multiple myeloma is cancer that affects certain white blood cells called plasma cells. it represents about 1 percent of all cancers in the united states, and about 22, 000 americans are diagnosed with it each year. plasma cells, and other white blood cells, are part of the immune system. plasma cells produce antibodies - - immune system proteins that assist the body in ridding itself of harmful substances. each plasma cell responds to one specific substance by producing one kind of antibody. the body has many types of plasma cells, and, therefore, can respond to many types of substances. when cancer occurs, the body overproduces plasma cells, which are abnormal and alike. these abnormal plasma cells are called myeloma cells. myeloma cells collect in the bone marrow and the outer layer of the bone. because the cells begin in the blood plasma, myeloma is not a bone cancer, but is cancer that affects bones. the exact cause of multiple myeloma is not known, but theories and associations have been suggested as risk factors. a risk factor is anything that may increase a person ' s chance of developing a disease. it may be an activity, such as smoking, diet, family history, or many other things. different diseases have different risk factors. although these factors can increase a person ' s risk, they do not necessarily cause the disease. some people with one or more risk factors never develop the disease, while others develop the disease and have no known risk factors. but, knowing your risk factors to any disease can help to guide you into the appropriate actions, including changing behaviors and being clinically monitored for the disease. suggested risk factors for multiple myeloma include the following : - male gender - age ( occurs rarely under the age of 35 ) - family history - exposure to petroleum and other chemicals - exposure to high amounts of radiation - race ( twice as common among african - americans as white americans ) - being overweight or obese - having another plasma cell disorder, such as monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance the following are the most common symptoms for multiple myeloma. however, each individual may experience symptoms differently. ( some people with early multiple myeloma have no symptoms. instead, it is found during routine blood or urine tests. ) myeloma cells and antibodies may cause the following : - bone pain - fractures in bones - weight loss - repeated infections - problems with urination - weakness or numbness in legs - back pain - rib pain the symptoms of multiple myeloma


) myeloma cells and antibodies may cause the following : - bone pain - fractures in bones - weight loss - repeated infections - problems with urination - weakness or numbness in legs - back pain - rib pain the symptoms of multiple myeloma may resemble other bone disorders or medical problems. always consult your doctor for a diagnosis. in addition to a complete medical history and physical examination, diagnostic procedures for multiple myeloma may include the following : - x - ray. a diagnostic test that uses invisible electromagnetic energy beams to produce images of internal tissues, bones, and organs onto film. bone scans are used to evaluate for bone involvement with most cancers, but they are unreliable in multiple myeloma. - blood and urine tests. these tests are used to look for proteins or other substances that are more likely to be seen in the blood or urine of people with myeloma. - bone marrow aspiration and / or biopsy. a procedure that involves taking a small amount of bone marrow fluid ( aspiration ) and / or solid bone marrow tissue ( called a core biopsy ), usually from the hip bones, to be examined for the number, size, and maturity of blood cells and / or abnormal cells. - magnetic resonance imaging ( mri ). a diagnostic procedure that uses a combination of large magnets, radiofrequencies, and a computer to produce detailed images of organs and structures within the body. - computed tomography scan ( also called a ct or cat scan ). a diagnostic imaging procedure that uses a combination of x - rays and computer technology to produce horizontal, or axial, images ( often called slices ) of the body. a ct scan shows detailed images of any part of the body, including the bones, muscles, fat, and organs. ct scans are more detailed than general x - rays ( but often not quite as detailed as mri scans ). - positron emission tomography ( pet ) scan. radioactive - tagged glucose ( sugar ) is injected into the bloodstream. tissues that use the glucose more than normal tissues ( such as tumors ) can be detected by a scanning machine. pet scans can be used to find small tumors throughout the body. specific treatment for multiple myeloma will be determined by your doctor based on : - your age, overall health, and medical history - extent of the disease - your tolerance for specific medications, procedures, or therapies - expectations for the course of the disease - your opinion or preference treatment may include : - medications to control pain - fracture treatment - medications to


food - drug interactions can happen with both prescription and over - the - counter ( otc ) medications, including antacids, vitamins, iron pills, herbs, supplements, and beverages. some nutrients can affect the way you metabolize certain drugs by binding with drug ingredients, thus reducing their absorption or speeding their elimination. for example, the acidity of fruit juice may decrease the effectiveness of antibiotics such as penicillin. dairy products may blunt the infection - fighting effects of tetracycline. one kind of antidepressants called mao inhibitors are dangerous when mixed with foods or drinks that contain tyramine ( for instance, beer, red wine, chocolate, processed meat, avocados, and some cheeses ). grapefruit juice can interfere with some blood pressure medications and organ transplant medications by increasing their metabolic breakdown. not all medications are affected by food, but many can be affected by what you eat and when you eat it. sometimes, taking medications at the same time you eat may interfere with the way your stomach and intestines absorb medication. other medications are recommended to be taken with food. be sure to ask your doctor or pharmacist for specific directions on eating prior to or after taking any medication. - ask your pharmacist or doctor if there are foods, beverages, vitamins, or supplements you should avoid with your medications. - read the prescription label on the container. if you do not understand something, or think you need more information, ask your doctor or pharmacist. - read directions, warnings, and interaction precautions printed on all medication labels and instructions. even over - the - counter medications can interact with foods, beverages, or supplements. - take medication with a full glass of water unless told otherwise by your pharmacist or doctor. - do not stir medication into your food or take capsules apart ( unless directed by your pharmacist or doctor ). this may change the way the drug works. - check with your pharmacist or doctor before taking vitamin pills at the same time you take medication - - vitamins and minerals can interact with some drugs. - do not mix medication into hot drinks, because the heat from the drink may destroy the effectiveness of the drug. - never take medication with alcoholic drinks. alcohol can change medication absorption and may increase or deccrease the effectiveness of many medications. - be sure to tell your doctor and pharmacist about all medications you are taking, both prescription and nonprescription. -


almost every day, it seems, there is another alarming study about the dangers of being fat or a new theory about its causes and cures. just this week, vh1 announced a new reality show called ' ' flab to fab, ' ' in which overweight women get a personal staff to whip them into shape. but a growing group of historians and cultural critics who study fat say this obsession is based less on science than on morality. insidious attitudes about politics, sex, race or class are at the heart of the frenzy over obesity, these scholars say, a frenzy they see as comparable to the salem witch trials, mccarthyism and even the eugenics movement. ' ' we are in a moral panic about obesity, ' ' said sander l. gilman, distinguished professor of liberal arts, sciences and medicine at the university of illinois in chicago and the author of ' ' fat boys : a slim book, ' ' published last month by the university of nebraska press. ' ' people are saying, ' fat is the doom of western civilization. ' ' ' now, says peter stearns, a leading historian in the field, the rising concern with obesity ' ' is triggering a new burst of scholarship. ' ' these researchers don ' t condone morbid obesity, but they do focus on the ways the definition of obesity and its meaning have shifted, often arbitrarily, throughout history. mr. stearns, provost and professor of history at george mason university, has written that plumpness was once associated with ' ' good health in a time when many of the most troubling diseases were wasting diseases like tuberculosis. ' ' he traces the equation of obesity and moral deficiency to the late - 19th and early - 20th centuries. in 1914, an article in the magazine living age, for example, stated, ' ' fat is now regarded as an indiscretion and almost a crime. ' ' mr. stearns cites it in an essay he wrote for the aptly named ' ' cultures of the abdomen, ' ' a collection to be published by palgrave macmillan next november, edited by christopher e. forth, a senior lecturer at australian national university, and ana carden - coyne, a lecturer at the university of manchester, in england. during world war i, mr. stearns writes, some popular magazines actually said that eating too much and gaining weight were unpatriotic, presumably because of concerns about food shortages. in ' ' fat boys, ' ' mr. gilman describes how plumpness


i, mr. stearns writes, some popular magazines actually said that eating too much and gaining weight were unpatriotic, presumably because of concerns about food shortages. in ' ' fat boys, ' ' mr. gilman describes how plumpness used to be associated with affluence and the aristocracy, while today it is associated with the poor and their supposedly bad eating habits. louis xiv padded his body to look more imposing. during the french revolution, obesity inspired a rallying cry, ' ' the people against the fat, ' ' he says. and whereas once the fat man was generally seen as hypersexual, like falstaff, now he is seen as asexual, like santa claus. the first popular modern diet book, ' ' letter on corpulence addressed to the public, ' ' written by william banting, an undertaker, appeared in 1863. banting wrote that when he was fat he was regarded as a useless parasite. he went on a diet and lost 35 pounds. ' ' i can honestly assert that i feel restored in health, ' bodily and mentally, ' ' ' he wrote. before long, mr. gilman points out, the word ' ' banting ' ' became a synonym for dieting. in mr. stearns ' s view, 19th - century changes in attitudes toward obesity were a guilty reaction to the new abundance of food, the rise of the consumer culture and the growth of sedentary work habits. ' ' i don ' t think we were comfortable with it because of religious legacies and hesitations, ' ' he said in an interview. ' ' having a target for self - control, like dieting, helped express but also reconcile moral concerns about consumer affluence, ' ' mr. stearns writes ; the dieting fad become a new kind of puritanism.


research guide to the legal system of the kingdom of bhutan by ershadul karim and chhime tshoke dorjee ershadul karim is a non - practicing lawyer of bangladesh supreme court and currently the editor of chancery law chronicles, the first ever - online database of bangladesh laws. chhime tshoke dorjee is a practicing lawyer in the kingdom of bhutan currently working in the ministry of education, royal government of bhutan. published september 2011 table of contents national symbols of bhutan political system of bhutan legislature in bhutan executive in bhutan bhutanese legal system laws of bhutan the structure of the courts trial system of court office of the attorney general universities in bhutan newspapers and journals united nations and bhutan the bhutanese name for the kingdom of bhutan is druk yul, which means " land of the thunder dragon ". the country lies hidden in the folds of the eastern himalayas and sandwiched between the two giant countries of india in the south and china in the north. bhutan, often revered as the " land of the peaceful dragon ", is still regarded as one of the last " shangrilas " in the himalayan region because of its remoteness, its spectacular mountain terrain, varied flora and fauna and its unique ancient buddhist monasteries. with a total area of 38, 398 sq kilometers, bhutan lies between 88° 45 ’ and 92°10 ’ longitude east and 26°40 ’ and 28°15 ’ north. it is a mountainous country except for a small flat strip in the southern foothills. in the north, bhutan borders with tibet, the autonomous region under china ; in the west with the indian state of sikkim ; in the east with the indian state of arunachal pradesh and in the south with the indian states of assam and west bengal. bhutan, a purely buddhist himalayan kingdom, is unsurpassed in its scenic majesty and vibrant culture as 72 percent of the country is under forest cover. a country of 750, 000 people, the kingdom shares with nepal the world ' s greatest concentration of mountains and living heritage of buddhism. the territory of bhutan comprises twenty dzongkhags ( administrative and judicial district ) with each dzongkhag consisting of gewogs ( a group of villages ) and thromdes ( third - level administrative division ) ( article 1 ( 4 ), the constitution of the kingdom of bhutan, 2008 ). buddhism has played a key role in shaping the life of people, history, government, culture, economy, judiciary, etc. in bhutan. though the recorded history of the


1 ( 4 ), the constitution of the kingdom of bhutan, 2008 ). buddhism has played a key role in shaping the life of people, history, government, culture, economy, judiciary, etc. in bhutan. though the recorded history of the country traced back from the 6th century ad, it is the visit of guru rimpoche in the 8th century ad that buddhism flourished in bhutan. in 747 ad, guru rimpoche ( also known as padma sambhava ) visited the land and buddhism took firm root in the country. in the first half of the 13th century the spiritual master, phajo drugom zhingpo, the precursor of the drukpa kagyu tradition of mahayana buddhism arrived the country and ultimately gained pre - eminence. however, it is the arrival of zhabdrung rimpoche ( the precious jewel at whose feet one submits ) that one of the most dynamic era in the history of bhutan started. the religious and secular powers were not clearly delineated until 1616 when zhabdrung ngawang namgyal, the great leader of the drukpa school of mahayana buddhism, established the dual system of governance with the je khenpo ( chief abbot ) as the head of the spiritual and the desi, as the head of the temporal. the zhabdrung constructed numerous dzongs, monasteries, and religious institutions bringing people from all walks of life under one faith and firmly instituted drukpa kagyu as the state religion. the first dzong that he built, simtokha dzong in 1627, stands majestically as one of the sentinels of the bhutanese identity, a few miles away from present day thimphu. the zhabdrung ' s dual system of government, ruled by 54 desis and 60 je khenpos, steered bhutan from 1651 until the birth of the wangchuck dynasty and establishment of hereditary monarchy in 1907. but eventually bhutan became a two - party parliamentary democracy after elections in march 2008. in the election, the pro - monarchy bhutan harmony party of former prime minister jigme thinley had a landslide victory and subsequently formed the government. read the history of bhutan in brief, prehistory, introduction of buddhism in bhutan, the age of the zhabdrung, medieval bhutanese society, how europe heard about bhutan, establishment of monarchy in the website of key to bhutan. for a chronological history of the kingdom of bhutan, visit, druk asia. the first


, the age of the zhabdrung, medieval bhutanese society, how europe heard about bhutan, establishment of monarchy in the website of key to bhutan. for a chronological history of the kingdom of bhutan, visit, druk asia. the first schedule to the constitution provides that the national emblem of bhutan is a circle that projects a double diamond thunderbolt placed above the lotus. there is a jewel on all sides with two dragons on vertical sides. the thunderbolts represent the harmony between secular and religious power while the lotus symbolizes purity. the jewel signifies the sovereign power while the dragons ( male and female ) stands for the name of the country druk yul or the land of the dragon. the national flag is rectangle in shape that is divided into two parts diagonally. the upper yellow half signifies the secular power and authority of the king while the lower saffron - orange symbolizes the practice of religion and power of buddhism, manifested in the tradition of drukpa kagyu. the dragon signifies the name and the purity of the country while the jewels in its claws stand for the wealth and perfection of the country. the national flower is blue poppy ( meconopsis horridula ), national tree is cypress ( cupressus torolusa ), national bird is the raven, national animal is the takin ( burdorcas taxicolor ). bhutan is a multi - lingual society. today, about 18 languages and dialects are spoken all over the country. the state language is dzongkha, which in the olden times was spoken by people who worked in the dzongs that was the seat of temporal and spiritual power. later, dzongkha was introduced as the national language of bhutan. the national anthem was first composed in 1953, became official in 1966 and finally placed in the second schedule to the constitution, 2008. it is known as druk tshenden kepay gyalkhab na ( the kingdom of bhutan adorned with cypress trees ). the modern political history of bhutan started from 1907 when the bhutanese people unanimously enthroned ugyen wangchuck as the first hereditary king of bhutan and later on by the successive monarchs of under the wangchuck dynasty. in 1953, the third king jigme dorji wangchuck established the national assembly ( tshogdu ) in order to ensure a more democratic governance of the country. every gewog, a group of villages and an intermediate geographic administrative unit between dzongkhag and village, had


by the constitution of south africa because of its strong protection of human rights. article 7 of the bhutanese constitution provides for fundamental rights and includes most of the internationally recognized human rights e. g. civil and political rights and also provides that these rights as enshrined in article 7 are judicially enforceable. the organs of the bhutanese government comprise of the legislature, judiciary and the executive and the article 1 ( 13 ) of the constitution ensures separation of these three organs. the ruling political party, the opposition and the national council now forms the legislative body. article 10 of the bhutanese constitution, 2008 provides for a bi - cameral parliament which consists of druk gyalpo ( the king of bhutan ), the national council, which is the upper house and the national assembly, which is the lower house shall have all legislative powers under this constitution. it is the responsibility of the parliament to ensure that the government safeguards the interests of the nation and fulfils the aspirations of the people through public review of policies and issues, bills and other legislations, and scrutiny of state functions. the members of parliament shall be elected according to the electoral laws of the kingdom. article 11 deals with national council whereas article 12 deals with the national assembly. the tenure of both these houses is five years. the national council, which is required to convene at least twice in a year, consists of twenty - five non - political members, one member elected by the voters in each of the twenty dzongkhags ( administrative and judicial districts ) ; and five eminent persons nominated by the druk gyalpo ( the king ). besides the legislative functions, the national council shall act as the house of review on matters affecting the security and sovereignty of the country and the interests of the nation and the people that need to be brought to the notice of the druk gyalpo, the prime minister and the national assembly. the national assembly of bhutan shall have a maximum of fifty - five members, elected from each dzongkhag in proportion to its population, provided that no dzongkhag shall have less than two members or more than seven members, for which purpose parliament shall, by law, provide for each dzongkhag to be divided into constituencies through appropriate delimitation, and for the voters in each constituency directly electing one member to the national assembly. ( article 12 ( 1 ) ). the government of kingdom of bhutan is of parliamentary form. the head of the state is the druk gyalpo ( the king


for the voters in each constituency directly electing one member to the national assembly. ( article 12 ( 1 ) ). the government of kingdom of bhutan is of parliamentary form. the head of the state is the druk gyalpo ( the king ), whereas the head of the government is the prime minister. until the 1950s, bhutan was an absolute monarchy whose sovereign was styled the druk gyalpo ( “ dragon king ” ). article 20 of the constitution provides that the executive power in bhutan be vested in the lhengye zhungtshog ( council of ministers or cabinet ) which shall consist of the ministers headed by the prime minister. the number of ministers shall be determined by the number of ministries required to provide efficient and good governance. the creation of an additional ministry or reduction of any ministry shall be approved by parliament. the lhengye zhungtshog ( council of ministers ) shall aid and advise the druk gyalpo ( the king ) in the exercise of his functions including international affairs, provided that the druk gyalpo may require the lhengye zhungtshog to reconsider such advice, either generally or otherwise. the prime minister shall keep the druk gyalpo informed from time to time about the affairs of the state, including international affairs, and shall submit such information and files as called for by the druk gyalpo. the lhengye zhungtshog assesses the state of affairs arising from developments in the state and society and from events at home and abroad ; defines the goals of state action and determines the resources required to achieve them ; plan and co - ordinate government policies and ensure their implementation ; and represent the kingdom at home and abroad. it also promotes an efficient civil administration based on the democratic values and principles enshrined in this constitution and is collectively responsible to the druk gyalpo and to parliament. zhabdrung ngawang namgyal promulgated the first set of bhutanese laws, the codification of which was completed in 1652 during the reign of the first temporal ruler, deb umzed tenzin drugyel. the code, which serves as the foundation of the contemporary bhutanese legal system, was based closely on buddhist principles and addressed the violation of both temporal and spiritual laws. these laws contain specific reference to the ten pious acts, known as lhachoe gyewa chu and the sixteen virtuous acts of social piety, referred to as the michoe tsangma


violation of both temporal and spiritual laws. these laws contain specific reference to the ten pious acts, known as lhachoe gyewa chu and the sixteen virtuous acts of social piety, referred to as the michoe tsangma chudrug. the spiritual laws are said to resemble a silken knot ( dargye duephue ) as the silken knot is light and loose at first but gradually tightens with the accumulation of negative deeds, whereas the secular laws are compared to a golden yoke ( sergyi nyashing ) that grows heavier and heavier with the degree of the crimes committed. in 1959, the national assembly, under the guidance of the third king jigme dorji wangchuck enacted the first comprehensive codified law code, the thrimzhung chhenmo or the supreme law, which covers almost all civil and criminal matters and includes sections on land law, marriage, inheritance, weights and measures, theft and murder. although many of the chapters have been amended by subsequent legislation, the thrimzhung chhenmo is considered to be the basis for all the subsequent laws enacted in bhutan. the legal system of bhutan is based on english common law. the bhutanese judiciary is entrusted to safeguard, uphold, and administer justice fairly and independently without fear, favor, or undue delay in accordance with the rule of law to inspire trust and confidence and to enhance access to justice. laws of bhutan the judicial authority of bhutan is vested in the royal courts of justice comprising of the supreme court, the high court, the dzongkhag court, the dungkhag court and such other courts and tribunals as may be established from time to time by the druk gyalpo on the recommendation of the national judicial commission. ( article 21 ) the druk gyalpo appoints the chief justice of bhutan for a period of five years from among the drangpons ( judge or justice of a royal court of justice ) of the supreme court or from among eminent jurists. the chief justice, appointed for five years and four drangpons, appointed for a period of ten years form the supreme court, the highest appellate authority to entertain appeals against the judgments, orders, or decisions of the high court. besides, the druk gyalpo may seek the opinion of the supreme court in cases of public importance. the bhutanese legal system has a four - tier court system, supreme court, the high court, the dzongkhag courts, the dungkhag


druk gyalpo may seek the opinion of the supreme court in cases of public importance. the bhutanese legal system has a four - tier court system, supreme court, the high court, the dzongkhag courts, the dungkhag courts. the supreme court is the highest in the hierarchy, followed by the high, dzongkhag and dungkhag courts. there are no courts or tribunals of special jurisdiction in bhutan. the supreme court is the highest court of law in bhutan and is presided over by the chief justice of bhutan. it has appellate, advisory and extra - territorial jurisdiction. where a particular case is not covered or is only partially covered by any law in force and is not otherwise excluded from adjudication, the supreme court has original jurisdiction over it. the supreme court is a court of record and is the guardian of the constitution and the final authority on its interpretation. ( article 1, the constitution of bhutan, 2008 ). under the present constitution, the chief justice and three associate justices of the first supreme court of bhutan were administered the oath of office and secrecy on 21st february 2010. at present, the supreme court of bhutan is temporarily housed in the kuengachholing state guest house. the high court, established in 1958, is made up of three benches. a minimum of two judges comprises a bench. like the supreme court, the high court exercises original, appellate and extra - territorial jurisdiction. it also possesses inherent powers and exercises extra - territorial jurisdiction on the basis of international law principles. it presently stands at the apex of the bhutanese judicial system and is presided over by the chief justice of bhutan. subordinate to the high court in bhutan, there is a dzongkhag or district court in each dzongkhag ( presently, there are total twenty ). the first dzongkhag court was established in 1960 / 61. usually, the dzongkhag court is made up of one bench, though there are some dzongkhag courts that have division benches. the dzongkhag court exercises original jurisdiction in all cases within its territorial jurisdiction and hears appeals from an order of judgment of a dungkhag court. such courts presided over by a dzongkhag drangpon who is assisted by one or more drangpon rabjams. the dungkhag or sub - district court, presided over by a dungkhag drangpon, established in 1978, is the lowest formal court in bhutan. at present, there are three such courts in the country having


rabjams. the dungkhag or sub - district court, presided over by a dungkhag drangpon, established in 1978, is the lowest formal court in bhutan. at present, there are three such courts in the country having original jurisdiction in all cases within their territorial jurisdiction. there is a research and training bureau of the judiciary which was established in 1994 under the royal command to conduct researches on the sources of bhutanese laws, court etiquette and manners, formal address and titles, legal terminology, in - service legal education, including sessions on procedural code, information technology, and bhutanese literature so that the judicial staffs can develop their skills and knowledge in legal profession. the registrar general, appointed by the chief justice of bhutan for a period of three years, heads the administrative and finance division of the courts. he is supported by other administrative staff, and is responsible for the overall administrative work in the supreme court and the subordinate courts. his responsibility includes the appointment, transfer, supervision and human resource development of court staffs. the bhutanese legal system is primarily based on the adversarial system of procedure with some elements of the inquisitorial system. the courts take no sides and the judges are umpires of the litigants. the judges allow uninterrupted hearing to the litigants or their jabmis ( counsel ). they are given opportunity to make presentation to the court and answer questions posed by the judges. the plaintiff and the defendant or their jabmis can submit evidence to substantiate their legal contentions and the courts decide cases based on the facts and issues submitted by the parties. thus, the burden to proof beyond reasonable doubt lies on the prosecutor in a criminal case and on the plaintiff to prove his case by a fair preponderance of the credible evidence in a civil action. read details about the trial system of courts in bhutan, here. read the hearing procedure, here. presently, the parties in the civil case have to pay only 100 bhutanese ngultrum ( bhutanese currency ) [ 1 usd = 44. 5 bhutanese ngultrum ] as court fee in high court, while the court fees in dzongkhag and dungkhag is only 50 bhutanese ngultrum. under the bhutanese legal system, the court has to establish a hearing calendar ( section 79 of the civil and criminal procedural code ). usually in a day, a maximum of five hearing is to be scheduled. this is done so that the drangpon


the bhutanese legal system, the court has to establish a hearing calendar ( section 79 of the civil and criminal procedural code ). usually in a day, a maximum of five hearing is to be scheduled. this is done so that the drangpon and the bench clerks are not overburdened with too many cases and that there is proper time management. individual calendars explicitly link the management of a case to a particular judge, making judges accountable to the public. the judicial process in bhutan follows the following stages - registry of a complaint = > miscellaneous hearing = > preliminary hearing = > production before judge = > show cause = > opening statement = > defence reply = > rebuttal = > evidence = > independent testimony = > exhibit = > cross examinations = > judicial investigation = > closing statement = > judgment the court issues a number of orders in the form of direction, writs, injunction, and compliance as per the provisions of the civil and criminal procedure code of bhutan. the court also issues summon order to the litigants to appear before the court on the specific date. failing to honor the summon order may entail the dismissal of a case, passing of a default judgment or be liable for contempt. find all relevant laws relating to judiciary, here. find the relevant judicial forms here. find the 2011 judgments of the supreme court and 2008 - 2011 judgments of the high court here. read the judicial reforms ( institutional, procedural and penal ) in bhutan, here. national judicial commission and royal judicial service council the national judicial commission of bhutan, established under a royal decree in 2003, is responsible for the appointments and removal of the drangpons of the courts in bhutan. the members of the national judicial commission are the chief justice of bhutan as the chairperson, the senior most drangpon of the supreme court, the chairperson of the legislative committee and the attorney general. the druk gyalpo appoints the members of the commission by warrant under his hand and seal. the commission meets twice a year at such time and place as designated by the chairperson. the commission, usually meets in the chamber of the chief justice in the high court, operates through a network of committees. these committees submit the findings and report to the commission. under article 21 of the constitution of bhutan, 2008 and the judicial service act, 2007, the commission submits recommendation to his majesty the druk gyalpo with regard to the appointment of the chief justice of bhutan and the drangpons of the supreme court ; and the chief justice and the drang


judicial service act, 2007, the commission submits recommendation to his majesty the druk gyalpo with regard to the appointment of the chief justice of bhutan and the drangpons of the supreme court ; and the chief justice and the drangpons of the high court, to the establishment of courts and tribunals, etc. a drangpon may be censured or suspended by a command of the druk gyalpo on the recommendation of the commission for proven misbehavior, who, in the opinion of the commission, does not deserve impeachment. the judicial service act of 2007 also provides for a royal judicial service council, which with the assent of the chief justice of bhutan shall have the full authority to determine and administer the organizational structure, budgetary and personnel requirements of the judiciary. read the judicial service act of bhutan, 2007, here. article 29 of the constitution of bhutan, 2008 deals with the autonomous office of attorney general, who as the chief legal officer of the kingdom shall be the legal advisor to and legal representative of the government. the office of the attorney general act of bhutan, 2006 was enacted to promote and impart justice through fair, impartial and just proceedings in civil and criminal cases, by enacting enlightened laws and to uphold the rule of law, natural justice and the constitution through responsive and accessible legal process. read the office of the attorney general act of bhutan, 2006, here. the king of bhutan appoints appoint an eminent jurist as the attorney general on the recommendation of the prime minister. chapter 3 of the office of the attorney general act, 2006 ( sections 11 - 18 ) deals with the functions and section 24 deals with the duties and responsibilities of the office of attorney general. chapter 5 provides for code of conduct of office of attorney general. section 50 of the 2006 act provides that on grounds of physical, mental, or other incapacity of a permanent nature, or any violation of this act ; or conviction under any other law the prime minister of bhutan may remove the attorney general. the law relating to legal profession in bhutan is the jabmi act, 2003, which, according to the chief justice, lyonpo sonam tobgye, “ will reaffirm and uphold the cardinal principle of fair trial with the help of jabmi ( legal counsel ) to protect and establish people ’ s rights at all stages of proceedings ”. the act, a guideline for professional ethics, duties, and responsibilities of jabmis, is expected to


fair trial with the help of jabmi ( legal counsel ) to protect and establish people ’ s rights at all stages of proceedings ”. the act, a guideline for professional ethics, duties, and responsibilities of jabmis, is expected to bring in professionalism to the legal system and “ enhance the effectiveness and fairness in the administration of justice ”. section 2 and section 14 of the jabmi act, 2003 provide for the establishment of a bar council ( jabmi tshogdey ) and a bar association ( jabmi thuentshog ). the bar council, according to the jabmi act, will have the attorney general as the ex - officio chairperson, two retired drangpons ( judges ) of the supreme court / high court, president of bar association as the vice chairperson, chairpersons of each disciplinary committee and three elected members among the lawyers. the bar council will assist the court, promote and support law reforms, and conduct lawyer selection examinations. the bar association will have an elected president, enrolled members, and an executive body elected by the members. the functions of the association includes assisting the court in expediting the cases and ensuring just, fair, and prompt dispensation of justice, and upholding the integrity of the lawyers. the act also states that no person would be qualified to practice as a jabmi unless he or she is enrolled with the jabmi tshogdey and no retired drangpon would be allowed to practice as a jabmi. the act also states that an eligible jabmi, among other criteria, must be a bhutanese, should have legal qualification recognized by the jabmi tshogdey, should have undergone the national legal course, and should have passed the bar selection examinations. the concept of jabmi featured in various sections of the bhutanese law. someone embroiled in a legal dispute has always sought the aid of the jabmi. the bhutanese legal system provided litigants the option either to represent themselves or to seek legal counsel. it also had an additional clause permitting a member of the family to represent the case on the litigant ’ s behalf. therefore, the legal counsel was not an alien practice. it was ingrained in the system. every district court or village had jabmis. according to sources, the presence of the jabmi has been recorded as far back as 1616, when the zhabdrung came to bhutan. they were mostly village elders and retired government


. every district court or village had jabmis. according to sources, the presence of the jabmi has been recorded as far back as 1616, when the zhabdrung came to bhutan. they were mostly village elders and retired government functionaries respected in their communities for their wisdom, experience and articulate speech. their clients paid them in manual labor, agricultural produce or, in some cases, a small piece of a property that was in dispute. although they had always been consulted by generations of bhutanese litigants, they were never a professional class of people with the requisite credentials common to lawyers and legal counsel elsewhere in the world. from 1996 the jabmi was licensed and the profession formalized by the government. read the jabmi act of kingdom of bhutan, 2003, here. laws of bhutan constitution of the kingdom of bhutan, 2008 laws of bhutan in bhutan government portal laws of bhutan in bhutannica laws of bhutan in national council of bhutan rules and regulations in bhutan government portal national standards of bhutan bills in national council of bhutan national library of bhutan cabinet secretariat of royal government of bhutan national council of bhutan tourism council of bhutan royal court of justice, bhutan other important links universities in bhutan development agencies in bhutan pro bhutan association, germany canadian cooperation office canada ’ s international development research centre helvetas ( swiss assistance in bhutan ) netherlands development organization ( snv ) austrian coordination office for development cooperation ( aco ) united nations and bhutan united nations country team in bhutan united nations development programme ( undp ), bhutan permanent mission of the kingdom of bhutan to the united nations united nations office of the high commissioner for human rights and bhutan asian and pacific training center for information and communication technology world health organisation, bhutan bhutan - united nations poverty - environment initiative


the natural response to a natural disaster is to see that it cannot cause as much damage next time. but if the disaster is as rare as a major earthquake and the remedy would remove most or all of our older buildings, does the risk warrant it? that is the question we need to pose in response to proposals from the royal commission of inquiry into the canterbury earthquakes and a review of the building code by the ministry of business, innovation and employment. the royal commission recommended that local bodies should be required to identify all earthquake - prone buildings in their jurisdiction within two years and that the owners be given seven years to either bring them up to the standard or demolish them. the ministry has suggested slightly longer periods - five years for the councils to identify the buildings and 10 years for the owners to strengthen or remove them. the later deadline is the one the government has adopted for the purposes of an important public discussion. it is time to think carefully about the costs - not just to building owners but to the community if heritage is lost - and to weigh the costs against the risk of damaging earthquakes. the risk is very low. the building code in force since 1976 requires new buildings to be able to withstand a magnitude of earthquake likely to occur maybe once in 500 years. the ground forces that hit christchurch on february 22, 2011, were much greater than that, equivalent to an earthquake reckoned to occur once every 2500 years. nobody has suggested we need build to that standard of resistance. ultimately, there is no such thing as an " earthquake - proof " building. a shallow quake in unfavourable rock structure can generate much greater shaking than its magnitude normally causes. that is what happened in christchurch and the question should be asked : is the aftermath of such an event really the best time to be deciding the fate of our built heritage? neither the royal commission nor the ministry has suggested raising the new building standard or the definition of " earthquake - prone buildings ", those assessed to be less than a third of the standard. they simply want all those buildings brought up to at least a third of the standard. the auckland council has told the ministry that a 10 - year notice would be an " execution order " for the city ' s areas of special character and heritage. it would prefer that building owners be given 15 years to comply, but even that might be a death warrant for the character of places such as mt eden and devonport. it needs to be remembered that most of those who died in christchurch ' s february aftershock were not in or near the unre


learn the lessons of the water claim to help nz fulfil its potential as a nation the maori king, tuheitia, has never called a national hui of the sort happening today on water and its significance extends well beyond water rights to all of the other resources and issues maori are making contemporary claims about. it was reported earlier in the week that some ngapuhi claimants will lodge a claim for the commercial use of wind with the waitangi tribunal. over and above historical claims, maori are able under section 2 of the treaty of waitangi act to ask the tribunal to investigate contemporary claims relating to any enactment, policy or practice adopted or an act done or omitted by the crown after september 21, 1992 which breaches the treaty of waitangi. as of january this year, there were over 200 contemporary claims filed with the waitangi tribunal. customary rights to water is one example, but there are many more. some have failed ; others have succeeded, like the water claim. but all of these claims concern the actions of successive governments since 1992 showing that maori believe breaches of the treaty are continuing and that until the crown starts treating them as a proper treaty partner, the grievance cycle will continue. a government can never stop people suing over a contentious policy, but it can act to take away the grievance or to minimise their chances of succeeding in court. contemporary claims are here to stay, so the government has to find a more effective and efficient modus operandi than it adopted for water, especially given its policy on oil and gas exploration. as lord cooke said in the lands case, " the principles of the treaty do not authorise unreasonable restrictions on the right of a duly elected government to follow its chosen policy. indeed, to try and shackle the government unreasonably would itself be inconsistent with those principles. " any approach to contemporary claims has to factor in the prior decisions of the courts and the waitangi tribunal about what maori do and do not have rights and interests in and to. forgetting that this jurisprudence exists doesn ' t work. for example, the contemporary petroleum claim in 2000 also resulted in an urgent waitangi tribunal report due to the government ' s intention to sell the crown ' s interests in the kupe licence. the breach alleged was the crown ' s nationalisation of petroleum resources without paying compensation to the landowners or providing for the ongoing payment of royalties. the tribunal found ( very similarly to the interim water reports issued this year ) that where land rights were lost


. the breach alleged was the crown ' s nationalisation of petroleum resources without paying compensation to the landowners or providing for the ongoing payment of royalties. the tribunal found ( very similarly to the interim water reports issued this year ) that where land rights were lost in a treaty breach, then there is a residual treaty right that should be remedied in natural resources like petroleum. the government ' s current tender round for oil and gas exploration permits closes on october 15. it also released a march discussion paper inviting submissions on crown minerals reform, which includes " improving dialogue between regulatory agencies, iwi and other important stakeholders, as it relates to the crown minerals act ". another example is the wai 2224 claim lodged in december 2009, which argues that the electromagnetic radio spectrum is a taonga and that maori have interests in the 4g radio spectrum to be used by telecommunications companies to connect smartphones to cellular networks. the claim is currently on hold to give the crown and maori time to develop a joint approach to the spectrum. however, time is running out. by december 1, 2013, the government intends to implement the " digital switchover ", forcing television broadcasting to go digital which will free up the 4g radio spectrum for commercial use. resisting this maori claim will be made harder given that the previous labour - led government gave maori one quarter of the 3g spectrum. we are also still waiting for the crown ' s response to the wai 262 investigation into flora, fauna and cultural and intellectual property. this claim took the waitangi tribunal over 21 years to investigate and addressed the work of more than 20 government departments and agencies which concern matauranga maori. the many recommendations include a revamped maori language commission, the establishment of a new commission to protect maori cultural works against offensive and unauthorised uses, that the department of conservation take the lead in developing a treaty - compliant bio - prospecting regime and that measures be introduced to give greater recognition to the maori interest in genetic modification. there are also a good many historical claims which have significant contemporary implications for new zealand ' s constitution. the current tribunal inquiry into northland ( te paparahi o te raki ) is considering claims that maori never ceded their sovereignty or tino rangatiratanga ( full chieftainship ) in 1840. the tribunal ' s te rohe potae inquiry in the king country is looking at the crown ' s relationship with the kingitanga movement. claims for greater recognition of maori authority now are inherent in many of these historical claims. we have to learn lessons from


mt tongariro rumbled to life for the first time in more than a century this morning, spewing a giant ash cloud as far as napier. dr thomas wilson, a disaster management lecturer at canterbury university, explains all you need to know about the eruption, its aftermath and what the future may hold. what type of eruption was it? there are three main types of eruptions you can get in an explosive event. there ' s what we call a phreatic eruption, or steam - driven eruption. this is where water has been superheated by magma under the volcano, but it ' s only the water that erupts in an explosive manner. basically the hydrothermal system underneath the volcano erupts, and this is what seems to have occurred on tongariro. another type is a phreatomagmatic eruption, where water has come into contact with magma and caused the magma to fragment in an explosive eruption. then there ' s a magmatic eruption, where there ' s no water interacting, and it ' s just the magma erupting itself. scientists [ from gns ] are out collecting ash samples as we speak, and there ' ll be more information in the near future on those specifics, which are relevant for agriculture and human health. the key thing is that it ' s a very small volume of ash that ' s been produced so far. it ' s a very light dusting. how quickly could things change? things could change quickly. it ' s a bit of an unknown. that ' s the ' volcano problem ', if you like. it ' s difficult to know what the volcano is going to do. there are three main scenarios : # it could stop completely ; # it could continue with these same - size eruptions, and we might get some more very light ash fall across the north island, dependent on the wind conditions on the time ; # it could be the beginning of a bigger eruptive sequence, which would probably mean larger eruptions, with more ash produced, probably leading to more widespread deposition of ash, to a thicker amount. i can ' t give you any probabilities on the likelihood of these scenarios. we do know that there have been eruptions from this part of the volcano in the past, and these have typically been pretty small on a global scale. but we can ' t rule anything out at this stage a steam - driven eruption like this could be a sign that there ' s magma moving into place under the volcano, and we might see a progression through to a


pretty small on a global scale. but we can ' t rule anything out at this stage a steam - driven eruption like this could be a sign that there ' s magma moving into place under the volcano, and we might see a progression through to a magmatic eruption. or it could just be that the volcanic hydrothermal system has been unsettled by these earthquakes, and we ' re seeing an eruption as a result of this. is it unusual that there wasn ' t more warning before this eruption? we saw the volcanic threat level raised about two weeks ago, following seismic activity and volcanic gases on the volcano, and that ' s the same area where the eruption occurred. this is quite normal behaviour for volcanoes. they ' ll show vague signs of unrest, like this, and then we get an eruption. the challenging thing is knowing when and where it will occur. is it similar to any other recent eruption? in jan - feb 2011, there was an eruption in the shinmoedake volcano in southern japan, which is very similar to tongariro, and it erupts a similar composition of magma. it had a magmatic eruption that was much larger than what we ' ve seen today. we studied its impacts on critical infrastructure, on towns and communities and agriculture. it did cause some disruption. there was centimetres - worth of ash across vast tracts of agricultural land and some towns. there were some direct impacts to agriculture, but after six months, things were mostly back to normal. there were some big issues with towns and roads, and that created coordination and management issues. there were some disruptions to electricity supplies as well, and surface irrigation water. as far as health concerns, limiting exposure, wearing a mask and avoiding times when ash was blowing around outside was sufficient to mitigate those issues. it ' s quite a good example of what might happen if there were a much bigger eruption from tongariro.


a brief history of aerial photography with the advent of web applications such as google earth, it is a common misconception that aerial photography is relatively new. admittedly because of these websites it is now more commonplace, but in fact aerial photography has been around since the mid nineteenth century. a frenchman called nadar, whose real name was gaspard felix tournachon, took the very first aerial photograph ( fig. 1 ). he was a french writer, caricaturist, photographer and tireless innovator. in 1855 he patented the idea of using aerial photographs in mapmaking and surveying. it was not until 1858, however, that he was able to make a successful aerial photograph, the world ' s first, from a balloon. the oldest surviving photograph taken by nadar was of the arc de triomphe in 1868 ( fig. 2 ). his cameras were bulky and he even took a darkroom with him! on october 13, 1860, james wallace black, accompanied by professor sam king, ascended to an altitude of 1200 feet in king ' s balloon and photographed portions of the city of boston. a cable held the balloon in place. black, the photographer, made eight exposures of which only one resulted in a reasonable picture. this is the oldest conserved aerial photograph ( fig. 3 ). in april 1861, professor thaddeus lowe went up in a balloon near cincinnati, ohio, to make a weather observation. whilst in britain in 1862 the royal society began to do the same. further experiments took place over the next 40 years in paris, england and russia. unfortunately very few of these photographs have survived. in 1903, realising the danger involved in the use of balloons, very light cameras were attached to carrier pigeons ( fig. 4 ). these cameras took a picture every 30 seconds as the pigeon winged its way along a straight course to its home shelter. pigeons were certainly faster than balloons, but their flight paths were unpredictable. kites were also a popular method of taking aerial photographs at this time. in 1906 george r lawrence used a kite to take a panoramic view of the ruins of san francisco after the earthquake ( fig. 5 ). he sold prints for $ 125 each and made a total of $ 15, 000 from just one photograph. the military were quick to realise the benefit of using cameras on balloons to spy on what was happening in adjacent valleys and monitor enemy troop movements. but soon it was clear that the aeroplane was the best platform from which to take aerial photographs. wilbur wright was the first


quick to realise the benefit of using cameras on balloons to spy on what was happening in adjacent valleys and monitor enemy troop movements. but soon it was clear that the aeroplane was the best platform from which to take aerial photographs. wilbur wright was the first pilot in remote sensing history that took photographs from an aeroplane. wilbur ' s passenger, l. p. bonvillain, on a demonstration flight in france in 1908, took the first photograph from an aircraft. as with most technological innovations, major advances were made with the onset of war. the first world war saw the introduction of roll film to replace the glass plates. aircraft were also adapted and designed to maximise coverage and optimise quality, by being fast and stable. early in 1918 french units were printing as many as 10, 000 photographs a night during periods of peak activity. the uk, us and germany all had sophisticated aerial reconnaissance units, and many technical hurdles had been overcome. it was however not without its problems ; from above, identifying one soldier from another was not easy. one time a german observer indicated that an english unit was running around in great disarray and appeared to be in a state of panic. the english were playing football. tens of millions of photographs had been taken by the end of the war in 1918 ( fig. 6 ). following the war many companies were set - up to use the newly found skills and techniques for more peaceful purposes, namely mapping. some of these companies are still going to this day, in the uk, us and germany. at this time the uk was well mapped and aerial photography was not taken too seriously as an aid to mapping ; however it proved invaluable in poorly mapped parts of the world that were at the time under british control. for example hong kong was photographed in 1924. from 1930 germany started to map the country at 1 : 25, 000 scale, and the towns at 1 : 10, 000 scale. from the 1930 aerial photography had become relatively commonplace and aerial surveys were regularly practiced. in 1934 the american society of photogrammetry was founded to advance the field of aerial photography. the rate of technical development and innovation increased once again during the second world war and the importance of aerial survey was by now appreciated in the uk. following the conclusion of the war in 1945, unlike after the first world war, the air force was put to work in the uk before demobilisation. the aim was to capture the entire country at six - inch scale ( 1 : 10, 560 ), with the cities at higher


1945, unlike after the first world war, the air force was put to work in the uk before demobilisation. the aim was to capture the entire country at six - inch scale ( 1 : 10, 560 ), with the cities at higher scales. it was called operation review or revue. in the 40s and 50s huge surveys were undertaken by the us, uk and russian military, including huge areas of mainland europe, for example the ddr and poland. much of this was done in secrecy because of security issues and the onset of the cold war. in the 1950s the major post - war government - sponsored projects and secret military surveys ( fig. 7 ) came to an end except for occasional urgent situations such as the flood disasters of 1948 and 1953, and the aberfan tragedy. of course, the military continue secret reconnaissance probing to this day. aerial photo surveys carried out on behalf of local and central government, utilities and large civil engineering projects became routine as well as essential. these were done by commercial organisations during the 60s, 70s and 80s. during the 80s the transition was made from black and white film to colour film. throughout this time many of these surveys were often used on a ' one - off ' basis, i. e. they were flown for one client who had one use for them. resale of the photographs did happen, but, it was still a relatively specialist subject, so it was not big business. many films and boxes of contact prints languished in dark rooms deep within local authorities. relatively little improved in this time. it was in the mid to late 90s that the resale value of aerial photography was really acknowledged. the shift was made from the survey companies carrying out a survey on behalf of a client, to the survey company actually investing in speculatively acquiring photography and making a commercial business from selling the photos multiple times. aerial photography had entered the digital age. it was now easy to scan and reproduce the photos, and therefore distribute them as large digital seamless mosaics. the range of products and applications of photography also increased, digital elevation models, orthophoto and 3d building modelling became far easier to produce and at a lower cost. as technology improved so did the scale ( and therefore resolution ) of the photos being taken. the users wanted to see more and more detail. in 2004 the first large format digital aerial survey cameras became commercially available. the take up of these cameras was swift in the uk and europe. by 2007 the majority of aerial photography in the uk was taken digitally


jump to : general, art, business, computing, medicine, miscellaneous, religion, science, slang, sports, tech, phrases we found 9 dictionaries with english definitions that include the word adducts : click on the first link on a line below to go directly to a page where " adducts " is defined. general ( 7 matching dictionaries ) - adducts : collins english dictionary [ home, info ] - adducts : vocabulary. com [ home, info ] - adducts : wordnik [ home, info ] - adducts : wiktionary [ home, info ] - adducts : dictionary. com [ home, info ] - adducts : wikipedia, the free encyclopedia [ home, info ] - adducts : dictionary / thesaurus [ home, info ] computing ( 1 matching dictionary ) - adducts : encyclopedia [ home, info ] medicine ( 1 matching dictionary ) - adducts : medical dictionary [ home, info ] ( note : see adduct for more definitions. ) quick definitions from wordnet ( adduct ) noun : a compound formed by an addition reaction verb : draw a limb towards the body ( " adduct the thigh muscle " also see adduct additional searches for adducts... search completed in 0. 03 seconds.


the data types you have seen so far are all concrete, in the sense that we have completely specified how they are implemented. for example, the card class represents a card using two integers. as we discussed at the time, that is not the only way to represent a card ; there are many alternative implementations. an abstract data type, or adt, specifies a set of operations ( or methods ) and the semantics of the operations ( what they do ), but it does not not specify the implementation of the operations. that ’ s what makes it abstract. why is that useful? when we talk about adts, we often distinguish the code that uses the adt, called the client code, from the code that implements the adt, called the provider code. in this chapter, we will look at one common adt, the stack. a stack is a collection, meaning that it is a data structure that contains multiple elements. other collections we have seen include dictionaries and lists. an adt is defined by the operations that can be performed on it, which is called an interface. the interface for a stack consists of these operations : a stack is sometimes called a last in, first out or lifo data structure, because the last item added is the first to be removed. the list operations that python provides are similar to the operations that define a stack. the interface isn ’ t exactly what it is supposed to be, but we can write code to translate from the stack adt to the built - in operations. this code is called an implementation of the stack adt. in general, an implementation is a set of methods that satisfy the syntactic and semantic requirements of an interface. here is an implementation of the stack adt that uses a python list : class stack : def _ _ init _ _ ( self ) : self. items = def push ( self, item ) : self. items. append ( item ) def pop ( self ) : return self. items. pop ( ) def is _ empty ( self ) : return ( self. items = = ) a stack object contains an attribute named items that is a list of items in the stack. the initialization method sets items to the empty list. to push a new item onto the stack, push appends it onto items. to pop an item off the stack, pop uses the homonymous ( same - named ) list method to remove and return the last item on the list. finally, to check if the stack is empty, is


appends it onto items. to pop an item off the stack, pop uses the homonymous ( same - named ) list method to remove and return the last item on the list. finally, to check if the stack is empty, is _ empty compares items to the empty list. an implementation like this, in which the methods consist of simple invocations of existing methods, is called a veneer. in real life, veneer is a thin coating of good quality wood used in furniture - making to hide lower quality wood underneath. computer scientists use this metaphor to describe a small piece of code that hides the details of an implementation and provides a simpler, or more standard, interface. a stack is a generic data structure, which means that we can add any type of item to it. the following example pushes two integers and a string onto the stack : > > > s = stack ( ) > > > s. push ( 54 ) > > > s. push ( 45 ) > > > s. push ( " + " ) we can use is _ empty and pop to remove and print all of the items on the stack : while not s. is _ empty ( ) : print s. pop ( ), the output is + 45 54. in other words, we just used a stack to print the items backward! granted, it ’ s not the standard format for printing a list, but by using a stack, it was remarkably easy to do. you should compare this bit of code to the implementation of print _ backward in the last chapter. there is a natural parallel between the recursive version of print _ backward and the stack algorithm here. the difference is that print _ backward uses the runtime stack to keep track of the nodes while it traverses the list, and then prints them on the way back from the recursion. the stack algorithm does the same thing, except that is use a stack object instead of the runtime stack. in most programming languages, mathematical expressions are written with the operator between the two operands, as in 1 + 2. this format is called infix. an alternative used by some calculators is called postfix. in postfix, the operator follows the operands, as in 1 2 +. the reason postfix is sometimes useful is that there is a natural way to evaluate a postfix expression using a stack : to implement the previous algorithm, we need to be able to traverse a string and break it into operands and operators.


the reason postfix is sometimes useful is that there is a natural way to evaluate a postfix expression using a stack : to implement the previous algorithm, we need to be able to traverse a string and break it into operands and operators. this process is an example of parsing, and the results — the individual chunks of the string – are called tokens. you might remember these words from chapter 1. python provides a split method in both the string and re ( regular expression ) modules. the function string. split splits a string into a list using a single character as a delimiter. for example : > > > import string > > > string. split ( " now is the time ", " " ) [ ' now ', ' is ', ' the ', ' time ' ] in this case, the delimiter is the space character, so the string is split at each space. the function re. split is more powerful, allowing us to provide a regular expression instead of a delimiter. a regular expression is a way of specifying a set of strings. for example, [ a - z ] is the set of all letters and [ 0 - 9 ] is the set of all numbers. the ^ operator negates a set, so [ ^ 0 - 9 ] is the set of everything that is not a number, which is exactly the set we want to use to split up postfix expressions : > > > import re > > > re. split ( " ( [ ^ 0 - 9 ] ) ", " 123 + 456 * / " ) [ ' 123 ', ' + ', ' 456 ', ' * ', ' ', ' / ', ' ' ] notice that the order of the arguments is different from string. split ; the delimiter comes before the string. the resulting list includes the operands 123 and 456 and the operators * and /. it also includes two empty strings that are inserted after the operands. to evaluate a postfix expression, we will use the parser from the previous section and the algorithm from the section before that. to keep things simple, we ’ ll start with an evaluator that only implements the operators + and * : def eval _ postfix ( expr ) : import re token _ list = re. split ( " ( [ ^ 0 - 9 ] ) ", expr ) stack = stack ( ) for token in token _ list : if token = = '


_ postfix ( expr ) : import re token _ list = re. split ( " ( [ ^ 0 - 9 ] ) ", expr ) stack = stack ( ) for token in token _ list : if token = = ' ' or token = = ' ' : continue if token = = ' + ' : sum = stack. pop ( ) + stack. pop ( ) stack. push ( sum ) elif token = = ' * ' : product = stack. pop ( ) * stack. pop ( ) stack. push ( product ) else : stack. push ( int ( token ) ) return stack. pop ( ) the first condition takes care of spaces and empty strings. the next two conditions handle operators. we assume, for now, that anything else must be an operand. of course, it would be better to check for erroneous input and report an error message, but we ’ ll get to that later. let ’ s test it by evaluating the postfix form of ( 56 + 47 ) * 2 : > > > print eval _ postfix ( " 56 47 + 2 \ * " ) 206 that ’ s close enough. one of the fundamental goals of an adt is to separate the interests of the provider, who writes the code that implements the adt, and the client, who uses the adt. the provider only has to worry about whether the implementation is correct – in accord with the specification of the adt – and not how it will be used. conversely, the client assumes that the implementation of the adt is correct and doesn ’ t worry about the details. when you are using one of python ’ s built - in types, you have the luxury of thinking exclusively as a client. of course, when you implement an adt, you also have to write client code to test it. in that case, you play both roles, which can be confusing. you should make some effort to keep track of which role you are playing at any moment.


media contact : mike bradley communications and media relations ornl launches new center for radiation detection materials and systems crdms director lynn boatner : " we plan to take on more global challenges. " ( hi - res image ) the goal of the new center for radiation detection materials and systems ( crdms ) is to establish ornl as the nation ' s central national laboratory for innovation and development in the field of radiation detection materials and systems. center director lynn boatner said the program is the latest chapter in a rich ornl history of radiation detection research that includes development of technologies for national security, non - proliferation, worker safety, medical imaging and other applications. " this center takes what is currently a collection of relatively independent projects and pulls them together into a program with more focus on major goals. it will coordinate and concentrate our efforts by bringing together ornl physicists, chemists, materials scientists, crystal growers, nuclear engineers, and electrical and electronics engineers, " said boatner, a materials physicist in ornl ' s condensed matter sciences division and an ornl corporate fellow. " there is a lot of expertise here, but we have lacked a cohesive program. now, in place of individual proposals and relatively small projects, we plan to take on more global challenges. " radiation detection research at ornl began with reactor and physics instrumentation developed here in the early 1940 ' s. today, ornl is a leader in the technology behind radiation detectors that use scintillators - high density crystal, glass, or polymeric materials that give off photons of light when exposed to radiation. the photons are then amplified and converted to electrons which produce an electrical signal that is measured to give a radiation detection reading. radiation detectors are fabricated from a variety of materials and include electronic materials like germanium and cadmium zinc telluride and scintillators such as lanthanum bromide and lutetium silicate. materials ' properties vary widely : germanium detectors have excellent energy resolution but must operate at cryogenic temperatures, while scintillators operate at room temperature but generally have poor energy resolution. the new center will focus on new crystal growth, fabrication, and characterization methods, continuing an impressive record of scintillator materials development via crystal growth, hot pressing, glass synthesis, sol - gel processes, and other novel methods, boatner said. hot pressing uses pressure and heat to mold ceramic powders to form high density bodies with controlled microstructures. in sol - gel chemistry, nanoparticles are


, sol - gel processes, and other novel methods, boatner said. hot pressing uses pressure and heat to mold ceramic powders to form high density bodies with controlled microstructures. in sol - gel chemistry, nanoparticles are formed in a liquid phase, condensed into a gel, and dried at low temperatures. the process allows scientists to change the structure of the material at the nanoscale ( billionth - of - a - meter ) and create ceramics at near - room temperature. at ornl, boatner and colleagues are using a hot press - based process to develop a more versatile, faster way to produce large inorganic scintillators by first synthesizing zinc oxide nanoparticles doped with gallium. sheng dai, ornl chemical sciences division, has used sol - gel processes to form both nanocrystalline and glass scintillators. boatner said another center priority is to move ornl technology into the marketplace. over the years, ornl scientists have formed companies like ortec and tennelec for commercial applications of radiation detection technologies. more recently, zane bell, ornl nuclear science and technology division, has led the development of a new radiation detector material and detector prototype to be licensed to nucsafe, a local radiation detector manufacturer. bell also is co - developer of the hotspotter, an inexpensive, handheld gamma - ray spectrometer that uses a cadmium tungstate scintillator. boatner said the new center will hone technologies to detect illicit nuclear threats such as " dirty bombs, " locate stolen nuclear weapons, and verify international agreements to dismantle and convert nuclear warheads into fuel for u. s. nuclear power plants. it also will exploit ornl ' s world - class facilities for fabrication and characterization of radiation detector materials, boatner said. those facilities include the environmental effects lab, the high flux isotope reactor, the spallation neutron source, the center for nanophase materials sciences, leadership class computing, and the nation ' s best facilities for radioisotope preparation and radiation calibration. " ornl has the most complete set of materials fabrication capabilities in the nation, " boatner said. " we can do almost every known crystal growth technique, and with the capabilities of hfir and the sns, ornl will have the world ' s finest neutron analysis tools to characterize properties of new scintillator and electronic radiation detection materials including the purity, structure and performance of crystals. "


media contact : emma macmillan ( ) | communications and external relations in alaska ' s backyard oak ridge, tenn., nov. 23, 2011 making well - informed computational models of an ever changing, vast alaskan landscape presents challenges that oak ridge national laboratory researchers are working to overcome. modeling the ever changing alaskan landscape is the focus of the the next generation ecosystem experiment, a collaborative research project coordinated by ornl. the next generation ecosystem experiments ( ngee ) arctic project, a collaboration between ornl and other national laboratories and universities, seeks to investigate how permafrost degradation and associated effects on hydrology, landscape evolution and vegetation dynamics will affect climate. researchers hope to contribute this information to improving climate models of the arctic. today ' s models do not include all the physical and biological processes of the landscape and there are processes operating at small scales where understanding is inadequate. " current models can be improved by identifying areas where climate predictions are sensitive to biogeochemical processes, " said peter thornton, climate modeler. " the processes that are going on in the arctic are dependent on details in the landscape on scales of feet to miles. " given its unique model - driven nature, ngee will likely span 10 to 12 years, but with informed predictive abilities, it could have an impact that exceeds centuries. " there ' s not much modeling of the highly coupled landscape processes in alaska and the arctic, so we want to study processes that are important to climate modeling to contribute to current and future models, " said stan wullschleger, ngee project coordinator and ornl plant physiologist. as researchers from across the country come together to work in one location, they will be striving to answer a circular question : how will a changing climate affect the arctic, and how will this in turn impact the planet ' s climate? " for millennia, carbon has been locked into the frozen soil of alaska, " said rich norby, a member of the ngee team and ornl physiological ecologist. " with warming, permafrost could thaw and release this stored up carbon. it ' s a real concern for the climate, but our understanding is incomplete. " in preparation for the project, ornl researchers are working to translate what they ' ve done in the past to what they are now learning about the alaska tundra. alaskan systems are complex and interconnected where a cascading effect leads to one change, which leads to another and then to another. one piece of this enormous puzzle


done in the past to what they are now learning about the alaska tundra. alaskan systems are complex and interconnected where a cascading effect leads to one change, which leads to another and then to another. one piece of this enormous puzzle is getting a lay of the land and talking with community leaders to figure out what field study sites are most representative of alaska and the arctic. " it makes a tremendous difference to be able to go to the sites in barrow, nome and elsewhere in alaska to get an idea of where we ' ll be conducting research, " said norby. thornton agrees. " it ' s also important for modelers to be on the field site to have an understanding of the dynamics ; otherwise, the models put too much faith or ignore important aspects of the system, " thornton said. beyond the magnitude and implications of the science behind this project, researchers find themselves struck by the alaskan landscape. norby admires the awe - inspiring vastness. wullschleger values the diversity of the people and enjoys listening to the stories they tell about how ecosystems have changed over their lifetimes. ornl is in charge of the overall coordination of the project and will also ensure that plant and microbiology processes are incorporated into climate models. partners at los alamos, lawrence berkeley, and brookhaven national laboratory and the university of alaska fairbanks make unique contributions in other areas, such geomorphology, geophysics, hydrology, landscape evolution, and modeling. " we ' ll be working at the microscale, macroscale, global scale and just about everywhere in between, " norby said.


the genuinely modern does not chase after the new ; it makes the old new again. robert pogue harrison, the dominion of the dead if stones had tongues, the din on monte serra, at the eastern end of the island of elba, would be unbearable. so much human activity has come and gone over the years ; surely the stones must have a lot to say. fortunately, humans have tongues. and pens, and keyboards. otherwise the eons of history leading up to a small but important botanical garden, the orto dei semplici elbano, devoted to the rich flora of the tuscan archipelago, would go untold. it would be hard for us to understand the island ’ s first human inhabitants, the neanderthals ( homo neanderthalensis ), who arrived on elba over 50, 000 years ago, when it was still connected to the mainland during the last ice age. certainly, they were drawn to the island ’ s dense forests of evergreen oak ( quercus ilex ), and abundant game. though they left no words, they left evidence of the first man - made fires on the island. not until the neolithic era, about 20, 000 years ago, did small populations of humans ( homo sapiens sapiens ) begin to settle the island, felling the forests with stone axes to build shelters, to clear land for raising livestock and growing crops, and to make fires. they became, eventually, the first miners of the island around 7, 000 bc, smelting copper for creating bronze tools and vessels. by the ninth century bc, the etruscans began what was to become a long history of iron mining on the eastern end of the island. the iron from these mines traveled as far east as persia, making the island both famous and coveted. the greeks called the island aethalia, meaning “ fumes, ” because of constant smoke from the smelters, fueled with oak wood. the mining continued through many civilizations, wars, plagues, and acts of piracy until the 1980s, leaving a remarkably altered, yet beautiful landscape of what botanists call degraded ecosystems. these ecosystems, known as garrigue or maquis, include many familiar aromatic plants, such as rosemary ( rosmarinus officinalis ), spanish lavender ( lavandula stoechas ), rock rose ( cistus spp. ) and curry plant ( helichrysum italicum ). it ’ s hard to think of these plant communities, so evoca


the island of eternal spring. a forgotten monastery this garden island, which has intrigued artists, botanists, and writers for centuries, also captivated a relative newcomer, hans george berger, photographer and writer. he moved to the island in the 1970s, setting up residence in rio nell ’ elba. from the village, he could see the medieval monastery of santa caterina resting sphinx - like on the flanks of monte serra. still a consecrated church, the eremo di santa caterina, situated where a late thirteenth century monk had a vision of the egyptian saint, sat abandoned since 1850. when berger, who claims to have been “ in a romantic phase, ” visited the hermitage for the first time in 1977, the gothic beauty of the ruins captivated him. he acquired the keys to the property from the village priest, took over custodianship, and began minor renovations. it became his private retreat. he wrote there and hosted his french colleagues, the writer herve guibert, who wrote most of his novels there, and the philosopher michel foucault. his goal of creating a proper retreat space for artists and researchers did not take shape until years later. in 1988, berger was given a sixty - year lease from the catholic church. with the help of many friends and riesi, the inhabitants of rio nell ’ elba, renovations began in earnest. berger and friends excavated the terraces and restacked the old stone walls of the hortus conclusus, the enclosed garden of the monastery where monks once grew vegetables and the figs they dried and sold on the saint ’ s feast day. to this day, riesi call the place “ l ’ eremo dei fichi secchi, ” the hermitage of the dried figs. with the hermitage more functional, berger faced the challenge of his first garden. like most first - time gardeners, he worked from memory. his grandmother ’ s garden was in the mosel valley of germany ; there, as a boy of five, he hid in the fragrant petals of a ‘ new dawn ’ rose that grew up the side of her house. stirred by these memories, berger imagined a rose garden at santa caterina using the old german hybrids of rosarian peter lambert, father of the hybrid musk rose. hans drove to the world famous rosarium in sangerhausen, germany, and brought back a trunk - load of lambert ’ s roses. a garden to match under berger ’ s care, the sensuous roses thrived.


musk rose. hans drove to the world famous rosarium in sangerhausen, germany, and brought back a trunk - load of lambert ’ s roses. a garden to match under berger ’ s care, the sensuous roses thrived. though beautiful, they seemed out of place to him in this arid, hermetic environment. he wanted to revive the monastic tradition of growing medicinal herbs and vegetables. about this time, he met botanists fabio gabari and gabriella corsi, both university of pisa professors who had been studying the island ’ s flora. berger, always one to solve problems by finding the experts, saw in gabari and corsi the future of the garden at santa caterina, possibly even as a public garden. corsi ’ s field of interest was the medicinal and edible wild plants, while gabari was intrigued by endemism, of which elba offered some good examples. as they walked to the monastery through the maquis in 1991, corsi collected herbs for a salad. over their meal of salad, bread, and wine at the hermitage, the founding ideas were born for the orto dei semplici elbano, the garden of elban simples, based upon medieval herb gardens. by 1995, berger had implored gabbetti and isola, a team of architects from turin, to create a plan for the nascent garden. working in the medieval idiom, they created a modern design that blends beautifully with the older structures and the rugged landscape in which it sits. construction began in 1996. stones lying silent and useless for centuries were once again employed to create a stunning hardscape. native evergreen oak saplings were among the first plantings in the 2. 5 - acre botanical garden. on june 1, 1997, the orto dei semplici elbano opened its gates to the public. though there are many gardens on picturesque elba, they are either acclimatization gardens, like the ottone garden, or villa gardens filled with exotics more than natives. this new garden ’ s goal of presenting an island flora in an artful garden setting is unique. two years later, this child of the 460 - year - old botanical garden of pisa, was adopted by the societa botanica italiana, which was a prestigious honor. the garden is meant to be a living library of plants of the archipelago and their relationship with humans, not only in the past and the present but also into the future.


adopted by the societa botanica italiana, which was a prestigious honor. the garden is meant to be a living library of plants of the archipelago and their relationship with humans, not only in the past and the present but also into the future. divided into several specifically focused, smaller themed gardens, the intimacy encourages one to look closely at the plants. this is nowhere more evident than in il labirinto, the labyrinth, whose raised beds feature medicinal plants of the island. it contains plants from the research of professor corsi, who interviewed riesi on the historical and current uses of local plants. her research, published in 1993 as elba, isola d ’ erba ( elba, island of weeds ) and illustrated with louisa perno ’ s herbarium, was seminal in the creation of the garden. the seemingly pejorative title was chosen to emphasize the long and important use of common plants of the island. an elban pharmacopeia it may be surprising that some things in our refrigerators play prominent roles in the elban pharmacopeia ; for example, peppers ( capsicum annum ) were used to treat stomach infections, and capers ( capperis spinosa ) were used as an aphrodisiac. two of our favorite landscape plants also appear here : strawberry tree ( arbutus unedo ), used to treat stomach complaints, and dusty miller ( senecio cineraria ), used to control menstrual pain. some wellknown weeds also figure in the elban medicine cabinet ; dandelion ( taraxacum officinale ) is used to treat liver ailments, and nettles ( urtica dioica ) are used, strangely enough, to soothe itching. then there are the oddballs, the highly toxic squirting cucumber ( ecballium elaterium ), once considered by the greeks to be a panacea, and pellitory - of - the - wall ( parietaria diffusa ), whose anti - viral properties are being investigated today for use in treatments against hiv. beyond the walls of il labirinto is il frutteto, the fruit orchard, a collection of heirloom fruit trees. botanist augostino stefani arduously searched abandoned and active farms of the archipelago for these trees. his collections, selected over the years for the drier and hotter climate of the islands, are a repository of genetic information that may, with


. botanist augostino stefani arduously searched abandoned and active farms of the archipelago for these trees. his collections, selected over the years for the drier and hotter climate of the islands, are a repository of genetic information that may, with global warming, be important to fruit - breeding programs in the future. an arbor of heirloom grapes of the island, called il vigneto, graces the entrance to the garden ; among others grown there is the aleatico grape, used in making the distinctive elban dessert wine of the same name. although separated from the mainland by the mere twelve - mile - wide piombino channel, there are fifty endemic ( found nowhere else ) and sub - endemic plants on the island, in addition to several endemic animals. dr gabari, who refers to the island as the “ galapagos di casa nostra, ” the galapagos at home, has taken intense interest in insular plant communities and sees them as laboratories under the sky. these endemics are represented in il giardino delle piante endemiche, the garden of endemics. of these, pink dusty miller ( centaurea gymnocarpa ) is already popular in california ; the fine silver foliage of this vigorous, shrubby perennial, topped with thistlelike lavender blooms, is much superior to the common dusty miller and, although a perennial, blooms in one season from seed. the endemic toadflax ( linaria capraia ) and elban statice ( limonium ilvae ) both show gardenworthy qualities but are not available commercially here. included in the garden is an amphitheater set in an olive grove, with a stone - lined bench carved into the hillside and enclosed by a rosemary hedge. even when there are no performances to be seen, it offers visitors a stunning view, opened by years of mining that leveled a mountain, of the tyrrhenian sea to the east. like most gardens, there are renovations in progress. the ten - year - old il giardino argentato, the silver garden, a long border of silverleafed plants meant to be viewed in moonlight, is in the process of being replanted. there are also new developments : la macchia coltivata, a demonstration garden highlighting the ornamental qualities of maquis plants, is already underway, while il giardino dei venti, the garden of the winds, a meditation garden, is still on the drawing boards. a peaceful retreat even with all the developments at santa caterina


ornamental qualities of maquis plants, is already underway, while il giardino dei venti, the garden of the winds, a meditation garden, is still on the drawing boards. a peaceful retreat even with all the developments at santa caterina over the past thirty years, it has never lost its original purpose as a place for retreat and study. artists, writers, and gardeners from around the world go there yearly to work in the hermitage and garden. their works can often be found in the church, which doubles as a gallery, but also in the garden itself. the works of artist cesario carena, a longtime friend of berger and santa caterina, have become such integral parts of the garden that it would be hard to imagine it without them. carena ’ s latest work, installed in may 2005, entitled “ segni della memoria e del silenzio ” ( “ signs of memory and of silence ” ), honors people who have made significant contributions to the hermitage and the garden since its inception. the piece consists of two dozen terra - cotta cubes, each hand engraved with the name and profession of one of these individuals. they are strategically placed among the olives and oak trees and in a wild meadow. like all of carena ’ s pieces, they are earthy and inviting, asking visitors to sit and reflect on the natural and man - made beauty around them. with the mining gone and the economy of the elba decidedly shifting toward tourism, a new value is seen in the island ’ s dramatic ancient landscape. though it is the beaches that draw the crowds in summer, it is the rugged mountainous landscape crossed with ancient trails that attracts european birders, botanizers, and photographers year - round. acknowledging this incredible natural legacy, the parco nazionale dell ’ arcipelago toscano was established in 1989. to date, it has preserved nearly 44, 500 acres of the seven islands. evergreen oaks are already returning to the stony silence of monte serra, now part of this park system, along with other plants nearly grazed to extinction by goats. in this ever - changing landscape, the small the orto dei semplici elbano waits, poised to play an important role in preserving the plants and the human knowledge of these plants, handed down over generations — perhaps eons — but still valuable today.


a multi - authored encyclopedia on the history of life on earth welcome to palaeos. org! we ' re just getting settled in at the moment, so for now please go to palaeos. com for content, or if you want, sign up and help build what is hoped will be the web ' s most comprehensive project on the history and evolution of life through time, and for that matter of the earth as a whole. | κοσμος – the universe | | γη – earth | | βιος – life | | λογος – mind | as the orientating diagrams of palaeos, coloured menus will allow the visitor or wiki editor to navigate around the site, tracing the lineages of life, whether present - day organisms or the ultimate common ancestor over millions of years of time, drifiting continents and changing geographical features, and through the ecological interaction of every taxon with other organisms and its environment as a whole. and not just life but everything from inorganic features to the development of intelligence and human civilization ( although the evolution of life will be the primary focus ) the above one is the basic starting navigation menu. as the site is developed, the menus will hopefully be standardised, throughout the site. see also the category index page for a list of categories ( more will be added as the site develops ) contents the following list of contents and subject matter is still provisional at present. ( the numbers here are purely arbitrary, and not intended as part of an indexing or reference system. ) unless feedback indicates otherwise, this long list of contents will probably be replaced by a shorter one with links five or however many main portal pages, with the finer - level topics will be subsections therein. with only a couple of exceptions, almost all pages here are still incomplete. - 1 xronos - time ( category : time ) - 2 ge - earth ( category : earth ) - 3 bios - life ( category : life ) - 3. 1 last universal common ancestor ( luca ) - 3. 2 archaea - 3. 3 eubacteria - so far includes a number of mostly incomplete secondary pages and dendrograms - 3. 4 eukarya ( incl. " protista " ) - amoebozoa : so far includes a number pages and dendrograms ( most pages incomplete ) - 3. 4. 1 chlorobionta ( green plants ) - 3. 4. 2 fungi : so far includes a number


amoebozoa : so far includes a number pages and dendrograms ( most pages incomplete ) - 3. 4. 1 chlorobionta ( green plants ) - 3. 4. 2 fungi : so far includes a number of pages and dendrograms ( most pages incomplete ) - 3. 4. 3 metazoa ( multicelluar animals ) - 126. 96. 36. 199 invertebrates - 188. 8. 131. 52 vertebrates - 4 logos - mind ( category : mind ) - 4. 1 animal behavior and sociobiology - 4. 2 human and sociocultural evolution who we are we ' re a bunch of diverse palaeo enthusiasts who have decided to work together to create a huge encyclopaedia of the history of life on earth. and because a project like this is so ambitious, new contributors and contributions are most welcome! current contributors include ( in alphabetical order ) : atw ( toby white of palaeos com ), bill, ckt ( christopher taylor - phylogeny, various clades ), mak ( m. alan kazlev - obsessive encyclopaedist ), mm ( matthew meischke ), paul harris ( admin ), stanton ( stanton f. fink - artist ), roger perkins and user : rursus. ( please add your name or initials and if you want a short description to the above list if you have contributed material. also please sign your initials and the date ( year - month - day ) at the bottom of any new pages you have started, and any page where you have made major edits. this allows people to be acknowledged for their work. ) as a wiki, palaeos org is able to be edited by anyone, and we encourage anyone who wishes to to get involved. this site will only be as good as people are willing to make it. the only request is that it was agreed that a policy of non - anonymity would be preferred, so if you do want to edit, please create an account and put your name to anything you do. you don ' t necessarily have to know specialised topics in science to contribute, although if you do that is great too! see contributing to palaeos wiki for some ways you can participate. or just enjoy browsing through the growing number of pages already set up. editing in wiki if you are unfamiliar with wikis, please see the help page which can be accessed from any