memory is the retention of information. it is closely associated with learning, which experts say is the ability to change behavior through the acquisition of new knowledge. memory allows us to retain what we ' ve learned. there are different types of memory. * short - term memory is a temporary retention of information, while long - term memory can be permanent. memory experts say new information can be converted into long - term memory through attention and repetition, a process called consolidation. the retention of facts and events is called declarative memory, and the retention of abilities and skills is termed procedural memory. * mnemonics are methods for improving memory by linking information in a context that allows easier recall. some mnemonic devices include groupings, rhymes, acronyms and visual associations. * many people believe their ability to remember declines as they grow older. but some experts say this is a fallacy. they maintain the problem is that most people neglect their memory skills after they leave school. the memory is similar to a muscle, the more it is used, the better it gets. * memory can be affected by what you eat. folic acid and vitamin b - 12 are essential for good memory. so is drinking plenty of water and getting enough sleep. drinking alcohol and smoking can have a negative effect on memory, as can many medications, such as tranquilizers and anti - anxiety drugs. there are many books available on improving your memory, including kevin trudeau ' s " mega memory : how to release your superpower memory in 30 minutes or less a day, " $ 14, and " use your perfect memory " by tony buzan, $ 12. 95. * if all else fails, the internet offers myriad services that promise to notify you by postcard seven to 10 days in advance of your most important dates for the rest of your life, for a one - time fee of $ 39.


washington — the operator of a florida nuclear plant appears to have shipped radioactive waste to ordinary landfills, municipal sewage treatment plants and some unknown locations in the 1970s and early 1980s, according to internal documents and government records obtained in lawsuits. florida power & light co. said that in 1982 it had mistakenly made a shipment to a landfill, but the documents appear to show numerous shipments to multiple locations. in addition, while the company conducted a survey and cleanup in the one known location, it found only one kind of radioactive material, and nuclear experts involved in the lawsuits say there must have been other isotopes for which no tests were conducted. the overall level of contamination is difficult to determine. plant workers used a sink to wash mops, rags and other heavily contaminated materials, thinking that the drain was connected to the plant ' s radioactive waste system, but instead it drained into a sanitary sewage system, according to the documents. the contaminants were then hauled away with sludge. according to documents cited by the plaintiffs, at one point the plant in st. lucie county was shipping to regular landfills materials that were 10 times as radioactive as what it was shipping to a low - level waste dump. a spokeswoman for fpl said the company had mistakenly made two such shipments in the early ' 80s, but had disclosed it at the time and removed the waste afterward. " it ' s a 23 - year - old event, " said rachel scott, the spokeswoman. " it was thoroughly investigated at the time by both the nuclear regulatory commission and the florida department of health, who determined that there was no health issue. " samples were tested in a lab and only one isotope, cobalt - 60, was found, scott said. cobalt - 60 is a material that becomes radioactive when neutrons from the reactor core are captured by atoms of metal. but the plaintiffs say records show that at the time st. lucie ' s fuel was leaking fission products, like strontium and cesium, into the cooling water and thus contaminating the plant. such contaminants would have been present in the mops and similar materials, they argue. according to documents obtained by the plaintiffs, however, a week after the cleanup was completed at a dump site the company found contamination at a level 20 times what the state had proposed, and thousands of times higher than what the environmental protection agency allowed for farmland ; the surrounding area is used for cattle and citrus.


an international team of researchers led by masamune oguri at kavli ipmu and naohisa inada at nara national college of technology conduced an unprecedented survey of gravitationally lensed quasars, and used it to measure the expansion history of the universe. the result provides strong evidence that the expansion of the universe is accelerating. there were several observations that suggested the accelerated cosmic expansion, including distant supernovae for which the 2011 nobel prize in physics was awarded. the team ’ s result confirms the accelerated cosmic expansion using a completely different approach, which strengthens the case for dark energy. this result will be published in the astronomical journal. full story : http : / / www. ipmu. jp / node / 1281 fang lizhi, a major voice for human rights and democracy and a pioneering scientist in his native china, continued to advance the field of astrophysics at the ua for more than 20 years before he died last week. human rights activist fang lizhi, who died last week at age 76, had been a professor in the university of arizona department of physics and an adjunct professor with the ua ’ s steward observatory for more than 20 years, where he made highly regarded contributions to astrophysics. fang was world renowned for his outspoken and active role in promoting human rights in his native china. considered an “ undesirable element ” by the chinese government, fang was dismissed from the chinese nuclear program and reassigned in 1958 to the university of science and technology of china, or ustc, which is regarded as china ’ s equivalent of the massachusetts institute of technology. full story : http : / / uanews. org / node / 46176 nasa ’ s 747 shuttle carrier aircraft ( sca ) with space shuttle discovery mounted atop will fly approximately 1, 500 feet above various parts of the washington, d. c. metropolitan area on tuesday, april 17. the flight, in cooperation with the federal aviation administration, is scheduled to occur between 10 and 11 a. m. edt. nasa television and the agency ’ s web site will provide live coverage. the exact route and timing of the flight depend on weather and operational constraints. however, the aircraft is expected to fly near a variety of landmarks in the metropolitan area, including the national mall, reagan national airport, national harbor and the smithsonian ’ s udvar - hazy center. when the flyover is complete, the sca will land at dulles international airport. one day in the fall of 2011, neil sheeley, a solar scientist at the


airport, national harbor and the smithsonian ’ s udvar - hazy center. when the flyover is complete, the sca will land at dulles international airport. one day in the fall of 2011, neil sheeley, a solar scientist at the naval research laboratory in washington, d. c., did what he always does – look through the daily images of the sun from nasa ’ s solar dynamics observatory ( sdo ). but on this day he saw something he ’ d never noticed before : a pattern of cells with bright centers and dark boundaries occurring in the sun ’ s atmosphere, the corona. these cells looked somewhat like a cell pattern that occurs on the sun ’ s surface — similar to the bubbles that rise to the top of boiling water — but it was a surprise to find this pattern higher up in the corona, which is normally dominated by bright loops and dark coronal holes. sheeley discussed the images with his naval research laboratory colleague harry warren, and together they set out to learn more about the cells. their search included observations from a fleet of nasa spacecraft called the heliophysics system observatory that provided separate viewpoints from different places around the sun. they describe the properties of these previously unreported solar features, dubbed “ coronal cells, ” in a paper published online in the astrophysical journal on march 20, 2012 that will appear in print on april 10. i just got this tweet. iss will be visible passing at your location - weather permitting - on april 11, 2012, 05 : 56 : 04 mut is it a good one? this time, the international space station will be flying over at 27 degrees. it will look like a very bright star ( magnitude - 2. 0 ). where to look? iss will come up in the north and will be heading for southeast. “ we ’ re thrilled, ” said lcogt scientific director tim brown, “ to have our first telescope in such a well - supported site, with superbly dark skies. ” the 1 - meter ( 40 - inch ) telescope will be used for both research and outreach to k - 12 schools. it is part of a large planned network of lcogt telescopes to be installed around the world, and the first of five ( two 1 - meter and three 0. 4 - meter ) and possibly more lcogt telescopes to be installed at mcdonald observatory over the next few years. the most recent spacecraft tracking and telemetry data were collected on april 4 using the deep space network ’ s 34 meterstation 15


. 4 - meter ) and possibly more lcogt telescopes to be installed at mcdonald observatory over the next few years. the most recent spacecraft tracking and telemetry data were collected on april 4 using the deep space network ’ s 34 meterstation 15 at goldstone, california. aside from the issues in work with the ultrastable oscillator ( see the jan. 5, 2012 significant events ) and the cosmic dust analyzer, the cassini spacecraft is in an excellent state of health and its subsystems are operating normally. information on the present position of the cassini spacecraft may be found on the “ present position ” page at : http : / / saturn. jpl. nasa. gov / mission / presentposition /. telemetry data from the targeted enceladus encounter e - 17 on march 27 were transmitted 1. 3 billion kilometers to earth on wednesday ; every bit was captured successfully by the deep space network. the ion and neutral mass spectrometer ( inms ) was able to discern variations in co2 density among the individual gas jets as the spacecraft dove through the enceladus south polar plume. the cassini plasma spectrometer ( caps ), which was recently powered back on, acquired excellent data in and near the plume, along with the cosmic dust analyzer ( cda ) and inms. a spectacular image of the south polar plume may be seen here, along with images of the icy moons janus, taken march 27, and dione, taken march 28 : http : / / saturn. jpl. nasa. gov / news / cassinifeatures / feature20120328 / engineers and astronomers are celebrating the much anticipated first light of the mosfire instrument, now installed on the keck i telescope at w. m. keck observatory. mosfire ( multi - object spectrometer for infra - red exploration ) will vastly increase the data gathering power of what is already the world ’ s most productive ground - based observatory. “ this is a near - infrared multi - object spectrograph, similar to our popular lris and deimos instruments, only at longer wavelengths, ” explained keck observatory observing support manager bob goodrich. “ the mosfire project team members at keck observatory, caltech, ucla, and uc santa cruz are to be congratulated, as are the observatory operations staff who worked hard to get mosfire integrated into the keck i telescope and infrastructure. a lot of people have put in long


observatory, caltech, ucla, and uc santa cruz are to be congratulated, as are the observatory operations staff who worked hard to get mosfire integrated into the keck i telescope and infrastructure. a lot of people have put in long hours getting ready for this momentous first light. ” three of the six crew members living aboard the international space station will take questions from reporters during a news conference on wednesday, april 11, at 9 : 15 a. m. cdt. the conference will air live on nasa television and will be streamed on the agency ’ s website. the news conference will link up reporters with nasa expedition 30 commander dan burbank and flight engineers don pettit and european space agency astronaut andre kuipers. the crew members will discuss research they are conducting, the myriad of cargo delivery vehicles visiting the station — including spacex dragon, the first american commercial vehicle — and the return of burbank and cosmonauts anton shkaplerov and anatoly ivanishin in their soyuz spacecraft later this month. one of the world ’ s largest astronomy archives, containing a treasure trove of information about myriad stars, planets, and galaxies, has been named in honor of the united states senator from maryland barbara mikulski. called mast, for the barbara a. mikulski archive for space telescopes, the huge database contains astronomical observations from 16 nasa space astronomy missions, including the hubble space telescope. “ in celebration of sen. mikulski ’ s career - long achievements, and particularly this year, becoming the longest - serving woman in u. s. congressional history, we sought nasa ’ s permission to establish the senator ’ s permanent legacy to science by naming the optical and ultraviolet data archive housed here at the institute in her honor, ” said matt mountain, director of the space telescope science institute ( stsci ) in baltimore, md. stsci is the science operations center for hubble and its upcoming successor, the james webb space telescope.


cassiopeia - downloadable article several nearby galaxies join the milky way marvels that adorn this queen ' s realm. march 3, 2009 | this downloadable article is from an astronomy magazine 45 - article series called " celestial portraits. " the collection highlights all 88 constellations in the sky and explains how to observe each constellation ' s deep - sky targets. the articles feature star charts, stunning pictures, and constellation mythology. we ' ve put together 11 digital packages. each one contains four celestial portraits articles for you to purchase and download. | " cassiopeia " is one of four articles included in celestial portraits package 5. as the cold winds of january blow, few vistas seem so incongruous as the northwestern sky. there, slowly sinking from view in the early evening, hangs the summer constellation cygnus and its luminary deneb. if you raise your sight from cygnus two - thirds of the way to the zenith, you ' ll come to cassiopeia the queen, the standout constellation of the autumn and early winter milky way. five 2nd - and 3rd - magnitude stars make up the main body of cassiopeia. together these five form the unmistakable shape of the letter m or w — the correct letter depending on the time of night and time of year. although the milky way backdrop of cassiopeia lacks the impact of the summer star clouds, many fine clusters and nebulae call it home. and the relatively sparse milky way lets through the light of a few background galaxies. to read the complete article, purchase and download celestial portraits package 5. | deep - sky objects in cassiopeia | ngc 7635, m52 ( ngc 7654 ), ngc 7789, ngc 7790, ic 10, ngc 147, ngc 185, eta cassiopeiae, ngc 281 ( pac man nebula ), w cassiopeiae, ic 63, ngc 457, m103 ( ngc 581 ), ngc 654, ngc 663, stock 2, ngc 896, maffei i, ic 289


trauma seems to be the new hot button issue for those who work in the child welfare system. so... what exactly is trauma? the definition that i received at the session on polyvictimization and child trauma at the national association of counsel for children ( nacc ) conference is as follows ( and note that this definition is geared toward children, but is more broadly applicable ) : - extraordinary experience that threatens the life or physical integrity of a child or of someone important to that child - this extraordinary experience causes overwhelming sense of terror, helplessness, and horror - this extraordinary experience produces intense physical effects. okay, but we all know that those who are involved in the child welfare system, whether they are parents or children, have experienced some truly awful things. why is trauma as a concept so important for us to consider and look for? a study called the adverse childhood experiences ( ace ) study found that childhood trauma results in a reduction of life expectancy of 19 years. this is a big deal. nineteen years can mean the difference between seeing your child graduate from college or get married, or meeting a grandchild. so how do we know whether the experiences are just a bad thing ( or a series of bad things ) that happened to a person, or whether they constitute a trauma, which the person may need assistance in dealing with? we look for symptoms, such as diagnoses of ptsd, odd, bipolar disorder, add, adhd, and conduct disorder. other symptoms besides diagnoses include avoidance, feeling numb or disengaged, hyperarousal or emotional / behavioral agitation, re - experiencing, feelings of powerlessness and helplessness, and feelings of hyper - vigilance. these types of symptoms may also be a clue that there is an underlying trauma, if you were not already aware of the trauma and were only aware of the diagnoses. once you are aware of the types of symptoms listed above, and that there may be trauma underlying those symptoms, it is key to conduct a trauma assessment, which is more in - depth and is different from a routine general mental health treatment. the person conducting a trauma assessment should be a mental health provider with training on trauma. the assessment is intended to determine whether the child ( or person ) needs trauma focused treatment. so why am i writing about trauma on a blog that is not necessarily geared toward other attorneys and professionals in the child welfare system ( although i certainly welcome them to read as well! )? because anyone can look for trauma and recognize some of


zimbabwe was once the “ breadbasket ” of africa : a country that produced so much food, it was used by the united nations as a source of food relief in the region. but today, it is one of the world ’ s poorest countries. despite some positive developments in recent years, many people remain in the grip of long - term poverty and starvation caused by a period of massive inflation and the destruction of the country ’ s agricultural sector. zimbabwe has one of the lowest life expectancies in the world, and christian leaders and congregations have been among the many victims of president mugabe ’ s ruinous oppression. the octogenarian president has been in power since the country became independent in 1980. a referendum on a new constitution that is intended as a step towards democratic reform is due to be held in march 2013. barnabas fund is supporting christians in zimbabwe in two ways : by providing food parcels to alleviate the hunger and starvation amongst christians and by supplying seeds and training local people how to farm their land in a more productive way, based on principles of christian discipleship. the feeding project provides monthly parcels of essentials to the neediest zimbabwean christians, including widows and orphans. the agricultural training project then assists people who used to receive food parcels to move on to becoming self - sufficient. because the farming methods it teaches are less labour - intensive than traditional ones, they are ideal for elderly widows or child - headed families as well as others.


huffington post released an article today that looks at the impact of sewage overflow from superstorm sandy in new york and new jersey. the article points out how storm surge will result in overflow events and how rising sea levels will only exacerbate these events resulting in more severe discharges. the 11 billion gallons of untreated or partially treated sewage spilled due to storm surge in new york and new jersey must be seen as a warning for all coastal cities. we must consider this warning as we rebuild miami - dade ’ s sewage system. as sea levels rise storm surges will increase in intensity and frequency. miami - dade ’ s facilities must be built to withstand these storm surges to avoid the kind of spills seen in the northeast. “ princeton, n. j. - based climate central said that future sewage leaks are a major risk because rising sea levels can make coastal flooding more severe … the collective overflows – almost all in new york and new jersey and due to storm surges – would be enough to cover new york city ’ s central park with a pile of sewage 41 feet high, climate central said. ” read more here : sandy sewage report : 11 billion gallons of untreated or partially treated waste was released. www. huffingtonpost. org on april 9, 2013 biscayne bay waterkeeper, along with 131 other organizations, undersigned a letter to the united states senate urging them to oppose advancing the water resources development act of 2013 ( s. 601 ). this letter, put together by the water protection network, points out significant problems in this bill : “ particularly troubling are the streamlining provisions ( sections 2033 and 2032 ) which will force agency staff to make uninformed decisions, to rubber stamp unacceptable projects, and prioritize deadline compliance over effective review. they do this by : requiring the corps of engineers to carry out the shortest review possible ; establishing arbitrary and unreasonably short deadlines for the public and resource agencies to comment ; establishing arbitrary deadlines for resource agency decisions and recommendations ; allowing the corps to elevate multiple technical and substantive disagreements all the way to the president ; and directing the corps to impose multiple and ongoing fines on resource agencies that miss deadlines or disagree with the corps on issues fully within the expertise of the resource agencies. these provisions also could give the corps control over reviews that are clearly outside of its jurisdiction, including consultation under section 7 of the endangered species act, review under the fish and wildlife coordination act, and reviews under laws governing activities


expertise of the resource agencies. these provisions also could give the corps control over reviews that are clearly outside of its jurisdiction, including consultation under section 7 of the endangered species act, review under the fish and wildlife coordination act, and reviews under laws governing activities in coastal areas and public lands. additionally, the bill threatens to exacerbate our nation ’ s fiscal deficits by rolling back long - established cost - sharing rules and expanding federal responsibilities into areas that have been the financial responsibility of non - federal project sponsors. if enacted as reported, the bill will result in overspending, overcapacity, and substantial and unnecessary damage to the nation ’ s major estuaries and harbors. title viii of the bill would immediately more than double spending on harbor maintenance without assurance of the cost - effectiveness or true need for the dredging. in addition, the title eliminates the current 50 percent non - federal cost share for maintaining deep draft harbors from 45 to 50 feet of depth, making these costs 100 percent federal responsibility. the provision also makes dredging and maintenance of all approach channels to berths along federal navigation channels and all upland confined disposal of contaminated dredged sediments a 100 percent federal responsibility, rather than the current 100 percent non - federal responsibility. no one has ever even estimated the costs of such an expansion. this would likely cause increases in dredging of contaminated areas that otherwise never would have been contemplated, increasing toxic releases into the nation ’ s bays and estuaries. we strongly urge rejection of this title as representing a major setback for the nation ’ s water policy that will be both environmentally - damaging and represents an improper shift of spending and water project responsibility to the taxpayers. ” for more information on the 2013 wrda see : http : / / www. waterprotectionnetwork. org / sitepages / downloads / wrda _ 2013 _ nwf _ memo _ epw _ committee _ 3 - 18 - 13 _ final. pdf it is difficult to consider ourselves surrounded by nature in miami, fl. in the city, on the interstate, or in the supermarket it is easy to think of ourselves removed from the nature of muir ’ s yosemite or thoreau ’ s walden pond. an essay called “ thirteen ways of seeing nature ” by jenny price, suggests that we reconsider how we think about nature in our city. she writes about nature in l. a., but her message applies to all cities. miami is confronted with a decrepit sewage system and the problems that this system is


suggests that we reconsider how we think about nature in our city. she writes about nature in l. a., but her message applies to all cities. miami is confronted with a decrepit sewage system and the problems that this system is causing for the health of our environment. our connection to nature is real whether we recognize it or not. we must consider difficult questions like “ how are we connected to the nature around us? ”, “ how do we affect the health of the nature around us? ”, and “ how do we depend on the nature around us? ”. as we move into a future full of challenges like climate change these questions are going to become more and more important. i would encourage everyone to read this article by jenny price : as biscayne bay waterkeeper reflects on a successful clean - up this past week - end, it seems appropriate to consider another clean - up that happened two weeks ago. on sunday, march 3rd, sean bignami, was jogging on virginia key and came across an enormous pile of trash left over from the 9 mile music festival the night before. sean spoke with staff who where standing around the festival site who said they could not pick up the trash because the wind was blowing it around. sean took pictures and videos of the scene with his phone and posted them online along with a request that people join him the next day to help clean up the area. four graduate students joined sean the following morning and picked up enough trash to fill 25 garbage bags! sean was unable to get a satisfactory response from the festival supervisor or the miami parks department regarding accountability for this trash or penalties for the negligence on the part of the festival organizers. the systems in place that are designed to prevent the festival from leaving piles of trash failed, and it is unclear if the festival will be held accountable. regardless of this failure, the immediate response from concerned residents must be seen as a message to institutions who ignore the sanctity of our bay. biscayne bay is home to concerned stewards, like sean bignami, who will not stand quietly while polluters leave trash on our shores. biscayne bay waterkeeper wishes to celebrate the stewardship shown in this story. thank you sean, and all who came out to help clean up after the 9 mile festival left their trash to be blown into the bay! see the article miami newtimes blog posted about this story here : on sunday, march 17, 2013, biscayne bay waterkeeper and sierra club put on a clean - up at


mile festival left their trash to be blown into the bay! see the article miami newtimes blog posted about this story here : on sunday, march 17, 2013, biscayne bay waterkeeper and sierra club put on a clean - up at peacock park in the grove. volunteers paddled nearby waters and gathered a huge amount of trash. thank you to the stewards of biscayne bay who volunteered their time to put a dent in the amount of trash in our waters. thank you for a successful clean - up! there is plenty of trash to pick up in biscayne bay. join biscayne bay waterkeeper and the sierra club this sunday, march 17th, for a paddle clean up at peacock park in the grove ( 2820 mcfarland road, miami, fl 33133 ). the clean up will start at 9 am and end at 2 pm. we will launch next to the boardwalk. please bring your own gloves and trash bags. the sierra club has a limited number of canoes, so we are encouraging attendees to bring their own kayaks, canoes, or paddle boards. if you do not have a boat, please contact mark at sierra club to reserve a canoe. ( contact mark with any questions : email @ example. com / 305 632 7514 ) ( miami, february 28, 2013 ) - samples of beach water collected at dog beach on virginia key did not meet the recreational water quality standard for enterococci. by state regulation, the florida department of health is required to issue an advisory to inform the public in a specific area when this standard is not met. an advisory for dog beach on virginia key has been issued because two consecutive samples collected at the beach exceeded the federal and state recommended standard for enterococci ( greater than 104 colony forming units per 100ml for a single sample ). additional beach water samples at the dog beach on virginia key have been collected and further results are pending. the advisory issued recommends not swimming at this location at this time. the results of the sampling indicate that water contact may pose an increased risk of illness, particularly for susceptible individuals. the florida department of health in miami - dade county has been conducting marine beach water quality monitoring at 17 sites, including dog beach on virginia key, weekly since august 2002, through the florida healthy beaches program. the sampling sites are selected based on the frequency and intensity of recreational water use and the proximity to pollution sources. the water samples are being analyzed for enteric bacteria enterococci that normally inhabit the intestinal track of humans and


florida healthy beaches program. the sampling sites are selected based on the frequency and intensity of recreational water use and the proximity to pollution sources. the water samples are being analyzed for enteric bacteria enterococci that normally inhabit the intestinal track of humans and animals, and which may cause human disease, infections, or illness. the prevalence of enteric bacteria is an indicator of fecal pollution, which may come from storm water run - off, wildlife, pets and human sewage. the purpose of the florida healthy beaches program is to determine whether florida has significant beach water quality concerns. for more information please visit the florida healthy beaches program website : http : / / www. doh. state. fl. us and select “ beach water quality ”, from the a - z topics list. we just posted the second edition of the paddle out guide. we are excited to be able to provide you with this updated material. keep this guide close to your kayak or canoe as an aid in your exploration of our beautiful biscayne bay. we have posted the guide below for your convenience, but you can always find the paddle out guide at bbwk. org / paddle - out. go out and enjoy our bay! thank you julie for speaking at the grassroots festival on behalf of bbwk thank you to everyone who came out to see biscayne bay waterkeeper ( bbwk ) speak at the sustainability fair this weekend at the grassroots festival! julie dick, a bbwk representative, spoke about our current projects and initiatives, helping connect the festival to some of the issues that face the bay that surrounded the event. bbwk was invited to speak alongside the center for biological diversity, surfrider miami, and the united states green building council florida chapter. we are honored to have shared the stage with such great organizations. thousands of people attended the festival, many of whom camped along the water. we are happy such a festive event took place amidst the beauty of our bay. virginia key and key biscayne are barrier islands which are, by their nature, exposed to the elements. on february 15, 2013 the village of key biscayne sent carlos gimenez, mayor of miami, a letter asking miami - dade county to take another look at the plans to improve the central wastewater treatment plant located on virginia key. key biscayne is concerned that the plans do not adequately consider the impacts of climate change, such as increased sea levels and stronger storm surges, and do not include funding for flood mitigation. considering virginia key is a barrier


virginia key. key biscayne is concerned that the plans do not adequately consider the impacts of climate change, such as increased sea levels and stronger storm surges, and do not include funding for flood mitigation. considering virginia key is a barrier island, and therefor more vulnerable to weather and flooding, makes these oversights in planning for a wastewater treatment plant on this key particularly alarming. key biscayne supports the county ’ s immediate plans to address clean water act outflow violations, deteriorated conditions at the virginia key facility, and of sewer lines identified as being at risk of rupturing, including the 54 inch under - bay line from miami beach to fisher island to virginia key. at the same time, the village of key biscayne, situated just south of virginia key, is relying on the county to protect their natural environment. as long as infrastructure improvement plans do not address these long - term issues the residents of the adjacent island community of key biscayne will be understandably concerned for their quality of life. key biscayne is already plagued by foul odors from the central wastewater facility and occasional sewage spills. community voices like key biscayne, calling for better sewage infrastructure, are the impetus for biscayne bay waterkeeper ’ s legal initiatives for this issue. if the county will not address the concerns of local residential and business communities, or the needs of our fragile natural resources, then legal action may be the only way we can ensure that the county properly address these issues.


benefits of acidophilus benefits of acidophilus lactobacillus acidophilus is a bacterium that is fermenting sugars into lactic acid, which is used for manufacturing of many probiotic dairy products. probiotic is generally understood to be food that is aiding in digestive problems, but in scientific terms it means that there are some microorganisms, like in this case the bacterium, which existence in the host organism promotes health. probiotic in literal translation means pro - life. currently several other bacteria are included in the acidophilus term, most popularly lactobacillus casei and lactobacillus bulgaricus, which is being used in production of yogurt together with streptococcus salivarius subspecies thermophilus, as well as several bifidobacterium species. 1. acidophilus improves gastrointestinal function acidophilus bacteria are very favorable to the intestinal flora and instigate the natural bacterial life within the whole gastrointestinal tract. this leads to improved digestion and to relief from any constipation and similar problems. particularly the elderly seem to have problems with regular bowel movements, in such cases acidophilus milk and probiotic dairy products are recommended in order to regain proper digestion. 2. acidophilus can boost the human immune system probiotics, also called lactic acid bacteria, are apparently promoting the production of immunoglobulin a, an antibody found in mucous secretions. other promotional activities in regards to the immune function have also been noted, like elevated phagocytosis, and a raised proportion of the natural killer cells a€ “ belonging to the group of cytotoxic lymphocytes a€ “ and the white blood cells called t lymphocytes. pathogens can be inhibited in their growth through a process called competitive inhibition. 3. acidophilus can lower the blood pressure and blood cholesterol levels in laboratory studies dairy products containing lactic acid bacteria were linked to lowered levels of overall and low density lipoprotein cholesterol. other studies have shown that peptides that are produced during the fermentation process of dairy products with lactic acid bacteria mimic the properties of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors, which result in humans as slightly blood pressure lowering. 4. anti - inflammatory properties of acidophilus while it is not really clear why probiotics can reduce


how to reduce diode detector weak signal insertion - power - loss to less than that possible when the input is impedance matched by ben h. tongue quick summary : diode detector insertion power loss can be reduced below the value achieved under impedance matched conditions provided it is operating below its lslc point. the optimal conditions are : ( 1 ) the output audio load resistance equals twice the rf source resistance. ( 2 ) the saturation current and ideality factor of the diode are such that the very - low - signal output resistance of the detector ( axis - crossing resistance, aka rd, of the diode ) equals the output load resistance. these conditions insure an impedance match at the audio output and a 1 : 2 mismatch at the rf input ( source resistance = half the rf input resistance of the diode ). please bear in mind that the lslc point is a point on a graph of output dc power vs input rf power of a diode detector system. it is not a point on a graph of dc current vs voltage of a diode. info on the lslc point is available in article # 15a. it has usually been assumed by myself and others that power loss in a two port device ( here, a crystal set ) is minimized when its input and output ports are impedance matched. this article will show that this is not true in the case of a diode detector operating at a signal power level well below that of its region of essentially linear operation. it is true, however, when a strong signal ( well above the lslc point ) is being received. in the linear region, audio output power is proportional to rf input power. that is, for every db of change in input power there will be one db change of output power. in the lower power region, called the ' square law ' region, a change of one db in input power results in a two db change in output power. see article # 15a, figs. 2 and 3 for info on the lslc point of a diode detector. definition of terms : rd : resistance of a diode at its axis crossing. rd = 0. 0257 * n / is at 25 degrees celsius it has been asserted in these articles that the rf input and audio output resistances, ri and ro, of a diode detector, approach the same value and equal 0. 0257 * n / is = rd ohms at room temperature when the input signal strength is low enough.


that the rf input and audio output resistances, ri and ro, of a diode detector, approach the same value and equal 0. 0257 * n / is = rd ohms at room temperature when the input signal strength is low enough. see article # 0, part 4, article 4, part 2 and article 16 for information on is and n, and ways of measuring them. fig. 1 represents a conventional diode detector. the tank circuit t is shown with no internal loss. a real world tank will have loss that can be represented by a shunt resistor connected across it. for convenience of analysis it is assumed that this loss resistance is absorbed into the source v1, r1 ( for a more complete explanation, see article # 1, first paragraph after the third schematic. ). assume that the impedance of the source ( antenna ) and load ( headphone ) are transformed to equal values ( r1 = r2 ) and select a diode that has an rd equal to them. this will result in a reasonable impedance match at both the input and output if the signal power level places operation below + 10 db of the linear - to - square law crossover point. little of the input power directed towards the detector will be reflected back to the source and most all of the output power from the detector will be absorbed in the load, r2. if the diode detector were a linear device with linear input and output resistances, this impedance - matched condition would result in the least detector power loss ( greatest sensitivity ) obtainable. it would seem clear that the crystal set detector could not be made more sensitive. actually, not so! very weak signal sensitivity can be improved by about 2 db by appropriate mismatching at the input. this provides a rather hard - to - hear increase in volume, but every little bit helps. in the impedance matched condition discussed so far, r1 = ri = rd and r2 = ro. simple math shows that the detector input voltage vi will equal one half the internal source voltage v1. if we create an impedance mismatch between the source resistance r1 and the detector input resistance ri by replacing the diode d with a different one having 1 / 2 the saturation current, vi will increase. the reason is that the detector input resistance ri is now twice r1. the voltage divider made up of r1 and ri will reduce vi to only two thirds of v1, making the new value of vi = 4 / 3 the


increase. the reason is that the detector input resistance ri is now twice r1. the voltage divider made up of r1 and ri will reduce vi to only two thirds of v1, making the new value of vi = 4 / 3 the old value. since the detector is operating in square law mode, the internal source voltage in the detector that drives its output terminals will be ( 4 / 3 ) ^ 2 = 1. 77... times as much as before. this higher voltage will be divided down by the voltage divider action of the now twice - as - large diode output resistance and r2 to give an output voltage 1. 185 as large as before. this equates to an output power 1. 476 db greater than in the original impedance theoretical calculation and spice simulation show that that in a crystal set having equal values for r1 and r2, the diode parameters that give to lowest insertion power loss at low signal power levels fits the equation : r1 = r2 = 2 * ( 0. 0257 * n / is ) at room temperature. now let us look at the effect on ri and insertion power loss if ri does not match r1. look at fig. 2. look at fig. 3. at the - 95 dbw end of the graph, one can see that changing is from 38 to 19 na, and keeping r1 and r2 at at 700k ohms reduced the detector insertion power loss by about 1. 5 db ( series 1 to series 2 ). this comes from the increased voltage, vi, at the detector input. raising the output load resistance from 700k to 1400k ohms reduces the mismatch loss at the output to approximate. zero and reduces the overall insertion power loss by another approximate. 0. 5 db for a total improvement of 2. 0 db at low input power levels ( series 3 ). the detector insertion power loss at the - 50 dbw input level is is also reduced by 0. 5 db because of the elimination of the output impedance mismatch. practically speaking, what does all this mean? mainly, improved theoretical understanding of diode detectors. ( see last bullet point ) # 28 originally published as article # 15 in feb. 2001 ; later withdrawn. republished as article # 28 : 03 / 04 / 05


i wonder if it was because we were african american that we didn ' t celebrate. maybe my folks felt like frederick douglass. " what to the american slave is your fourth of july? i answer, a day that reveals to him more than all other days of the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. to him your celebration is a sham ; your boasted liberty an unholy license ; your national greatness, swelling vanity ; your sounds of rejoicing are empty and heartless ; your shouts of liberty and equality, hollow mock ; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanksgivings, with all your religious parade and solemnity, are to him mere bombast, fraud, deception, impiety, and hypocrisy - a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages. there is not a nation of the earth guilty of practices more shocking and bloody than are the people of these united states at this very hour. " frederick douglass - july 4, 1852 maybe it was because we were southerners. i am a mississippian. " in the final days of the siege, the people of vicksburg ate rats, cane shoots and bark. for 47 days gen. ulysses s. grant ringed the city with 75, 000 union troops. cannon balls crashed in ; the sound of musketry seldom died. finally the city surrendered. the date was july 4, 1863. after that, for the people of vicksburg, the fourth of july was never a day to be celebrated. national holiday or no, banks and stores stayed open in vicksburg. firecrackers never popped, skyrockets never tore the night sky. " time magazine july 09 1945 maybe it was because the 4th was another summer day ; glorious, free from school, fun filled day of your own making. it was just another day to be happy.


the region ’ s exceptional, unique natural qualities are created by the river and the meeting of northern and southern flora and fauna. the natural boundary to northern sweden – limes norrlandicus – marks the end of the central european deciduous forests and the beginning of the mighty coniferous forests of norrland. no other area in scandinavia has such a variety of vertebrates ( mammals, birds and fish ). sometimes the river crosses boulder ridges, creating long, narrow necks of land and islands, often with inviting sandy beaches. this means great bathing sites all along the river and coast. much of the countryside is protected in nature reserves and by other regulations, or by efforts by the landowners. it ’ s no coincidence that a central part of the region is a national park. the nedre dalalven region boasts a rich array of bird life. the region ’ s symbol is the osprey, which is more common here than anywhere else in europe. the white - tailed eagle nests in many places and is a common sight over the wide bays of the river. the region is famous for its owls and woodpeckers. all eight species of woodpeckers in sweden are found here. spring is the best time of year for birds ; the river is a stopping place for migratory birds as well as local varieties. thousands of whooper swans, cranes, geese and other species create a symphony of nature. nedre dalalven offers 200 km of exciting fishing in giant bays with innumerable islands, separated by rapids. it also has many small lakes in the surrounding forests. the region offers richly varied fishing – 30 different species. the rivers are full of grayling and trout, and the bays and lakes are best for giant pike, perch and pike - perch. alvkarleby, just before the river reaches the sea, is one of europe ’ s best fishing spots for brown trout and salmon. many have discovered that nedre dalalven is probably sweden ’ s most complete fishing area. but despite this popularity, there is plenty of space for people who want to meet nature mode one - on - one. the first people after the ice age, the region that is now nedre dalalven was covered by a bay of the litorina sea. as the land rose out of the sea, the region became attractive to humans. archaeologists have found greenstone axes dating back to 4000 bc, the early stone age. in fact, as many have been found here as have been found in the rest of gastrikland


out of the sea, the region became attractive to humans. archaeologists have found greenstone axes dating back to 4000 bc, the early stone age. in fact, as many have been found here as have been found in the rest of gastrikland, dalarna, vastmanland and uppland provinces together. when the sea retreated even more, we see traces of the late stone age culture. in the bronze and late iron age, 1500 bc – 500 ad, the people in the region made the transition from hunter - gatherers to farmers. the many red - painted farming villages in the area sometimes date back a thousand years or more. in the latter middle ages, mining became important to many farmers in the area. the agricultural landscapes in the area are significant to cultural historians, because the open community still has its ancient spread. in the 17th century, major changes occurred, as german, hungarians, wallon and other immigrant peoples began opening works, which came to be a typical characteristic of the region. many of the works are still well preserved, with the central manor surrounded by plastered or red - painted smiths ’ houses and slag - brick utility buildings. some of the works towns grew into larger communities, with populations of up to 2, 000. some even reached city status – avesta in 1641 and sater in 1642. even older is the mediaeval trading town of hedemora, which became a city back in 1446. the cities feature inviting, interesting environments from the olden days. now you have a general idea of the countryside and history of nedre dalalven. you can read more on this site, but the best way is to come see for yourself!


september 21, 2009 homeopathy and religion homeopathic treatment is based on the belief that if something making you ill, then a highly diluted solution of that same thing will act as a cure. it was introduced in 1796 by a german physician named samuel hahnemann who claimed it illustrated the workings of the ' principle of similars ' or ' like cures like '. this counterintuitive notion may have sounded plausible in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, and even now may sound plausible to those who know that vaccines consist of building antibodies to a disease by introducing into the body small quantities of the same or related organisms, the levels of dilution used were quantified by hahnemann by something called the " c scale " which meant diluting by a factor of 100. so 1c dilution meant diluting by 100, 2c meant diluting by 100x100 = 104 = 10, 000, 3c meant diluting by 100x100x100 = 106 = 1, 000, 000, and so on. the substances are diluted in a stepwise fashion and shaken vigorously between each dilution. a key feature of homeopathic belief is the " principle of dilutions " or the " law of minimum dose " which states that " the lower the dose of the medication, the greater its effectiveness. " so a 7c solution is supposedly more effective ( i. e., " stronger " ) than a 6c solution, even though it is 100 times more dilute. the development of the atomic theory of matter in the 19th century pretty much destroyed the scientific credibility of homeopathy. according to modern science, one mole of any substance contains 6. 022x1023 molecules or atoms of that substance. this number is called avogadro ' s number. so for example, the element sodium has an atomic weight of 23, which means that 23 grams of sodium contains 6. 022x1023 atoms. so if you took one mole of sodium ( = 23 gram ) and diluted it to 12c ( i. e., by a factor of 1024 ), you would have just about a single atom of sodium in it. if you go to even higher dilutions then the chance of having even a single atom of the original substance becomes vanishingly small. since hahnemann advocated dilutions of 30c, what he was giving his patients was water. of course, the idea of the atomic theory of matter and avogadro ' s number was only coming to


the original substance becomes vanishingly small. since hahnemann advocated dilutions of 30c, what he was giving his patients was water. of course, the idea of the atomic theory of matter and avogadro ' s number was only coming to the fore in the early 19th century so hahnemann could not know this. but homeopathic treatments and practitioners are still around. how can people still believe in homeopathy now since we know that there is no active ingredient remaining and people are merely taking in water? this is where the parallel to religion comes into play. both began in times when science was more primitive and the explanations offered by homeopathy / religion seemed plausible, or at least no worse than the competing explanations. but as science advanced and showed that the original explanations were untenable and better ones existed, people became split. some accepted science and rejected homeopathy / religion. others wanted to continue believing and so made up ad hoc theories to enable them to continue belief. what homeopathy devotees did was find new reasons for believing, arguing that the shaking that occurred during the process of dilution ( which they refer to as " potentization " ) transmits " some form of information or energy from the original substance to the final diluted remedy. most homeopathic remedies are so dilute that no molecules of the healing substance remain ; however, in homeopathy, it is believed that the substance has left its imprint or " essence, " which stimulates the body to heal itself ( this theory is called the " memory of water " ). " but there is no evidence that water, a very much studied and well - understood substance, can carry with it any such memory. similarly, as science increasingly exposes the inadequacy of religious explanations for phenomena, religions invented theology with its own convoluted reasoning, trying to find ways to retain belief in god. it has ended up being forced to postulate a slacker god. modern theological language is similar to that of modern homeopathy, making stuff up as they go along, introducing vocabulary and modes of operation that are so vague, elusive, and tenuous that they defy any systematic investigation, all in order to continue believing in something that has ceased to have any credibility. post script : woo the term ' woo ' or ' woo - woo ' refers to " ideas considered irrational or based on extremely flimsy evidence or that appeal to mysterious occult forces or powers. " that mitchell and webb look pokes fun at homeopa


americans all over the world will celebrate thanksgiving ( or as some say “ turkey day ” ) next thursday, november 22, 2012. the thanksgiving holiday is a day full of family traditions. family and friends spend the day watching football games while children look forward to watching a charlie brown thanksgiving and seeing the giant balloons and live entertainment of the macy ’ s thanksgiving day parade in new york city. did you know that thanksgiving is the biggest day for food consumption in the united states? households spend hours preparing feasts consisting of turkey, stuffing, corn, squash, green - bean casserole ( one of my favorites ), cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie. for most people, thanksgiving is a day that over eating is allowed. words like “ seconds, ” “ thirds, ” and “ leftovers ” are quite common at the dinner table. while these traditions have been carried out for years, it ’ s important to focus not just on the commercialized holiday but understand how thanksgiving came to be. as marcie said in a charlie brown thanksgiving, “ thanksgiving is more than eating, chuck. you heard what linus was saying out there. those early pilgrims were thankful for what had happened to them, and we should be thankful, too. we should just be thankful for being together. i think that ’ s what they mean by ‘ thanksgiving, ’ charlie brown. ”


are your bones weak? do you know someone older who accidentally bumped their arm and ended up needing a sling? this type of injury could have been caused by osteoporosis. ten million americans have osteoporosis, and 34 million more have low bone mass. osteoporosis means your bones have lost density or mass. as your bones become less dense, they become weaker. people can ’ t feel their bones getting weaker. so, you may not know that you have osteoporosis until you break a bone. a person with osteoporosis can fracture a bone from a minor fall, or in serious cases, from a simple action such as a sneeze. while people of all ages and backgrounds can develop osteoporosis, you ’ re at higher risk if you ’ re : - older than 50 - small in body size - eat a diet low in calcium - not physically active - a post - menopausal woman medicare can help you prevent or detect osteoporosis at an early stage, when treatment works best. talk to your doctor about getting a bone mass measurement – it may be free. also, take steps to keep your bones healthy. get the calcium and vitamin d you need every day, and do regular weight - bearing and muscle - strengthening exercises. may is national osteoporosis awareness and prevention month — learn more about what puts you at risk for osteoporosis and how to prevent or treat it at the national osteoporosis foundation or the centers for disease control. also, watch our short youtube video about medicare ’ s efforts to curb osteoporosis.


chore : the word itself sounds like a downer, but teaching your children about responsibility and good behavior is one of the most important lessons they will learn growing up. however, as we ’ re celebrating in personality week, every child is unique – with different attitudes, preferences, and abilities. so, how do you create a chore chart that is tailored specifically for your child, to help her develop in the ways she needs most? the key is working with your child to create a chore chart with her input. a generic chore chart may not motivate as well as one that ’ s been tailored specifically for your child, so here are four ways to get her involved in the chore chart - creation process : 1 ) identify current daily chores. using a piece of paper, ask your child to either draw or write what she sees as her current chores or responsibilities. after your child is finished, have a discussion explaining which chores she thinks she excels in, and which she feels she could do better. let your child drive this conversation as a way to encourage self - awareness. 2 ) make a behavior list. ask your child to draw a line down the middle of a piece of paper and write two lists of behaviors : with one side being good behavior ( i. e. being kind ), and the other side a list of not - so - good behaviors ( i. e. teasing ). again, this is a very specific and personal conversation between you and your child. once the list is complete, ask your child to circle which behaviors she feels most challenged with ( or wants to improve in ), and add those to your chore chart. 3 ) select a few chores to start in the near future. after you have made a list of current chores and behaviors your child will focus on, ask her to identify a few activities that can be goals for the future. for example, your child may currently set the table for dinner, and has added that to her responsibility chart. the logical next step may be to work on a goal that teaches her to do the dishes ( or load the dishwasher ). one way to reach this goal would be to work on a “ chore upgrade ” – after a few weeks of solid performance in setting the table, “ upgrade ” to the next “ level ” of chore ( you may want to consider accompanying this upgrade with a reward ). 4 ) choose rewards that mean something special to your child. to make rewards sustainable ( both logistically and financially ) consider choosing


i bet you can ’ t name one student over the age of 18 that doesn ’ t own a highlighter … that ’ s because highlighting is often an important part of note taking, reading and studying - especially in college! college students are inundated with information overload and use highlighters daily as a tool to cut through the clutter to help them clarify, organize, and synthesize subject matter. highlighting helps to cut down the excess so that students can more easily focus on the main concepts that are important to them and study more effectively and efficiently. highlighting correctly can be very helpful for students, however it can often be a distraction when done incorrectly. have you ever looked back through your textbook after reading a chapter only to find either, a ) you had so perfectly colored every page a bright neon hue that your kindergarten - self would be jealous? or b ) you retained ab - so - lute - ly nothing? if you answered yes to either ( most likely both ), you are a victim of “ over - highlighting ”!! “ over - highlighting ” is a common problem while reading – take a look at your friend ’ s notebook or textbook next time you ’ re at the library – i promise you ’ ll see entirely too much highlighting. to keep this time - waster from happening you ’ ve got to stay focused and refrain from getting caught up in mindlessly “ coloring ” the page. try applying some of these tips on highlighting text effectively from cliffnotes. com : - focus on the main point – and that may not be the entire sentence. it ’ s perfectly okay to highlight only key terms or parts of sentences. in fact, you may get a better sense of the main idea of a paragraph if you highlight a string of words ( excluding extraneous information ) that lets you glean the main idea at a glance. - consider reading the entire paragraph, and then going back and highlighting the important words and ideas. if you highlight from the start, you may not be sure of the paragraph ’ s purpose and how to best capture that purpose or idea with your highlighter. - if you buy a used textbook or other reading material, look for one with little or no highlighting. it ’ s hard to ignore the previous owner ’ s highlighting. in addition to highlighting, consider jotting notes in the margins, next to passages. now, don ’ t be a victim, highlight effectively and efficiently. above all else, highlight so that you get an a on the test! sharpie highlighters are the


it would cost you a minimum of $ 37, 000 to enroll for a year at one of the top 10 schools in the united states, according to the u. s. news & world report. however, anyone with a computer will now be able to take courses from half of those schools … for free. at tedglobal 2012, stanford university professor daphne koller introduced us to coursera. org, an effort to bring rigorous college courses online to anyone who wants them. at the time, coursera offered classes from princeton university, the university of michigan, stanford university and the university of pennsylvania. however, today, coursera announced partnerships with seven more top colleges in the united states : california institute of technology, duke university, georgia tech, the university of virginia, johns hopkins bloomberg school of public health, rice university, the university of california san francisco, the university of washington, and the university of illinois urbana - champaign. at the same time, caltech and the university of pennsylvania have extended a combined $ 3. 7 million investment in the site. and three international schools — the university of edinburgh, the university of toronto and ecole polytechnique federale de lausanne — have also signed agreements with coursera. when koller spoke at tedglobal in late june, coursera ’ s stats read as such : 680, 000 students from 190 countries viewing 14 million videos and taking 6 million quizzes in 1. 6 million course enrollments across 43 courses. however, with this new infusion, coursera will now be offering about 111 classes. each class — and topics range from “ bioelectricity : a quantitative approach ” to “ fantasy and science fiction : the human mind, our modern world ” — has a definitive start date, and includes comprehension testing. in her tedtalk, koller explained that coursera was created after her stanford colleague andrew ng offered a machine learning class online for free and had about 100, 000 people enroll. but the benefits of the site go beyond offering great classes to anyone interested. by collecting every click, homework submission, quiz and forum note from tens of thousands of students, coursera is a data mine that offers a new way to study learning. “ we can transform the study of human learning from hypothesis - driven to data - driven mode, ” koller explained.


how do you divide water lilies? cindy – galesburg, il dividing lilies may seem somewhat complicated, but our step - by - step process will explain exactly what you need to do. try to plan it so you divide them during your spring cleanout, which would give easy access to tubers. dividing is necessary every two to three years, and it is helpful if you notice the lily grew mostly pads and few lilies over the past season. step 1 : remove lilies from pond or container and rinse off. plant baskets are ideal containers until they are ready to be moved to the pond. step 2 : trim away root growth and old foliage. step 3 : cut the tuber down to size. you can safely cut the tuber down between two to three inches on the growing part with a sharp knife. this can be increased to five to six inches on longer plants. remember to also cut off new buds and older leaves, so that the new root system has a chance to grow. step 4 : plant each tuber separately or discard if you wish to reduce the lilies ’ quantity in your pond. use plant fertilizer and planting media for best results and a continuing healthy pond. step 5 : replant them shallow in the pond until new growth begins. step 6 : upon new growth lilies can be moved deeper into the pond.


: : the horror of the cross in the ancient world : : with few exceptions, even the most skeptical scholars admit that jesus was crucified — and with good reason. not only christian authors but also the roman historian tacitus mention the crucifixion of jesus. it ' s highly unlikely that first - century christians would have fabricated such a shameful fate for the founder of their faith. in the first century a. d., crucifixion represented the darkest possible path to death. it is almost impossible for contemporary people to comprehend the full obscenity of crucifixion in the ancient world. beginning as early as the third century b. c., the very word " crucify " was a vulgarism that did not pass freely between the lips of cultured people. in one ancient document, a roman prostitute hurled this insult — perhaps the lewdest curse in her vocabulary — at an uncouth patron : " go get yourself crucified! " the roman philosopher seneca described what he witnessed at a crucifixion with these words : " i see the stakes there — not of one kind but of many. some victims are placed head down ; some have spikes driven through their genitals ; others have their arms stretched out on the gibbet. " that ' s why first - and second - century romans referred to the christians ' worship of a crucified god as " foolishness, " " insanity, " and " idiocy. " one of the earliest graphical depictions of such worship is a scrap of late second - century graffiti, uncovered near rome in a palace where slaves trained to serve the imperial family. in this graffito, a man with the head of an ass dangles naked from a cross. at the foot of the cross, someone kneels, surrounded by these rough - scrawled words : alexamenos sebete theon. " alexamenos worships god. " someone — perhaps a servant training to serve caesar himself — was ridiculing a young man named alexamenos because alexamenos had embraced a new religion, a faith centered around a deity who suffered the punishment for humanity ' s sin on a cross. ( see image above. an interesting sidenote on the alexamenos graffito : evidently, the spelling skills of graffiti artists have not improved over the centuries ; the third - person singular of sebomai should be sebetai not sebete. ) : : what happened


" the epitaph of a second - century murder victim includes this haunting clause : " my murderer was suspended from a tree, while still alive, for the benefit of beasts and birds. " the critics have a bone that could support their argument too — a heelbone with a spike in it, to be exact. over the span of four centuries, the romans crucified tens of thousands of murderers, revolutionaries, and persons who happened to be trapped on the wrong side of the political tides. yet the only fragment that has been found from these thousands of cadavers is one single heelbone, still pierced by a spike. according to the inscription on the side of this man ' s ossuary, the man ' s name was john ; he was jewish. and why have the remains from only one crucified body survived? well, according to some skeptics like john dominic crossan, it ' s because, in nearly all cases, weather and wild creatures dealt with the corpses of the crucified. crossan declares, we have found only one body from all the thousands crucified around jerusalem in that single century. i keep thinking of all those other thousands of jews crucified around jerusalem in that terrible first century from among whom we have found only one skeleton and one nail.... i think i know what happened to their bodies, and i have no reason to think jesus ' body did not join them. so, according to this band of critics, the body of jesus was never buried. instead, his flesh became carrion for wild beasts. and what of the resurrection? from crossan ' s perspective, the resurrection was mere fiction - - - nothing more than a hallucination that emerged from the disciples ' deep - seated hopes and dreams that they might see jesus again. if such critics have rightly reconstructed history, good friday was not good, and resurrection sunday was no triumph. jesus died, his corpse remained on the cross, and the resurrection was nothing more than a series of hallucinations and fabrications. so what really happened to the body of jesus? is there any historical foundation for believing that the body of jesus was entombed in the way that the new testament gospels claim? or could it be that crossan and other critics are correct? i am convinced that the historical evidences provide little support for crossan ' s contention that the corpse of jesus became carrion for dogs and birds. in fact, in the context of jerusalem around a. d. 30, the best


are correct? i am convinced that the historical evidences provide little support for crossan ' s contention that the corpse of jesus became carrion for dogs and birds. in fact, in the context of jerusalem around a. d. 30, the best available evidence points in the precise opposite direction. even if you disagree with me, please at least take a look with me at both sides of the evidence for the burial of jesus ' crucified body. : : the religious leaders would have wanted the body of jesus buried : : in most areas of the roman empire, crucified bodies did become pickings for vultures and dogs — that much is certain. but not always, and not everywhere. in judea — and especially around jerusalem — there was a law that, from the perspective of the jewish people, came from a higher source than caesar. in this law, god commanded the israelites : " if someone commits a capital crime for which he is executed and if you hang him on a tree, his body shall not remain all night upon the tree. you shall bury him the same day, for anyone hanged from a tree is condemned by god. you shall not defile your land that the lord your god is giving you as an inheritance " ( deuteronomy 21 : 22 - 23 ; see also ezekiel 39 : 14 - 16 ). the temple scroll from the dead sea scrolls at qumran testifies to how seriously jews took this command even during the times of exile and occupation : " you shall not allow bodies to remain on a tree overnight ; most assuredly, you shall bury them, even on the very day of their death. " the jewish book of tobit — an entertaining little text, penned in the time - period that stands between the old and new testaments — identifies the burial of abandoned corpses as an act of supreme piety. near the end of the first century a. d., the jewish historian josephus contrasted the jewish perspective on crucified bodies to typical roman practices. according to josephus, " jews are conscientious about their burial practices — so much so that even criminals sentenced to crucifixion are removed and buried before the sun sets! " in another writing, josephus stated, " [ jews ] must furnish fire, water, and food to anyone who asks, giving directions to the right road, never leaving a corpse unburied. " later rabbis echoed this concern for the deceased. according to the rabbis, although the bodies of criminals might not immediately


native practices of occupied nations. that ' s why, when crushing the jewish independence movement in a. d. 70, the romans crucified thousands of jews and left the corpses to rot on their crosses. but jesus wasn ' t crucified in a time of war. he was, in fact, crucified during a relatively peaceful period in the history of judea. and, in times of relative peace, romans consistently respected the laws of occupied nations. " the romans, " josephus contended, " do not require... their subjects to violate their national laws. " as part of this pattern of toleration for local peculiarities, pontius pilate would have granted the body of a deceased jew to his own people — even if roman law didn ' t demand it. after all, hadn ' t herod antipas given the body of john the baptist to his disciples after he beheaded the popular prophet? during a potentially volatile religious festival, pilate would have had an even greater reason to respect local customs. pilate ' s desperate determination to maintain peace during the passover would probably have persuaded the governor to hand over the body of jesus for burial. but such concessions weren ' t just roman practice. they were roman law. here ' s what pandectae — a summary of the roman legal code — declared about the bodies of crucified criminals : the bodies of those who are condemned to death should not be refused their relatives ; and [ caesar ] augustus the divine, in the tenth book of his vita, said that this rule had been observed. at present, the bodies of those who have been punished are only buried when this has been requested and permission granted ; and sometimes it is not permitted, especially where persons have been convicted of high treason.... the bodies of persons who have been punished should be given to whoever requests them for the purpose of burial. this fits perfectly with the description in the new testament gospels. roman law required pilate to provide the body of jesus " to whoever " requested it " for the purpose of burial. " when joseph of arimathea requested the body of jesus, pilate verified that jesus was dead — he had already dealt with jesus once, and he didn ' t want to deal with him again if he wasn ' t quite dead and his followers somehow resuscitated him. once a centurion confirmed that jesus was dead, pilate granted joseph ' s request. " roman legal practice, " gerd ludemann claims in the book


he wasn ' t quite dead and his followers somehow resuscitated him. once a centurion confirmed that jesus was dead, pilate granted joseph ' s request. " roman legal practice, " gerd ludemann claims in the book what really happened? : a historical approach to the resurrection, " provided for someone who died on the cross to rot there or be consumed by vultures, jackals or other animals. " despite the confident title of ludemann ' s text, this was not " what really happened " ; roman legal practice explicitly provided for the precise opposite of this claim. other than mass crucifixions during times of war or revolt, it was only when a roman citizen was executed for high treason that burial was forbidden — a category that the crucifixion of jesus certainly didn ' t fit. jesus of nazareth was not a roman citizen ; his execution occurred not because he has conspired against caesar but because because it was claimed that he had asserted kingship over the jewish people, an act that could ( at least from the romans ' perspective ) result in a revolt. : : why were so many bodies left on the crosses? : : so, why — if families could request an executed corpse — does roman literature include so many references to the consumption of crucified corpses by birds and beasts? and why has only a single heelbone from one crucified man ever been found? don ' t forget this crucial fact : crucifixion constituted the supreme dishonor in the ancient world. the very word " crucify " remained unmentioned in polite company. among romans, suicide was to be preferred above a cross. as such, beyond the borders of the jewish provinces, it would have been highly unusual for a family to reclaim the corpse of their crucified kin ; families would have disowned this person because of the shame that the accused criminal ' s actions had brought on their family ' s name. these forsaken bodies — the vast majority of the victims of roman crucifixion — remained on their crosses to be consumed. thus their remains disintegrated into the dust of the roman empire. but the case of jesus — a jew, crucified near jerusalem on the eve of a popular religious festival — doesn ' t fit the typical pattern : the jews would have wanted jesus buried, and roman practice called for pontius pilate to grant this request. timothy paul jones ( ph. d., the southern baptist


the eve of a popular religious festival — doesn ' t fit the typical pattern : the jews would have wanted jesus buried, and roman practice called for pontius pilate to grant this request. timothy paul jones ( ph. d., the southern baptist theological seminary ) serves as associate professor of leadership at southern seminary. dr. jones has written more than a dozen books in the areas of church history, apologetics, and family ministry. he blogs here and at http : / / www. timothypauljones. com. 11qt64 : 11 - 13 ; 11qt48 : 10 – 14 ; 4q524. craig evans, " jewish burial traditions and the resurrection of jesus " : http : / / www. craigevans. com n. haas, " anthropological observations on the skeletal remains from giv ' at ha - mivtar, " israel exploration journal 20 ( 1970 ) 38 – 59. martin hengel, crucifixion in the ancient world and the folly of the message of the cross rev. ed. ( minneapolis, minneapolis : augsburg fortress, 1977 ). josephus, antiquitates judaica, 17 : 10 ; 18 : 5 ; the jewish war, ed. h. st. - j. thackeray, loeb classical library ( cambridge, massachusetts : harvard university press, 1927 ) 2 : 5 ; 4 : 5 ; 5 : 6 - 11 ; contra apionem, in the life, against apion, ed. h. st. - j. thackeray, in loeb classical library ( cambridge, ma : harvard university, 1926 ) 2 : 6, 29 juvenal, satires, 14 : 77 - 78. s. r. llewelyn, ed., new documents illustrating early christianity, vol. 8 ( grand rapids : eerdmans, 1998 ) 1. mishnah sanhedrin 6 : 4 - 6. philo of alexandria, in flaccus, philo, ed. f. h. colson, loeb classical library ( cambridge : harvard university press, 1941 ) 10 : 81 - 85 seneca, de consolatione ad marciam, in volume ii : moral essays, ed. john basore, in loeb classical library ( cambridge, massachusetts : harvard university, 1932 ) 20 : 3. cornelius tacitus, annales, 6 : 29 ; 15 : 44 : tobit 1 : 18 – 20 ; 2 : 3 – 8 ; 4 : 3 – 4 ; 6


google is now serving up more than a hundred years of photographs from life magazine. the pictures of the early days of astronomy are just spectacular. the archives contain images of many astronomers who were critical figures in the development of the field, but who have yet to have telescopes named after them. a large fraction of them also seemed to smoke pipes. a huge hero of mine is walter baade. baade was the guy who essentially took over observations at mt wilson during the blackouts of wwii. with the lights of los angeles snuffed out, and unable to serve in the military himself, he pushed the telescopes on mt wilson to their limits, and established the study of stellar populations in nearby galaxies. there are some terrific pictures of walter adams working at mt wilson. in the picture below, he ’ s holding the telescope controls used for guiding. during an astronomical observation, you have to move the telescope to compensate for the earth ’ s rotation. nowadays, your computer can take care of it by adjusting the position to keep a bright star at a fixed position on a ccd camera. back then, you looked through a little spotting scope, and manually adjusted the telescope position to keep it pointed at the right part of the sky. if you let it drift, your image would be blurry. no pee breaks for you, dr. adams! the guy kneeling in the figure below is gerard kuiper, working on a telescope at mcdonald observatory. he was a planetary astronomer, and the guy for whom the “ kuiper belt ” in the outer solar system was named, although edgeworth probably deserved more credit for it. ( kuiper actually does have an airborne observatory named after him ). and you have to love this picture of frank drake, working at the national radio astronomy observatory in greenbank west virginia. you really can never have enough toggle switches. fyi, drake is the guy behind the “ drake equation ”, used to estimate the likelihood of contact with extraterrestrial civilizations. and finally, a wonderful overhead shot of the 100 ″ telescope at mt. wilson the pictures above are a tiny fraction of the available pictures of working scientists. cancel your afternoon appointments and dive in.


june 11, 2010 dead birds smothered in icky, gooey brown oil are the iconic images of most any oil spill, including the ongoing one in the gulf. even a small amount of oil can kill a bird. oil sticks to feathers, destroying their waterproofing ability and exposing the bird to extremes of temperature. and ingested oil can harm internal organs. the birds that survive long enough to be rescued can often be cleaned. the international bird rescue research center has treated birds from more than 150 spills over the last four decades, and it has teamed up with tri - state bird rescue to wash birds rescued from the gulf spill. cleaning the birds is a multi - step process, and it can be a stressful one for the bird. beforehand, the bird is examined and its health stabilized. it may be suffering from exhaustion, dehydration, hypothermia or the toxic effects of ingested oil. once the bird is healthy enough to handle the ordeal of washing, trained staff and volunteers clean it in a tub of warm water mixed with one percent dawn dishwashing detergent. ( ibrrc discovered in the late 1970s not only that dawn was great at removing oil, but also that it didn ’ t irritate birds ’ skin or eyes and could even be ingested — accidentally, of course — without harm. ) when the water is dirty, the bird is moved to a second tub, and so on, until the water remains clean. then the bird is thoroughly rinsed. once it is dry, the bird will preen and restore the overlapping, weatherproof pattern of its feathers. after it is deemed healthy, the bird is released to an oil - free area. cleaning one bird can take hours and up to 300 gallons of water. survival rates are about 50 to 80 percent on average, the ibrrc says, though this depends on the species. ( as of earlier this week, the center had rescued 442 live birds, 40 of which had been cleaned were healthy enough to be released back into the wild. ) some scientists, however, have questioned the value of putting so much effort into saving birds when the benefits are unclear. “ it might make us feel better to clean them up and send them back out, ” university of california, davis ornithologist daniel anderson told newsweek. “ but there ’ s a real question of how much it actually does for the birds, aside from prolong their suffering. ” there is no long - term data on survival after the birds


13 solar companies awarded doe funds for concentrating solar power doe announced today that it has awarded $ 62 million in grants to various research projects to develop specific aspects involving development of concentrating solar power ( csp ) systems to improve and accelerate solar technology. this five year program will study the feasibility of creating utility - scale solar power plants capable of operating 18 hours a day, which is the only way solar will ever be able to replace traditional coal - fired energy stations. the projects range from exploring ways to collect solar energy after the sun sets to developing thermal storage systems to trap solar energy in molten salt. thirteen different companies have been selected to receive grants. six are located in california - solar, inc. ( $ 10. 8m ), pratt & whitney rocketdyne ( $ 10. 2m ), general atomics ( $ 2. 1m ), sener engineering and systems inc. ( $ 3. 1m ), suntrough energy, inc. ( $ 4. 5m ) and terrafore, inc. ( $ 1. 4m ). other companies receiving research funding include skyfuel, inc. in new mexico ( $ 4. 3m ), abengoa solar, inc. in colorado ( $ 10. 6m ), ppg industries, inc in pennsylvania ( $ 3m ), infinia corporation in washington ( $ 3m ) and hitech services, inc. in alabama ( $ 3m ). doe secretary steven chu believes the programs will " create new jobs and pave the way towards a clean - energy future. " more on concentrating solar power : stirling engine concentrating solar power plant uses new suncatcher system gossamer solar troughs for concentrated solar power offer better performance and lower cost amonix concentrating solar pv cells achieve 39 % efficiency utility solar plant uses molten salt for heat storage stirling energy systems intros new suncatcher concentrating solar power system using stirling engine patriot solar group concentrated solar thermal and pv image credit : geri kodey ( national renewable energy laboratory )


glossary of arabic terms from the al - wala wal bara by shaykh muhammad seed al qahtani allah ta ’ ala : allah, the most high, the lord of all the worlds. allah, the supreme and mighty name, indicates the one, the existent, the creator, the worshipped, the lord of the universe. allah is the first without beginning and the last without end and the outwardly manifest and the inwardly hidden. ahlu ’ l - sunnah wa ’ l - jama ’ a : the people who follow the sunnah of the prophet muhammad, may allah bless him and grant him peace, and who hold together as a community on that basis. alim : a man of knowledge from amongst the muslims who acts on what he knows aqeedah : belief or faith firmly based on how things are, rather than on how they may be imagined. thus ‘ aqeedah can only fully be derived from an original revelation from allah and from the sayings of the messenger to whom it was revealed : in this age, the qur ’ an and the prophet muhammad, may allah bless him and grant him peace ayah : a sign, a verse of the quran. ayat : the plural of ayah. bara ‘ : withdrawing from and opposing all that is displeasing to allah and his messenger, may allah bless him and grant him peace. bida : innovation, changing the original teaching of the prophet muhammad, may allah bless him and grant him peace, in a deen : the life - transaction, submission and obedience to a particular system of rules and practices, a debt of exchange between two parties, in this usage between the creator and the created. allah says in the quran : surely the deen with allah is islam. ( 3. 19 ). faqih : a scholar of fiqh who by virtue of his knowledge can give an authoritative opinion or judgement fiqh : islamic jurisprudence, the science of the application of the shar fisq : corruption. fuqaha : the plural of faqih. hadith : reported speech, particularly of, or about, the prophet muhammad, may allah bless him and grant him peace. hadith qudsi : those words of allah on the tongue of his prophet, may allah bless him and grant him peace, which are not part of the revelation of the quran hajj : the annual pilgrimage to makka which every muslim who has the means and ability must make once in his or her life - time ; the


may allah bless him and grant him peace, which are not part of the revelation of the quran hajj : the annual pilgrimage to makka which every muslim who has the means and ability must make once in his or her life - time ; the performance of the rites of the hajj in the protected area which surrounds the kaaba. the hajj is one of the indispensable pillars of islam. halal : permitted by the shariah. haram : forbidden by the shariah ; also a protected area, an inviolable place or object hasan : good ; a category of hadith which is reliable, but which is not as well authenticated as one which is sahih. hijrah : emigration in the way of allah. islam takes its dating from the hijrah of the prophet muhammad, may allah bless him and grant him peace, from makka to madina, in 622 a. ihsan : the state of being hasan ; being absolutely sincere to allah in oneself ; it is to worship allah as though you see him, knowing that although you do not see him, he sees you. imam : the one who leads the prayer, an eminent scholar. iman : acceptance, belief, trust, in allah, a gift from him. iman is to believe in allah, his angels, his revealed books, his messengers, the last day, the garden and the fire, and that everything is by the decree of allah, both the good and the evil. islam : peace and submission to the will of allah, the way of life embodied by all the prophets, given its final form in the prophetic guidance brought by the prophet muhammad, may the blessings and peace of allah be on him. the five pillars of islam are the affirmation of the shahada, doing the salat, paying the zakat, fasting the month of ramadan, and doing the hajj once in a life - time if you are able. isnad : the written record of the names of the people who form the chain of human transmission, person to person, by means of which a hadith is preserved. one of the sciences of the muslims which was developed after the prophet muhammad ’ s death, may allah bless him and grant him peace, is the science of assessing the authenticity of a hadith by assessing the reliability of its isnad. jahiliyyah : the time of ignorance, before the coming of islam. jihad : struggle, particularly warfare, to


him and grant him peace, is the science of assessing the authenticity of a hadith by assessing the reliability of its isnad. jahiliyyah : the time of ignorance, before the coming of islam. jihad : struggle, particularly warfare, to establish and defend islam. inwardly, the jihad is to oppose whatever in your self is displeasing to allah. outwardly, it is oppose kufr by word and action. jinn : unseen beings created from smokeless fire who co - habit the earth together with mankind kaaba : the cube - shaped building at the centre of the haram in makka, originally built by the prophet ibrahim, peace be on him, and rebuilt with the help of the prophet muhammad, may allah bless him and grant him peace ; also known as the house of allah. the ka ’ aba is the focal point which all muslims face when doing the salat. this does not mean that allah lives inside the ka ’ aba, nor does it mean that the muslims worship the kaaba. it is allah who is worshipped and allah is not contained or confined in any form or place or time or concept. kafir : a person who commits kufr, the opposite of a mumin. kaflrun : the plural of kafir. kalima : the declaration : there is no god but allah, muhammad is the messenger of allah kufr : to cover up the truth, to reject allah and his messenger, may the blessings and peace of allah be on him. la ilaha ill allah : there is no god but allah. makruh : disapproved of, without being forbidden, by the shariah. marfu : a hadith from a companion of the prophet muhammad containing words attributed to the prophet muhammad, may allah bless him and grant him peace. muhammad ar - rasulullah : muhammad is the messenger of allah, may the blessings and peace of allah be on h muhsin : someone who possesses the quality of ih - san, who remembers allah constantly. mumin : someone who possesses the quality of iman, who trusts in allah and accepts his messenger, may allah bless him and grant him peace. muminun : the plural of mumin. munafiq : a hypocrite ; the hypocrites amongst the muslims outwardly profess islam on the tongue, but inwardly reject allah and his messenger, may allah bless him and grant him peace, siding with the kafirun against the muslims. the deepest part of the


; the hypocrites amongst the muslims outwardly profess islam on the tongue, but inwardly reject allah and his messenger, may allah bless him and grant him peace, siding with the kafirun against the muslims. the deepest part of the fire is reserved for the munafiqun munafiqun : the plural of munafiq. mushrik : one who commits shirk. mushrikeen : the plural of mushrik. muslim : someone who follows the way of islam, doing what is obligatory, avoiding what is forbidden, keeping within the limits prescribed by allah, and following the sunnah of the prophet muhammad, may allah bless him and grant him peace, in what he or she is able. a muslim is, by definition, one who is safe and sound, at peace in this world, and promised the garden in the next world. qadi : a judge. qiblah : the direction faced in prayer, which, for the muslims, is towards the kaaba in makka. everyone has a direction in life, but only the muslims have this qibla quran : the ‘ recitation ’, the last revelation from allah to mankind and the jinn before the end of the world, revealed to the prophet muhammad, may allah bless him and grant him peace, through the angel jibril, over a period of twenty - three years, the first thirteen of which were spent in makka and the last ten of which were spent in madina. the quran amends, encompasses, expands, surpasses and abrogates all the earlier revelations revealed to the earlier messengers, peace be on all of them. the quran is the greatest miracle given to the prophet muhammad by allah, for he was illiterate and could neither read nor write. the quran is the uncreated word of allah. the quran still exists today exactly as it was originally revealed, without any alteration or change or addition or deletion. whoever recites the quran with courtesy and sincerity receives knowledge and wisdom, for it is the well of wisdom in this age. raka : a unit of the prayer, a complete series of standing, bowing, prostrations and sitting rakat : the plural of raka. ramadan : the month of fasting, the ninth month in the muslim lunar calendar, during which all adult muslims who are in good health fast from the first light of dawn until sunset each day. the quran was first revealed in the month of ramadan. the fast of rama


fasting, the ninth month in the muslim lunar calendar, during which all adult muslims who are in good health fast from the first light of dawn until sunset each day. the quran was first revealed in the month of ramadan. the fast of ramadan is one of the indispensable pillars of islam. sahaba : companions, particularly the companions of the prophet muhammad, may the blessings and peace of allah be on him and on his family and on his companion sahih : healthy and sound with no defects ; often used to describe a fully authenticated hadith. the two most reliable collections of hadith by imam aibukhari and imam muslim are both described as saheeh saiafi : adjective from as - salaf, ‘ the early years ’, and used generally to describe the early generations of the muslims, particularly the sahaba, the companions of the messenger of allah, may the blessings and peace of allah be on him and on his family and on his companions. in the present age the term is sometimes used to describe those muslims who closely follow the sunnah of the prophet muhammad. salat : the prayer, particularly the five daily obligatory ritual prayers of the muslims which are called maghrib, ‘ isha, fajr, dhur and ‘ asr. they consist of fixed numbers of rak ’ at in worship to allah. salat is one of the indispensable pillars sawm : fasting, particularly the fast of ramadan, from food and drink and making love if you are married during daylight, from the first light of dawn until sunset. shahada : to witness, to bear witness that : there is no god but allah and that muhammad is the messenger of allah, may allah bless him and grant him peace. the shahada is the gateway to islam and the gateway to the garden in the next world. it is easy to say, but to act on it is a vast undertaking which has far reaching consequences, both in inward awareness and in outward action, both in this world and in the next world. continual affirmation of the shahada is one of the indispensable pillars of islam. shariah : a road, the legal and social modality of a people based on the revelation of their prophet. the last shariah in history is that of islam. it abrogates all previous shariahs. it is, being the last, therefore the easiest to follow, for it is applicable to the whole human race wherever they are


their prophet. the last shariah in history is that of islam. it abrogates all previous shariahs. it is, being the last, therefore the easiest to follow, for it is applicable to the whole human race wherever they are. shaytan : a devil, particularly iblis ( satan ), an evil jinn who prompts mankind and the jinn to rebel against allah. shay tan is part of the creation of allah, and we seek refuge in allah from the evil that he has created shirk : the unforgivable wrong action of worshipping something or someone other than allah or associating something or someone as a partner with him ; the opposite of tawheed which is affirmation of divine unity. shirk is idol worship, which is attributing form to allah by attempting to confine him within an object, a concept, a ritual or a myth whereas allah is not like anything and has no form. he cannot be conceived of or perceived. sirah : the historical study of the prophet muhammad ’ s life, may the blessings and peace of allah be on sunnah : a form, the customary practice of a person or group of people. it has come to refer almost exclusively to the practice of the messenger of allah, muhammad, may allah bless him and grant him peace, but also comprises the customs of the first generation of muslims in madina, who acted in accordance with what they had learned from him and who transmitted what they had learned to the next generation. the sunnah is a complete behavioral science that has been systematically kept outside the learning framework of this society, but which nevertheless has been preserved by those to whom it has been transmitted and who continue to embody it as their way of life. the messenger of allah, may allah bless him and grant him peace, said : t have left two matters with you. as long as you hold to them, you will not go the wrong way. they are the book of allah and the sunnah of his prophet. ’ ( ai - muwatta of imam malik, 46. 1. 3 ) tafsir : commentary on the quran. taqwa : being careful, knowing your place in the cosmos. its proof is the experience of awe of allah, which inspires a person to be on guard against wrong action and eager for actions which are pleasing to him. tawaf : circling the kaaba ; tawaf is done in sets of seven circuits followed by two rakat of prayer tawba