,


jake likes to visit his grandma fran on his way home from school. she always has special treats for him like his favorite homemade chocolate chip cookies, and she takes time to help him with his homework. lately, though, jake ' s noticed that grandma fran has trouble reading some of his assignments. when jake asked her if anything was wrong, grandma fran explained that she has cataracts — her glasses used to help, but now she needs to have an operation that will help her eyes see better again. an operation sounds scary, right? but many older people like jake ' s grandma develop cataracts as they age. cataract surgery is common and is almost always successful. let ' s find out more about it. what are cataracts? in your eye you have a lens, which is normally clear like a window that has just been cleaned. if that lens gets cloudy, it ' s called a cataract ( say : kah - tuh - rakt ). like a dirty window, a cloudy lens makes it difficult to see well. the person can still see, but it ' s blurry. the lens in your eye is made of protein and water. but as people get older, sometimes proteins in the lens stick together and cause cloudiness, or cataracts. at first, a person who has a cataract may not notice any difference in the way he or she sees. but over time, the person may find it harder to read and do other normal tasks. in fact, " cataract " means waterfall in latin. why? because, if you have one, it can be like seeing through a waterfall. cataracts almost always happen to people who are older than 50. this is the type of cataract jake ' s grandmother has. no need to worry — cataracts aren ' t contagious, which means you can ' t get one from someone who has them. in fact, most people will develop cataracts at some point in their lives as they get older. it ' s a normal aging process of the eye. rarely, kids are born with cataracts or develop them while they are babies or during childhood. when kids are born with cataracts, it may be because they inherited the cataracts ( through their genes ) or got them when they were still developing inside their mom before being born. whether the person is young or old, cataract surgery usually solves the problem. someone who has vision trouble should see an eye doctor


##aracts ( through their genes ) or got them when they were still developing inside their mom before being born. whether the person is young or old, cataract surgery usually solves the problem. someone who has vision trouble should see an eye doctor. the doctor can test the person ' s vision and examine the eyes. when a cataract first forms, a person may be able to see better by using stronger lighting and wearing glasses. eventually, though, surgery may become necessary. during cataract surgery, the cloudy lens is removed and usually replaced with a new plastic lens that a person can easily see through. after the surgery, a person may be able to see better or it may take a while for vision to improve. after surgery, the person will have to do a few special things, like use eyedrops. cataract surgery is one of the most common operations performed in the united states. more than 1 million surgeries are done every year. that ' s a lot of eyes! why do people get cataracts? like wrinkles on a person ' s skin, cataracts go along with getting older. cataracts might happen to someone who ' s 50 or they might not happen until someone is 70. certain factors make it more likely someone will develop cataracts. some are difficult to avoid, such as having diabetes and taking certain medications. but kids and adults can do something about other risk factors, such as smoking, poor nutrition, eye injuries, and unprotected exposure to the sun. in other words, don ' t smoke, eat healthy, protect your eyes from injury, and wear your sunglasses!


download this story as a pdf steve ember : welcome to the making of a nation – american history in voa special english. i ' m steve ember. this week in our series, we continue the story of the presidency of george w. bush. george w. bush began his second term - - and fifth year in office - - in january two thousand five. early in his first term, terrorists had carried out the worst attacks in united states history. president bush declared a war on terror and led the country into wars in afghanistan and iraq. in his second inaugural address, he promised to continue fighting to defeat terrorism and increase democracy around the world. george w. bush : " so it is the policy of the united states to seek and support the growth of democratic movements and institutions in every nation and culture, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world. " he also talked about his goals at home and what he called america ' s ideal of freedom. george w. bush : " in america ' s ideal of freedom, citizens find the dignity and security of economic independence instead of laboring on the edge of subsistence. this is the broader definition of liberty that motivated the homestead act, the social security act, and the gi bill of rights … “ we will widen the ownership of homes and businesses, retirement savings, and health insurance, preparing our people for the challenges of life in a free society. by making every citizen an agent of his or her own destiny, we will give our fellow americans greater freedom from want and fear and make our society more prosperous and just and equal. " the united states constitution limits presidents to two terms. presidential historian russell riley at the university of virginia ' s miller center says presidents traditionally use their first term to focus on their major goals for the country. second terms, he says, " tend to be unhappy times. " during his second term, richard nixon resigned over the attempt to hide political wrongdoing in the watergate case. bill clinton faced a trial in the senate over his attempt to hide a relationship with a young aide. but the first major problem of george bush ' s second term dropped from the sky. susan bennett : " you saw people on the rooftops. you saw people using claw hammers trying to break through their attic to get up onto their roof. that ' s why you had so many people who drowned. " in august of two thousand five, susan bennett received a phone call from her daughter, a television reporter in new orleans, louisiana. susan bennett : "


to get up onto their roof. that ' s why you had so many people who drowned. " in august of two thousand five, susan bennett received a phone call from her daughter, a television reporter in new orleans, louisiana. susan bennett : " she called, on a friday, and said, ' i think you need to come pick up my son, because there ' s a really big storm coming. ' " it was hurricane katrina - - one of the worst natural disasters in american history. along the gulf of mexico the hardest hit states were louisiana, mississippi and alabama. over one thousand eight hundred people died. property damage totaled more than seventy - five billion dollars. but katrina will be remembered mostly because of what happened in new orleans. ( storm sound and voice ) thousands of people gathered at the new orleans superdome sports center before the storm a day before the storm hit, officials had ordered everyone to leave the city. but thousands of people stayed. some chose not to leave. others were too poor, too old or too sick to go. then, the levees broke. ( music and flood sounds ) those flood barriers were supposed to protect the city. much of new orleans was built on land that lies below sea level. as katrina hit, more than eighty percent of the city flooded. in some areas, the water was six meters deep. many people who stayed were caught in the floods. officials struggled to get food, water and medicine to the survivors. the displaced included thousands of people who took shelter in the superdome, a big sports arena. out on the streets, lawless acts fed a sense of disorder and helplessness. woman : “ it ’ s disgusting and frustrating. and we are human beings, and they ’ re treating us like we ’ re criminals. ” group of people shouting : “ we want help! we want help! help us! ” susan bennett helped create an exhibit about hurricane katrina at the newseum, a museum of news in washington. susan bennett : " not only in this country, but also in newspapers across the world, you saw the same headline. it ranged from ' engulfed ' to ' our tsunami. ' ' chaos. ' and then it went to ' anarchy, ' ' national disgrace. ' " congress later found that officials at every level of government - - local, state and federal - - had failed in doing their jobs. president bush looks out the window of air force one over new orleans, to inspect the damage from hurricane katrina president bush flew over new orleans to inspect the damage.


of government - - local, state and federal - - had failed in doing their jobs. president bush looks out the window of air force one over new orleans, to inspect the damage from hurricane katrina president bush flew over new orleans to inspect the damage. a photograph showed him looking out the window of air force one at the ground below. russell riley at the university of virginia says the picture expressed what many people were thinking about the handling of the disaster. russell riley : " because of the ineffectiveness of the government response at the time, that image communicated to the american people that the president was remote. that he wasn ' t on the ground. that the best he could do was just look out the window of a passing plane. " in two thousand five a different kind of storm was hitting iraq. american and iraqi officials were struggling to create a democratic government. local militias were on the rise and attacking coalition forces and other iraqis. the violence also included al - qaida suicide bombings in iraq, which angered many iraqis. and there was international anger as the result of photos that showed american troops abusing iraqi prisoners. president bush had declared the end of major combat operations on may first, two thousand three. that was less than two months after the invasion. but the numbers of civilian and military deaths were growing. and, in the united states, surveys were showing that a growing number of americans thought going into iraq was a mistake. judith yaphe : " the bad news was we were uncomfortable with it, and we wanted to get out, and we could not understand how things could go so terribly wrong. " judith yaphe joined the national defense university after twenty years as a middle east expert at the central intelligence agency. judith yaphe : " that ' s where the lack of strategy and the mismanagement come in. but i think it ' s also true that, you know, americans just wanted to say, ' why are we in iraq? why are we in any of these places? ' because, historically speaking, it ' s not a role we ' ve been comfortable with. " she says by president bush ' s second term, few iraqis wanted to cooperate with the americans to make the country more secure. but president bush said american troops could not leave until iraqi forces replaced them. in two thousand six, an iraqi court sentenced the country ' s former leader to death. saddam hussein was hanged for crimes against humanity. but nothing else seemed to change - - violence and insurgent attacks continued. iraq seemed to


iraqi forces replaced them. in two thousand six, an iraqi court sentenced the country ' s former leader to death. saddam hussein was hanged for crimes against humanity. but nothing else seemed to change - - violence and insurgent attacks continued. iraq seemed to be on the edge of being torn apart by civil war. these soldiers from the 3rd stryker brigade combat team were among the troops deployed to iraq as part of ' the surge ' early the next year, president bush announced that he was sending more troops to iraq. he thought it would help stop the violence. george w. bush : “ these troops will work alongside iraqi units and be embedded in their formations. our troops will have a well - defined mission – to help iraqis clear and secure neighborhoods, to help them protect the local population, and to help ensure that the iraqi forces left behind are capable of providing the security that baghdad needs. ” the temporary increase of about thirty thousand troops came to be called " the surge. " in september of two thousand seven, the top commander in iraq reported to congress that the violence was decreasing. the surge may have helped create the conditions for this change but there were other reasons as well. middle east expert judith yaphe says many iraqis decided to work with the americans to defeat the insurgency. judith yaphe : " the real truth is – and it ' s a good news story – that the iraqis themselves saw that this was a greater danger to them, that there was nothing to be gained, the sunnis of iraq in particular, saw that al - qaida was hurting them, that it was a danger to them, that there was much more to be gained by aligning with the us forces. ” by the time president bush was finishing his second term, iraqi and american officials had agreed on a withdrawal date to end the war. the last american forces would leave iraq by the end of twenty - eleven. russell riley at the university of virginia says it is too soon to know how history will judge the united states ' actions in iraq. russell riley : " if iraq proves to be a policy success, then the surge will be a critical turning point and a terrific exercise of presidential leadership. " he also points out that the war is not the only measure by which the forty - third president will be judged. professor riley put it this way : " the great debate among historians will not be whether bush was a powerful president or consequential president, but whether he directed those powers in the most fruitful way that he could have.


will be judged. professor riley put it this way : " the great debate among historians will not be whether bush was a powerful president or consequential president, but whether he directed those powers in the most fruitful way that he could have. " so, what else was going on in the united states during this period? millions of people were voting for which singer should get a recording contract on " american idol. " year after year it was the most popular show on television. simon cowell : “ oh, robert, i think you just killed my favorite song of all time. ” robert : “ killed in a good way or a bad way? ” simon : “ killing is never good. there ’ s never a happy killing. ” robert : “ i ’ m sorry to hear that. ” simon : “ no, that was first degree on that one. ” but the biggest story in music was not what people were listening to, but how. sales of cds in stores fell as more and more people downloaded songs from the internet. on itunes, fergie ' s " big girls don ' t cry " was the most downloaded song of two thousand seven. for the first half of the decade, there seemed to be nothing to cry about in the american housing market. home prices were going up and up, which made sellers happy. and lenders were offering bigger and bigger loans at easy terms and low interest rates, which made buyers happy. a collapse in the housing market caused huge drops in home sales and prices the government supported the easing of lending rules as a form of social policy, a way to help more people buy homes. rates of home ownership - - a part of the american dream - - reached record highs. in two thousand five nearly seven out of ten americans owned their own home. but many home buyers had been given mortgage loans that they could not afford to pay back. and that was not the only problem. banks had been selling those loans as securities to investors around the world. everyone thought they were getting a good deal - - the banks, the borrowers, the investors. but then the price bubble burst and the housing market collapsed. many borrowers lost their homes because they were unable to make their monthly loan payments. that was the situation karen lucas and her husband, of cleveland, ohio, found themselves in. karen lucas : " i ' ve done my crying. i ' ve made my peace, and i put it in god ' s hands. " as home values fell, many people found themselves " underwater


young children can learn so much about their world through seasonal books and discussions. with the change of the season just around the corner, why not visit your local library and check out all of our great winter - themed children ’ s books? whether you ’ re looking for something on snow, hibernation, a specific holiday, or just a fun story taking place in a winter setting, you ’ re sure to find some great reads to share with your child! here are just a few examples : winter by ron hirschi stunning photographs and lyrical language take you on a journey through nature. under the snow by melissa stewart find out what happens to the animals in the woods, the insects in the garden and the creatures in the pond when the chilly weather arrives. winter white by christianne jones this book is part of a series on colors, and offers simplistic text, colorful illustrations, and a fun fact section. in the snow : who ’ s been here? by lindsay barrett george while walking in the snow, two children see signs of life all around them. white snow, bright snow by alvin tresselt an oldie but goodie, this 1948 caldecott medal winner takes the reader through a snowstorm from start to finish, highlighting different perspectives along the way. the hat by jan brett on a cold, windy day, hedgie finds himself a very interesting hat, which he shows to all of his animal friends. snow by uri shulevitz a little boy and his dog watch their town transform into a winter wonderland. for many more choices, stop by your local branch today!


strength training is done to increase muscle size and strength, improve endurance, and decrease fatigue, ultimately increasing performance. it also improves body image and appearance and prevents muscle, ligament, and bone injury. health benefits of strength training include improved posture, improved lung capacity, decreased injuries, improved circulation, improved muscle tone, and less risk of obesity. fitness and health benefits of strength training | fitness benefits | | health benefits | | increased muscle size | | improves posture | | increased muscle strength | | improves lung capacity | | increased endurance | | decreases injuries | | prevents muscle injury | | improves circulation | | prevents ligament injury | | improves muscle tone | | prevents bone injury | | prevents osteoporosis | | prevents fatigue | | lowers diabetes risk | the recommended amount of strength training is 20 to 30 minutes, 2 to 3 times per week for most athletes and active women. for those involved in power and strength - dependent sports, strength training may occur five days a week as part of training, but muscles should be alternated day to day to allow recovery. the heavier the weights and quicker the movements, the greater the risk of injury. personal training is a very popular method of strength training. trainers should be well qualified to design a program for you, listen to your needs and accommodate for the way your body performs, and guide you through a safe exercise program. it is recommended that you have a trainer who is certified, although there are different qualities and requirements for certification. the highest recommended certification types are through the american college of sports medicine ( acsm ), national strength and conditioning association ( nsca ), american council on exercise ( ace ), and national council of strength and fitness ( ncsf ). these require testing and updated continuing - education credits. health - care professionals can also make excellent personal trainers, including certified athletic trainers, physical therapists, exercise physiologists, and physical therapy assistants. qualities of a good personal trainer - certification or degree in exercise - listens to your needs - gives you full attention during workouts - does not encourage painful activities - works you at your level, not above it to impress you - any muscle soreness after a strenuous workout should last no more than two days - is motivating - you do not develop new or worsening pains - workouts make you feel stronger and healthier techniques to avoid injury while strength training - gradually increase weight ; no more than twice a month. - keep motions slow and resistance low. - stop the motion if you feel pain. - do


today, many deaf children can be given access to oral language thanks to a cochlear implant, a surgically implanted electronic device that provides a sense of sound thanks to electric stimulation of the auditory nerve. in this study, the acquisition of personal pronouns is considered to be a measure for the effectiveness of cochlear implantation in congenitally deaf children. pronouns are morphemes with low perceptual prominence. they are semantically complex and lack morphophonological regularity. building on these insights, the acquisition of pronouns is quite a challenge for hearing - impaired children. the goal of this study is to examine whether a cochlear implant provides deaf children with sufficient auditory input to acquire low salient and complex functional items like personal pronouns and to compare the results to those obtained in hearing peers. different developmental steps in pronoun acquisition have been examined including the building of the pronominal paradigm and its morphological attributes and the acquisition of co - referring and binding relations between pronouns and their antecedents. the results show that although cochlear - implanted children start out with a delay in the acquisition of pronouns, they are able to partially catch up with their hearing peers during the later stages. by the age of seven, most cochlearimplanted children have attained a target production and comprehension of pronouns. based on these results, cochlear implantation below 24 months may be considered to be an effective way to provide pre - lingual deaf children with the necessary sensory input to acquire pronouns despite their initial deprivation of spoken language input.


if you guys remember all of the big genome sequencing projects of the 90s and the early aughts, they ’ ve been continuing and the amount of raw data they have been giving back to us has exponentially accelerated. however, those of us trying to understand the biological realities of what all of those sequences actually mean were very quickly left behind and have been falling further and further behind as the advance of sequencing technology accelerates faster than we could ever hope to keep up with. the central problem is that while it turns out that we can get computers to do our pipetting for us if we pay engineers enough – we can ’ t get computers to do our thinking for us. like mathematicians with some of the fanciest calculators imaginable, we can get the tools ncbi gives us to show us amazing things in amazing ways, but they can ’ t tell us what it all means. for the genomes we get to make any kind of sense a human being has to abstract meaning from it and communicate that meaning in understandable language – and there is no way around that limitation – there will only ever be ways to optimize it. this is really what synthetic biology is trying to do from its own weird and attractive but easily dangerously simplistic perspective. e andrianantoandro, s basu, et al. published 2006 in molecular systems biology. doi : 10. 1038 / msb4100073 credit : chuck wadey, www. chuckwadey. com synthetic biologists engineer complex artificial biological systems to investigate natural biological phenomena and for a variety of applications. we outline the basic features of synthetic biology as a new engineering discipline, covering examples from the latest literature and reflecting on the features that make it unique among all other existing engineering fields. we discuss methods for designing and constructing engineered cells with novel functions in a framework of an abstract hierarchy of biological devices, modules, cells, and multicellular systems. the classical engineering strategies of standardization, decoupling, and abstraction will have to be extended to take into account the inherent characteristics of biological devices and modules. to achieve predictability and reliability, strategies for engineering biology must include the notion of cellular context in the functional definition of devices and modules, use rational redesign and directed evolution for system optimization, and focus on accomplishing tasks using cell populations rather than individual cells. the discussion brings to light issues at the heart of designing complex living systems and provides a trajectory for future development. if there is a god of creation that went around designing the genomes of all


on accomplishing tasks using cell populations rather than individual cells. the discussion brings to light issues at the heart of designing complex living systems and provides a trajectory for future development. if there is a god of creation that went around designing the genomes of all of the living things on earth, they are the sloppiest, most frustrating, terrible programmer you could possibly imagine. the intelligent design proponents are particularly frustrating to me as a biologist having seen how fundamentally unintelligent the design of living critters actually is when you get down to the real moving parts. at least it is designed according to a sort of logic so fundamentally alien to our own that by any human standard we couldn ’ t help but call it stupid. looking at life through the lens of max delbruck ’ s slowly fulfilled dream of a science of molecular genetics to replace the stamp collecting of drosophila genetics1, the organization of information, regulation, and function in genomes makes precious little intuitive sense in terms of human logic. when you think about it ; silly things like fundamentally unrelated systems being piled on top of each other such that one can ’ t be manipulated without messing up the other – necessitating otherwise functionless patches to the paired system whenever the other is modified, or rube goldberg - esque fragile systems of regulation that respond to all kinds of wrong stimuli, or systems of global regulation that are pretty analogous to reading the same giant program in either python or c + + to produce one of two desired global results, or the kinds of systems that you can just tell are 99. 9 % amateur patch jobs are really what you would expect from systems designed exclusively by the entropic trial and error of evolution. the end goal of the folks behind synthetic biology is pretty simple on the face of it. they want to turn biological systems into abstractions that can be manipulated by people who don ’ t understand the lower parts. while this might seem like a trivial goal, when you really understand what it means, it becomes clear that it has the potential to change the world in intensely profound ways and the very nature of life itself – that is if they can actually make that work in a functional way. at the moment genomes can only really be meaningfully understood or manipulated by folks like me with expensive and rare educations. this is because in order to create de novo anything like a solid grasp of how anything so beautiful as the lac operon works in e. coli one needs to have a pretty good understanding of how things like dna - binding proteins work, how


is going on in his lab, the parts he needed from us, and why. ( 37 : 38 ) [ don ’ t be intimidated by the technical nature of the talk – even if you zone out during the technical bits you can totally still get the point ]. in it, he describes his lab ’ s quest to create what amounts to a living computer – programmable systems architecture within e. coli. the current project involves using the architecture he is building to create a trivially readable clock that reads out in binary that would track the number of generations that a culture of bacteria has gone through – which would itself be amazingly useful. however, if created, these kinds of systems architecture combined with sensor proteins, enzymes, and regulator molecules understood as biobricks could make life understandable by people who are to us as programmers are to hardware engineers. here is another detailed talk focused more towards computer folks than biologists and here is another shorter talk he has given that is more geared towards laymen at a higher level of abstraction. while i was sitting in that talk, knowing that the phage community does indeed have all of the parts he wants and then some, i couldn ’ t help but get goose bumps recalling one of my favorite stories from science fiction : the nine billion names of god ( part 2 ) by arthur c. clarke. where suddenly i was, by way of analogy, a monk in his lamasery slowly going about the task of annotating out the 10, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000 ( 1031 ) names of creation. if we really can systematize the genome of a living organism into neat little boxes like a well designed program according to the sensibilities and biases of human logic that would, in a very real and profound way, give us the ability to remake life in our own image in a way that very much evokes the line in genesis that phrase comes from. how cool would that be? it is still however worth being very cautious about what promise synthetic biology may hold. there seems to be a whole cottage industry, particularly around the singularity movement, that has been set up to help people pretend they understand biology, and molecular genetics in particular, by calling it synthetic biology and making fanciful claims that people have different interests in being true. it preys on the scientific illiteracy of its audience counting on there being few enough people with the education to call them out on the sizable amount of fundamentally false false stuff they


and making fanciful claims that people have different interests in being true. it preys on the scientific illiteracy of its audience counting on there being few enough people with the education to call them out on the sizable amount of fundamentally false false stuff they are communicating for them to get away with it. there are indeed huge limitations to this kind of thinking ever producing anything of meaningful value, which it has yet to do, that have nothing to do with a need for bigger computers or most anything else that singularity folks tend to point at as growing exponentially. the singularity university is indeed an elaborate fraud run by folks with precious little understanding of biology. 1from the 1920s to the 1930s there was a mass movement of out of work physicists, having suddenly run out of things to do when we figured out to much of physics, to biology. they brought with them a mechanistic view of how the universe works that they used to cause massive transformations in how we understand and interact with biology. one of the most influential of these scientific interlopers was max delbruck who quickly reasoned that, if we were ever going to understand how life works, we would need to start with the simplest organism possible and work our way up. he isolated seven bacteriophages against e. coli b, originally just his lab strain, and named them in a series t1 through t7. the central idea was that he and his growing number of colleagues * would focus on truly understanding how these phages worked and use that knowledge to generalize to escherichia coli, then the mouse, and then the elephant and us. an essential component of this was the “ phage treaty ” among researchers in the field, which delbruck organized in order to limit the number of model phage and hosts so that folks could meaningfully compare results. what came out of their original focus, in many respects encapsulated in erwin schrodinger ’ s what is life?, has shed light on so much as to truly redefine our self - understanding, much less medicine the luria – delbruck experiment elegantly demonstrated that in bacteria, genetic mutations arise in the absence of selection, rather than being a response to selection, that is in all of life. the hershey – chase experiment showed once and for all that nucleic acids were in fact the heritable molecule in not just t2 phage and e. coli, but indeed all of life. easily the snarkiest, most badass, and likely most