they can ’ t go online. although research into internet addiction is sketchy ( and usually concerns a group of white americans ) a few countries have conducted in - depth surveys. below is a summary of the more recent findings. - british psychiatrists have reported that between 5 % and 10 % of online users are internet addicts. - in china the beijing military region central hospital puts the number of teenage pathological computer users at 10 million. - research from south korea suggests the affliction is a serious public health problem, and estimates that 168, 000 children may require psychotropic medications. - national ( north american ) surveys revealed that over 50 % of internet addicts also suffered from other addictions ( mainly to drugs, alcohol, smoking, and sex ). - internet addicts also suffer from relationship problems in almost 75 % of the cases. - trends also showed that internet addicts suffer from emotional problems such as depression and anxiety - related disorders ( it has been suggested that web addicts often use the fantasy world of the internet to psychologically escape unpleasant feelings or stressful situations in reality ). - gender stereotypes also seem to translate online : men are more likely to become addicted to online games, cyberporn, and online gambling, for example, while women are more likely to become addicted to chatting, instant messaging, ebay, and online shopping. it has been noted that around 70 - 80 % of the subjects referred to in such research is comprised mostly of white americans. however, the idea of internet addiction does seem to be spreading around the globe like a 21st century plague. yet there is much dispute over whether or not such a condition is in fact unique. one psychiatrist has suggested that the internet is merely another form of escapism for those with other problems : " what most people online who think they are addicted are probably suffering from is the desire to not want to deal with other problems in their lives. those problems may be a mental disorder ( depression, anxiety, etc. ), a serious health problem or disability, or a relationship problem. it is no different than turning on the tv so you won ' t have to talk to your spouse, or going " out with the boys " for a few drinks so you don ' t have to spend time at home. nothing is different except the modality " - john m. grohol despite this, several doctors around the world are recommending various treatment options for those who believe they are web addicts. dr kimberley young, who maintains www. netaddiction.


( newsusa ) - diabetes is a serious disease that can affect many aspects of the body - - the heart and kidneys, blood circulation and even the eyes. in fact, diabetic eye disease increased in prevalence by 89 percent between 2000 and 2010 and is a leading cause of blindness among american adults. despite this, vision care is often overlooked by people with diabetes as they work to manage the many other health problems the disease can cause. according to a survey by the american optometric association, 55 percent of people are unaware that diabetic eye disease often has no visual signs or symptoms. additionally, 44 percent of americans don ' t know that a person with diabetes should have a comprehensive eye exam once a year, including a retina ( dilated ) eye exam. yet, these exams are the only way to diagnose serious eye diseases associated with diabetes at its early stage. regular retina eye exams are critical for early detection and treatment of these progressive eye diseases that often begin without warning. the longer a person has diabetes, the higher their risk for eye disease. over time, diabetes may cause damage to the blood vessels in the back of the eye, known as diabetic retinopathy, which can lead to diabetic macular edema ( dme ). dme occurs when the damaged blood vessels leak fluid and cause swelling. although symptoms are not always present, this swelling can cause blurred vision, double vision and patches in vision, which may appear as small black dots or lines " floating " across the front of the eye. approximately 26 million americans have diabetes and may be at risk for dme. more than 560, 000 americans have dme. yet, approximately 55 percent are unaware that they have the disease. african americans and hispanics over the age of 40 are also at a higher risk for dme. prevent vision loss * getting an annual retina eye exam is the best way to help detect changes in vision * don ' t wait - - make an appointment with a retina specialist today


in some states, such as kentucky and missouri, nearly 30 percent of residents smoke. these states have the highest cancer death rates. in other states, such as california and utah, smoking rates are as low as 10 percent. these states have the lowest cancer death rates. the obesity epidemic is also affecting cancer rates in a very negative way. indeed, obesity is the second leading cause of cancer. more than a dozen cancers - - from breast and prostate cancer to pancreatic and colon cancer - - have been linked to america ' s epidemic of high caloric intake and lack of physical activity. while 15 percent of adults were obese in 1970, more than 35 percent were obese in 2010. even more concerning, 4 percent of children aged 6 to 11 were obese in 1970 ; 20 percent of that group were obese in 2010. while overall there is a significant decline in cancer mortality, the obesity epidemic is continuing to push the cancer mortality rate upward. a substantial proportion of americans do not receive the high - quality preventive and treatment services that experts agree people should get. more than a third of women over 50 are not getting routine breast cancer screening. nearly half of americans over 50 are not getting colon cancer screening. these are interventions about which there is no controversy. even more unsettling, a substantial number of americans diagnosed with cancer are unable to get adequate treatment. if we simply get adequate medical care to those who need it, more lives could be saved.


how psychology solved a wwii shipwreck mystery originally published on mon april 23, 2012 11 : 52 am in november 1941, two ships crossed paths off the coast of australia. one was the german raider hsk kormoran. the other : an australian warship called the hmas sydney. guns were fired, the ships were damaged, and both sank to the bottom of the ocean. the loss of the sydney in world war ii was a national tragedy for the australians, particularly because none of the 645 men onboard survived. in the years that followed, there was intense interest in finding the wrecks, particularly the wreck of the sydney. the idea was that doing this might give the families of the lost sailors some measure of peace, a sense of closure and certainty. the problem was that the only witnesses to the battle and the sinking were about 300 german sailors who had abandoned their ship after it had been hit. they were eventually picked up by the australian military. after their capture, most of these germans were interrogated and asked to identify where the ships had gone down. but the germans seemed quite fuzzy on this point. bob trotter, a former director of the finding sydney foundation, a nonprofit group established to help find the sydney, says their ignorance isn ' t all that surprising. " particularly in a wartime situation, the position of the ship is really kept in the bridge area, " trotter says. " it would not be normal that the rest of the ship ' s company would be told. " still, in the course of their interrogations, about 70 germans did come up with a location. but those locations, taken together, didn ' t make much sense — the positions were spread out, smeared over hundreds of miles. one survivor even placed the sinking almost halfway to antarctica. so most australians concluded that the germans must be lying, their conflicting accounts part of a ploy to throw the australians off the scent. when sydney hunters went out looking for the boat — and many did — they either completely disregarded the accounts from the germans, or, in a couple of cases, focused exclusively on the captain ' s version of the story. then came psychologists kim kirsner and john dunn. kirsner, a cognitive psychologist from the university of western australia, first became interested in finding the sydney in the 1990s. after attempting some different approaches to solving the problem, he brought in his friend and frequent collaborator, a cognitive psychologist at the university of adelaide. by the time dunn entered the picture in the mid - to late 1990s


in finding the sydney in the 1990s. after attempting some different approaches to solving the problem, he brought in his friend and frequent collaborator, a cognitive psychologist at the university of adelaide. by the time dunn entered the picture in the mid - to late 1990s, all kinds of people with all kinds of theories had already attempted to find the ships. " if you didn ' t believe the germans, " says trotter of the finding sydney foundation, " the number of possibilities were endless as to what might have happened and where the ships might be. lots of theories had been expounded, and lots of areas had been suggested. " the cycle was always the same : some treasure hunter with a theory would propose a site ; people would rush off to look ; there would be excitement, then disappointment. how we remember stories as cognitive psychologists, kirsner and dunn took a very different view of the german accounts. to them, the spread of the reports looked like the kind of data they saw in memory experiments. so they set out to prove scientifically that the germans were probably telling the truth. " we wanted to make the case — show that the characteristics of these reports were the right kind of characteristics, " says dunn. that is, that the inconsistencies in the reports were precisely the kind of inconsistencies that occur naturally from failures of memory and the vagaries of transmitting information from person to person. to make this case, dunn says, they turned to the work of the british psychologist sir frederic bartlett. bartlett, like kirsner and dunn, was a psychologist interested in what happens to memory over time. in the 1930s he conducted a famous experiment with a native american folk tale called " the war of the ghosts. " " the war of the ghosts " is a very odd tale, at least compared with typical british stories, dunn says. it has bizarre sentence construction and unpredictable leaps in the narrative. bartlett read the story aloud to a test subject, then immediately asked the person to repeat it back. he would transcribe these recall attempts, then, several days or weeks later, go back and have the person repeat what he remembered again. again, bartlett would transcribe it. over a period of months, and in some cases, years, he would return to these people repeatedly and ask them to tell the story — each time transcribing the changes in the narrative. here are the first two sentences of " the war of the ghosts " : one night two young men from egulac went down


to these people repeatedly and ask them to tell the story — each time transcribing the changes in the narrative. here are the first two sentences of " the war of the ghosts " : one night two young men from egulac went down to the river to hunt seals, and while they were there it became foggy and calm. then they heard war cries and thought : " maybe this is a war party. " and here ' s how bartlett ' s test subject " r " recalled the story immediately after first hearing it : there were two young men, and they went on the river side. they heard war cries. here ' s how r recalled the same two sentences 14 days later : there were ghosts. they went on a river. and the same sentences after a month : there were ghosts. there took place a fight between them. obviously, one expects there to be changes in any repeated narrative, but what bartlett found was that the changes he saw were, in fact, somewhat predictable. " in their recall attempts, they try to change the elements of the story in a way that made them make more sense, " says dunn. essentially, the british storytellers tried to make the stories conform to a more traditional western narrative. this made bartlett theorize that memory is composed of two parts. when a memory is made, the content you ' re trying to remember is embedded in a schema, or theory of what is going on. over time, you remember less of the original content and more of the general theory. that is, you remember the basic gist of the story, and supplement it or change it so that it fits a more comfortable mold. the same pattern of change is seen as a story passes from one person to the next — another experiment that bartlett did. validating the germans ' stories so how does this relate to the germans? dunn and kirsner decided that the german survivors ' reports should be compared directly with the bartlett experiment. to do this, they took the story versions that bartlett had documented and counted up all of the changes in them. every time there was a shift in a sentence or a word, they noted it and put that change down on a graph. this produced a particular statistical profile. kirsner and dunn then did the same thing with the german accounts. they arranged the 70 accounts into groups that seemed to be related to one another, then charted them on a graph. " what we found was that there was a correspondence — that our data looked like the kind of data that


thing with the german accounts. they arranged the 70 accounts into groups that seemed to be related to one another, then charted them on a graph. " what we found was that there was a correspondence — that our data looked like the kind of data that bartlett had generated in his study, " dunn says. this suggested to kirsner and dunn that the germans were not, in fact, lying. " it means it ' s not a contrived set of data, " says kirsner. the variance they saw was the kind of natural variance you get with normal memory loss. after kirsner and dunn determined that the germans were most likely telling the truth, they sat down together with a map of the indian ocean and tried to pinpoint the place on the map that best fit all of the different accounts of where the ships had gone down. " we took each point in the ocean and looked at how well it satisfied or conformed to each of these statements, " dunn says. they then marked a spot as the place where they thought the german ship would be found. in 2004, kirsner and dunn gave the information to the finding sydney foundation. at that time there were no real plans to go hunting for the ships, so that — at least as far as dunn was concerned — was that. " i never really thought that i would ever find out whether it would be right or wrong, " he says. but then a funny thing happened : professional shipwreck hunter david mearns got interested in finding the sydney. mearns and the finding sydney foundation joined forces the australian government agreed to support an expedition. in march 2008 mearns went out and discovered the wreck of the german ship. so how far was the ship from the point that kirsner and dunn had marked down four years earlier? " it was 2. 7 nautical miles from the point we put down, " dunn says. " i thought, ' whoa! it worked! ' i was amazed, actually. " a couple of days after the german ship was found, mearns also found the sydney. the boat had sunk to the bottom of the ocean only a short distance away from the raider that had attacked it 67 years before. steve inskeep, host : it ' s morning edition from npr news. i ' m steve inskeep. david greene, host : and i ' m david greene in for renee montagne. we ' re going to hear next the strange tale of how psychology pinpointed the location of a sunken ship. in


. i ' m steve inskeep. david greene, host : and i ' m david greene in for renee montagne. we ' re going to hear next the strange tale of how psychology pinpointed the location of a sunken ship. in november of 1941, the middle of the second world war, two ships crossed paths off the coast of australia. one was a german raider called the kormoran, the other, an australian warship called the sydney. guns were fired, both ships were damaged and both sank to the bottom of the ocean. it was two australian psychologists working for a nonprofit called the finding sydney foundation who located the wreckage of the boats. npr ' s alix spiegel explains. alix spiegel : this story begins at the end of a battle, with two ships - both mortally wounded - drifting away from each other in the middle of the night. according to bob trotter, who used to direct the finding sydney foundation, 300 of the surviving german sailors had packed themselves into lifeboats and were sitting there in the darkness watching the ship that they had just attacked slowly disappear. bob trotter : all they saw of sydney was a glow on the horizon, which in the words of the german captain suddenly went out - no explosion, nothing, just a glow that suddenly went out like a light being switched off. and that was the last anyone saw of sydney for 66 years. and all of the 645 men on board. spiegel : now apparently this loss of the sydney was really devastating for the australian public. trotter : the nation was thunderstruck. sydney was what i guess you could describe as she was the jewel in the navy ' s crown. spiegel : and then she wasn ' t. then she was a pile of steel at the bottom of the indian ocean. but where, exactly was that pile? that was the question put to the 300 surviving germans. unfortunately, most of those germans were fuzzy on where precisely the ships went down, which, trotter says, isn ' t all that surprising. trotter : particularly in a wartime situation where the position of the ship is really kept in the bridge area, it would not be normal that the rest of the ship ' s company would be told. spiegel : still, when the germans were picked up and interrogated, around 70 did come up with a location. it ' s just those locations didn ' t make a lot of sense. kim kirsner : the positions are spread out


spiegel : still, when the germans were picked up and interrogated, around 70 did come up with a location. it ' s just those locations didn ' t make a lot of sense. kim kirsner : the positions are spread out, smeared over hundreds of miles. spiegel : this is kim kirsner, one of the two psychologists who worked on finding the sydney. and he says the locations were all over the map, literally. kirsner : a hundred and twenty miles from the coast. there ' s another one just 160 miles from cape cuvier. there ' s another one which is 130 miles from shark bay, which is a different type of referent. spiegel : one survivor placed the sinking halfway to antarctica, which understandably raised this question in the minds of the australian people. john dunne : there was a lot of discussion about whether you could believe these reports. spiegel : that ' s john dunne, the second psychologist who worked to find the ships. dunne : people were saying you can ' t believe what they are saying because these are the enemy. they ' re going to be telling lies under interrogation. and the reason you ' re getting all these different reports is that they ' re all telling different kinds of lies. spiegel : and according to bob trotter, because there was so little faith in the german reports, wild theories about what had happened and where the boats might be flourished. trotter : if you didn ' t believe the germans, the number of possibilities were endless as to what might ' ve happened and where the ship might be. spiegel : but as cognitive psychologists, kirsner and dunne took a very different view of the german accounts. to them, the spread of the reports looked like the kind of data that they saw in memory experiments. and so they set out to prove scientifically that the germans were probably telling the truth. john dunne : dunne : show that the characteristics of these reports had the right kind of characteristics that you ' d expect to see if it was all due to failures of memory and to the vagaries of transmitting information from person to person. spiegel : now to make this case, dunne says, they turned to the work of a british psychologist. dunne : sir frederic bartlett. spiegel : sir frederic bartlett, like kirsner and dunne, was a psychologist interested in what happens to memory over time. and in the 1930s he did a series of experiments with a native american folktale


. dunne : sir frederic bartlett. spiegel : sir frederic bartlett, like kirsner and dunne, was a psychologist interested in what happens to memory over time. and in the 1930s he did a series of experiments with a native american folktale called " the war of the ghosts. " now this story was, at least to a british mind, very, very strange, with lots of bizarre leaps in the narrative. dunne : so the story starts by saying, there were two young men from egulac. unidentified woman : one night, two young men from egulac went down to the river to hunt seals, and while they were there it became foggy and calm. spiegel : so in one of these experiments bartlett would tell somebody this story. dunne : then he ' d ask them to tell the story back to him. and he would write that down. he would then wait a little while, go back to those people and ask them to tell the story a second time. spiegel : then he would write that down. and over months and years, he ' d come back to that same person again and again and document how the story changed each time. so for example, listen to how one person changed the first two sentences of the story. here ' s version one : unidentified woman : ( reading ) there were two young men. they went to the riverside. they heard war cries. spiegel : version two, 14 days later : unidentified woman : ( reading ) there were two ghosts. they went on a river. spiegel : version three, after a month : unidentified woman : ( reading ) there were ghosts. there took place a fight between them. spiegel : so you see there ' s change. but the way bartlett saw, it the change happens in very predictable ways. dunne : in their recall attempts they try to move the elements of the story in a way, or change them in a way, or add things to them so that made them make more sense. spiegel : that is, they tried to make the stories conform to a more traditional western narrative. and this made bartlett theorize that memory is composed really of two parts. when you make a memory there ' s this content that you ' re trying to remember, which you embed in a schema or general theory of what is going on. and over time you remember less of the original content and more just the general theory. so you ' re remembering the basic gist of the story and supplement


remember, which you embed in a schema or general theory of what is going on. and over time you remember less of the original content and more just the general theory. so you ' re remembering the basic gist of the story and supplementing it or changing it so that it fits a more comfortable mold. you see the same pattern of change if you pass the story from one person to the next, which is another experiment that bartlett did. so how does all of this relate to the germans? dunne : we thought, ok. all of these reports by the survivors can be thought of rather like this experiment by bartlett. spiegel : so what dunne and kirsner did was that they took the story versions from bartlett and counted up all of the changes in them. so every time there was a change in a sentence they noted it and they put that on a graph. dunne : we can count up the different kinds of versions of these stories and that has a particular statistical profile. spiegel : then they did the same thing with the german accounts. they arranged the 70 accounts into groups that seemed to be related to one another, and then they charted them on a graph. dunne : and what we found was that there was a correspondence, that our data looked like the kind of data that bartlett had generated in his study. spiegel : if you placed one graph over the other, their profiles matched, which suggested to them that the germans were not in fact lying. kirsner : it means it ' s not a contrived set of data. spiegel : so after all this, kirsner and dunne sit down with a map of the indian ocean, and what they did was try to pinpoint the place on that map which best fit all of the different accounts of where the ships had gone down. dunne : that ' s what we did : we just took each point in the ocean, and we looked at how well it satisfied or conformed to each of these statements. spiegel : they then marked that spot down as the place where they thought the german ship would be found. and in 2004, gave that information to the finding sydney foundation. now, at that time there were no real plans to go hunting for the boats. so at least as far as john dunne was concerned, that was that. dunne : i never really thought that i would ever find out, you know, that if it was going to be right or wrong. spiegel : but then a funny thing


pediatric diseases and conditionscongenital muscular torticollis torticollis, also known as wryneck, is a twisting of the neck that causes the head to rotate and tilt at an odd angle. the exact cause of torticollis is unknown. congenital muscular torticollis is more likely to occur in firstborn children. this may also be accompanied by a congenital hip dislocation. the cause is likely from intrauterine positioning resulting in injury to the neck muscles. acquired torticollis may be caused by irritation to the cervical ligaments from a viral infection, trauma, or vigorous movement. additional causes may include : sleeping in an awkward position neck muscle injury at birth any injury that causes heavy scarring and skin shrinkage neck muscle spasm torticollis may also be a secondary condition that results from the following : slipped facets ( two small joints on the side of the spine ) viral or bacterial infection the following are the most common symptoms of torticollis. however, each individual may experience symptoms differently. symptoms may include : neck muscle pain or pain down the spine inability to turn the head, usually holding it twisted to one side spasm of the neck muscles awkward position of the chin the symptoms of torticollis may resemble other conditions and medical problems. always consult your physician for a diagnosis. diagnosis of torticollis usually is confirmed with a medical history and physical examination. specific treatment for torticollis will be determined by your physician based on : your age, overall health, and medical history extent of the condition your tolerance for specific medications, procedures, or therapies expectations for the course of the condition your opinion or preference treatment may include :


this article was originally distributed via prweb. prweb, worldnow and this site make no warranties or representations in connection therewith. ‘ a simple guide to planting oaks in australia ’ offers exciting and amazing tips on the importance of oaks and how to plant them successfully ‘ darnum, victoria, australia ( prweb ) january 11, 2013 author richard browne expresses his sturdy and prolific fervor for nature as he pens a profound and delightful anthology in a simple guide to planting oaks in australia. this is the author ’ s long dream to write a book about his passion – oak trees and to share to the world how he was captivated by its grandeur and mystery. this volume will reveal browne ’ s 10 years of collecting and planting oaks. it all began after arriving from ireland and realising what to do with his six acres of bare land. missing the beautiful and colorful changing of the seasons and the distinctive smell of the deciduous woods that he had enjoyed during his childhood, thus he decided to collect and plant oaks from different parts of the world. through time, browne studied and researched as much knowledge as could be found. browne believes that oaks have played a great part in the evolution of culture. it is also the most obvious form of flora and fauna that has been quite advantageous to the australian landscape, soil and wildlife rather than being detrimental like so many of the other impulsive imports. this book aims to provide a simple guide to the things people didn ’ t know, but probably should, about the oaks. a simple guide to planting oaks in australia is a book that showcases the author ’ s long years of passion for oaks. it will also help gardeners, oak enthusiasts and land owners learn many interesting new facts and method about oak planting and collecting. for more information on this book, interested parties may log on to http : / / www. xlibris. com. about the author richard browne has studied and collected oak trees for many years, both in europe and australia. he is a member of the international oak society, and an assistant curator for the encyclopaedia of life. the author is an educator and often called upon around s. e. australia for advice on trees and their planting. he is currently preparing an extensive work on the world ’ s oaks, of which this book is a small and often intriguing sample. a simple guide to planting oaks in australia * by richard browne publication date : december 21, 2012 picture book ; $ 49. 99 ; 96 pages ; 978 - 1 - 47


s oaks, of which this book is a small and often intriguing sample. a simple guide to planting oaks in australia * by richard browne publication date : december 21, 2012 picture book ; $ 49. 99 ; 96 pages ; 978 - 1 - 4797 - 4955 - 3 picture book hardcover ; $ 69. 99 ; 96 pages ; 978 - 1 - 4797 - 4956 - 0 ebook ; $ 3. 99 ; 978 - 1 - 4797 - 4957 - 7 members of the media who wish to review this book may request a complimentary paperback copy by contacting the publisher at ( 888 ) 795 - 4274 x. 7879. to purchase copies of the book for resale, please fax xlibris at ( 610 ) 915 - 0294 or call ( 888 ) 795 - 4274 x. 7879. for more information on self - publishing or marketing with xlibris, visit http : / / www. xlibris. com. to receive a free publishing guide, please call ( 888 ) 795 - 4274. for the original version on prweb visit : http : / / www. prweb. com / releases / prweb2013 / 1 / prweb10305717. htm


seemingly against all odds, she pulled her body and mind back together. she became fascinated by notions of human potential, the way the mind works. and she asked herself the big questions. " i wanted to make sense of it all. " it took years, however, to reach out to mithoefer. her plan : to see whether she could free herself from torment by taking a drug called mdma, commonly known as ecstasy. party drug and forbidden substance the compound known as 3, 4 - methylenedioxymethamphetamine, or mdma, was first synthesized in germany in 1912. no one quite knew what to do with it. it was studied by the military in the 1950s and eventually emerged from the lab in the late 1970s. the first report on its effect in humans was published in 1978 by independent chemist alexander shulgin and david nichols, a professor of pharmacology at purdue university. at the same time, shulgin was churning out the drug in his lab and sharing it with a handful of psychiatrists and therapists who saw mdma as a lever for human growth. dr. george greer helped shulgin make an early batch and offered it to interested couples and individuals. " mdma reduced the fear response, so people could talk about the things that made them afraid or upset, " he recalled. at the same time, " people were able to have normal cognitive function, and the insights they had were able to translate to everyday life. " a few people had mild panic attacks, says greer, " but in general, it was well - tolerated. " he described his experiments in a paper, detailing the experiences of 29 people. not everyone was so careful. by the mid - ' 80s, ecstasy was also in use as a party drug. in the spring of 1985, the alarm was sounding, and ecstasy was making headlines.


east bend elementary students found themselves trying to escape from a smoky house using fire skills instilled in them throughout the years on oct. 10. the east bend volunteer fire department held its annual fire safety event for east bend elementary students throughout the day. “ the purpose of this program is to instill into them the fire safety, ” said ronnie boles, east bend volunteer fire department fire chief. “ most of these kids have been through this program ever since pre - school and we run every grade level through every year. ” depending on their grade level, students were given a tour of the fire department starting with the fire truck, then the turnout gear that every fire fighter must wear, a video on the fires that east bend fire fighters have found themselves in and finally the smoke house. the smoke house is a mobile trailer that simulates a house for the students. in each room fire fighters talk with children about potential fire hazards that they may find around their house and how to prevent them if they see them. the tour takes them through a living room setting, a kitchen setting and a bedroom setting. “ the fire safety trailer is to show them different rooms and things that they can look for to prevent stuff, ” boles said. “ if they can prevent it before it gets started then that is huge for us. ” first grade and forward were allowed to participate in the smoke room which simulates a fire situation and has the children practicing an escape. “ with the pre - school classes we start out real basic, ” boles said. “ we ’ ll go through some basic things that we feel like that they can absorb. we don ’ t put them through any smoke or any situations that would make them really nervous. as they get older we add more to it. ’ boles said that the program continues to go more in depth as the kids get older. he says that they try to incorporate things the students may be learning in the classroom and tie it back to what fire fighters do in their job. “ we try to sprinkle in stuff that interests them along with the education, ” boles said. “ as the kids get older they need to learn more about math and reading and those kinds of things. we try to teach them that just to be a fireman you have to learn to read and you have to learn math. we hope that makes them more interested to learn about those things in the classroom. we ask them questions and we let them respond back to us and then we know how far in depth we need to


to learn to read and you have to learn math. we hope that makes them more interested to learn about those things in the classroom. we ask them questions and we let them respond back to us and then we know how far in depth we need to go with it. ” boles said that he has the benefit of having a child who is a student at east bend elementary and so he goes to him on guidance for what the kids want to learn and what activities would be most interesting to them. “ i pick his brain a little bit to see what they want to see, ” boles said. “ this is the educational part that i want them to have. when i ask him what he would want to see he always tells me things like the trucks, our gear and that they want to see what our job is. those are the things that interest them. ” boles said that east bend shares its fires safety smoke house with other schools in the area once they complete their program at east bend. the trailer was purchased used seven years ago. today they can take it to surrounding fire departments and allow them to train their local students in fire safety. “ when we purchased it we took it to these other locations and we trained the other fire departments with it so that we don ’ t have to be there, ” boles said. “ we can just drop it off and leave it. that way the kids at forbush elementary school are seeing the guys from the forbush fire department. they can start putting names with faces and start getting to know each other. ” boles said that this year ’ s fire safety theme is “ know two ways out. ” the theme is decided each year by the national fire protection agency. “ we base a lot of our education on what theme they decide to set, ” boles said. “ they take the data from when the fire departments file reports and they compile a report for the whole nation and they see where the focus needs to be based on what kind of calls the departments have been responding to the most. ” boles said that the fire safety event would not be possible without the help of his volunteers who are dedicated to giving their time to make sure that children and their family are safer. “ every one of these guys have jobs that they had to take a vacation day from in order to be here, ” boles said. “ we couldn ’ t hold this event without these guys who are willing to give their time. we have a really great group of volunteers here. ” reach lindsay


frequently asked questions about section 504 and the education of children with disabilities this document is a revised version of a document originally developed by the chicago office of the office for civil rights ( ocr ) in the u. s. department of education ( ed ) to clarify the requirements of section 504 of the rehabilitation act of 1973, as amended ( section 504 ) in the area of public elementary and secondary education. the primary purpose of these revisions is to incorporate information about the americans with disabilities act amendments act of 2008 ( amendments act ), effective january 1, 2009, which amended the americans with disabilities act of 1990 ( ada ) and included a conforming amendment to the rehabilitation act of 1973 that affects the meaning of disability in section 504. the amendments act broadens the interpretation of disability. the amendments act does not require ed to amend its section 504 regulations. ed ’ s section 504 regulations as currently written are valid and ocr is enforcing them consistent with the amendments act. in addition, ocr is currently evaluating the impact of the amendments act on ocr ’ s enforcement responsibilities under section 504 and title ii of the ada, including whether any changes in regulations, guidance, or other publications are appropriate. the revisions to this frequently asked questions document do not address the effects, if any, on section 504 and title ii of the amendments to the regulations implementing the individuals with disabilities education act ( idea ) that were published in the federal register at 73 fed. reg. 73006 ( december 1, 2008 ). an important responsibility of the office for civil rights ( ocr ) is to eliminate discrimination on the basis of disability against students with disabilities. ocr receives numerous complaints and inquiries in the area of elementary and secondary education involving section 504 of the rehabilitation act of 1973, as amended, 29 u. s. c. § 794 ( section 504 ). most of these concern identification of students who are protected by section 504 and the means to obtain an appropriate education for such students. section 504 is a federal law designed to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities in programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance from the u. s. department of education ( ed ). section 504 provides : " no otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the united states... shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.... " ocr enforces section


.. shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.... " ocr enforces section 504 in programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance from ed. recipients of this federal financial assistance include public school districts, institutions of higher education, and other state and local education agencies. the regulations implementing section 504 in the context of educational institutions appear at 34 c. f. r. part 104. the section 504 regulations require a school district to provide a " free appropriate public education " ( fape ) to each qualified student with a disability who is in the school district ' s jurisdiction, regardless of the nature or severity of the disability. under section 504, fape consists of the provision of regular or special education and related aids and services designed to meet the student ' s individual educational needs as adequately as the needs of nondisabled students are met. this resource document clarifies pertinent requirements of section 504. for additional information, please contact the office for civil rights. interrelationship of idea and section 504 1. what is the jurisdiction of the office for civil rights ( ocr ), the office of special education and rehabilitative services ( osers ) and state departments of education / instruction regarding educational services to students with disabilities? ocr, a component of the u. s. department of education, enforces section 504 of the rehabilitation act of 1973, as amended, ( section 504 ) a civil rights statute which prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities. ocr also enforces title ii of the americans with disabilities act of 1990 ( title ii ), which extends this prohibition against discrimination to the full range of state and local government services, programs, and activities ( including public schools ) regardless of whether they receive any federal financial assistance. the americans with disabilities act amendments act of 2008 ( amendments act ), effective january 1, 2009, amended the americans with disabilities act of 1990 ( ada ) and included a conforming amendment to the rehabilitation act of 1973 ( rehabilitation act ) that affects the meaning of disability in section 504. the standards adopted by the ada were designed not to restrict the rights or remedies available under section 504. the title ii regulations applicable to free appropriate public education issues do not provide greater protection than applicable section 504 regulations. this guidance focuses primarily on section 504. section 504 prohibits discrimination on the


rights or remedies available under section 504. the title ii regulations applicable to free appropriate public education issues do not provide greater protection than applicable section 504 regulations. this guidance focuses primarily on section 504. section 504 prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance from the u. s. department of education. title ii prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability by state and local governments. the office of special education and rehabilitative services ( osers ), also a component of the u. s. department of education, administers the individuals with disabilities education act ( idea ), a statute which funds special education programs. each state educational agency is responsible for administering idea within the state and distributing the funds for special education programs. idea is a grant statute and attaches many specific conditions to the receipt of federal idea funds. section 504 and the ada are antidiscrimination laws and do not provide any type of funding. 2. how does ocr get involved in disability issues within a school district? ocr receives complaints from parents, students or advocates, conducts agency initiated compliance reviews, and provides technical assistance to school districts, parents or advocates. 3. where can a school district, parent, or student get information on section 504 or find out information about ocr ’ s interpretation of section 504 and title ii? ocr provides technical assistance to school districts, parents, and students upon request. additionally, regulations and publicly issued policy guidance is available on ocr ’ s website, at http : / / www. ed. gov / policy / rights / guid / ocr / disability. html. 4. what services are available for students with disabilities under section 504? section 504 requires recipients to provide to students with disabilities appropriate educational services designed to meet the individual needs of such students to the same extent as the needs of students without disabilities are met. an appropriate education for a student with a disability under the section 504 regulations could consist of education in regular classrooms, education in regular classes with supplementary services, and / or special education and related services. 5. does ocr examine individual placement or other educational decisions for students with disabilities? except in extraordinary circumstances, ocr does not review the result of individual placement or other educational decisions so long as the school district complies with the procedural requirements of section 504 relating to identification and location of students with disabilities, evaluation of such students, and due process. accordingly, ocr generally will not evaluate the content of a


educational decisions so long as the school district complies with the procedural requirements of section 504 relating to identification and location of students with disabilities, evaluation of such students, and due process. accordingly, ocr generally will not evaluate the content of a section 504 plan or of an individualized education program ( iep ) ; rather, any disagreement can be resolved through a due process hearing. the hearing would be conducted under section 504 or the idea, whichever is applicable. ocr will examine procedures by which school districts identify and evaluate students with disabilities and the procedural safeguards which those school districts provide students. ocr will also examine incidents in which students with disabilities are allegedly subjected to treatment which is different from the treatment to which similarly situated students without disabilities are subjected. such incidents may involve the unwarranted exclusion of disabled students from educational programs and services. 6. what protections does ocr provide against retaliation? retaliatory acts are prohibited. a recipient is prohibited from intimidating, threatening, coercing, or discriminating against any individual for the purpose of interfering with any right or privilege secured by section 504. 7. does ocr mediate complaints? ocr does not engage in formal mediation. however, ocr may offer to facilitate mediation, referred to as “ early complaint resolution, ” to resolve a complaint filed under section 504. this approach brings the parties together so that they may discuss possible resolution of the complaint immediately. if both parties are willing to utilize this approach, ocr will work with the parties to facilitate resolution by providing each an understanding of pertinent legal standards and possible remedies. an agreement reached between the parties is not monitored by ocr. 8. what are the appeal rights with ocr? ocr is committed to the high quality resolution of every case. ocr affords the complainant an opportunity to appeal ocr ’ s letters of finding ( s ) issued pursuant to section 303 ( a ) of the case processing manual, and to request reconsideration of administrative closures or dismissals. the appeal / reconsideration process provides an opportunity for complainants to bring information to ocr ’ s attention that would change ocr ’ s decision. the complainant may send an appeal to the deputy assistant secretary for enforcement within 60 days of the date of ocr ’ s letter of finding ( s ). the complainant must explain why he or she believes the factual information was incomplete, the analysis of the facts was incorrect, and / or the appropriate legal


for enforcement within 60 days of the date of ocr ’ s letter of finding ( s ). the complainant must explain why he or she believes the factual information was incomplete, the analysis of the facts was incorrect, and / or the appropriate legal standard was not applied, and how this would change ocr ’ s determination in the case. 9. what does noncompliance with section 504 mean? a school district is out of compliance when it is violating any provision of the section 504 statute or regulations. 10. what sanctions can ocr impose on a school district that is out of compliance? ocr initially attempts to bring the school district into voluntary compliance through negotiation of a corrective action agreement. if ocr is unable to achieve voluntary compliance, ocr will initiate enforcement action. ocr may : ( 1 ) initiate administrative proceedings to terminate department of education financial assistance to the recipient ; or ( 2 ) refer the case to the department of justice for judicial proceedings. 11. who has ultimate authority to enforce section 504? in the educational context, ocr has been given administrative authority to enforce section 504. section 504 is a federal statute that may be enforced through the department ' s administrative process or through the federal court system. in addition, a person may at any time file a private lawsuit against a school district. the section 504 regulations do not contain a requirement that a person file a complaint with ocr and exhaust his or her administrative remedies before filing a private lawsuit. students protected under section 504 section 504 covers qualified students with disabilities who attend schools receiving federal financial assistance. to be protected under section 504, a student must be determined to : ( 1 ) have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities ; or ( 2 ) have a record of such an impairment ; or ( 3 ) be regarded as having such an impairment. section 504 requires that school districts provide a free appropriate public education ( fape ) to qualified students in their jurisdictions who have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities. 12. what is a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity? the determination of whether a student has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity must be made on the basis of an individual inquiry. the section 504 regulatory provision at 34 c. f. r. 104. 3 ( j ) ( 2 ) ( i ) defines a physical or mental impairment as any physiological disorder or condition, cosmetic


be made on the basis of an individual inquiry. the section 504 regulatory provision at 34 c. f. r. 104. 3 ( j ) ( 2 ) ( i ) defines a physical or mental impairment as any physiological disorder or condition, cosmetic disfigurement, or anatomical loss affecting one or more of the following body systems : neurological ; musculoskeletal ; special sense organs ; respiratory, including speech organs ; cardiovascular ; reproductive ; digestive ; genito - urinary ; hemic and lymphatic ; skin ; and endocrine ; or any mental or psychological disorder, such as mental retardation, organic brain syndrome, emotional or mental illness, and specific learning disabilities. the regulatory provision does not set forth an exhaustive list of specific diseases and conditions that may constitute physical or mental impairments because of the difficulty of ensuring the comprehensiveness of such a list. major life activities, as defined in the section 504 regulations at 34 c. f. r. 104. 3 ( j ) ( 2 ) ( ii ), include functions such as caring for one ' s self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, and working. this list is not exhaustive. other functions can be major life activities for purposes of section 504. in the amendments act ( see faq 1 ), congress provided additional examples of general activities that are major life activities, including eating, sleeping, standing, lifting, bending, reading, concentrating, thinking, and communicating. congress also provided a non - exhaustive list of examples of “ major bodily functions ” that are major life activities, such as the functions of the immune system, normal cell growth, digestive, bowel, bladder, neurological, brain, respiratory, circulatory, endocrine, and reproductive functions. the section 504 regulatory provision, though not as comprehensive as the amendments act, is still valid – the section 504 regulatory provision ’ s list of examples of major life activities is not exclusive, and an activity or function not specifically listed in the section 504 regulatory provision can nonetheless be a major life activity. 13. does the meaning of the phrase " qualified student with a disability " differ on the basis of a student ' s educational level, i. e., elementary and secondary versus postsecondary? yes. at the elementary and secondary educational level, a " qualified student with a disability " is a student with a disability who is : of an age at which students without disabilities


, i. e., elementary and secondary versus postsecondary? yes. at the elementary and secondary educational level, a " qualified student with a disability " is a student with a disability who is : of an age at which students without disabilities are provided elementary and secondary educational services ; of an age at which it is mandatory under state law to provide elementary and secondary educational services to students with disabilities ; or a student to whom a state is required to provide a free appropriate public education under the individuals with disabilities education act ( idea ). at the postsecondary educational level, a qualified student with a disability is a student with a disability who meets the academic and technical standards requisite for admission or participation in the institution ' s educational program or activity. 14. does the nature of services to which a student is entitled under section 504 differ by educational level? yes. public elementary and secondary recipients are required to provide a free appropriate public education to qualified students with disabilities. such an education consists of regular or special education and related aids and services designed to meet the individual educational needs of students with disabilities as adequately as the needs of students without disabilities are met. at the postsecondary level, the recipient is required to provide students with appropriate academic adjustments and auxiliary aids and services that are necessary to afford an individual with a disability an equal opportunity to participate in a school ' s program. recipients are not required to make adjustments or provide aids or services that would result in a fundamental alteration of a recipient ' s program or impose an undue burden. 15. once a student is identified as eligible for services under section 504, is that student always entitled to such services? yes, as long as the student remains eligible. the protections of section 504 extend only to individuals who meet the regulatory definition of a person with a disability. if a recipient school district re - evaluates a student in accordance with the section 504 regulatory provision at 34 c. f. r. 104. 35 and determines that the student ' s mental or physical impairment no longer substantially limits his / her ability to learn or any other major life activity, the student is no longer eligible for services under section 504. 16. are current illegal users of drugs excluded from protection under section 504? generally, yes. section 504 excludes from the definition of a student with a disability, and from section 504 protection, any student who is currently engaging in the illegal use of drugs when a covered entity acts on the basis of such use. ( there are exceptions for persons


that the ameliorative effects of mitigating measures must not be considered in determining if a person is an individual with a disability. congress did not define the term “ mitigating measures ” but rather provided a non - exhaustive list of “ mitigating measures. ” the mitigating measures are as follows : medication ; medical supplies, equipment or appliances ; low - vision devices ( which do not include ordinary eyeglasses or contact lenses ) ; prosthetics ( including limbs and devices ) ; hearing aids and cochlear implants or other implantable hearing devices ; mobility devices ; oxygen therapy equipment and supplies ; use of assistive technology ; reasonable accommodations or auxiliary aids or services ; and learned behavioral or adaptive neurological modifications. congress created one exception to the mitigating measures analysis. the ameliorative effects of the mitigating measures of ordinary eyeglasses or contact lenses shall be considered in determining if an impairment substantially limits a major life activity. “ ordinary eyeglasses or contact lenses ” are lenses that are intended to fully correct visual acuity or eliminate refractive error, whereas “ low - vision devices ” ( listed above ) are devices that magnify, enhance, or otherwise augment a visual image. 22. does ocr endorse a single formula or scale that measures substantial limitation? no. the determination of substantial limitation must be made on a case - by - case basis with respect to each individual student. the section 504 regulatory provision at 34 c. f. r. 104. 35 ( c ) requires that a group of knowledgeable persons draw upon information from a variety of sources in making this determination. 23. are there any impairments which automatically mean that a student has a disability under section 504? no. an impairment in and of itself is not a disability. the impairment must substantially limit one or more major life activities in order to be considered a disability under section 504. 24. can a medical diagnosis suffice as an evaluation for the purpose of providing fape? no. a physician ' s medical diagnosis may be considered among other sources in evaluating a student with an impairment or believed to have an impairment which substantially limits a major life activity. other sources to be considered, along with the medical diagnosis, include aptitude and achievement tests, teacher recommendations, physical condition, social and cultural background, and adaptive behavior. as noted in faq 22, the section 504 regulations require school districts to draw upon a variety of sources in interpreting evaluation data and making placement decisions


s eligibility for services under section 504? the section 504 regulatory provision at 34 c. f. r. 104. 35 ( c ) ( 3 ) requires that school districts ensure that the determination that a student is eligible for special education and / or related aids and services be made by a group of persons, including persons knowledgeable about the meaning of the evaluation data and knowledgeable about the placement options. if a parent disagrees with the determination, he or she may request a due process hearing. 29. once a student is identified as eligible for services under section 504, is there an annual or triennial review requirement? if so, what is the appropriate process to be used? or is it appropriate to keep the same section 504 plan in place indefinitely after a student has been identified? periodic re - evaluation is required. this may be conducted in accordance with the idea regulations, which require re - evaluation at three - year intervals ( unless the parent and public agency agree that re - evaluation is unnecessary ) or more frequently if conditions warrant, or if the child ' s parent or teacher requests a re - evaluation, but not more than once a year ( unless the parent and public agency agree otherwise ). 30. is a section 504 re - evaluation similar to an idea re - evaluation? how often should it be done? yes. section 504 specifies that re - evaluations in accordance with the idea is one means of compliance with section 504. the section 504 regulations require that re - evaluations be conducted periodically. section 504 also requires a school district to conduct a re - evaluation prior to a significant change of placement. ocr considers an exclusion from the educational program of more than 10 school days a significant change of placement. ocr would also consider transferring a student from one type of program to another or terminating or significantly reducing a related service a significant change in placement. 31. what is reasonable justification for referring a student for evaluation for services under section 504? school districts may always use regular education intervention strategies to assist students with difficulties in school. section 504 requires recipient school districts to refer a student for an evaluation for possible special education or related aids and services or modification to regular education if the student, because of disability, needs or is believed to need such services. 32. a student is receiving services that the school district maintains are necessary under section 504 in order to provide the student with an appropriate education. the student ' s parent no longer wants the student to receive those services. if the parent wishes to


. 32. a student is receiving services that the school district maintains are necessary under section 504 in order to provide the student with an appropriate education. the student ' s parent no longer wants the student to receive those services. if the parent wishes to withdraw the student from a section 504 plan, what can the school district do to ensure continuation of services? the school district may initiate a section 504 due process hearing to resolve the dispute if the district believes the student needs the services in order to receive an appropriate education. 33. a student has a disability referenced in the idea, but does not require special education services. is such a student eligible for services under section 504? the student may be eligible for services under section 504. the school district must determine whether the student has an impairment which substantially limits his or her ability to learn or another major life activity and, if so, make an individualized determination of the child ' s educational needs for regular or special education or related aids or services. for example, such a student may receive adjustments in the regular classroom. 34. how should a recipient school district view a temporary impairment? a temporary impairment does not constitute a disability for purposes of section 504 unless its severity is such that it results in a substantial limitation of one or more major life activities for an extended period of time. the issue of whether a temporary impairment is substantial enough to be a disability must be resolved on a case - by - case basis, taking into consideration both the duration ( or expected duration ) of the impairment and the extent to which it actually limits a major life activity of the affected individual. in the amendments act ( see faq 1 ), congress clarified that an individual is not “ regarded as ” an individual with a disability if the impairment is transitory and minor. a transitory impairment is an impairment with an actual or expected duration of 6 months or less. 35. is an impairment that is episodic or in remission a disability under section 504? yes, under certain circumstances. in the amendments act ( see faq 1 ), congress clarified that an impairment that is episodic or in remission is a disability if it would substantially limit a major life activity when active. a student with such an impairment is entitled to a free appropriate public education under section 504. once a student is identified as being eligible for regular or special education and related aids or services, a decision must be made regarding the type of services the student needs. 36. if a student is eligible for services under both the


under section 504. once a student is identified as being eligible for regular or special education and related aids or services, a decision must be made regarding the type of services the student needs. 36. if a student is eligible for services under both the idea and section 504, must a school district develop both an individualized education program ( iep ) under the idea and a section 504 plan under section 504? no. if a student is eligible under idea, he or she must have an iep. under the section 504 regulations, one way to meet section 504 requirements for a free appropriate public education is to implement an iep. 37. must a school district develop a section 504 plan for a student who either " has a record of disability " or is " regarded as disabled "? no. in public elementary and secondary schools, unless a student actually has an impairment that substantially limits a major life activity, the mere fact that a student has a " record of " or is " regarded as " disabled is insufficient, in itself, to trigger those section 504 protections that require the provision of a free appropriate public education ( fape ). this is consistent with the amendments act ( see faq 1 ), in which congress clarified that an individual who meets the definition of disability solely by virtue of being “ regarded as ” disabled is not entitled to reasonable accommodations or the reasonable modification of policies, practices or procedures. the phrases " has a record of disability " and " is regarded as disabled " are meant to reach the situation in which a student either does not currently have or never had a disability, but is treated by others as such. as noted in faq 34, in the amendments act ( see faq 1 ), congress clarified that an individual is not “ regarded as ” an individual with a disability if the impairment is transitory and minor. a transitory impairment is an impairment with an actual or expected duration of 6 months or less. 38. what is the receiving school district ' s responsibility under section 504 toward a student with a section 504 plan who transfers from another district? if a student with a disability transfers to a district from another school district with a section 504 plan, the receiving district should review the plan and supporting documentation. if a group of persons at the receiving school district, including persons knowledgeable about the meaning of the evaluation data and knowledgeable about the placement options determines that the plan is appropriate, the district is required to implement the plan. if the district determines that the plan is inappropriate


persons at the receiving school district, including persons knowledgeable about the meaning of the evaluation data and knowledgeable about the placement options determines that the plan is appropriate, the district is required to implement the plan. if the district determines that the plan is inappropriate, the district is to evaluate the student consistent with the section 504 procedures at 34 c. f. r. 104. 35 and determine which educational program is appropriate for the student. there is no section 504 bar to the receiving school district honoring the previous iep during the interim period. information about idea requirements when a student transfers is available from the office of special education and rehabilitative services at http : / / idea. ed. gov / explore / view / p / % 2croot % 2cdynamic % 2cqacorner % 2c3 % 2c 39. what are the responsibilities of regular education teachers with respect to implementation of section 504 plans? what are the consequences if the district fails to implement the plans? regular education teachers must implement the provisions of section 504 plans when those plans govern the teachers ' treatment of students for whom they are responsible. if the teachers fail to implement the plans, such failure can cause the school district to be in noncompliance with section 504. 40. what is the difference between a regular education intervention plan and a section 504 plan? a regular education intervention plan is appropriate for a student who does not have a disability or is not suspected of having a disability but may be facing challenges in school. school districts vary in how they address performance problems of regular education students. some districts employ teams at individual schools, commonly referred to as " building teams. " these teams are designed to provide regular education classroom teachers with instructional support and strategies for helping students in need of assistance. these teams are typically composed of regular and special education teachers who provide ideas to classroom teachers on methods for helping students experiencing academic or behavioral problems. the team usually records its ideas in a written regular education intervention plan. the team meets with an affected student ' s classroom teacher ( s ) and recommends strategies to address the student ' s problems within the regular education environment. the team then follows the responsible teacher ( s ) to determine whether the student ' s performance or behavior has improved. in addition to building teams, districts may utilize other regular education intervention methods, including before - school and after - school programs, tutoring programs, and mentoring programs. public elementary and secondary schools must employ procedural safeguards regarding the identification, evaluation, or educational placement of persons


teams, districts may utilize other regular education intervention methods, including before - school and after - school programs, tutoring programs, and mentoring programs. public elementary and secondary schools must employ procedural safeguards regarding the identification, evaluation, or educational placement of persons who, because of disability, need or are believed to need special instruction or related services. 41. must a recipient school district obtain parental consent prior to conducting an initial evaluation? yes. ocr has interpreted section 504 to require districts to obtain parental permission for initial evaluations. if a district suspects a student needs or is believed to need special instruction or related services and parental consent is withheld, the idea and section 504 provide that districts may use due process hearing procedures to seek to override the parents ' denial of consent for an initial evaluation. 42. if so, in what form is consent required? section 504 is silent on the form of parental consent required. ocr has accepted written consent as compliance. idea as well as many state laws also require written consent prior to initiating an evaluation. 43. what can a recipient school district do if a parent withholds consent for a student to secure services under section 504 after a student is determined eligible for services? section 504 neither prohibits nor requires a school district to initiate a due process hearing to override a parental refusal to consent with respect to the initial provision of special education and related services. nonetheless, school districts should consider that idea no longer permits school districts to initiate a due process hearing to override a parental refusal to consent to the initial provision of services. 44. what procedural safeguards are required under section 504? recipient school districts are required to establish and implement procedural safeguards that include notice, an opportunity for parents to review relevant records, an impartial hearing with opportunity for participation by the student ' s parents or guardian, representation by counsel and a review procedure. 45. what is a recipient school district ' s responsibility under section 504 to provide information to parents and students about its evaluation and placement process? section 504 requires districts to provide notice to parents explaining any evaluation and placement decisions affecting their children and explaining the parents ' right to review educational records and appeal any decision regarding evaluation and placement through an impartial hearing. 46. is there a mediation requirement under section 504? the following terms may be confusing and / or are frequently used incorrectly in the elementary and secondary school context. equal access : equal opportunity of a qualified person with a disability to participate in or benefit from educational aid, benefits, or


under section 504? the following terms may be confusing and / or are frequently used incorrectly in the elementary and secondary school context. equal access : equal opportunity of a qualified person with a disability to participate in or benefit from educational aid, benefits, or services free appropriate public education ( fape ) : a term used in the elementary and secondary school context ; for purposes of section 504, refers to the provision of regular or special education and related aids and services that are designed to meet individual educational needs of students with disabilities as adequately as the needs of students without disabilities are met and is based upon adherence to procedures that satisfy the section 504 requirements pertaining to educational setting, evaluation and placement, and procedural safeguards placement : a term used in the elementary and secondary school context ; refers to regular and / or special educational program in which a student receives educational and / or related services reasonable accommodation : a term used in the employment context to refer to modifications or adjustments employers make to a job application process, the work environment, the manner or circumstances under which the position held or desired is customarily performed, or that enable a covered entity ' s employee with a disability to enjoy equal benefits and privileges of employment ; this term is sometimes used incorrectly to refer to related aids and services in the elementary and secondary school context or to refer to academic adjustments, reasonable modifications, and auxiliary aids and services in the postsecondary school context reasonable modifications : under a regulatory provision implementing title ii of the ada, public entities are required to make reasonable modifications in policies, practices, or procedures when the modifications are necessary to avoid discrimination on the basis of disability, unless the public entity can demonstrate that making the modifications would fundamentally alter the nature of the service, program, or activity related services : a term used in the elementary and secondary school context to refer to developmental, corrective, and other supportive services, including psychological, counseling and medical diagnostic services and transportation


mathematica notebook for this page. all trignometric functions sine, cosine, tangent, secant, cosecant, cotangent can all be simply defined in terms of a single function sine. sine, as associated with trigonometry, began in early civilization as a very important measuring science. when the function concept and calculus and analytic geometry were introduced in about 1700, sine became a function and has little to do with triangles. the sine function appears unexpectedly throughout analysis, because in essence it captures the idea of a wave, a fundamental concept in physics. from robert yates : trigonometry seems to have been developed, with certain traces of indian influence, first by the arabs about 800 as a aid to the solution of astronomical problems. from them the knowledge probably passed to the greeks. johann muller ( c. 1464 ) wrote the first treatise : de triangulis omnimodis ; this was followed closely by others. see also : history of trigonometric functions. sine curve is the curve of the sine function. it is also known as sinusoid. sine is sometimes called circular function because the essential feature of the sine function can be thought of as a point moving around a circle in constant speed, and the value of sine being the height of the point. step by step description : in the formula y = = a * sin [ x / p + s ], a is the amplitude, p the period, and s the phase shift. sine _ plot. gcf all trig functions is defined in terms of sine. if a right triangle is placed in a standard position ( that is : in the cartesian coordinate system such that it lies in the first quadrant, and the right angle vertex lies on the x - axes, and the hypotenuse touches the origin ), and if r denote ( the length of ) the hypotenuse, x the bottom side, y the vertical side, θ the angle of x and r, then we have the following formulas : | sin [ θ ] = = y / r | | cos [ θ ] = = x / r | | tan [ θ ] = = y / x | see : list of trigonometric identities. sine curve is the development of a obliquely cut right circular cylinder. ( the edge of the cylinder rolled out is a sinusoid ). graphics code.. tracing sinusoid sinusoid fun animation


| education info in short the republic has a huge educational potential. - there are 750 preschool institutions, 681 state daytime general education institutions and 19 extra - mural ones ; - over 60 institutions of elementary and intermediate vocational education ; - 8 autonomous state higher education institutions ; - 14 branches of republican and russian higher education institutions ; - 9 branches of non - governmental higher education institutions. training of specialists with elementary vocational education is conducted in 73 professions for 24 branches of economy ; training of specialists with intermediate vocational education is conducted in 77 different fields for 12 key branches of the republic ' s economy. yakutsk state university named after maxim ammosov is one of the largest higher education institutions of siberia ; about 19 thousand students study there in four consolidated groups of specialist fields. yakutsk state university includes 7 institutes, 10 faculties, and 2 branches in the towns of mirny and neryungri. today 135 departments, scientific and research institute of applied mathematics and informatics, 19 scientific and research laboratories, and interuniversity scientific library make the centres of scientific and pedagogical work. the share of lecturers with academic degrees makes 52 percent ; the share of doctors is 10 percent. more than 60 of the university ' s lecturers are the members of the russian academy of sciences, russian federation ' s public academies, and the academy of sciences of the sakha republic ( yakutia ). technical specialists for the key branches of economy - rail, air, and water transport, communication and informatization, extracting and processing industries, power engineering, housing and utilities sector - are trained outside the republic. long - term contractual relations have been established with 300 leading universities of russia and cis. over 4 thousand people study outside the republic in 28 directions and 220 specialist fields.


shades creek, birmingham area fishing in shades creek shades creek is a small to medium size stream that runs through the southwest corner of jefferson county and bibb county, alabama, before finally emptying into the cahaba river. its watershed extends roughly from tannehill flowing northeast through irondale. portions of the watershed have experienced tremendous residential expansion and development in recent years, which has increased stormwater runoff. stormwater drainage from urban areas results in more contaminants and pollutants entering this system, impacting both water quality and quantity. jefferson county has developed a comprehensive plan ( the shades creek watershed plan ) that addresses many of these issues and focuses on road and sewer development in addition to economic and recreational issues. as with many small streams and watersheds, sediment runoff from urban development has impacted shades creek over recent years, which has affected the natural diversity of aquatic resources in this small stream. several federal and state agencies such as the us environmental protection agency, alabama department of environmental management, alabama department of conservation and natural resources, alabama water watch and others have a mission to preserve the biodiversity of the aquatic and wildlife resources within the watershed. in 2003, samford university ’ s biology department, designed a program using students to monitor and survey the stream using a variety of sampling and collection techniques. findings indicated that shades creek had or was currently experiencing pollution problems. this conclusion was based upon low diversity, expanded urban construction, sedimentation problems, and channelization of the stream bed. new measures have since been developed by the jefferson county planning and zoning commission to help reduce the unhealthy sediment discharge into this creek and to assist in recovery efforts. although shades creek has experienced habitat problems in certain “ high development ” areas where it flows through jefferson county, it continues to maintain a population of popular sportfish and non - game species for savvy anglers who enjoy stream fishing. various species of bream and sunfish, largemouth bass, alabama spotted bass, and channel catfish are often found in large pools or along the edge of riffles adjacent to deeper sections of the creek. small beetle spins, rooster tails, popping bugs, artificial crayfish or various artificial flies are the most popular lures used to entice fish to strike. the land on the bottom of the stream and land adjacent to the stream may be privately owned, and permission must be obtained from the landowner prior to crossing or wading these areas. access to shades creek can often be found at road crossings or bridge overpasses along the 54. 6 mile


and land adjacent to the stream may be privately owned, and permission must be obtained from the landowner prior to crossing or wading these areas. access to shades creek can often be found at road crossings or bridge overpasses along the 54. 6 mile length before it joins with the cahaba river at the shelby - bibb county line. this scenic creek runs through six urban areas that include irondale, birmingham, mountain brook, homewood, hoover and bessemer, al. several effort are on - going to restore the biological and recreational integrity of shades creek. near samford, the alabama clean water partnership held a workshop to show a stream restoration. a 33 - acre section of the creek adjacent to homewood high school serves as unique habitat for a rare salamander and is under petition to be listed as a special conservation easement. the black warrior and cahaba land trust have also purchased 47 - acres of property along shades creek near the shannon community and behind wildwood shopping center as a permanent conservation area for preservation purposes. shades creek is a unique stream system that flows through several geographical and urban areas in jefferson county and contains a variety of fish and other aquatic resources. however, due to its location, this small stream flows through some of the fastest growing regions of the state whose population expansion and suburban sprawl threaten to degrade the habitat and ecology of this fragile system. it is up to concerned citizens and conservation groups to protect and monitor residential development and make sure better management practices ( bmp ’ s ) are followed to protect this ecosystem from further environmental impacts so that future generations can enjoy the scenic beauty and recreational opportunities along this stream. fishing license information may be found at : licenses. instant licensing is available via internet ( 2 % fee ) or telephone 1 - 888 - 848 - 6887 ( $ 3. 95 fee ). fishing licenses may also be purchased at local bait and tackle stores and county probate offices. youth age 15 and younger fish for free. alabama residents age 65 or older are not required to purchase a fishing license. possession and creel limits for alabama public waters are listed at : creel limits. the us geological survey gives water discharge estimates and gage heights. friends of shade creek is " a nonprofit organization of local citizens working for the protection of, and responsible development along, beautiful shades creek in alabama. " regular hikes are hosted on homewood forest preserve. shades creek is cleaned in the fall, and several canoe trips are made during the year. they have monthly meetings on the


protection of, and responsible development along, beautiful shades creek in alabama. " regular hikes are hosted on homewood forest preserve. shades creek is cleaned in the fall, and several canoe trips are made during the year. they have monthly meetings on the second thursday of the month at homewood public library on oxmoor road. additional information about the local area is available at www. birminghamal. org and www. bhamdining. com. the fisheries section ' s district office can answer specific questions about the cahaba river by sending email to jay. haffner @ dcnr. alabama. gov. " it shall be unlawful to intentionally stock or release any fish, mussel, snail, crayfish or their embryos including bait fish into the public waters of alabama under the jurisdiction of the division of wildlife and freshwater fisheries as provided in rule 220 - 2 -. 42 except those waters from which it came without the written permission of a designated employee of the department of conservation and natural resources authorized by the director of the division of wildlife and freshwater fisheries to issue such permit. the provisions of this rule shall not apply to the incidental release of bait into the water during the normal process of fishing. " support kids fishing, aquatic habitat improvement and bringing back rare alabama fish - click here prepared by : fisheries section, division of wildlife and freshwater fisheries, alabama department of conservation and natural resources. this site is presented for information only the fisheries section cannot be responsible for the quality of information or services offered through linked sites, disclaimer. to have your site included, send your url, email address, or telephone number to the fisheries web master, firstname. lastname @ example. org. the fisheries section reserves the right to select sites based on relevant and appropriate content of interest to our viewers. if you discover errors in the content or links of this page, please contact doug darr. thank you.


classifying north atlantic tropical cyclone tracks by mass moments jennifer a. nakamura ; upmanu lall ; yochanan kushnir ; suzana j. camargo - classifying north atlantic tropical cyclone tracks by mass moments nakamura, jennifer a. camargo, suzana j. - lamont - doherty earth observatory - permanent url : - book / journal title : - journal of climate - a new method for classifying tropical cyclones or similar features is introduced. the cyclone track is considered as an open spatial curve, with the wind speed or power information along the curve considered to be a mass attribute. the first and second moments of the resulting object are computed and then used to classify the historical tracks using standard clustering algorithms. mass moments allow the whole track shape, length, and location to be incorporated into the clustering methodology. tropical cyclones in the north atlantic basin are clustered with k - means by mass moments, producing an optimum of six clusters with differing genesis locations, track shapes, intensities, life spans, landfalls, seasonal patterns, and trends. even variables that are not directly clustered show distinct separation between clusters. a trend analysis confirms recent conclusions of increasing tropical cyclones in the basin over the past two decades. however, the trends vary across clusters. - atmospheric sciences - item views :


guidelines for effective online discussions guidelines for effective online discussions this resource will help you, as an instructor, consider many factors that contribute to a successful implementation of online discussion in your course. variation and incremental development not every suggestion provided in this resource will fit every situation. you ’ ll need to find what works best for your students in the context of your course ; an iterative approach will likely be necessary in order to meet your learning goals. variables like class size and personality, scheduling, and topic might require adjustments. a group with a sense of community established through in - class interaction might seamlessly continue discussions online, while another groups might require more attention. - students know how to use a discussion board ; they ' ll make it work. discussion boards have been around for years and so your students have likely participated in one previously. however, you need to frame their participation in your forum with clear expectations and guidelines. - i don ’ t want to dominate the discussion ( and, frankly, i don ’ t have time to fully participate ) ; i can just suggest a topic and let the discussion evolve organically. you ' ll need to facilitate the discussion with well - crafted questions and, perhaps, with posts of your own. you also need to monitor the discussion and bring it into the face - to - face classroom. - the discussion board can be an optional supplement to the course in addition to the regular workload. not if you want the students to use it. the discussion board needs to be integrated into the course. you may choose to include discussion participation in the students ' grades. consider replacing some assignments in your syllabus in order to account for time spent in on - line discussion. asynchronous online discussions provide more reflection time and a potentially less stressful opportunity for introverted students to share their thoughts. however, these aspects do not guarantee participation. the following items are topics to consider for making your discussion board a positive learning experience. - try to develop a relationship between discussion board participants before jumping into class discussions. - consider face - to - face encounters or online icebreakers. - off topic discussions about favorite free time activities du jour or " getting to know you " posts listing x number of adjectives to describe yourself will start to build a relationship between the students. - consider a separate section for outside discussion ( e. g. where students can post announcements of campus events ). any type of " water cooler " social energy can spread to class discussion. clear expectations and examples expectations for post content to receive credit


. - consider a separate section for outside discussion ( e. g. where students can post announcements of campus events ). any type of " water cooler " social energy can spread to class discussion. clear expectations and examples expectations for post content to receive credit - must be at least x number of sentences - can ’ t simply be a question – must include background and explanation - no “ i agree ” or “ + 1 ” posts – explain why you agree - provide an example of a " good " post ( from previous student – if you have permission from the student – or one of your own ) expectations for language and style - text speak or traditional grammar? your choice of traditional composition guidelines or acronyms, abbreviations, and smiley faces will depend on your goals and purposes. you set up the guidelines. do you want to provide a forum for an informal exchange of ideas? or do you want to demonstrate to your students that the internet can be a space for academic discourse? - inter - post referencing guide - full quote of post or pertinent section of a post - refer to post number - any abbreviations that you ’ ll include : op, ^ ^ ^ ^, etc. expectations for etiquette - establish requirements for respectful and helpful attitudes in interactions - if relating stories about yourself or people you know ( depends on subject matter ), be mindful of protecting the anonymity of others make sure your students know how to access the discussion and know what to do when they have arrived. - walk through the process in class - provide instructions on - line or as a hand out facilitating ( without being the “ sage on the stage ” ) students often like to see lively participation from the instructor ; students evaluate those instructors as enthusiastic and adept at demonstrating their expertise. however, instructor posts can also stifle discussion. by observation, most instructors answer questions - - with what is perceived as the " definitive " answer - - instead of opening up more discussion with socratic questions of their own or proposing parallel topics of inquiry. here are some tips for facilitating discussion without dominating a forum : to encourage critical thinking - craft questions that invite reflection, not a single, factual answer. - in a topic header or introductory question, provide enough information to help your students think through either deep and focused answers or broad and synthesizing answers ( depending on your goals ). encourage them to bring in prior knowledge or outside sources in order to foster more complex thinking / synthesis. to encourage a high number of post - ask opinion questions. encourage your students to explain /


and synthesizing answers ( depending on your goals ). encourage them to bring in prior knowledge or outside sources in order to foster more complex thinking / synthesis. to encourage a high number of post - ask opinion questions. encourage your students to explain / support their opinions thoroughly. students that post their thoughts and then solicit the opinions of others will enrich a discussion. - include a goal with each discussion question, e. g. " generate as many reasons as possible, " " generate counter - arguments, " or " generate rebuttals. " ( note : these prompts typically work well for students with high familiarity with the topic, but may overload students without much prior familiarity. ) to encourage participation among students without much prior knowledge of a topic - elaborated questions, i. e. a question followed by a few possible responses to explore - provide a guide of question / comment types : - clarification : ask for verification or additional information. - probing assumptions : ask for explanation or reliability of assumptions. - examples : ask for demonstrations of a poster ' s reasoning process. - viewpoints : ask for and / or present possible alternative viewpoints. - implications : ask for and / or present possible consequences of a poster ' s reasoning process. - encourage students to reply to each other ’ s questions instead of expecting you to swoop in with the perfect answer. ( replying may be part of the assignment. ) this technique proves particularly effective for any topics you have already covered in class. - when you do answer a question, remind the student ( s ) of a class discussion, indicate a selection in a text, or point out a website that provides relevant information. ask the student ( s ) to report back. - establish an faq section for questions about participation expectations. - consider establishing a separate section for questions about course admin. continuity of discussion - thoughtful facilitation of the discussion board includes in - class discussion of topics brought up online. - if a discussion stagnates, you may need to plant another question or begin a new thread. stagnation may also occur in situations where students don ' t feel like they know enough to contribute to the discussion. see " question types " section, above, for hints in this regard. - if a discussion thread migrates to a new topic, you may wish to start a new discussion thread that ’ s more appropriately labeled for it. - nip any friction in the bud. remind them of your courtesy expectations ( perhaps in a separate email or


a discussion thread migrates to a new topic, you may wish to start a new discussion thread that ’ s more appropriately labeled for it. - nip any friction in the bud. remind them of your courtesy expectations ( perhaps in a separate email or face - to - face ), and continue the discussion. any egregious displays of disrespect may warrant a deleted post. - a fortunate characteristic of asynchronous communication is that you don ’ t have to make facilitation decisions immediately. take your time to think about a way to intervene that ’ s effective for meeting the learning goals for the activity. but do consider that if a post goes more than 24 hours without a reply, everyone may move on ( through observation, you will be able to judge your discussion board ' s culture in this regard ). - students, too, can facilitate a discussion. just as you might contact a particularly thoughtful and tactful student outside of class to ask him / her to be willing to partner up with a student or group in class, you may ask a few students to help keep discussions flowing by incorporating some of these techniques. ideally, an online discussion will augment time spent in the classroom and vice versa ; this result relies on deft integration on part of the instructor. make efforts to integrate the online portion into the face - to - face classroom so that students do not disregard the discussion board or, conversely, participate solely online with little effort in the classroom. suggestions for course integration : - use the discussion board as a source for in - class lecture / discussion topics. mine the discussion for intriguing topics and for concepts that aren ' t clear. - make participation in online discussion a part of the students ' grade. - consider replacing some assignments in your syllabus in order to account for time spent in on - line discussion. a note on learning and assessment for assessment purposes, number of posts or comments is a typical measure for participation because it is easy to quantify. however, reading and reflection may contribute just as much to student learning in online discussions. those students that focus on posting messages to meet a requirement, rather than reading messages, lose the benefit of shared knowledge building through the online discussion. discussion board psychology some people will say and do things online that they wouldn ’ t otherwise do in person. perhaps they ’ ll relax and express themselves more openly, or perhaps they ’ ll be rude and dismissive. hopefully you ’ ll find that the students feel free to express opinions and ask questions they wouldn