, a large majority favors peaceful means for dealing with iran. there is even strong opposition to military engagement if iran and israel are at war. only a quarter regard iran as an important concern for the u. s. altogether. but it is not unusual for there to be a gap, often a chasm, dividing public opinion and policy. why exactly is iran regarded as such a colossal threat? the question is rarely discussed, but it is not hard to find a serious answer — though not, as usual, in the fevered pronouncements. the most authoritative answer is provided by the pentagon and the intelligence services in their regular reports to congress on global security. they report that iran does not pose a military threat. its military spending is very low even by the standards of the region, minuscule of course in comparison with the u. s. iran has little capacity to deploy force. its strategic doctrines are defensive, designed to deter invasion long enough for diplomacy to set it. if iran is developing nuclear weapons capability, they report, that would be part of its deterrence strategy. no serious analyst believes that the ruling clerics are eager to see their country and possessions vaporized, the immediate consequence of their coming even close to initiating a nuclear war. and it is hardly necessary to spell out the reasons why any iranian leadership would be concerned with deterrence, under existing circumstances. the regime is doubtless a serious threat to much of its own population — and regrettably, is hardly unique on that score. but the primary threat to the u. s. and israel is that iran might deter their free exercise of violence. a further threat is that the iranians clearly seek to extend their influence to neighboring iraq and afghanistan, and beyond as well. those “ illegitimate ” acts are called “ destabilizing ” ( or worse ). in contrast, forceful imposition of u. s. influence halfway around the world contributes to “ stability ” and order, in accord with traditional doctrine about who owns the world. it makes very good sense to try to prevent iran from joining the nuclear weapons states, including the three that have refused to sign the non - proliferation treaty — israel, india, and pakistan, all of which have been assisted in developing nuclear weapons by the u. s., and are still being assisted by them. it is not impossible to approach that goal by peaceful diplomatic means. one approach, which enjoys overwhelming international support, is to undertake meaningful steps towards establishing a nuclear weapons - free zone in the middle east, including iran and israel


still being assisted by them. it is not impossible to approach that goal by peaceful diplomatic means. one approach, which enjoys overwhelming international support, is to undertake meaningful steps towards establishing a nuclear weapons - free zone in the middle east, including iran and israel ( and applying as well to u. s. forces deployed there ), better still extending to south asia. support for such efforts is so strong that the obama administration has been compelled to formally agree, but with reservations : crucially, that israel ’ s nuclear program must not be placed under the auspices of the international atomic energy association, and that no state ( meaning the u. s. ) should be required to release information about “ israeli nuclear facilities and activities, including information pertaining to previous nuclear transfers to israel. ” obama also accepts israel ’ s position that any such proposal must be conditional on a comprehensive peace settlement, which the u. s. and israel can continue to delay indefinitely. this survey comes nowhere near being exhaustive, needless to say. among major topics not addressed is the shift of u. s. military policy towards the asia - pacific region, with new additions to the huge military base system underway right now, in jeju island off south korea and northwest australia, all elements of the policy of “ containment of china. ” closely related is the issue of u. s. bases in okinawa, bitterly opposed by the population for many years, and a continual crisis in u. s. - tokyo - okinawa relations. revealing how little fundamental assumptions have changed, u. s. strategic analysts describe the result of china ’ s military programs as a “ classic ‘ security dilemma, ’ whereby military programs and national strategies deemed defensive by their planners are viewed as threatening by the other side, ” writes paul godwin of the foreign policy research institute. the security dilemma arises over control of the seas off china ’ s coasts. the u. s. regards its policies of controlling these waters as “ defensive, ” while china regards them as threatening ; correspondingly, china regards its actions in nearby areas as “ defensive ” while the u. s. regards them as threatening. no such debate is even imaginable concerning u. s. coastal waters. this “ classic security dilemma ” makes sense, again, on the assumption that the u. s. has a right to control most of the world, and that u. s. security requires something approaching absolute global control. while the principles of imperial domination have undergone little change, the capacity to implement them has markedly declined as power has become more broadly distributed


has a right to control most of the world, and that u. s. security requires something approaching absolute global control. while the principles of imperial domination have undergone little change, the capacity to implement them has markedly declined as power has become more broadly distributed in a diversifying world. consequences are many. it is, however, very important to bear in mind that — unfortunately — none lifts the two dark clouds that hover over all consideration of global order : nuclear war and environmental catastrophe, both literally threatening the decent survival of the species. quite the contrary. both threats are ominous, and increasing. noam chomsky is institute professor emeritus in the mit department of linguistics and philosophy. he is the author of numerous best - selling political works. his latest books are making the future : occupations, intervention, empire, and resistance, the essential chomsky ( edited by anthony arnove ), a collection of his writings on politics and on language from the 1950s to the present, gaza in crisis, with ilan pappe, and hopes and prospects, also available as an audiobook. to listen to timothy macbain ’ s latest tomcast audio interview in which chomsky offers an anatomy of american defeats in the greater middle east, click here, or download it to your ipod here.


wildlife conservation day highlights action against wildlife crime 04 december 2012 | news story in response to growing concern about illegal trade in wildlife, the us department of state has declared 4 december as wildlife conservation day and is calling for individuals across the world to support threatened species by signing up to a wildlife pledge. the international union for conservation of nature ( iucn ) welcomes this initiative given the recent escalation of poaching for a number of species that is compromising decades - long efforts towards the conservation and sustainable use of wild species. wildlife conservation day promotes the conservation and protection of threatened species, specifically elephants, rhinos and tigers and raises awareness about the harmful security, economic and environmental effects of wildlife poaching and trafficking. to help combat wildlife crime by reducing consumer demand, individuals are encouraged to take a wildlife pledge to become a more responsible consumer and learn about the products they purchase so that they can help protect wildlife. many people depend on wildlife and plants directly for their livelihoods, food, fuel, shelter and medicines. many populations consider some charismatic species as part of their natural heritage and these species often provide revenues from tourism that not only contributes to local economies but also to the continuity of conservation efforts. however, over - exploitation puts the survival of many species at risk. the monitoring and regulation of wildlife trade is therefore essential in the protection of wild species. “ some species like tigers have been on a continuing decline for a long time and are on the brink of extinction but others like african elephants and white rhinos were faring much better, at least in some parts of their range as a result of conservation work. we cannot let organized crime reduce decades of effort to zero, ” says jean - christophe vie, deputy director, iucn global species programme, and director, save our species ( sos ). “ iucn and its species survival commission ( ssc ) are contributing to this effort by gathering and analyzing information ; advising international processes such as the convention on international trade in endangered species of fauna and flora ( cites ) ; and also supporting action on the ground. ” thanks to the unmatched expertise provided by ssc, iucn is well placed to provide very specific information and guidance for many targeted species such as elephants and rhinos. in collaboration with traffic international, the wildlife monitoring network, it also provides an independent and science based analysis of the proposals to amend the cites appendices which list the species affected by international trade. thanks to sos ( save our species ), the global coalition initiated by iucn, global environment facility ( gef ) and the


independent and science based analysis of the proposals to amend the cites appendices which list the species affected by international trade. thanks to sos ( save our species ), the global coalition initiated by iucn, global environment facility ( gef ) and the world bank, support is being given to several conservation projects aimed at reducing poaching of some of the most threatened species worldwide and some of the species most targeted by poaching. for example, sos is working with the wild foundation to protect mali ’ s remaining elephants ; with save the rhino international to monitor namibia ’ s black rhinoceros ( diceros bicornis ) ; as well as with both the malaysian nature society and wildlife conservation society to conserve tigers in southeast asia. it recently announced new projects with the international rhino foundation to prevent poaching of the javan rhinoceros ( rhinoceros sondaicus ) and sumatran rhinoceros ( dicerorhinus sumatrensis ). in general a cornerstone of these projects is promoting a tradition of conservation through direct community participation in species protection. to reduce poaching risks, the projects employ a range of strategies including the equipping and training of personnel for anti - poaching patrolling ; community oriented resource management initiatives ; eco - tourism alternatives ; education ; and awareness raising activities. if you would like to make your pledge to protect and respect the world ’ s wildlife you can do it now at www. wildlifepledge. org.


information for teams robocup is a competition domain designed to advance robotics and ai research through a friendly competition. small size robot soccer is one of the robocup league divisions. small size robot soccer, or f180 as it is otherwise known, focuses on the problem of intelligent multi - agent cooperation and control in a highly dynamic environment with a hybrid centralized / distributed system. a small size robot soccer game takes place between two teams of six robots each. each robot must conform to the dimensions as specified in the f180 rules : the robot must fit within an 180mm diameter circle and must be no higher than 15cm. the robots play soccer with an orange golf ball on a green carpeted field that is 6. 05m long by 4. 05m wide. all objects on the field are tracked by a standardized vision system that processes the data provided by two cameras that are attached to a camera bar located 4m above the playing surface. the vision system - called ssl - vision - is an open source project maintained by the league ' s community. off - field computers are used to communicate referee commands and position information to the robots. typically, these computers also perform most, if not all, of the processing required for coordination and control of the robots. communications is wireless and typically uses dedicated commercial fm transmitter / receiver units. building a successful team requires clever design, implementation and integration of many hardware and software sub - components into a robustly functioning whole making small size robot soccer a very interesting and challenging domain for research and education.


vortex2 : world ' s largest tornado research project ever, is underway tornado season is in full swing, and researchers are now poised in america ' s great plains with the largest armada of storm chasing vehicles and equipment ever assembled, in order to learn more about these enigmatic and violent storms. the massive vortex2 field study began sunday, and for the next seven weeks over 100 scientists in up to 40 science and support vehicles will be roaming through tornado alley, seeking to catch tornadoes on the rampage. the three basic questions the $ 10 million study will attempt to answer are : - how, when, and why do tornadoes form? why some are violent and long lasting while others are weak and short lived? - what is the structure of tornadoes? how strong are the winds near the ground? how exactly do they do damage? - how can we learn to forecast tornadoes better? current warnings have an only 13 minute average lead time and a 70 % false alarm rate. can we make warnings more accurate? can we warn 30, 45, 60 minutes ahead? ' figure 1. tornado over matador, texas on april 29, 2009. photo taken by texas tech meteorology graduate student danielle turner. major tornado outbreak possible wednesday the vortex2 project will have its first good chance to help answer these questions on wednesday, when a strong cold front is expected to pass through an unstable air mass over missouri and illinois, triggering severe thunderstorms with tornadoes. the storm prediction center has given these states a " moderate " chance of severe weather, the second highest alert level. today, the vortex2 armada is stationed in western oklahoma. the cold front that is expected to trigger wednesday ' s severe weather outbreak will be moving through oklahoma today, bringing a slight chance of severe weather to that state. you can follow the progress of the vortex2 field project this spring through our new featured vortex2 blog. this blog is being written by a team of six university of michigan students that will help deploy the texas tech " sticknet " sensors during a tornado. figure 2. severe weather outlook from noaa ' s storm prediction center for wednesday, may 13. an average tornado season so far over the u. s. through april, u. s. tornado activity was very close to the mean observed during the past five years, according to noaa ' s storm prediction center. however, there were just 15 tornado deaths through april, compared to 70 deaths through april of 2008, and the 3 - year average of 60 deaths. according to the unofficial seasonal stats at wikipedia, we ' ve


noaa ' s storm prediction center. however, there were just 15 tornado deaths through april, compared to 70 deaths through april of 2008, and the 3 - year average of 60 deaths. according to the unofficial seasonal stats at wikipedia, we ' ve had 57 strong ef2 and ef3 tornadoes so far this year, and two violent ef4 tornadoes. these are fairly typical numbers of strong and violent tornadoes for this point in the season. the season ' s first ef4 hit lone grove, oklahoma on february 10, killing eight, injuring 46, and destroying 114 homes, and was the strongest february tornado to hit oklahoma since 1950. the season ' s second ef4 hit murfreesboro, tennessee on april 10, killing two. wunderground launches high - definition radar product in case you missed my post on this in december, wunderground is now providing imagery from a network of 45 terminal doppler weather radar ( tdwr ) units located at airports across the u. s. the radars were developed and deployed by the federal aviation administration ( faa ) beginning in 1994, as a response to several disastrous jetliner crashes in the 1970s and 1980s caused by strong thunderstorm winds. the crashes occurred because of wind shear - - a sudden change in wind speed and direction. wind shear is common in thunderstorms, due to a downward rush of air called a microburst or downburst. the tdwrs can detect such dangerous wind shear conditions, and have been instrumental in enhancing aviation safety in the u. s. over the past 15 years. the tdwrs also measure the same quantities as our familiar network of 148 nexrad wsr - 88d doppler radars - - precipitation intensity, winds, rainfall rate, echo tops, etc. however, the newer terminal doppler weather radars are higher resolution, and can " see " details in much finer detail close to the radar. this high - resolution data has generally not been available to the public until now. thanks to a collaboration between the national weather service ( nws ) and the faa, the data for all 44 of 45 tdwrs is now available in real time. we ' re calling them " high - def " stations on our nexrad radar page, and they are denoted by a yellow " + " symbol. only one tdwr radar ( las vegas ) remains to be added ; this will happen in june. for more info on how to interpret the new tdwr images, see our radar fa


one thing to remember about occupy is that it has much of its current origins, successes and most intense interactions with authority around the spaces of college campuses. activism here is particularly innovative when it comes to direct actions, occupations and student strikes, all to combat college tuition increases, privatization and the creation of student debt markets. here ’ s the wikipedia entry on the puerto rico student strikes, where they were protesting massive waves of layoffs of government workers, campus faculty and an estimated 100 % tuition hike. here ’ s the wikipedia entry on the chilean student strikes. these protests date back to 2006, where students fought high application fees they couldn ’ t afford. and, of course, there ’ s what is going on at university of california, with the pepper - spray at davis and the beatings both in 2009 and 2011 at berkeley. but the most interesting resistance happening right now is going on in quebec, canada. there are, according to one representative report, over 165, 000 students on strike from class out of a 495, 000 student body. quebec is looking to increase their tuition 75 % over the next several years ; students responded by starting what is now the longest strike in the province ’ s history. it ’ s gone on even though the government has offered to make student loans a nicer, kinder form of debt, with income - contingent repayments while not budging on the tuition hikes. here ’ s an image by tina mailhot - roberge showing tens of thousands of people marching through montreal on march 22nd, 2012 : here ’ s an amazing video of two and a half hours of the protest time - lapsed down into 50 seconds on youtube. and here, with a h / t to the nation, here ’ s the real news network ’ s coverage of the protests. the strike is heading into a dangerous time. the administration isn ’ t looking to budge on tuition and students are approaching the point where they won ’ t complete the semester. this will be worth watching in the weeks ahead. why are these sites so potent for activism? the campus combines several issues into one – the privatization of public services, the dismembering of social insurance and its replacement with a regime of debt and risk - shifting, the dismantling of the primary means of social mobility with one designed to entrench inequality, which all builds towards a lack of freedom to fully develop ones talents and abilities and be full, productive citizens. these students are right to fight this battle at the beginning, during the initials cuts. privatization creates its


" we have underestimated the importance of trees, " author jim robbins writes. " they are not merely pleasant sources of shade but a potentially major answer to some of our most pressing environmental problems. we take them for granted, but they are a near miracle. " among the many well - cited benefits he names are, - " in a campaign called forests are lovers of the sea, fishermen have replanted forests along coasts and rivers to bring back fish and oyster stocks. and they have returned. - " in japan, researchers have long studied what they call ' forest bathing. ' a walk in the woods, they say, reduces the level of stress chemicals in the body and increases natural killer cells in the immune system … - " in africa, millions of acres of parched land have been reclaimed through strategic tree growth. " " … an old proverb seems apt. when is the best time to plant a tree? the answer : ' twenty years ago. ' the second - best time? ' today. ' " from " why trees matter, " by jim robbins, author of the upcoming book, “ the man who planted trees. ” ny times, published april 11, 2012 ah, the endless subject of trees, the lengthy lists of all their virtues and gifts to us. from just one page of the arbor day foundation ' s site, for example, we can learn that trees : - help fight climate change, - are the “ low tech ” solution to energy problems, - reduce your carbon footprint, - tame stormwater, - conserve soil and water, - regulate the temperature of your neighborhood, - provide food for wildlife. that ' s all just on the coolly rational, cost / benefit analysis side, too. trees, standing in for the entire plant world, offer a perfect symbiosis with oxygen - breathing, carbon - dioxide - exhaling humans. " through the natural process of photosynthesis, " arborday. org reminds us, " trees absorb co2 and other pollutant particulates, then store the carbon and emit pure oxygen. " then, in the most direct terms, how much does the shade of a tree mean to you on a hot summer day, with the sun at full blast? how about the sound and the visual of a grand old tree in the wind, being moved and heard from a thousand different spots ; and the incomparably soothing effect that can produce in your nervous system? how is it that all that motion can massage us, tip to toe, from


the rutherford banknote by john campbell ( the earliest version of this first appeared in nz science teacher 71 21 - 23 1992 ) it is not everyday one gets the chance to make money. on the morning news of june 6th 1991, the reserve bank of new zealand announced that new banknotes were needed. our existing ones were designed a quarter of a century earlier and many of their security features were about to be overtaken by colour copiers. at the same time the bank floated the idea that the portrait of the queen be replaced on some of the new banknotes by those of prominent new zealanders. a tremendous noise ensued as the royalists collectively herniaed. before ducking for cover, the bank sought suggestions for names of suitable people. i certainly had a suggestion. ernest rutherford is the most famous of all new zealanders and one of the most illustrious scientists of all time. his work ensures his immortality and his fame is clear by whatever measure one selects. his honours include a nobel prize and a peerage and his ashes are interred in westminster abbey. he has some 50 books written about him and he has appeared on the stamps of ten countries ; canada, russia, sweden, britain, romania, antigua and burbuda, guine bissau, congo, djibouti, and new zealand. he radically altered our understanding of nature on three separate occasions. through brilliantly conceived experiments, and with special insight, he explained the perplexing problem of naturally occuring radioactivity ( atoms were not necessarily stable entities as had been assumed since ancient greek times ), he determined the nuclear structure of the atom and he was the world ' s first successful alchemist ( he converted nitrogen into oxygen ). furthermore he led an exemplary life while rising to world fame from the hard times of rural new zealand in the late 19th century. he is very worthy of being used as a role model for the youth of our country. within hours of the bank ' s announcement i had written to tell them this. as i wrote to a few mates, " i see this as an issue involving the public perception of science. if we end up with bank notes adorned with phar lap and the captain of the 1924 all blacks, but none showing rutherford, then the scientific community will have only itself to blame. " besides, being interested in promoting science to the public, the opportunity of getting science and one of its heros, and a great role model for children, onto an everday item such as a banknote was too good to pass up. of our


besides, being interested in promoting science to the public, the opportunity of getting science and one of its heros, and a great role model for children, onto an everday item such as a banknote was too good to pass up. of our population of about 3, 500, 000, some 400 people responded to the bank with a mixed bag of names, such as the wife of ageing rock star rod stewart and dog of the footrot flats cartoon. i liked the idea of dog. new zealand would have had a unique banknote. however, because of the steady devaluation of the past decade or two, it might have been more appropriate to use mickey mouse. within days the bank could announce that ernest rutherford was first choice of the respondents. it was clear that certain selection rules would be in operation. all candidates had to be dead and thus beyond the front pages of the tabloids. there had to be a maori and there had to be a woman. the bank then commissioned designers to provide layouts and visual reference for new designs featuring the various contenders. at that stage i became involved with the research and possible design elements to be incorporated into a possible banknote featuring rutherford. on october 25 the bank released its choices. cunningly, they gave the newsmedia photographic portraits which were quite different to the ones to be used. they weren ' t going to give the forgers a head start. ed hillary would grace the $ 5 note. though very much alive, his selection was no great surprise. he had polled a strong second and was a very popular candidate. the bank were taking a risk but when he was approached he apparently turned to his wife with a gleam in his eye and said " well, i suppose there ' s not much chance of getting into trouble at my age. " kate sheppard goes onto the $ 10 note early next year. she led the movement which ensured that in 1893 new zealand became the first country in the world to grant women the vote. that was also the election in which ernest rutherford was first old enough to appear on the electoral roll. moreover, his landlady and future mother - in - law, mary newton, was a stalwart of the successful movement. the queen was retained on the $ 20 note, the most popularly used of all apirana ngata adorns the $ 50 note. he was the first maori graduate of the university of new zealand, a leader of his people and a cabinet minister in parliament. he was a fellow student of ernest rutherford at canterbury college and they


apirana ngata adorns the $ 50 note. he was the first maori graduate of the university of new zealand, a leader of his people and a cabinet minister in parliament. he was a fellow student of ernest rutherford at canterbury college and they once played rugby together. he was quadralingual and a good dancer. ernest rutherford was destined for the $ 100 note, our highest value banknote. probably this was an honour. after all, even i had earlier suggested to the bank that the top contender be on the note whose design is not expected to alter over the years. with immediate hindsight i thought it might have been wiser to opt for a lower denomination note because so few children are going to see a $ 100 note as part of their everyday life. what i failed to anticipate was that as the largest denomination banknote, it would adorn advertisments in newspapers and tv and also almost any tv news headline the design stage was interesting. in my original letter to the bank i had pleaded " please, o please, use a portrait of him as a vigorous, young man. too often we portray him as an old fart, a portly 65 - year old who wears a truss. new zealand schoolchildren cannot identify with that image ". i recommended the best image of ernest rutherford, a 1907 pastel portrait sketched at mcgill university when 34 year - old ern had his nobel prize work behind him, had started his rise to international fame and had confidence in his own abilities. someone in the system insisted that only photographs could be used so i showed the designers the low end of what i held. a 1914 photograph, taken when ern was aged 42 and about to depart for the british association meetings in australia and new zealand, was as low as the decision makers would go. the background caused difficulties. there is no piece of scientific equipment associated with ern which has instant public recognition. so i recommended his nobel medal and three diagrams representing his great achievements. his 1908 nobel medal for chemistry is held by the university of canterbury, as are the rest of his medals. on behalf of the bank, i sought and gained the permission of the nobel foundation for use of this image. because of security i had not been allowed to be shown the drafts so when the design was officially released it was a disappointment to find that only a sixth of the obverse side of the note had been available to science. his portrait and a watermark of the queen took up two thirds. of the three diagrams i


so when the design was officially released it was a disappointment to find that only a sixth of the obverse side of the note had been available to science. his portrait and a watermark of the queen took up two thirds. of the three diagrams i recommended, the designers selected the one showing the curves of the decay of radioactive elements and the resulting growth of daughter elements. this complemented the nobel medal. the other elements of the background include a maori weaving pattern ( taken from the whakatu marae in nelson to recognise his birth in, and connection with, that province ) and a spirograph pattern overlaying a map of new zealand. since nelson is the geographic centre of new zealand it fortuitously appears at the very centre of the the reverse side of each note includes a native bird, tree, insect and scene. i had suggested flax as the native plant for the rutherford note because his dad was a flaxmiller. i never followed up why this was not used but maybe all exploitive industries were banned. after all, we keep telling people we are a clean, green country. the rutherford note sports a yellowhead ( mohua ) on the trunk of a beech tree. it appears to be lining up the lichen moth for his next meal. in the background is the misty eglington valley of fiordland national park. so next time you have a quiet moment in science class take out your wallet, lever open the secret compartment reserved for beer money, take out a $ 100 note and, if you have nerves of steel, pass it around the class so they too can see a new zealand scientist and failed schoolteacher who made good. ( poor ern unsuccesfully tried for three jobs as a schoolteacher before he left new zealand. ) alternatively, borrow a $ 100 note from a pupil who receives liberal pocket money. the notes are numbered starting aa then a six figure number. the aa series is kept for collectors. aa1 is retained by the bank. the next 1000 or so notes are held for collectors of the whole series. the next numbers are used in 200 sheets of 28 uncut notes which are sold to the serious collector at nz $ 3200 per sheet. numbers from about aa6600 to aa8600 are sold as 500 sheets of 4 uncut notes for nz $ 465. the bank retains some low numbers of the ab series for sale to casuals and to collectors of particular popular numbers. prices for the sheets include gst as they are artifacts. individual


cs21a was a lot of fun. when i said, " as this is your first class, i will give you candy, " they cheered - i guess they like playing along with that grade school thing. ; ) dr. sarmenta edited my history draft and made it much cleaner. today i actually used microsoft powerpoint in class. i think i did okay - we switched to microsoft word for the spaghetti example. i should have saved it onto a diskette, though, to make it easier to upload. we had a bit of a problem with some computers ' internet connections - they couldn ' t access http : / / richip. dhs. org / ~ sachac / cs21a / from windows xp, but windows 98 worked fine. future : move course url to first page of slides. doing the spaghetti example as discussion instead of seatwork seems like a very good idea. no one really knew how to cook spaghetti, so i turned that into class discussion instead, and the students contributed almost all the steps. we started with - prepare the pasta - prepare the saurce - mix - add cheese - eat last summer, i modified the recipe onscreen, making it one long recipe. this time, i broke it down into methods. this is probably more effective - it just needs to be emphasized. it was a lot of fun, especially because the students contributed a lot to the discussion. how can i improve? maybe next time, i can ask a student to sit up front and take notes. then again, the students responded favorably to my reactions as i typed things in. i wanted to make the following points : - algorithms are part of our everyday lives. - algorithms can start out as high - level descriptions. - they need to be refined until they can be understood by the computer - algorithms can be expressed in human languages. - algorithms should stop. how will i test this? ( i should plan this before i do the lesson, you know. ) i can give a quiz. possible topic : 1. savitch slides : 10 : 55 2. on love : 10 : 58 a person is judged in more ways than one. be it on the physical, emotional or even the mental aspect. a flower blooms in its own time and pace as with the movement of every cloud seen in the sky. despite the fact that things move in their own manner and preference, sometimes the value of a person is determined beyond such things.... but isn ' t it nice that i post


pace as with the movement of every cloud seen in the sky. despite the fact that things move in their own manner and preference, sometimes the value of a person is determined beyond such things.... but isn ' t it nice that i post helpful criteria? ; ) that way, people know what i appreciate and don ' t appreciate. 3. i have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night : 11 : 04 the old astronomer to his pupil reach me down my tycho brahe, i would know him when we meet, when i share my later science, sitting humbly at his feet ; he may know the law of all things, yet be ignorant of how we are working to completion, working on from then to now. pray remember that i leave you all my theory complete, lacking only certain data for your adding, as is meet, and remember men will scorn it, ' tis original and true, and the obloquy of newness may fall bitterly on you. but, my pupil, as my pupil you have learned the worth of scorn, you have laughed with me at pity, we have joyed to be forlorn, what for us are all distractions of men ' s fellowship and smiles ; what for us the goddess pleasure with her meretricious smiles! you may tell that german college that their honor comes too late, but they must not waste repentance on the grizzly savant ' s fate. though my soul may set in darkness, it will rise in perfect light ; i have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night. 4. moved in : 11 : 07 a short walk away from school - quite convenient. yay! 5. code notes for java : 11 : 24 6. java puzzles : 11 : 25 7. conglomerate : 12 : 58 i ' d love to hear about any questions, comments, suggestions or links that you might have. your comments will not be posted on this website immediately, but will be e - mailed to me first. you can use this form to get in touch with me, or e - mail me at firstname. lastname @ example. org.


action steps for families there are a number of steps that you and other family members can take to help prepare your young children to become readers and to support the reading habit once they are in school. these include : feed your child a diet of rich language experiences throughout the day. talk with your infants and young children frequently in short, simple sentences. tell stories, sing songs, recite nursery rhymes or poems, and describe the world around them to expose them to words. name things. make connections. encourage your child ' s efforts to talk with you. try to read aloud to your children for 30 minutes daily beginning when they ' re infants. ask caring adults to be your children ' s daily reader when you are unavailable. have your child ' s eyesight and hearing tested early and annually. if you suspect your child may have a disability, seek help. evaluations and assessments are available at no cost to you. call the early childhood specialist in your school system or call the national information center for children and youth with disabilities at 800 - 695 - 0285 ( voice / tty ). seek out childcare providers who spend time talking with and reading to your child, who make trips to the library, and who designate a special reading area for children. ask your child ' s teacher for an assessment of your child ' s reading level, an explanation of the approach the teacher is taking to develop reading and literacy skills, and ways in which you can bolster your child ' s literacy skills at home. limit the amount and type of television your children watch. seek out educational television or videos from the library that you can watch and discuss as a family. set up a special place for reading and writing in your home. a well - lit reading corner filled with lots of good books can become a child ' s favorite place. keep writing materials such as non - toxic crayons, washable markers, paints and brushes, and different kinds of paper in a place where children can reach them. visit the public library often to spark your child ' s interest in books. help your children obtain their own library cards and pick out their own books. talk to a librarian, teacher, school reading specialist, or bookstore owner for guidance about what books are appropriate for children at different ages and reading levels. you are your child ' s greatest role model. demonstrate your own love of reading by spending quiet time in which your child observes you reading to yourself. show your child how reading and writing help you get things done every day - - cooking, shopping, driving


james lever, u. s. army ' s cold regions research and engineering laboratory the yeti rover in greeland in april 2012, with its ground - penetrating radar sled. by becky oskin, ouramazingplanet meet yeti, a faithful rover of the robotic kind that sniffs out dangerous crevasses for convoys crossing the glaciers of antarctica and greenland, explores ice caves on an active volcano and finds old buildings buried under the polar ice. this southern summer, yeti trundled ahead of the bright orange tractors that deliver supplies to research outposts throughout antarctica. towing a ground - penetrating radar, the rover alerts drivers to hidden breaks in the ice. snow often bridges the fissures, obscuring hazards, but the little robot is light enough ( 150 pounds, or 68 kilograms ) to ford the breaks if not stopped in time. " it ' s not likely to fall through, and there ' s no danger to the robot except losing the robot, " said laura ray, an engineer at dartmouth college in hanover, n. h., who led the robot ' s development. [ watch yeti guide a tractor in greenland ] preventing injuries and equipment damage is crucial in antarctica, where rescue operations are dangerous for both the injured and the rescue crews. but yeti offers more than protection for polar researchers. in december 2012, scientists mapped ice caves on mount erebus, an active volcano, with the radar. the robot also helped find abandoned, long - buried buildings from the original south pole research station in december 2011. the structures were demolished after a tractor fell through ice atop one of the buildings. the robot also aids convoys in greenland. yeti isn ' t the first robot to ply the antarctica ice, but it is the smallest now roving on the continent ' s frozen surface. researchers are also peering at buried glacial lakes with micro - submarines or mapping the seafloor with remotely operated vehicles. earlier robotic explorers include the spiderlike dante, sent into mount erebus in 1992 ; the nomad rover, which hunted for meteorites in 2000 ; and a robotic rover tested by kansas university in 2005. yeti running autonomously on the greenland ice - cap ray thinks yeti or similar robots can further complement polar research, for example, by finding buried streams and rivers. a robot will handily finish a survey of gridded points that would be tedious for people, she said. " i do hope there ' s more of this because it ' s so costly to do science in


by finding buried streams and rivers. a robot will handily finish a survey of gridded points that would be tedious for people, she said. " i do hope there ' s more of this because it ' s so costly to do science in these regions. whatever you can do to reduce the cost enables you to do more science, " ray told ouramazingplanet. logistical costs — moving people — account for about 70 to 75 percent of most research budgets in antarctica, ray said. a national science foundation ( nsf ) report put the total cost of transportation and support even higher, at 90 percent of the polar science research budget. with the median nsf research grant at $ 125, 000 in july 2012, any cost - savings in logistics frees up money for science. the yeti - led supply convoys across the ice to mcmurdo station in antarctica save $ 2 million annually over plane trips, the nsf estimates. the yeti robot, conceived and built by dartmouth engineering students, cost about $ 25, 000, ray said. the mars curiosity rover cost $ 2. 5 billion to design, construct and land on another planet. constructed from off - the - shelf parts and batteries sturdy enough for very low temperatures, the rover has been a popular addition to the united states polar science program. " it ' s always in the field or in transit, " ray said. " i would love to make a second or a third robot, or transfer this technology to a company so we can get them into more hands. " - extreme living : scientists at the end of the earth - infographic : antarctica – 100 years of exploration - the harshest environments on earth copyright 2013 livescience, a techmedianetwork company. all rights reserved. this material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


most college - educated students who go on to pursue graduate school in fields such as business or law have a clearly delineated path in front of them. however, in medicine, there is a small subset of students who choose to pursue a career path that is less well defined. these students aim to combine a degree in medicine with a degree in the sciences and, ultimately, to pursue a career as a physician - scientist. a physician - scientist is a clinician, an investigator, and an educator. physician - scientists bridge medicine and research and provide a channel of communication that is a basic yet critical component in any disease - oriented or clinical research endeavor. one can become a physician - scientist either by completing an m. d. / ph. d. program, such as those offered by most u. s. medical schools, or by completing medical school and then deciding - - during residency or fellowship training - - to pursue a career in research. for three primary reasons, the first of these two paths, which is the focus of this essay, is a daunting journey indeed. first, it involves a long training period. the typical m. d. / ph. d. student graduates just a few years shy of a decade of postgraduate schooling. second, physician - scientists face uncertainty in obtaining a suitable position and adequate funding to pursue research when they are done. and third, the financial debt that accrues throughout the years can be substantial. many schools offer a government - funded medical scientist training program that provides full medical and graduate tuition coverage and a stipend during the graduate years. other schools are able to offer financial assistance by covering graduate tuition and stipend, yet provide only partial medical tuition reimbursement. in both cases, the m. d. / ph. d. student often must take out loans to cover living expenses. despite the drawbacks, these programs open the doors to a vast array of well - funded, cutting - edge, postgraduate possibilities in clinics and in basic, disease - oriented, and clinical research. they also provide the background that can eventually lead to top - level positions within academic institutions. it has been said that the success of an m. d. / ph. d. program is contingent upon the number of deans and department heads that it graduates. how it works for those who choose to go this route, there is a standard program framework. the traditional medical school curriculum requires 2 years of academic study, followed by 2 years of general clinical exposure, which can range from emergency medicine to


it graduates. how it works for those who choose to go this route, there is a standard program framework. the traditional medical school curriculum requires 2 years of academic study, followed by 2 years of general clinical exposure, which can range from emergency medicine to psychiatry. ph. d. programs start students with core class requirements, followed by experimental work leading to a thesis dissertation. an m. d. / ph. d. program combines these two entities into one unified program : the student completes the first 2 years of medical school, then switches gears to pursue graduate research. upon completion of all graduate requirements and a successful thesis defense, the student then returns to medical school for the final 2 clinical years. medical school exposes students to the vast amount of knowledge concerning the human body and the physiologic processes that govern its functioning. this training also gives students the tools they ' ll need to cull relevant information from the burgeoning avalanche of medical information that continues to grow larger every day. students learn how to listen to, understand, and communicate with patients in a manner that not only protects the patient ' s rights but also provides the highest possible level of care. graduate school provides students with a didactic framework of knowledge upon which they can build a vastly more detailed but more narrowly focused range of interests. perhaps more importantly, the graduate program portion of an m. d. / ph. d. also aims to allow students to bridge concepts and ideas and to proceed from one experimental step to the next in a fashion that is efficient, rational, and - - of course - - ethical. a graduate, upon completion of the program, should possess the clinical skills of a medical doctor, the analytical skills of a ph. d., and a high probability of future success in clinical research. it is the goal of m. d. / ph. d. programs, and a tenet in which i believe, that those investigators who are clinically trained will approach their research in a different manner than that of those without clinical exposure. patient contact provides a tangible sense of urgency to laboratory work and also fresh insight into disease processes and their ultimate solutions. just as the alchemists of old attempted to combine different elements to produce something valuable, the physician - scientist of today attempts to combine medicine and basic research to produce something that has clinical utility. currently, i am enrolled in the m. d. / ph. d. program at brown university. i have already completed the first 2 years of medical education and have begun my first year of graduate school


research to produce something that has clinical utility. currently, i am enrolled in the m. d. / ph. d. program at brown university. i have already completed the first 2 years of medical education and have begun my first year of graduate school. i have joined a lab that is utilizing natural immunity as a paradigm for isolating novel candidate antigens for a malaria vaccine. malaria is one of the most important protozoan diseases and is responsible for an estimated 2 million to 3 million deaths per year, particularly of malnourished african children. some individuals living in holoendemic areas exposed to malaria for a number of years seem to have acquired natural immunity to the disease. the principal investigator that i am training under has hypothesized that there must be something unique in the immune responses of these individuals that confers protection. our work focuses on identifying unique immune factors that could potentially confer resistance to susceptible groups. if successful, this work will be incorporated into a larger field study in western kenya. the question still remains as to whether all of this training will someday help uncover that proverbial gold : something as spectacular as a disease cure or as mundane as the minor modification of an existing clinical procedure. despite all of the exciting potential, the number of physician - scientists within the united states has been steadily declining over the last 2 decades, mainly reflecting a drop in the number of physicians who after medical school decide to pursue research careers. i encourage young researchers and clinicians to keep this career path alive. for any undergraduate students who are thinking about following this track, i can give only one piece of advice : if you are prepared to do the calisthenics, the rewards are truly limitless.


part 1 | part 2 if you look at the various components in your computer, the hard disk is typically the slowest. this means that disk i / o can become a major bottleneck back in the days of dos, the file system of choice was fat ( file allocation table ). the fat file system limited the length of a filename to eight characters plus a three character extension. newer file systems such as fat32 and ntfs allow the use of long filenames, but they also retain a fat - style filename for backward compatibility purposes. this filename alias can cause performance problems in a couple of different ways. first, the process of writing the filename alias consumes disk i / o cycles. also, the filename alias forces the operating system to stop and calculate what the abbreviated filename should be. that in itself incurs a minor performance hit. the real problem, though, is in the way that the filename alias is calculated. to create a filename alias, windows looks at the first six characters of the original filename and then derives the alias from those six characters. typically, the alias consists of the first six characters of the filename, a ~ sign and a number. a number is used at the end of the filename because it ' s possible that multiple files within a folder will have filenames in which the first six characters are identical. herein lies the problem. if you have a few files in which the first few characters of the filename are identical, it isn ' t really a big deal. however, when you start having large numbers of files in which the initial portion of the filenames are identical, windows begins to spend more and more time trying to figure out what the filename alias should be. once a directory contains a few thousand files with these characteristics, performance can really begin to suffer. according to some sources, if a folder contains 300, 000 or more files that have identical initial portions of the filename, contradictions can begin to occur because windows exhausts its pool of aliases for those files. today, the old " eight - dot - three " - style filenames are rarely necessary. almost everyone uses fat32 or ntfs as their file system, and backward compatibility with the fat file system is seldom an issue anymore. that being the case, you might consider completely disabling support for backward compatibility. doing so can greatly improve the file system ' s performance. to disable backward compatibility, you can use a tool that was included


system is seldom an issue anymore. that being the case, you might consider completely disabling support for backward compatibility. doing so can greatly improve the file system ' s performance. to disable backward compatibility, you can use a tool that was included with the windows resource kit called fsutil. fsutil is a command - line tool designed to modify the behavior of the file system. the command for disabling backward compatibility is : fsutil behavior set disable8dot3 1 if you need to retain backward compatibility with the fat file system, then you can improve performance by being careful how you name files. you should avoid placing large numbers of files into a single folder whenever possible. however, if you must place a lot of files into a folder, try structuring the filenames so that the first few characters of each filename are different, as opposed to making the last part of the filename the differentiating factor. remember that windows looks at the first six characters of a filename when creating an alias. resize the master file table another way to improve performance is to adjust the size of the master file table. the master file table is similar to the file allocation table used by the fat file system. it is essentially a directory of all of the files and folders found on the hard disk volume. for this reason, it is critical to the volume ' s performance that the master file table remains as unfragmented as possible. as such, microsoft has designed the ntfs so that 12. 5 % of the volume ' s disk space is reserved for the master file table. normally, this works out ok, but if the volume contains a large number of files ( not necessarily large files ), the amount of space reserved for the master file table can become inadequate. likewise, if the volume starts to become low on disk space, windows may start placing some of the smaller files into the area reserved for the master file table in an effort to avoid running out of disk space. either of these situations can cause performance problems. fortunately, you can adjust the amount of disk space that is reserved for the master file table by using the fsutil command. the actual command is shown below : fsutil behavior set mftzone 1 you might have noticed that the command above ends with a " 1. " the number at the end of the command tells fsutil how much disk space to reserve. the " 1 " indicates that 12. 5 % of the total capacity


natural selenium coproduct good for sheep by sandra avant february 14, 2012 a more cost - effective, longer - lasting selenium supplement for livestock may soon be available, according to a u. s. department of agriculture ( usda ) scientist. animals as well as humans need selenium, a trace mineral and component of antioxidants, to stay healthy. inadequate selenium in sheep reduces conception rates, increases neonatal mortality, and in some instances, causes " white muscle disease " - nutritional muscular dystrophy. selenium deficiency in sheep and cattle costs livestock producers an estimated $ 545 million annually in losses and affects livestock in more than 35 states where regions are deficient in the mineral. agricultural research service ( ars ) animal scientist bret taylor at the ars u. s. sheep experiment station ( usses ) near dubois, idaho, along with researchers at north dakota state university, studied the effects of a milling coproduct, derived from selenium - rich wheat harvested in south dakota, on ewes and their lambs. ars is usda ' s chief intramural scientific research agency, and this research supports usda ' s priority of promoting international food security. the scientists added the natural coproduct to diets fed to a group of ewes during their last 40 to 50 days of pregnancy and to another group during the first 19 days of lactation. pregnant sheep passed the supplemental selenium to their fetuses, while lactating ewes delivered it to offspring through their milk. both of these groups maintained an adequate selenium status six to 10 times longer than sheep that received sodium selenite, the most commonly used inorganic form of selenium. by using this feeding strategy, livestock producers will be able to eliminate the cost of delivering selenium supplements to sheep in hard - to - reach regions, especially in the west where selenium in some soils is lacking or unavailable for absorption by vegetation that animals eat, according to taylor. sheep can be fed the selenium coproduct before being released to graze selenium - deficient range. the coproduct will provide enough to meet their selenium requirement, according to taylor. animals will not need any additional supplements until they return for lambing the following year.


the kika de la garza subtropical agricultural research center is located in the heart of the rio grande valley of texas. in 1931, the usda, through the agricultural research service, located a single scientist at weslaco to conduct research on citrus and vegetable processing. today, the center employs over 30 scientists and 110 technical personnel. our people live from brownsville to mission and are involved in school, community, and church activities throughout the valley. from the initial work on citrus and vegetables, the research expanded to include work on 1 ) integrated pest management of parasites and diseases of honey bee colonies ; 2 ) biological control methods used to identify and defeat present and potential pest threats to rio grande valley agriculture ; 3 ) organic farming systems utilizing holistic approaches to healthy and nutritious food production ; 4 ) quarantine treatments of subtropical fruits and vegetables ; 5 ) post harvest treatments of produce for disinfestations by non - chemical means ; 6 ) aerial remote sensing of agricultural problems ; and 7 ) pesticide tolerance of vegetables, ornamental, and specialty crops for registration labeling and epa compliance. these research efforts are an integral part of national research programs conducted at over 100 locations by the usda, agricultural research service in all 50 states and several foreign countries. the center, along with components of the texas agricultural extension service, and texas a & m at kingsville citrus center, occupies about 90 acres along highway 83 and is collectively referred to as the “ rio grande valley agricultural center. ”


in 1938, albert hoffman discovered, invented a substance that would revolutionize the american drug culture forever and would change how we, as psychologists and biologists, thought about psychosis. that substance was lsd. a simple molecule, lsd has the potency that no other drug has. only a drop will produce the desired hallucinations and euphoria. in addition, it does not seem to be physically addicting, although tolerance to the drug can develop in as few as three days but disappears after week of abstinence. much ' research ' has been done into the actual effects of the drug. lsd most profound effect on behavior is the production of sensory distortions, such as hallucinations, and euphoria. it also produces dilated pupils, increased blood pressure, and increased heart rate ( 7, 9 ). however, little is know about the mechanisms by which it acts. it is known that lsd affects the serotonergic system in the brain. however, the actual ways in which it acts on that system to modify behavior remains unclear. before we explore the current research into lsd, it may be helpful to review some of the ways in which serotonin affects behavior. serotonin ( also called 5 - ht ) is a neurotransmitter that is produced from tryptophan. although serotonin is only produced by a small number of neurons ( 1000 ' s ), each of those neurons innervates as many as 500, 000 other neurons ( 3, 12 ). for the most part, these neurons originate in the locus coerleus ( lc ) and the raphe nuclei ( rn ) ( 12 ). the lc controls the release of norepinephrine, a neurotransmitter / hormone that regulates the sympathetic ns. it also has neurons that extend into the cerebellum, thalamus, hypothalamus, cerebral cortex, and hippocampus ( 12 ). the rn extends its projections into the brainstem and up into the brain ( 12 ). it has been suggested that neurons in this region of the brain may be responsible for the inhibition of sensation, thus " protecting the brain from sensory overload. " ( 12 ) the fact that these two regions innervate virtually every part of the brain shows that serotonin can activate large portions of the brain from a relatively small area of origination. serotonin seems to have an inhibitory effect on these neurons ( 1, 12 ).


two regions innervate virtually every part of the brain shows that serotonin can activate large portions of the brain from a relatively small area of origination. serotonin seems to have an inhibitory effect on these neurons ( 1, 12 ). thus, it would decrease the occurrence and frequency of action potentials in the neurons that it innervates. because of this, it produces neural activity ( of lack of activity ) that are in some way an inhibition of behavior. sleep is the most obvious example of this. decreases in serotonin levels in the brain have been linked to a delayed onset of sleep ( 2 ). serotonin may encourage the lowering of physiological activity in the body that is associated with the onset of sleep. aggression is also related to serotonin levels in the nervous system. suppression of aggression can be thought of as the suppression of activity and thus an inhibitory action. patients who show increased aggression, also have low levels of serotonin. depression is an illness that also seems to have one of its causes in low serotonin levels ( 2, 3 ). many of the anti - depressants currently on the market are drugs that work by increasing serotonin levels in synapses. however, given that serotonin is an inhibitory neuron, and depression appears to be mostly a decrease in behavior and affect, one would expect that depression would be caused by an increase in serotonin levels, rather than a decrease. however, the serotonergic system of the nervous system is a complex system that mediates so many behaviors, it may have multiple functions that the scientific community has only an inkling of. some of these functions are revealed by the effects of lsd. as with depression, the action of lsd is not completely understood. there is evidence, however, that serotonergic neurons are involved. lsd is structurally similar to serotonin and seems to affect many of the systems that serotonin has been implicated in ( 12 ). in addition, administration of haloperidol blocks the hallucinations associated with lsd use ( 7 ). haloperidol has an especially strong affinity for serotonin receptors. also, other psychedelics that have similar effects to lsd have been shown to affect serotonin producing neurons. mdma, or ecstasy, blocks the reuptake of serotonin, thereby leaving more serotonin in the synapse and prolonging activation ( 6 ). prolonged use of mdma results in


affect serotonin producing neurons. mdma, or ecstasy, blocks the reuptake of serotonin, thereby leaving more serotonin in the synapse and prolonging activation ( 6 ). prolonged use of mdma results in destruction of serotonergic neurons in the brain ( 4, 5 ). because of the similarities between ecstasy ' trips ' and lsd ' trips, ' it can be concluded that they must activate a similar pathway, i. e. the serotonergic pathway. several theories of the mechanism of lsd have been postulated. each one presents a way in which lsd could affect behavior through activation of serotonergic neurons along with research to support it. however, each one has its weaknesses. in the end, it is difficult to determine how lsd actually alters behavior. the first theory is that lsd is a serotonin antagonist, specifically activating ( or actually blocking ) 5 - ht2 receptors ( 12 ). this would prevent serotonin from having its normal effect. support for this theory comes from studies that have shown that administration of some 5 - ht2 antagonists do not decrease the effects of lsd, as you would expect if lsd was a serotonin agonist. activation of 5 - ht2 receptors seems to cause serotonin to have an excitatory effect on some neurons. lsd prevents this action, thus having an antagonistic effect on the 5 - ht2 serotonin system ( 12 ). however, even within this theory there are problems. the general theory of lsd as an antagonist is consistent with how it affects behavior. lsd seems to increase sensation, heart rate, and blood pressure, all of which are excitations of the nervous system. because serotonin is an inhibitory neurotransmitter, antagonism of serotonin would result in an increase in neural activity. however, the fact that lsd is an antagonist to 5 - ht2 receptors specifically makes this conclusion problematic. because of the special action of 5 - ht2 receptors, antagonism of serotonin at those receptors would result in a decrease in neural activity which would not explain the effects of lsd. if 5 - ht2 receptors are in fact excitatory, one would expect antagonism of this system to have an inhibitory effect. the next theory postulates that lsd is in fact a 5 - ht agonist rather than an antagonist (


ht2 receptors are in fact excitatory, one would expect antagonism of this system to have an inhibitory effect. the next theory postulates that lsd is in fact a 5 - ht agonist rather than an antagonist ( 12 ). one researcher was able to train rats to discriminate between lsd and saline based on it psychological effects. when the rats were given certain 5 - ht2 antagonists, the rats lost the ability to discriminate between the two ( 12 ). also, lsd has been shown to have a higher affinity for 5 - ht receptors over all than serotonin but has a lower potency ( 12 ). thus, while is more likely to bind to the receptors, it is not as likely to have an effect as serotonin. even though lsd has some activity, it does not appear to be very strong. lsd may appear to be an antagonist even though by definition it is an agonist. the last theory partially combines the last two theories. this theory postulates that 5 - ht1 and 5 - ht2 have an agonist / antagonist relationship. thus substances that are agonistic to 5 - ht1 receptors are antagonistic to 5 - ht2 receptors ( 8 ). this is supported by the above research. lsd operates under this mechanism by enhancing serotonin activity at 5 - ht1 receptors, while also blocking 5 - ht2 receptors from the more effective activation of serotonin. the interesting point of this theory is its implications for the actual effects of those two serotonergic systems. agonization of the 5 - ht1 receptors by lsd indicate that they might be involved in the production of moods. if low serotonin produces a decrease in positive moods, as in depression, then agonization of serotonin levels should produce a more positive mood state. lsd agonization would be consistent with the production of euphoria and mood changes that are associated with lsd use. the 5 - ht2 receptors might then be responsible for the control of sensation and possibly autonomic nervous system control. under the control of lsd, sensation appears uninhibited. users report enhanced sensations, synesthesia, and distortions of sensations. all of this would seem to be a result of over activation of the sensory system. in addition, lsd produces an increase in heart rate, blood pressure, and body temperature, all of which are a result


for growing dahlias the bay area by ted marr, deborah dietz, rose marr start dahlia calendar with december because december is the end and beginning of dahlia seasons. end for this season ; and, the beginning for the next. getting off on the right step is critical for next year ’ s crop. dig up your clumps, keeping as much dirt around each as possible. shovel a 1 ’ radius circle straight down around your plant. this severs any extended roots. using opposable shovels or forks or a combination of both, gently jimmy up the root mass. do not extricate by pulling up on the neck or stalk portion — this could break several necks. rather, scoop under the clump with your hands. an alternative method, is digging a moat around the clump so you know how far the tubers extend. read more in dec. 2003, dec. 2004 and dec. 2005 dsc enewsletters on how to handle the dig out without breaking the tubers. see dsc member do a digout. you pulled up your clumps, you have two choices on what to do with your clumps. 1. process them immediately : dig, divide, bleach, daub with sulphur or captan, and store in vermiculite or cedar shavings. 2. maintain as much dirt adhering to your tuber clump as possible and put the whole megalith in a cardboard box, close it up and stack in a cool but not freezing spot until march. this method avoids dividing the clump immediately. you wait until the spring when little green shoots appear and the dividing spots are more obvious. where to divide will be greenly obvious! read dec. 2004 and dec. 2005 dsc enewsletters on how handle the entire process. hands on lesson : best place to learn how to process a dug out clump is come to the dsc big dig which occurs each year around the second or third weekend in january. pre - prepare the soil : soon as your clumps are up, the new season begins. start by spreading compost lavishly. some people plant a cover crop of vetch or fava beans which nitrogenate the soil as well as covering the ugly brown patch. dsc activities in december : lopping day first weekend, christmas party second tuesday. pay annual membership fee. is the month to prepare your soil and plan what dahlias to grow. soil preparation consists basically of weeding


covering the ugly brown patch. dsc activities in december : lopping day first weekend, christmas party second tuesday. pay annual membership fee. is the month to prepare your soil and plan what dahlias to grow. soil preparation consists basically of weeding and fortifying with compost and fertilizer. assiduously you eradicate unwanted green things now, the fewer you ’ ll have to deal with coming planting time. keep the weeds obliterated ; a little work now saves backbreaking prepare flower beds : your patch with compost : leaves, grass clippings, steer or chicken guano. check your ph & adjust accordingly, ideally at between 6. 5 to 7. 0. one commecial product readily available in a number of local hardware stores is the " rapitest " soil test kit by luster leaf. allow 6 + weeks before planting for fear of burning delicate roots with fiery urea. plot to determine what new dahlias you need for next season. dream through dahlia catalogs, cruise the and contact the suppliers. order from these suppliers whom dsc members are satisfied customers : start negotiating with dsc members for scions of their jewels from last season. dsc activities in january : the big out. information on getting started indoors at regular second tuesday meeting. anticipating spring, get your dahlia tubers germinating and pot - tuber cuttings ready to go. regardless of your facilities, start germination indoors. giving the plants a head start will produce blooms even as early as sunroom, bathroom, loft, basement or garage with sufficient lighting. there are lots of way to build an indoor greenhouse. the easiest and least expensive is to germinate : time to milk carton. use a mixture of 1 / 3 potting soil, 1 / 3 sand & 1 / 3 vermiculite or perlite, or, just commercial potting the tuber on its side as though it were taking a nap. have the eye pointing up. make sure you label the flap accurately with the name of the plant. place them by warm windows or by the water heater. some of the a ’ s and aa ’ s need a lot of heat to sprout. if you are space challenged, close cartons until they sprout. be sure to check regularly. out with the soil slightly moist, do not water at all until green sprouts appear. then, spritz sparingly. spritz with water or even with miracle grow. remember


sprout. be sure to check regularly. out with the soil slightly moist, do not water at all until green sprouts appear. then, spritz sparingly. spritz with water or even with miracle grow. remember, there are very few roots yet to absorb water, so be sparing. use a mulch to help the soil retain the moisture. order more plants : last chance to order from catalogs. for details see double poppy seeds around the flower beds. these colorful flowers cover the bare brown earth until replanting. dsc activities in february : information on planting, cutting, and propagation at second tuesday meeting. ads new with warming weather, mind your germinating dahlias carefully. the young shoots are delicate and require tender loving care. germination and growth : tubers in a warm environment will promote fast growth. ostensibly, dahlias germinate above 62 degrees f. stored tubers regularly for rot. spritz only when the sprouts appear. there are more than one shoot coming out of a tuber, cut the extra one off or germinate it for another plant. learn how to grow more plants from multiple shoots of one tuber by dsc activities in march : overview information on planting dahlias at regular tuesday an exciting month. this is the month you can finally start to plant. and then there is the dsc annual tuber and cutting sale. before you plant into the ground, harden the young plants. when your milk carton dahlias are 8 ” + high, begin putting them outside during the day time. eventually you can leave them out overnight. then they are “ hardened off ” and ready to plant. you can make individual greenhouses by erecting a stick in the middle of your container and tenting the whole thing with a clear plastic bag. planting – finding a right spot : when the plants are about 18 inches tall, plant them in the ground. the location should have sunshine for at least 6 hours each day. place the plants 30 or more inches apart. in hot weather areas, choose a spot with morning sun only. try to ascertain which are your potentially tallest dahlias to place them in the back with your little twitchy clumps in the front. dig a hole 6 - 8 ” deep ; mix in a balanced fertilizer ( 10 - 10 - 10, 16 - 16 - 16 ). we do not recommend planting rootless tuber into the ground directly. if you must, absolutely avoid watering


a hole 6 - 8 ” deep ; mix in a balanced fertilizer ( 10 - 10 - 10, 16 - 16 - 16 ). we do not recommend planting rootless tuber into the ground directly. if you must, absolutely avoid watering until the shoots appear above the ground. – preparing the spot : dahlias like well drained soil so augment your soil with organic material, such as chicken manure and compost. or, add two or three pounds of 5 - 10 - 5 or 10 - 10 - 10 or 16 - 16 - 16 fertilizer to 100 square feet ( 1 / 4 pound per 10 square feet ). avoid getting the fertilizer on the plants. rake the fertilizer into the soil and then water. label and stake : four to six foot stake into the ground at the edge of the hole before the tuberous roots are planted. dahlias are large plants and require support. label immediately. you will get confused later. the tall cultivars cannot support themselves and plant breakage will occur without support. as soon as the plants are in the ground, on the same day, protect your young plants from snails and slugs. sprinkle snail bait liberally. varies, depending on what you plant. however, never over water and do not leave stagnant water around young tuber plants. cuttings need almost daily watering ; they have wee roots but no tuber to sustain them. sprouted tubers from milk cartons should be watered immediately upon planting and then watched for signs of drying depending on the weather. water at the soil level ; no overhead watering. remember to keep 30 - 50 % extra dahlias as insurance. so if you plan to plant 20, keep 4 to 10 in milk cartons as back up. bring the extras to dsc meetings in may for sale or dsc activities in april : tuber and plant sale fist saturday of april. may is the month to watch your dahlias take shape and start to mature on their journey for another year of glorious blooms. at the soil level ( do not use overhead spray ) once every three to four days. water deeply each time. do not leave any stagnant water. remember that tubers & cuttings need drastically different levels of watering. cuttings rely on new roots, necessitating frequent quenching ; tubers start with no roots, so should only be watered sparingly. remember to fertilize with a well balanced fertilizer ( 10 - 10 - 10 ) about


rely on new roots, necessitating frequent quenching ; tubers start with no roots, so should only be watered sparingly. remember to fertilize with a well balanced fertilizer ( 10 - 10 - 10 ) about once every three weeks. surround delicate plants with individual milk carton sheaths to protect from sun and wind exposure. with slug, snail and earwig bait ; succulent new leaves lure voracious bugs from everywhere. diligently monitor and eradicate undesirable pests. your plants will grow tall rapidly. to encourage the plants to grow more branches cut off the tip of the center stem after the plant has three sets of leaves. as the plant matures, remove the bottom two rows of leaves. and, be sure to tie the main stem to the stake. dsc activities in may : information on fertilizing and pest control at regular meeting on second tuesday. june is jubilant because your first bud or even the first bloom has arrived. now is the time to make sure you get the best blooms. it is time to pinch and disbud. certain plants harbor the first bud tightly down in the center where it would be terribly crotch - bound were it to bloom. pinch out the first bud with the two new buds beside it. this allows the next buds to have longer, stronger stems & encourages the plant to be a little bushier rather than too tall. airing the bottom : as your plant reaches 24 + ” begin to take off the bottom leaves, discouraging snails, slugs & mildew. remove non - flower producing leaves to encourage growth, allow more light into the plant, and for better air circulation. compost dahlia refuse carefully. like any composting, make sure you follow the directions carefully. lots of benefits in composting : good for the environment, obligate parasites, and good for your soil. with the arrival of the first bud, it is time to switch to a different fertilizer. using a fertilizer that has a higher phosphorous content, such as 10 - 30 - 20 will encourage more be vigilant. a bloom with deformed leaves or leaves with holes does not show well. fend off, at all effort, snails, now you will encounter for the first time, the growth cycle another difficult matter : fungus. spray a cocktail of malathion ( for aphids or caterpillars ), fungi - fighter or funginex (


all effort, snails, now you will encounter for the first time, the growth cycle another difficult matter : fungus. spray a cocktail of malathion ( for aphids or caterpillars ), fungi - fighter or funginex ( for powdery mildew ), water soluble fertilizer, and a little liquid dishwashing soap as a sticker. dsc activities in june : information on photography at regular meeting on second of this is a busy month, the plants are budding all over. buds, buds all over. central bud and leaf pair buds are popping all over. diligently disbudding will reward you with exhibition quality blooms. two or three headed blooms are of lesser quality because they are much smaller and can be deformed. leave only one bud. this is critical to keep your dahlia plant producing more blooms. after a dahlia bloom opens, cut it for your indoor display. this will encourage more blooms. even if you don ’ t cut it, you should dead - head it by removing it just when pollen appears for a " double " plant or when the petals begin drooping on an " open - centered " variety. deadheading is important so new blooms would be encouraged and energy is not directed to making seeds. always cut the bloom at a point that is one node below the bloom ( the next node ). this will encourage more laterals to produce more blooms. busy, busy doing the routines : clean out the under leaves, spraying, watering, fertilizing, all this demands your time now. clean out the under growth of leaves, allowing for at least 12 inches of space above the ground for good air circulation. start taking pictures of early blooms to enter into the photo competition. check out the dahlia dell at the golden gate park as new varieties dsc activities in july : first mini show at regular second tuesday meeting. august is the celebratory month for dahlia lovers. the peak of bloom is here. what an amazing sea of color and cacophony of shapes shouting at the admirers. whether it is to enter a show or just for your own enjoyment, cut early in the morning or later evening and put the bloom immediately in water. some suggest that touching the ends in alum sustains the blooms longer. to keep your dahlias blooming in full spate, assiduously dead head ; cut your spent blooms below the set of first leaves where the new growth begins. if you fail to cut back to new


alum sustains the blooms longer. to keep your dahlias blooming in full spate, assiduously dead head ; cut your spent blooms below the set of first leaves where the new growth begins. if you fail to cut back to new growth, your plants will soon look like brown skeletons. disbud to assure only one bloom per stem with a nice pair of leaves. truly you get a bigger flower, longer stem, and more plant vigor if you do not let every bud blossom. give your growing plants support. if you have the luxury of multiple stakes, you can put one on either side of your plant and wrap ties around the whole bundle. if not, string the plant staunchly to the stake to prevent wind damage and give the heavy laterals control pests, clean out lower branches, arrest fungus, fertilize, and water properly. you are ensured of a truly dsc activities in august : regular second tuesday meeting mini show. and dsc and other bay areas big annual shows. although peak season is over, september will continue to give you a bountiful bloom. bestow bouquets on all your friends! keeping the plants at top performance will not only give another couple months of pleasure but also will ensure you have a healthy crop next year. tie up your plants or the wind will make you weep. take the low laterals off now. they will break off when they are heavier, so get them now and send that energy to the branches where you need growth & flowers. keep the bandits at bay : and diabolical beetles abound. try the traditional cocktail for the first two : malathion, orthene, a fungicide, superbloom, & liquid dishwashing soap applied in a sprayer. for diabraticas, try painting dixie cups with tanglefoot atop your stakes. squishing with fingers works satisfyingly, too. if you are fighting powdery mildew, strip off the dusted leaves and spray with a major fungicide. water and fertilize : water when your plants show heat fatigue ; this could be once a day or once a week depending on the weather. fertilize as needed. disbudding and deadheading : cut clear back to the next growth - producing flowers. the more rigorously you cut back, the more your plants will flourish. also, strip off the “ rags ” ( limp brown leaves at the bottom of bushes ). the more zealously you do these things, the longer


- producing flowers. the more rigorously you cut back, the more your plants will flourish. also, strip off the “ rags ” ( limp brown leaves at the bottom of bushes ). the more zealously you do these things, the longer your plants will continue to bloom. time to evaluate which plant shall be replanted next year. critically evaluate each bush. if it is substandard and not worthy of passing on its tubers, chuck the whole plant in the garbage now. if you have two or more of the same cultivar, evaluate which is superior. make note on your label so you will know which one to replant in the spring. transfer labels down to around the base of the plant so that they will be attached even when they are whacked in december. dsc activities in september : novice only mini show at the regular second yes, october can be outstanding. lots of blooms even so late in the season. make october your outstanding month with surprise gift blooms to friends and at the office. the mildew plague is upon us. strip every affected leaf & spray with rosepride, previously called funginex or orthenex. or, the systemic orthenex, but it is nastier & more dangerous than others so be very cognizant of what you are doing and shower immediately afterwards. wait a week & spray again. you can add some superbloom & dishwashing soap to your cocktail. when in question, toss out those really badly affected. doubling the effort : as your bloom size dwindles, try double disbudding : taking off both the extra buds next to the central stem, and also the emerging shoots just below the first leaf pair. this will channel all the energy to the remaining bloom. water and fertilize : do it one more time. fertilize one more time. cut back to vibrant growth. if october proves warm, we may get a final flush. don ’ t worry if your lovely flowers start popping center or getting a bit scraggly ; they are responding to the waning light. as your plants slow down, cut back on water. check name tags for accuracy. move name tags down and tie them around the bottom of the plant so they will still be attached when lopping in december. now is the time to consider allowing a few blooms to go to seed. seeds are the genetic lottery ; dreadful odds but such a payoff! simply let the petals fall off ; wait until the remaining


will still be attached when lopping in december. now is the time to consider allowing a few blooms to go to seed. seeds are the genetic lottery ; dreadful odds but such a payoff! simply let the petals fall off ; wait until the remaining seed head is brown and dry. bring into a cool, dry area for germinating in january. dsc activities in october : the last mini show at the regular second tuesday meeting. november is practically the end of the bloom season. if you worked real hard over the season, you will get some blooms until thanksgiving. time to wrap up for the the waning seasonal light prematurely pops centers, attenuates stems, & slows down growth. let nature take its own course and provide growth to the tubers for next year ’ s crop. make sure your labels are legible. and, move them down to the bottom of the plant. lop every plant. that will give the tubers 8 weeks to toughen their skins and go dormant before digging out in december or january. depending on how well your soil drains, you can dig them out before the first frost. when each plant turns brown, cut down to 4 - 5 bamboo - like notches ; these act as water seals. each bamboo - like joint is a mini water seal to help prevent crown rot. if your plants are in pots, move them to a sheltered area or cover to prevent rain from rotting them. allow your tubers to go dormant for at least 6 weeks before disinterring. they seem to develop tougher skin if they are allowed to go fully dormant. dsc activities in november : annual dsc member meeting and election of officers. lopping day either last weekend of november or first weekend of december. lou p. demonstrates digout and dividing of tubers at the regular tuesday meeting. photos courtesy of various dsc members including : deborah, ted, franck, dj and many we like to thank many dsc dahlia experts for sharing their years of experience at our regular meetings. without them, this essay could not have been written.


the marie curie - yasser arafat connection the substance alleged to have been used to assassinate palestinian leader yasser arafat in 2004 is a radioactive element discovered by the famed scientific duo of marie and pierre curie more than a century ago. arafat ’ s nephew nasser al - qidwa claimed thursday that israel poisoned the former palestinian liberation organization chairman with the lethal dose of polonium, discovered by the curies in 1898 and named for marie curie ’ s native land of poland. polonium was the first element discovered by the curies while they were investigating the cause of radioactivity in pitchblende, a uranium - rich mineral and ore. pitchblende, after removal of the radioactive elements uranium and thorium, was found to be more radioactive than both the uranium and thorium combined. this spurred the curies to find additional radioactive elements. the curies first culled out polonium from the pitchblende, and a few years later also isolated radium, according to science writer john emsley in his book nature ’ s building blocks : an a - z guide to the elements. the choice of the name polonium was not without controversy. poland at the time of the curies ’ discovery was under russian, prussian and austrian partition, and had not existed as an independent country since 1795. it was marie curie ’ s hope that naming the element after her homeland would publicize its lack of independence, which didn ’ t come until after until after the end of world war i in 1918. polonium is rarely found in nature because of the short half - life of its isotopes. it is found in uranium ores in amounts of about 0. 1 milligram per metric ton. given that minute abundance, isolation of polonium from natural sources is a very tedious process. the largest batch extracted in the first half of the 20th century was derived by processing 37 tons of residue from radium production and produced just nine milligrams of polonium - 210. today, polonium is obtained by irradiating bismuth with high - energy neutrons or protons. allegations that arafat, who died in a french hospital in november 2004, was poisoned were resurrected earlier this month after al - jazeera news channel broadcast an investigation in which experts said they had found high levels of polonium on his personal effects, according to agence france - presse. polonium is a highly - toxic substance which was used to kill former russian spy turned kremlin critic alexander litvinenko in


friday, feb. 15 ( healthday news ) - - hemorrhoids are a hot topic online, and that ' s probably because they ' re so common. the u. s. food and drug administration reports that " hemorrhoids " was the top - trending health - issue search in the united states in 2012 and most people - - up to 75 percent - - will be affected by hemorrhoids at some point in their lives, according to the u. s. national institutes of health. hemorrhoids are swollen and inflamed veins in the rectum or anus. the good news is there are several ways to treat hemorrhoids and ease the pain, itching or other symptoms they may cause, according to an article posted on the fda ' s " consumer updates " web page. the uncomfortable condition usually affects adults aged 45 to 65 and hemorrhoids are typically caused by increased pressure in the veins of the anus. obesity and inactivity play a role in who develops hemorrhoids. pregnancy and childbirth can also increase women ' s risk for these protrusions. when hemorrhoids do form, they occur inside the rectum ( internal hemorrhoids ) or near the anal opening ( external hemorrhoids ). " you often can ' t see or feel the internal ones, " said dr. herbert lerner, a colon - rectal surgeon and fda medical officer, in an agency news release. " but straining during bowel movements and constipation can cause these hemorrhoids to bleed and occasionally push through the anal opening. " taking the following steps can keep stools soft and prevent hemorrhoids : - eat fiber - rich foods, such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains - drink plenty of fluids - exercise and avoid sitting in one place for too long - take stool softeners or fiber supplements when a hemorrhoid pushes through the anal opening, it is known as a protruding or prolapsed hemorrhoid, which can be irritating. blood can pool in an external hemorrhoid and form a clot, which can cause severe pain, swelling and inflammation, lerner said. other common symptoms of hemorrhoids include the following : - itching ( especially when sitting ) - bright red blood on toilet tissue, stool or in the toilet ( dark red or black blood could be a sign of a more serious condition. ) - painful bowel movements - hard, sore lump


following : - itching ( especially when sitting ) - bright red blood on toilet tissue, stool or in the toilet ( dark red or black blood could be a sign of a more serious condition. ) - painful bowel movements - hard, sore lumps near the anus hemorrhoids can be treated with several over - the - counter creams and other remedies. " these products may help you feel more comfortable, but they won ' t get rid of the underlying hemorrhoids, such as internal hemorrhoids, that commonly cause bleeding, " lerner noted. soaking in a warm bath regularly for 10 to 15 minutes and using wet toilet paper after a bowel movement can also ease mild symptoms of hemorrhoids, according to dr. rajat malik, a gastroenterologist with the fda. " with these measures, mild symptoms should decrease in two to seven days, " advised malik in the news release. " if your symptoms don ' t improve with these home treatments, and certainly if they get worse, it ' s time to talk to your health care provider. " there are a number of procedures doctors can perform to treat hemorrhoids. for instance, where a hemorrhoid has a blood clot ( thrombosis ), doctors can remove the clot with a small incision. " you can do this under local anesthesia and as an outpatient, " lerner said. " i ' ve had a lot of uncomfortable, unhappy patients walk into my office with a thrombosis, and then leave happy after it ' s been excised. " other procedures used to treat hemorrhoids include : - ligation : a hemorrhoid ' s blood supply is cut off with a rubber band. - sclerotherapy : a chemical solution is injected into a hemorrhoid to shrink it. - coagulation : a laser or infrared light is used to shrink a hemorrhoid. - hemorrhoidectomy : a surgical procedure used in more extreme cases to remove large hemorrhoids. " fda is responsible for reviewing the devices used in both ligation and coagulation, " lerner noted. the american society of colon & rectal surgeons provides more information on hemorrhoids.


engineers map volcanic lightning lightning sensors could lead to better eruption warnings photo : carlos gutierrez / upi / landov flash, crackle, pop! lightning might warn of imminent eruptions. this story was updated on 31 march 2009. volcanic eruptions are often accompanied by spectacular bursts of lightning — krakatoa, mount st. helens, and vesuvius have provided some relatively recent examples — and yet these breathtaking bolts are not well understood. obtaining insight into volcanic lightning, besides being of considerable scientific interest, could make it possible to get earlier warnings of eruptions and might even yield clues to the origins of life. with those ends in mind, electrical engineers at the new mexico institute of mining and technology, in socorro, have installed compact sensing stations of their own design at mount redoubt in alaska. ronald thomas, professor of electrical engineering at the institute, and his colleagues plan to map the lightning from that volcano ’ s eruption in three dimensions, hoping to illuminate what causes electrification during some eruptions and how volcanic lightning compares with thunderstorm lightning, which itself is not fully understood. the sensors, boxed in modified picnic coolers, record the time and magnitude of the radio - frequency impulses that lightning creates. correlating the time that the waves hit each receiver, the researchers triangulate the position of the radiation source in the sky to within 12 meters. they can then reconstruct the charge structure inside storm clouds, helping them understand what causes lightning and when and how it touches the ground. to study volcanic lightning, the researchers pack the sensors — along with 160 gigabytes of memory, worth three months of recording time — into 20a ¿ ¿ kilogram boxes. then the researchers must get the sensors to the right place at the right time. on the first two occasions they tried this, they didn ’ t quite make it in time to get all the data they wanted. during the january 2006 eruption of alaska ’ s mount augustine, the team arrived after the eruption had started and were able to set up only two sensors. the data was not enough to generate three - dimensional images, but it revealed a new type of lightning. until then, lightning in volcano plumes was known to resemble thunderstorm lightning — highly branched flashes that last about half a second. but at mount augustine the researchers also found continuous, explosive sparks that lasted only a few milliseconds, which appeared at the mouth of the volcano just when it started erupting. this indicated that the eruption itself, not just the ejected ash and rock, had